Configure Service Reference dialog box
Applies to: 
Visual Studio 
Visual Studio for Mac
Note
This article applies to Visual Studio 2017. If you're looking for the latest Visual Studio documentation, see Visual Studio documentation. We recommend upgrading to the latest version of Visual Studio. Download it here
The Configure Service Reference dialog box enables you to configure the behavior of Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) services.
To access the Configure Service Reference dialog box, right-click a service reference in Solution Explorer and choose Configure Service Reference. You can also access the dialog box by clicking the Advanced button in the Add Service Reference Dialog Box.
Task list
To change the address where a WCF service is hosted, enter the new address in the Address field.
To change the access level for classes in a WCF client, select an access-level keyword in the Access level for generated classes list.
To call the methods of a WCF service asynchronously, select the Generate asynchronous operations check box.
To generate message contract types in a WCF client, select the Always generate message contracts check box.
To specify list or dictionary collection types for a WCF client, select the types from the Collection type and Dictionary collection type lists.
To disable type sharing, clear the Reuse types in referenced assemblies check box. To enable type sharing for a subset of referenced assemblies, select the Reuse types in referenced assemblies check box, select Reuse types in specified referenced assemblies, and select the desired references in the Referenced assemblies list.
UIElement list
Address
Updates the web address where a service reference looks for a service. For example, during development, the service may be hosted on a development server and then later moved to a production server, necessitating an address change.
Note
The Address element is not available when the Configure Service Reference dialog box is displayed from the Add Service Reference Dialog Box.
Access level for generated classes
Determines the code access level for WCF client classes.
Note
For Website projects, this option is always set to Public and cannot be changed. For more information, see Troubleshooting service references.
Generate asynchronous operations
Determines whether WCF service methods is called synchronously (the default) or asynchronously.
Generate task-based operations
When writing async code, this option lets you take advantage of the Task Parallel Library (TPL) that was introduced with .NET 4. See Task Parallel Library (TPL).
Always generate message contracts
Determines whether message contract types are generated for a WCF client. For more information about message contracts, see Using message contracts.
Collection type
Specifies the list collection type for a WCF client. The default type is Array.
Dictionary collection type
Specifies the dictionary collection type for a WCF client. The default type is Dictionary<TKey,TValue>.
Reuse types in referenced assemblies
Determines whether a WCF client tries to reuse what already exists in referenced assemblies instead of generating new types when a service is added or updated. By default, this option is checked.
Reuse types in all referenced assemblies
When selected, all types in the Referenced assemblies list are reused if possible. By default, this option is selected.
Reuse types in specified referenced assemblies
When selected, only the selected types in the Referenced assemblies list are reused.
Referenced assemblies list
Contains a list of referenced assemblies for the project or website. When you select Reuse types in specified referenced assemblies, you can select or clear individual assemblies.
Add Web Reference
Displays the Add Web Reference dialog box.
Note
This option should only be used for projects that target version 2.0 of the .NET Framework.
Note
The Add Web Reference button is only available when the Configure Service Reference dialog box is displayed from the Add Service Reference Dialog Box.