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A Brief Version History of .NET Framework

A Brief Version History of .NET Framework

13 Aug 2025
Beginner
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13 min read
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.NET is a software development platform developed by Microsoft. It runs on Microsoft Windows OS. .NET provides tools and libraries that allow developers to develop applications and services much easier, faster, and more secure by using a convenient way. Enroll Yourself In the Best .NET Course From ScholarHat and Start Your Tech Career the Right Way! .NET Framework Version History
.NET Version
Introduced IDE
Features Detail
4.6
Visual Studio 2015
  1. Introduced RyuJIT, a new JIT compiler for 64-bit systems

  2. Introduced Open Source .Net Framework Packages

  3. Support for Code page encodings

  4. Improvements to event tracing

4.5.1
Visual Studio 2013
  1. Includes performance and debugging improvements

  2. Support for automatic binding redirection

  3. Expanded support for Windows Store apps

4.5
Visual Studio 2012
  1. Features Enhancements to CLR 4.0

  2. Async Support

  3. Support for building Windows Store apps

  4. Features Enhancement to WPF, WCF, WF, and ASP.NET

4.0
Visual Studio 2010
  1. Introduced CLR 4.0

  2. Managed Extensibility Framework (MEF)

  3. Dynamic Language Runtime (DLR)

  4. Task Parallel Library

3.5
Visual Studio 2008
  1. Built-In AJAX Support

  2. LINQ

  3. Dynamic Data

  4. Multi-targeting Framework Support

3.0
Visual Studio 2005
  1. Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF)

  2. Windows Communications Foundation (WCF)

  3. Windows Workflow Foundation (WF), and CardSpace

2.0
Visual Studio 2005
  1. Introduced CLR 2.0

  2. Generics and generic collections

  3. Partial classes

  4. Nullable types

  5. Anonymous methods

  6. Introduced many new controls and features to ASP.NET

1.1
Visual Studio .NET 2003
  1. Features Enhancement to ASP.NET and ADO.NET

  2. Built-in support for mobile ASP.NET controls

  3. Security Enhancement

  4. Built-in support for ODBC and databases

  5. Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6) support

1.0
Visual Studio .NET
  1. Introduced CLR 1.0

  2. Support for Object-oriented Web application development

  3. Use of DLL class libraries

Note

CLR 3.0 is skipped by Microsoft.

What do you think

I hope you will enjoy the .NET Framework features. I would like to have feedback from my blog readers, especially regarding Dot Net Certification. Your valuable feedback, questions, or comments about this article are always welcome.

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About Author
Pradeep Shet (Author and Solution Architect)

Pradeep Shet is a senior technology trainer and mentor with over 17+ years of experience spanning software development, enterprise application architecture, and professional technical training across Microsoft and modern web platforms. Starting his career as a developer, he gained strong real-world engineering exposure, which now shapes his practical and implementation-driven teaching style focused on debugging, design thinking, and building production-ready systems rather than theoretical instruction. He delivers well-structured corporate and online programs ranging from programming fundamentals to advanced distributed application architecture, helping learners understand not just how to code, but how to design scalable solutions. His core expertise includes .NET (Core / .NET 10), C#, Web API development, OOP principles, Design Patterns, Angular, ECMAScript, ReactJS, Docker, NoSQL databases, and Microsoft Azure cloud services. Recognized for his hands-on, project-oriented methodology, he emphasizes real-time scenarios, architecture decisions, and industry best practices. Pradeep has successfully conducted 300+ corporate and online training programs for leading MNCs and authored widely appreciated technical articles on JSON, MVC, HTML5, and object-oriented programming concepts, consistently enabling professionals to strengthen fundamentals, adopt modern technologies, and become confident industry-ready developers.
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