Creating and Using Strong-Named Assemblies

A strong name consists of the assembly's identity — its simple text name, version number, and culture information (if provided) — plus a public key and a digital signature. It is generated from an assembly file using the corresponding private key. (The assembly file contains the assembly manifest, which contains the names and hashes of all the files that make up the assembly.)

Remember that once you give an assembly a strong name, all assemblies that reference that assembly also have to have strong names, so that the security of the strongly named assembly is not compromised.

Note   Once an assembly is created, you cannot sign it with a strong name. You can sign an assembly with a strong name only when you create it.

In This Section

• Strong Name Scenario
  Provides an overview of creating and referencing strong-named assemblies.
• Creating a Key Pair
  Describes how to create a cryptographic key pair for signing an assembly.
• Signing an Assembly with a Strong Name
  Describes how to create a strong-named assembly.
• Referencing a Strong-Named Assembly
  Describes how to reference a strong-named assembly.

Related Sections

• Creating Assemblies
  Provides an overview of creating assemblies.