MCTS 70-528-VB Short Notes: Exam Passing Tips

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MCTS 70-528-VB Short Notes: Exam Passing Tips

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Creating and Programming a Web Application

• A remote HTTP-based Web site uses Internet Information Services (IIS) running on a remote computer. The remote computer should be configured with the Microsoft's FrontPage 2002 Server Extensions.


• A stateful environment opens a connection between the Web browser and the Web server. It stores data between Web requests. On the other hand, a stateless environment closes a connection between the Web browser and the Web server. Data of a Web browser request is not stored on the Web server.


• A dynamic Web site compilation model enables ASP.NET to compile Web pages and source code files dynamically when a user requests a resource from a Web site for the first time.


• An ASP.NET page for a Web application is created by writing ASP.NET code in a text file with the .aspx extension. This .aspx file is placed in a virtual directory on a Web server from where it can be accessed. The Web page is composed of three sections: page directives, code, and page layout.


• New Web pages can be added to a Web site by selecting Website > Add New Item... menu option in Visual Studio 2005.


• A new file extension .aspx is used instead of the .asp file extension for ASP.NET Web pages so that the existing ASP application code can be incorporate into the ASP.NET Web pages. The aspnet_wp.exe process is also used for the processing of ASP .NET Web pages.


• The EnableViewState attribute of a control indicates whether or not the view state is maintained across page requests. The AutoPostBack attribute of the control specifies whether or not an automatic postback to the server will occur whenever a user changes the content of a text box.


• The Click event is used to programmatically control the actions performed on a Web page when the Submit button is clicked.


• Web server controls are used for advanced functionality and a more consistent programming model than HTML server controls.


• An advertisement file ensures security in order to prevent from being tampered by any unauthorized user. Therefore guidelines must be followed while configuring, naming, and locating the file.


• The CellPadding property of the Calendar Web server control is used to set the spacing between the contents of a cell and its border.


• The view state of a Web application is disabled in the Web.config file by setting the EnableViewState attribute of the @ Page directive to false.


• The CheckedChanged event of the CheckBox control is raised when the value of the Checked property is changed between Web server round trips. The event will post back to the server only when the AutoPostBack property is set to true.


• The FileUpload control allows a user to upload pictures, text files, or other files from his own computer to a Web server.


• The AutoPostBack property of a server control is set to false for postback manually in response to a specific event.


• A HyperLink control is a Web server control that displays a link to another Web page. Clicking on the hyperlink opens the linked Web page.


• The Image Web server control can specify a graphics file both at design time and at runtime programmatically. It can bind its ImageUrl property to a data source and can display images based on the information stored on the database. It can also specify different types of text for displaying images on a Web page.


• The ImageMap Web server control defines several regions known as hot spots within the control. On the other hand, the ImageButton control does not define any region within the control.


• The Label Web server control displays text in a specific area on a Web page. Although the control cannot receive the user input focus, it can be used as an active caption in front of other Web server controls such as the TextBox and Button controls.


• The Panel Web server control acts as a container or a parent for static texts and other Web server controls in a Web page. It creates specific areas on a Web page to provide custom appearance to other server controls.


• The EnableSessionState attribute of the @ Page directive is used to define session-state requirements for a Web page.


• The EnableEventValidation attribute of the @ Page directive is used to validate .aspx page events in postback requests and callback scenarios. By setting the EnableViewState attribute of the @ Page directive is set to true indicates that the view state is maintained across page requests.


• The ItemDataBound event is raised after an item is data bound to a DataGrid control. It provides a developer with the last opportunity to access the data item before it is displayed on the client.


• An event handler method for a server control can be added to a Web page in the Properties window of the control by clicking the Events icon and the Properties window changes to the events view.


• The mode="InProc" attribute is used in the element of the application's Web.config file to configure the session state settings for an application.


• The state management information on the client-side is beneficial, as it provides better scalability and also supports multiple Web servers.


• ASP.NET's storage mechanism that is called as profile properties can be used to store state management information on the server-side.


• The culture attribute of the globalization section is used to specify the default culture for processing incoming requests from the Web site.


• The globalization section of the Web.config file configures the globalization settings of an application. The culture attribute of the globalization section specifies the default culture for processing incoming requests from the Web.


• The InvariantCulture property of the CultureInfo class is culture-independent and is not associated with any specific country or region.


• In a localized Web site, the layout of a server control in a Web page changes depending on various string lengths set for different languages. If each control is manually resized depending on the users' language preferences, errors and bugs can occur.


