How to migrate from Visual Studio 2003 and Visual Studio 2005

Summary The 9.3 Web Application Developer Framework (ADF) supports Visual Studio 2005 to 2008 and the Microsoft .NET Framework versions 2.0, 3.0, and 3.5. This topic outlines the steps to migrate Active Server Pages (ASP) .NET 1.1 applications created in Visual Studio .NET 2003, 2005, and 2008.

In this topic

Migrating Visual Studio 2003 to Visual Studio 2005

See the following topic on the Microsoft Developer Network Web site (MSDN) to migrate from Visual Studio 2003 to Visual Studio 2005:

Migrating Visual Studio 2003 and 2005 to Visual Studio 2008

See the following topic on the MSDN Web site to migrate from Visual Studio 2003 and 2005 to Visual Studio 2008:

Developing applications with the Web ADF

The new runtime architecture can change common design patterns used in previous versions of the Microsoft .NET environment. The following are some key changes that can affect how you develop applications with the Web ADF:
  • Stand-alone class files are added and maintained in a project's App_Code directory. Upon compilation, classes in the App_Code directory are compiled into a single assembly and stored in a .NET Framework managed temporary location for the Web site (for example, C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\Temporary ASP.NET Files\MyWebApp). Web application code associated with existing .NET Active Server Pages (ASPX) or Web User Control (ASCX) files is compiled into a separate assembly and stored in the same temporary location.  
  • The code for a custom tool or command can be created and managed in a separate project, then added as a reference to the Web application in which you want to implement its functionality. Permissions on the directory that contains the custom class library (.dll) needs to provide read and execute privileges to the user running the Web application. When adding a class library project as a reference to a Web site project, the class library project output (.dll) is copied to the Bin folder in the Web application's root directory.
  • By default, the position of controls added in Visual Studio 2005 at design time is not set. As a result, the controls are permitted to flow from left to right on a line and from top to bottom on the page.
Do the following to use absolute positioning as the default and place controls at precise positions on the design view surface:
  1. Choose Layout, Position, and Auto-Position Options.
  2. Choose CSS Positioning under the HTML Designer category.
  3. Select the top option to change position when dragging and dropping controls, then select Absolutely Positioned from the drop-down list.
  4. Click OK.
Controls added in new Web applications use absolute positioning. When added, the controls snap to the 0,0 coordinate in the upper-left corner, but can be selected and dragged to the applicable location on the page.
The following are changes to the ASP.NET Framework and Visual Studio 2005–2008 that can affect Web ADF development patterns:
  • ASP.NET 2.0, 3.0, 3.5:
    • Different Internet Information Services (IIS) virtual directories can run different versions of the ASP.NET framework.
    • New reserved directories for ASP.NET 2.0 sites:
       /app_code for code
       /app_data for data
       /app_themes for skins
       /app_webreferences for Web Service Description Language (WSDL)
       /app_localresources for local page resources
       /app_globalresources for global resources
    • Full Extensible Hypertext Markup Language (XHTML) compliance defaults to transitional (can be set to legacy or strict); however, update pages to be compliant.
    • Well known client-side script files are encapsulated in Web controls as resources. The Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) handler Webresource.axd enables streaming encapsulated resources to the client.
    • Potential for naming collisions. 2000 + new classes. Common names include roles, membership, and themes.
  • Visual Studio 2005–2008:
    • No Web project file.
    • Web projects are not compiled into a single .dll.
    • Update pages and code while using the debugger.
    • Do not recompile when making changes.
    • Web projects can be written in multiple languages.
    • New code behind model. Designer generated sections have been removed. Control definitions use partial classes. The CodeBehind attribute is replaced by the CodeFile attribute in the 2.0 dynamic compilation model.
    • Compile pages and controls on demand.
    • Precompilation:
      Compiles source code into assemblies.
      Deploy pages and assemblies without source code.