Datasheet

Activation and Hosting
The Activation and Hosting layer provides different options in which a service can be started as well as
hosted. Services can be hosted within the context of another application, or they can be self-hosted. This
layer provides those options.
The following list details the hosting and activation options provided by this layer:
❑ Windows Activation Service: The Windows Activation Service enables WCF applications to be
automatically started when running on a computer that is running the Windows Activation
Service.
❑ .EXE: WCF allows services to be run as executables (.EXE files).
❑ Windows Services: WCF allows services to be run as a Windows service.
❑ COM+: WCF allows services to be run as a COM+ application.
The Makeup of WCF
Now that you have an idea of the architecture behind Windows Communication Foundation, a few
pages need to be spent covering those things that make WCF what it is. That is, why all the hype sur-
rounding WCF and what makes it so unique?
If you have been paying attention during this chapter, you can more than likely pick out a small handful
of things that really make WCF stand out. On the surface, you might make the incorrect assumption that
WCF is just a bunch of “add-ons” to the already existing framework. Not so. As you dig into WCF you
will really start to see that a lot of thought and time went into developing what you see in front of you.
To help you out, this section lists a number of the great focus points that WCF has to offer. Think of it as
the personality of WCF:
❑ Programming model
❑ Scalability
❑ Interoperability
❑ Enhanced communication
❑ Enterprise enabled
Programming Model
The great thing about WCF is that there is no “right way” to get from point A to point B. If fact, WCF lets
users start at point A and go to point B any way they see fit. This is because the programming model in
WCF lets developers control how and when they want to code things and yet gives them the ability to
do that with a minimum amount of code.
As you have seen from the architecture, there are only a small handful of major components that a devel-
oper will need to work with to build high-class services. However, WCF also lets developers drill down
to lower-level components if they desire to get more granular with their options. WCF makes this very
simple. The WCF programming model lets a developer take whichever approach he or she desires.
There is no single “right” way.
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