• The culture and user interface culture attributes can be set for a Web page programmatically.


• The ClientValidationFunction property of the CustomValidator class specifies the name of the custom client-side script function used for validation. The ServerValidate event for a CustomValidator control is raised when validation is performed on the server.


• A RequiredFieldValidator control is used to check whether or not an input control contains a value. A RegularExpressionValidator control is used to check whether or not the value entered into a form field matches the pattern specified by a regular expression.


• The validation error messages is displayed on a Web page in a message box by setting the ShowMessageBox property of the ValidationSummary control to true. By setting the ValidationSummary property of the ValidationSummary control to false, the validation summary will not be displayed on the Web page.


• The EnableClientScript property of a validation control is set to false, when the client-side validation is to be disabled in order to perform validation at the server-side.


• User input validation is performed on the validation controls when the input validation data values are not set until runtime. If the properties are set for a particular validation control during runtime based on a user's requirement, the default validation set during design time will not work. In such a case, the Web page needs to call the validation control to perform validation programmatically for Web server controls.


• A Dynamic layout of a Web page can potentially change the layout of the page when an error message appears on it.


• The IsValid property of the BaseValidator class is automatically updated when the validation results are displayed. The Validate method of the BaseValidator class performs validation on the associated server user input control programmatically.


• To set the login and password authorization for users, the forms-based authentication is enabled in the Web.config file. Anonymous users will be denied from accessing the site by making necessary changes in the Web.config file. Finally, a login page will be created that will allow users to enter credential information that can then be authenticated.


• The users attribute of the element specifies the user names that are denied access to a resource. Setting this attribute to "?" denies anonymous or unauthorized users from accessing the application.


• The allowOverride attribute of the element specifies whether or not the configuration settings in child directories are overridden by configuration settings in the Web.config file.


• The customErrors element provides information about custom error messages for ASP.NET applications. The mode attribute of the customErrors element specifies whether custom errors are enabled, disabled, or shown only to remote clients.


• The element is a predefined configuration section of the .NET Framework, which contains custom application settings. Each element added to the element has a key attribute and a value attribute.


• The element in the Web.config file is added to identify users to view an ASP.NET application.


• Tracing can be enabled for an application by using the element. The settings of the Web.config file override the settings of the Machine.config file.


• The roles attribute of the <authorization> element is used to specify a comma-separated list of roles that are granted or denied access to a resource.


• A new Web.config file can be created for a Web application by using the Web Site Administration Tool.


• The Execute method of the HttpServerUtility class is used to execute a request to another page using a specified URL path to the page. It continues to execute the original page after completing the execution of the new page.


• The Transfer method of the HttpServerUtility class terminates execution of the current page and begins execution of a new page. The HttpServerUtility class defines two overloaded versions of the Transfer method. Their signatures are given below:
  
  • Overloads Public Sub Transfer (String)
  
  
  • Overloads Public Sub Transfer (String, Boolean)
• The Page_Error event handler is created at the page level when an unhandled exception occurs in code that does not contain try/catch block in a Web application during execution.


• A Page_Error event handler is created at the page level when an unhandled exception occurs in code that does not contain try/catch block in a Web application during execution.


• An HTML server control can be converted to an HTML element by right-clicking the HTML server control and unchecking the mark next to the Run As Server Control drop-down menu option. It can also be converted by deleting the runat="server" attribute from the <input> tag of the Button control in the source code.

Integrating Data in a Web Application by using ADO.NET, XML, and Data-Bound Controls

• The ImageUrlField property of the AdRotator class sets a custom data field to be used and replaces the ImageUrl attribute for an advertisement.


• The SqlDataAdapter class represents a set of data commands and a database connection that are used to fill a DataSet and update a SQL Server database. The SqlCommand class represents a transact-SQL statement or stored procedure to be executed at a SQL Server database. The SqlConnection class represents an open connection to a SQL Server database.


• The MinPoolSize value of the ConnectionString property of the SqlConnection class is used to specify the minimum number of connections allowed in a pool.


• The MinPoolSize clause of the ConnectionString property of the SqlConnection class is used to specify the minimum objects in the connection pool.


• The SqlConnection class represents an open connection to a SQL Server database. ADO.NET supports connection pooling where the SqlConnection class is used to increase the performance of the application.


• The OleDbConnection class represents an open connection to an OLE DB data source, a Microsoft SQL Server 6.x database, or earlier version. The OleDbCommand object represents a stored procedure or a SQL statement to execute at a data source.


