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How To: Migrate .NET Framework 3.5 WCF and WF Applications

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The rich and robust set of Windows Server AppFabric application and service management capabilities apply only to Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) and Windows Workflow Foundation (WF) services built using the .NET Framework version 4. For any service built using a version of the .NET Framework prior to .NET Framework 4, you have some options to move it to the .NET Framework 4 and get full AppFabric support.

Source File WCF or WF Migration

If you have access to the source files for a WCF or WF service assembly built using the .NET Framework 3.0 or .NET Framework 3.5, the recommended method to leverage the AppFabric capabilities is to rebuild the assembly using the .NET Framework 4 libraries. During this process you may be able to use some of the new features of the .NET Framework 4. If you open a project in Visual Studio 2010 that is not based on the .NET Framework 4, Visual Studio 2010 will automatically start the migration process and convert the .NET Framework 2.0/3.0-specific configuration to a .NET Framework 4 schema. After the migration process is complete you should rebuild the project to make sure it compiles correctly, and then deploy it to AppFabric.

Binary File WCF or WF Migration

A .NET Framework 3.0 or .NET Framework 3.5 binary assembly containing a WCF service should be moved to a .NET Framework 4 IIS application pool. This allows the service to leverage the compatibility libraries that are included in the .NET Framework 4 for .NET Framework 3.5 applications.

For more information about improvements to the .NET Framework version 4 libraries for WCF and WF, see Upcoming Changes to .NET Framework 4: Windows Communication Foundation (WCF) and Windows Workflow Foundation (WF).

WF-Only Migration

In the case of a WF service there are two migration options:

  1. Keep the service intact but migrate it to the .NET Framework 4 application pool. This is done by performing the steps described above for a .NET Framework 3.x WCF service.

  2. Migrate WF3 (System.Workflow) artifacts to WF4 (System.Activities) artifacts. For more information about migration guidance, see the WF Migration Kit and WF Migration documentation.

Note

The .NET Framework 4 no longer supports the <System.ServiceModel> <ServiceHostingEnvironment> </System.ServiceModel> section inside a virtual directory or folder. That section is required to be under the virtual application.