.NET Framework Tools
The Microsoft .NET Framework SDK tools are designed to make it easier for you to create, deploy, and manage applications and components that target the .NET Framework. This section contains detailed information about the tools.
You can run all the tools from the command line with the exception of the Assembly Cache Viewer (Shfusion.dll) and the Microsoft CLR Debugger (DbgCLR.exe). You must access Shfusion.dll from Microsoft Windows Explorer. DbgCLR.exe is located in the Microsoft.NET\FrameworkSDK\GuiDebug folder.
Important
For the .NET Framework tools to function properly, you must set your Path, Include, and Lib environment variables correctly. Set these environment variables by running SDKVars.bat, which is located in the <SDK>\v2.0\Bin directory. SDKVars.bat must be executed in every command shell.
Configuration and Deployment Tools
| Tool | Description |
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Allows an administrator to precompile an ASP.NET application, either in place or for deployment. |
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Allows an administrator to create new browser definitions. |
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Allows an administrator or installation program to update the scriptmaps for an ASP.NET application to point to the ASP.NET ISAPI version associated with the tool. You can also use the tool to perform other ASP.NET configuration operations. |
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Allows an administrator to create and manage SQL Server databases used for ASP.NET services such as membership, roles, and profile properties. |
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Allows you to view and manipulate the contents of the global assembly cache using Windows Explorer. |
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Generates a file with an assembly manifest from one or more files that are either resource files or Microsoft intermediate language (MSIL) files. |
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Reads the metadata within an assembly and adds the necessary entries to the registry, which allows COM clients to create .NET Framework classes transparently. |
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Displays details for failed assembly binds. This information helps you diagnose why the .NET Framework cannot locate an assembly at run time. |
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Allows you to configure the CorFlags section of the header of a portable executable image. |
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Allows you to view and manipulate the contents of the global assembly cache and download cache. While Shfusion.dll provides similar functionality, you can use Gacutil.exe from build scripts, makefile files, and batch files. |
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Allows you to install and uninstall server resources by executing the installer components of a specified assembly. |
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Lists or removes all existing stores for the currently logged-on user. |
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Creates a native image from a managed assembly and installs it in the native image cache on the local computer. |
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Provides a graphical interface for managing .NET Framework security policy and applications that use remoting services. This tool also allows you to manage and configure assemblies in the global assembly cache. |
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Adds managed classes to Windows 2000 Component Services by loading and registering the assembly and generating, registering, and installing the type library into an existing COM+ 1.0 application. |
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Creates an XML serialization assembly for types in a specified assembly in order to improve the run-time performance of the XmlSerializer. |
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Helps you compile client applications that communicate with XML Web services using a technique called remoting. |
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Generates a type library from a common language runtime assembly. |
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Converts the type definitions found within a COM type library into equivalent definitions in managed metadata format. |
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Generates code for XML Web services and XML Web services clients from Web Services Description Language (WSDL) contract files, XML Schema Definition (XSD) schema files, and .discomap discovery documents. |
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Discovers the URLs of XML Web services located on a Web server, and saves documents related to each XML Web service on a local disk. |
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Generates XML schemas that follow the XSD language proposed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). This tool generates common language runtime classes and DataSet classes from an XSD schema file. |
Debugging Tools
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
Provides debugging services with a graphical interface to help application developers find and fix bugs in programs that target the runtime. |
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Provides command-line debugging services using the common language runtime Debug API. Used to find and fix bugs in programs that target the runtime. |
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Provides the debugging services of the common language runtime to Visual Studio or the WinDbg.exe debugging tool. |
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Provides command-line debugging services using the common language runtime Debug API. |
Security Tools
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
Generates X.509 certificates for testing purposes only. |
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Manages certificates, certificate trust lists (CTLs), and certificate revocation lists (CRLs). |
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Verifies the validity of a file signed with an X.509 certificate. The Certificate Verification tool only ships with the .NET Framework SDK version 1.0 and 1.1. In later versions, use the Sign Tool (SignTool.exe) utility instead. |
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Allows you to examine and modify machine, user, and enterprise-level code access security policies. |
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Signs a portable executable (PE) file with an Authenticode digital signature. The File Signing Tool only ships with the .NET Framework SDK version 1.0 and 1.1. In later versions, use the Sign Tool (SignTool.exe) utility instead. |
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Displays the minimal, optional, and refused permission sets requested by an assembly. You can also use this tool to view all declarative security used by an assembly. |
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Performs MSIL type safety verification checks and metadata validation checks on a specified assembly. |
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Migrates security policy between two compatible versions of the .NET Framework. |
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Extracts strong name public key information or Authenticode publisher certificates from an assembly, in a format that can be incorporated into code. |
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Allows you to change the registry settings for the Software Publishing State keys, which control the behavior of the certificate verification process. The Set Registry tool only ships with the .NET Framework SDK version 1.0 and 1.1. In later versions, use the Sign Tool (SignTool.exe) utility instead. |
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Digitally signs files, verifies signatures in files, and time stamps files. |
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Creates, for test purposes only, a Software Publisher's Certificate (SPC) from one or more X.509 certificates. |
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Helps create assemblies with strong names. Sn.exe provides options for key management, signature generation, and signature verification. |
General Tools
| Tool | Description |
|---|---|
Reads text files that contain licensing information and produces a .licenses file that can be embedded in a common language runtime executable. |
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Management Strongly Typed Class Generator (Mgmtclassgen.exe) |
Allows you to quickly generate an early-bound class in C#, Visual Basic, or JScript for a specified Windows Management Instrumentation (WMI) class. |
Generates a PE file from Microsoft intermediate language (MSIL). You can run the resulting executable, which contains MSIL code and the required metadata, to determine whether the MSIL code performs as expected. |
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Takes a PE file that contains MSIL code and creates a text file suitable as input to the MSIL Assembler (Ilasm.exe). |
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Converts text files and .resx (XML-based resource format) files to .NET common language runtime binary .resources files that can be embedded in a runtime binary executable or compiled into satellite assemblies. |
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Converts type definitions in a COM type library for an ActiveX control into a Windows Forms control. |
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Finds managed classes matching a specified search pattern, and displays information about those classes using the Reflection API. The Windows Forms Class Viewer only ships with the .NET Framework SDK version 1.0 and 1.1. |
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Allows you to quickly and easily localize Windows Forms forms. |