• The SqlDataReader class avoids creating unnecessary objects or making unnecessary copies of data. Hence, it provides optimal performance.


• The ExecuteScalar method of the SqlCommand class is used to execute a query against a data source. It returns the first column of the first row in the resultset returned by the query. It is commonly used to execute aggregate functions such as COUNT, SUM, etc., on a table.


• The CommandText property of the OleDbCommand class is used to get or set the stored procedure or SQL statement that is to be executed at the data source. The Connection property of the OleDbCommand class is used to get or set the OleDbConnection that is used by an instance of the OleDbCommand class.


• The Close method of the SqlDataReader class closes the SqlDataReader object. It is called explicitly while using the SqlDataReader object. The Parameters collection of the SqlCommand class retrieves all parameters relevant to a SqlCommand object.


• The SqlDataReader class avoids creating unnecessary objects or making unnecessary copies of data. Hence, it provides optimal performance.


• A SQL Server database version 6.5 can be upgraded to later version in order to improve performance of program code.


• The Merge method of the DataSet class is used to incorporate the latest changes from a data source into an existing DataSet object.


• The Clone method copies the structure of a DataSet, but does not copy the data. It includes Datatable, schemas, relations, and constraints.


• The RowFilter property of the DataView class is used to get or set the expression to filter the rows to be viewed in a DataView object.


• DataSet and DataRelation objects are used to create a relationship between these two databases to retrieve records.


• A DataRelation object relates two DataTable objects to each other through DataColumn objects. It can be accessed through the Relations property of the DataSet object.


• Use the DeleteRule property of the ForeignKeyConstraint class to specify the action that is to occur when a row is deleted.


• The SelectedItem property of the ListControl retrieves a selected item having the lowest index in the list control. The Value property specifies the value content of the selected list item.


• The LoadDataRow method of the DataTable class finds the matching value and updates a specific row in the primary column of a specific table. If the value does not match, a new row is created.


• The GetChanges method of the DataSet class returns a copy of the DataSet containing all changes made to the DataSet since it was last loaded or since the AcceptChanges method was last called.


• The Find method of the DataView object is used to find a row in a DataView object on the basis of the specified sort key value.


• The GetErrors() method of the DataTable object returns an array of DataRow objects that have errors. The DataTable.HasErrors property returns a value that specifies whether any error exists in any rows of the data table.


• The XPathDocument class is used to provide fast and read-only cache for XSLT processing and XPath data model.


• The Load method of the XmlDocument class is used to load the contents of an XML file into an XmlDocument object.


• The XmlDocument class is used to create an in-memory tree object containing an XML hierarchical node structure and related data. It loads and saves an XML document and accesses all the nodes in the document.


• The Save method of the XmlDocument class is used to save an XML document to a specified file or location.


• The XmlNode class derived from the System.Xml namespace is a representation of a single node in an XML document. It is the base class in the XML DOM, and supports XPath selections and provides editing capabilities.


• The XmlDocument class that defines within the System.Xml namespace is used to represent an XML document.


• The Load method of the XmlDocument class is used to load the XML document in the memory stream. The ImportNode method of the XmlDocument class is used to import the node from another XML document.


• An XmlReader class is created to display the XML file from a database. The Read method is implemented in order to read data from the XML file.


• To validate XML data by using the XmlValidatingReader class is now obsolete in .NET Framework 2.0. Instead the XmlReader class is used to validate XML data.


• An XmlWriter object ensures that XML characters are legal and contains valid element and attribute names. It ensures that an XML document is well formed. It allows multiple XML documents to be written to one output stream.

Creating Custom Web Controls

• A Web user control creates the control using the same technique, which is used in the creation of Web form pages.


• A Web user control has both the user interface and a code-behind file and cannot be added to the Visual Studio.NET Toolbox. If multiple applications need to use a Web user control, a separate copy of the control is required in each application.


• A Web page can be converted to a user control via code in the following manner:
  
  • Change the extension of the Web page from .aspx to .ascx.
  
  
  • Create an @ Control directive at the top of the page, instead of an @ Page directive.
  
  
  • Remove the <html>, <body>, and <form> elements from the ASP.NET code.
• A user control page can be created by selecting Website > Add New Item... menu option in Visual Studio 2005.


• A Web page can be converted to a user control by using Visual Studio 2005.


