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CLR via C#
Dig deep and master the intricacies of the common language
runtime, C#, and .NET development. Led by programming expert
Jeffrey Richter, a longtime consultant to the Microsoft .NET Team—
you’ll gain pragmatic insights for developing robust, reliable, and
responsive apps and components.

Discover how to:
• Build, package, and deploy applications and their types
• Understand how primitive, value, and reference types behave

About the Fourth Edition
ã Fully updated for Microsoft .NET
đ

Framework 4.5 and Visual Studio 2012
đ

ã Focuses on core types in the Framework
Class Library
• Expertly teaches multicore programming,
generics, threading, and other essentials
• Shares practical advice from extensive
insider and field experience

so you use them more efficiently

• Use generics and interfaces to define reusable algorithms
• Work effectively with special CLR types—delegates, custom

attributes, nullable types, arrays, strings

• Understand how the managed heap and the garbage
collector work

• Get a quick start with serialization and deserialization services
• Design responsive, scalable solutions using thread pools, tasks,
cancellations, timers, and asynchronous functions

• Use exception handling to assist with state management
• Construct dynamically extensible apps using CLR hosting,
AppDomains, assembly loading, and reflection

• Interoperate with Windows

®

Runtime (WinRT) components

Get Visual C#® 2012 code samples
Download from the author’s website:
/>
About the Author
Jeffrey Richter is a cofounder of
Wintellect (www.wintellect.com),
a training and consulting firm
dedicated to helping companies
build better software faster. In addition to
this book’s highly regarded previous editions,
he’s written several other popular titles,

including Windows via C/C++. A longtime
consultant to the Microsoft .NET Framework
Team, Jeff worked with Microsoft to develop
a new asynchronous programming model
that’s part of .NET Framework 4.5.

edition
Richter
microsoft.com/mspress
ISBN: 978-0-7356-6745-7

U.S.A.$59.99
Canada $62.99
[Recommended]

Programming/Windows

CLR via C#
Fourth Edition

Developer Reference

The definitive guide to mastering CLR and .NET
development—from the ground up

CLR via C#

Fourth Edition

Jeffrey Richter

PUBLISHED BY
Microsoft Press
A Division of Microsoft Corporation
One Microsoft Way
Redmond, Washington 98052-6399
Copyright © 2012 by Jeffrey Richter
All rights reserved. No part of the contents of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any
means without the written permission of the publisher.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2012951989
ISBN: 978-0-7356-6745-7
Printed and bound in the United States of America.
First Printing
Microsoft Press books are available through booksellers and distributors worldwide. If you need support related
to this book, email Microsoft Press Book Support at Please tell us what you think of
this book at />Microsoft and the trademarks listed at />Trademarks/EN-US.aspx are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies. All other marks are property of
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The example companies, organizations, products, domain names, email addresses, logos, people, places, and
events depicted herein are fictitious. No association with any real company, organization, product, domain name,
email address, logo, person, place, or event is intended or should be inferred.
This book expresses the author’s views and opinions. The information contained in this book is provided without
any express, statutory, or implied warranties. Neither the authors, Microsoft Corporation, nor its resellers, or
distributors will be held liable for any damages caused or alleged to be caused either directly or indirectly by
this book.
Acquisitions Editor: Devon Musgrave
Developmental Editor: Devon Musgrave
Project Editor: Carol Dillingham
Editorial Production: Online Training Solutions, Inc.
Technical Reviewer: Christophe Nasarre; Technical Review services provided by Content Master,

a member of CM Group, Ltd.
Copyeditor: Candace Sinclair
Indexer: Jan Bednarczuk
Cover: Twist Creative • Seattle


Kristin, words cannot express how I feel about our life together. I
cherish our family and all our adventures. I’m filled each day with
love for you.
Aidan (age 9) and Grant (age 5), you both have been an inspiration to me and have taught me to play and have fun. Watching
the two of you grow up has been so rewarding and enjoyable for
me. I am lucky to be able to partake in your lives. I love and appreciate you more than you could ever know.



Contents at a Glance
Introduction

xxiii

PART I

CLR BASICS

CHAPTER 1

The CLR’s Execution Model

CHAPTER 2

Building, Packaging, Deploying, and
Administering Applications and Types

33

CHAPTER 3

Shared Assemblies and Strongly Named Assemblies

65

PART II

DESIGNING TYPES

CHAPTER 4

Type Fundamentals

CHAPTER 5

Primitive, Reference, and Value Types

111

CHAPTER 6

Type and Member Basics

151

CHAPTER 7

Constants and Fields

175

CHAPTER 8

Methods181

CHAPTER 9

Parameters209

CHAPTER 10

Properties227

CHAPTER 11

Events249

CHAPTER 12

Generics265

CHAPTER 13

Interfaces295

PART III

ESSENTIAL TYPES

CHAPTER 14

Chars, Strings, and Working with Text

317

CHAPTER 15

Enumerated Types and Bit Flags

361

CHAPTER 16

Arrays373

CHAPTER 17

Delegates391

CHAPTER 18

Custom Attributes

421

CHAPTER 19

Nullable Value Types

441

3

91



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