Appendix. History of Microsoft Web Service Implementations

Microsoft web services have evolved over the years from the initial release with .NET 1.0 to the release ofWCF today. Figure B-1 shows how the framework has evolved and, at a high level, the features that were added with each iteration.

Evolution of web services in .NET

When .NET Framework 1.x was released, it was the first runtime implementation from Microsoft that provided rich web service support out of the box for developers. Even today it provides the easiest way to code, debug, and deploy web services in the industry. To support web services natively, the .NET runtime also has to support all the underlying protocols and infrastructure required such as XML, HTTP, XSD, SOAP, and so on, out of the box. Version 1.x of the .NET Framework introduced web services as part of ASP.NET pages. Although web services were the catalyst, the .NET runtime provides the ease of development so developers can build efficient, secure, and reliable web services. Visual Studio .NET provides a robust environment that allows you to easily create, deploy, and maintain applications developed using XML web services.