• When a user control is added to a Web page by using Visual Studio 2005, the Web Designer creates the @ Register directive in the source code of the Web page.


• The Render method of the Control class sends the content of a server control to its argument, which is an HtmlTextWriter object. This object is then used to write the content that is to be rendered on the client.


• Web custom controls are compiled components that run on the server. They encapsulate user-interface and other related functionality into reusable packages.

Tracing, Configuring, and Deploying Applications

• Installation packages are created for deploying a Web application by using a Web Setup project. A merge module project is used for components to be added to the application.


• The Web Setup project and Deployment project is used to create installation packages for the deployment of Web-based applications such as XML Web services, Web applications, etc., to a Web server.


• The Duration attribute of the @ OutputCache directive specifies the amount of time (in seconds) for which a control is cached.


• ASP.NET controls the enabling or disabling of tracing both at the page-level and at the application-level.


• The TraceMode attribute of the @ Page directive specifies the order in which the trace information is to be displayed. It can be sorted either by the Category column (SortByCategory) or by time column (SortByTime).


• The Cache object implements the cache for a Web application. The Session object pertains to an individual user's session with an application. It is used to store and retrieve information during a specific session for a user.


• The Duration and VaryByParam attributes is used in the @ OutputCache directive so that a parser error does not occur when a Web page is first requested.


• Tracing can be enabled or disabled for a page by using the Trace attribute of the @ Page directive.


• The EnableSessionState attribute in the @ Page directive defines session-state requirements for a Web page.


• The @ OutputCache directive controls the output caching policies of an ASP.NET page or a user control contained in an ASP.NET page.


• The Trace.axd Http handler is used to view the trace details of an application by setting the value of requestLimit="[n]" in the application's configuration file.


• Errors in the application can be avoided in the following manner:
  
  • Responding to health monitoring events
  
  
  • Using a debugger to the process in which the application is running
  
  
  • Using a tracing feature

Customizing and Personalizing a Web Application

• All the Web pages of the application can be declaratively attach to a specified master page.


• The Culture property of the Page class helps to localize the Web page content. It specifies cultures that define both language and regional formatting requirements. The UICulture property of the Page class sets the user interface ID and is defined with either neutral or specific cultures.


• The advantages of using a master page are as follows:
  
  • It centralizes the common functionality of all the pages of a Web application.
  
  
  • It easily creates one set of controls and code in order to apply the results to a set of Web pages.
  
  
  • It gives control over the layout of the final Web pages.
  
  
  • It provides object models to customize the master pages from all content pages.
• An application or a page theme can be applied to all the Web pages within a single Web application.

Implementing Authentication and Authorization

• When cookieless forms authentication is used, the CookieMode property is set to one of the values of the HttpCookieMode enumeration.


• In order to enable the forms athentication mode for the application, some modification needs to be made in the Web.config file that is an application's root directory file.


• The timeout attribute of authentication specifies an integer value that denotes the time (in minutes). The slidingExpiration attribute of authentication specifies that the session timeout is periodically reset as long as a user stays active on the site.


• A session cookie can be used as a user preference so that important information of a Web site is provided to users.


• The UrlAuthorizationModule class of the System.Web.Security namespace is used to provide URL-based authorization services to allow or deny access to specified resources.


• The FileAuthorizationModule module is used when the authentication mode attribute is set to Windows in the element and checks against the access control list (ACL).


• The username and password attributes are specified in the element of the Web.config file for every request on a Web page.


• Only users in a particular role are able to access pages stored in an application's folder. The <authentication="Windows" /> is to be removed in the Web.config file located in the folder.


• Anonymous authentication method establishes a Web connection to the IIS server without providing a username and password.


• The Microsoft Passport service is an online service that is used by the Passport authentication provider for user authentication. The passport to indicate authenticated users uses an encrypted mechanism.


• The Custom Authentication with SOAP headers is suitable for both secure and nonsecure Internet scenarios. For user authentication, the user credentials in encrypted format are passed within the SOAP header of the SOAP message.


• ASP.NET login controls can be used both for unauthenticated and authenticated users by implementing them on a Web page.


• The LoginStatus Web server control is used to display a login link for unauthenticated users and a logout link for authenticated users.


• The Login control displays a user interface on a Web site to authenticate users. It is used to prompt a user for a user name and a password in text boxes.

Creating ASP.NET Mobile Web Applications

• A cookieless session is implemented on a mobile Web application to ensure that a mobile Web site is compatible with mobile devices of several users.

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