Project.json definition dnx451 vs .dotnet ( 4.51)

Question

I've some In asp vnext I can define 3 Types of runtime

dnxCore
dnx451
dotnet

In Project.json it looks like this:

"frameworks": 
{
    "dotnet": { },
    "dnx451": { },
    "dnxcore50": { }
}^

and the ui shors this

enter image description here

I assume the following:

dnxCore is the new .net Core Framework.

dotnet is the previous runtime

dnx451: What is different when defining "dotnet" or "dnx451" in the project.json?

Shouldn't both run with the .net execution runtime?

Also depending on which project template i choose ( vNext ClassLib or vNext Console Lib) default contains one or the other.

Thomas · Accepted Answer · 2016-12-22T22:01:21.193

Answering your question in a different way: A library should target environments which SDK its requires. If you do not require a SDK use netstandard (or before .NET Core RC2 dotnet).

dnxcore50 DNX SDK running on CoreCLR/CoreFx (deprecated, use netcoreapp1.0 instead).
dnx451 DNX SDK running on .Net 4.5.1 (Desktop CLR / Full BCL and FCL) (deprecated, use net451 instead).
net46 .Net Framework 4.6 SDK running on Desktop CLR / Full BCL and FCL.
uap10.0 UWP Windows 10 SDK running on .Net Native/CoreFx.
netcoreapp1.0 .NET Core 1.0 SDK running on CoreCLR/CoreFx.
netstandard1.5 (RC2, dotnet before) any pure IL code which declares its dependencies (System.Runtime (based) libraries instead of a PCL contracts). Framework dependencies are available for .Net 4.5.x onwards, .NET Core or UWP (System.Runtime based library set in different versions). As with RC2 dotnet is deprecated, use netstandard instead.
netstandard2.0 (.NET Core 2.0; ~JUN 2017) any pure IL code which rely solely of the feature set of the netstandard.dll which all platforms (.NET Core, .NET Framework, Xamarin, Mono, Unity3D) have to implement (or throw NotImplementedException). The netstandard2.x is roughly the BCL library of the .NET Framework (without FCL components like WMI, WinForms, WPF, WCF, WWF, ...). By compatability shims, most existing NuGet packages will automatically be netstandard2.0.

So if your library only has some algorithms or is not specific to the platform, use netstandard / dotnet. If any of your dependencies is restricted, this dependency will propagate up to the application (e.g. DNX, UWP, .Net46) which uses it.

I can only highlight like Malachi the article series of Oren. (he just wrote a new one: https://oren.codes/2015/07/29/targeting-net-core/ on the same topic).

ps: dotnet / netstandard is not a concrete runtime it is the abstraction of it. It is a target which in this case does not even specifiy a runtime but instead says: Anything which interprets IL correctly goes. For example dnxcore5 is a target which specify a SDK(DNX) which has a specific runtime (CoreCLR). In this case you can make further assumptions about the runtime behavior (like usage of JIT, availability of x-plat implementation, etc.).

pps: be aware that the dotnet name was transformed into the term netstandard with the upcoming RC2 release. Also the complete DNX SDK was splitted up between the .NET Core and ASP.NET Teams. Therefore, the framework moniker for .NET Core (CoreCLR/CoreFx) is netcoreapp1.0 while 99% of the ASP.NET stack are just libraries with netstandard1.5. The DNX monikers (dnx451 and dnxcore50) where deprecated. When running ASP.NET Core on .NET Framework (instead of .NET Core) use net451. Heavy read for details: https://github.com/dotnet/corefx/blob/master/Documentation/architecture/net-platform-standard.md

ppps: Continiously be aware, that the netstandard1.x concept of dependency based contracts was not further developed but changed to one (huge) standard contract (32k APIs; netstandard2.0) which has to be implemented by all platforms including the upcoming .NET Core 2.0. This change has the advantage that most of the existing ecosystem of NuGet package (which refer mscorlib and friends) can be integrated into netstandard2.0 packages by using an intermediate compatibility shims.

Is there any difference/advantage referencing dnx46 over net46? — Dealdiane, Sep 10 '15 at 21:56
Well... With net46 you could use winforms or wpf or wmi in your library. With dnx46 you can use ASP.net 5 in your library. But if you do not use a SDK feature you should target dotnet and allowing all potential target apps ... Including wpf and ASP.net 5 to use your library. — Thomas, Sep 11 '15 at 05:41
Why call it _dnxcore50_ instead of _coreclr50_ or _clr451_ ? — HashName, Nov 19 '15 at 09:48
Before i forget: clr451 is ambiguous with net451 and coreclr50 is naming concept wise bound to UWP — Thomas, Nov 19 '15 at 12:17
And here's the [official documentation](https://github.com/dotnet/corefx/blob/master/Documentation/architecture/net-platform-standard.md) to systematize what's in Thomas's answer. It shows not only what's already implemented, but also the plan for the future about naming and versioning this stuff. — Paweł Bulwan, Feb 20 '16 at 09:35
btw there is also "dotnet5.4" @Thomas could you extend your list? — Boas Enkler, May 01 '16 at 10:12
I updated the answer in regards of netstandard as the dotnet successor. @BoasEnkler: I have not mentioned the versioning of dotnet but netstandard instead. @ buli accidently also included your link. Thanks for all the comments. — Thomas, May 01 '16 at 12:48

score 7 · Answer 2 · edited May 23 '17 at 12:09

7

dotnet targets a slew of .NET Core 4.6 compatibilities. reference link

"dotnet This is the new .NET Core for packages that don’t have any app model requirements." - reference link

So by these definitions dotnet is the new runtime, not the previous one

edited May 23 '17 at 12:09

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answered Jul 21 '15 at 15:50

Malachi

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Project.json definition dnx451 vs .dotnet ( 4.51)

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