Synergy .NET Basics

This topic includes the following sections:

 

.NET applications are made up of assemblies: executable assemblies (.exe) and class library assemblies (.dll). Synergy .NET components enable you to use Visual Studio to create Synergy .NET executables and libraries for .NET Framework and .NET 6 and higher on Windows x86 and x64.

The following table lists supported platforms. For information on requirements, see Synergy .NET Requirements and www.synergex.com/synergy-dbl-integration.

Platform Device licensinga Project templatesb NuGet packagesc
.NET Framework on Windows x86 or x64 Optional

ASP.NET Server Control Library

Class Library (.NET Framework)

Class Library (.NET Standard)

Console App (.NET Framework)

Empty Project

Interop

Synergy Custom Action

Synergy/DE Repository

Unit Test Project (.NET Framework)

WCF Service Library

Windows Service

 For .NET Standard only: Synergex.SynergyDE.synrnt and
Synergex.SynergyDE.Build
.NET 6 or higher on Windows x86 or x64 Not supported

Console App (.NET)

Class Library (.NET)

Class Library (.NET Standard)

Synergy/DE Repository

Unit Test (.NET)

Synergex.SynergyDE.synrnt
Synergex.SynergyDE.Build

a. See Licensing .NET assemblies for information on device licensing.

b. See Synergy/DE project templates for information on project templates.

c. See Synergy .NET libraries and NuGet packages below for information.

There are a number of advantages to developing with Synergy .NET. In addition to the benefits of managed code and the Visual Studio IDE, Synergy .NET assemblies can use .NET classes, they can interoperate with assemblies written in other .NET languages (such as C# or VB), and more.

Visual Studio projects and Synergy DBL: the building blocks

Project templates are the starting points for application and library development in Visual Studio. You’ll use project templates to create Synergy projects, and you’ll build Synergy applications and libraries from those projects. See Synergy projects, solutions, and files for more information. Synergy templates are available in Visual Studio when SDI is installed, and they are also distributed in the following NuGet packages for use with the .NET CLI (i.e., the “dotnet” command): Synergex.Projects.Templates and Synergex.ProjectItem.Templates.

In code files for your Synergy projects, you’ll use Synergy DBL statements, routines, etc., that are supported for Synergy .NET. See Synergy DBL Support for .NET for information on which Synergy DBL features are supported for .NET, and note that the grid that appears at the top of each topic for a Synergy DBL routine indicates whether the routine or statement is supported for Synergy .NET. If WN is visible in the grid (as it is for XRETURN for example), the routine or statement is supported for Synergy .NET, although there may be restrictions. See Documentation conventions for more information on this grid.

Synergy .NET components

Synergy .NET is not a Synergy/DE product. Rather, it is a term for the use of Synergy DBL with .NET. The Synergy/DE components used for Synergy .NET development are Synergy DBL Integration for Visual Studio (SDI), the Synergy .NET libraries, and the Synergy .NET NuGet packages.

Synergy DBL Integration for Visual Studio

Synergy DBL Integration for Visual Studio (SDI) is a Synergy/DE product that enables you to use Visual Studio to develop Synergy applications and libraries.

SDI enables you to use Visual Studio features (such as IntelliSense, colorization, and regions) as you develop Synergy applications, and it hooks into and provides project wizards and designers. For Synergy .NET development, SDI includes the Synergy .NET compiler, which is invoked by Visual Studio build features (MSBuild). SDI also enables you to use the Visual Studio debugger to debug your Synergy .NET code for Windows applications. If a Synergy .NET assembly interoperates with code from other languages, you can step seamlessly from one language to another.

See SDI Basics for more information on SDI, and see www.synergex.com/synergy-dbl-integration for information on system requirements.

Synergy .NET libraries and NuGet packages

Although Synergy .NET assemblies run under a common language runtime (CLR) for the .NET Frameworks they target, some Synergy-specific runtime functionality is required. This is supplied by runtime libraries, which are included in Synergy/DE for desktop/server applications and libraries, and are included as Synergex.SynergyDE.synrnt NuGet package references for SDK-style projects. 

With SDK-style projects, there is another NuGet package, Synergex.SynergyDE.Build, which is used behind the scenes for project builds. A reference to this package is required and is automatically added to SDK-style projects.

And, in addition to being available in Visual Studio when SDI is installed, Synergy project templates and project item templates are distributed in the following NuGet packages for use with the .NET CLI (e.g., the “dotnet” command): Synergex.Projects.Templates and Synergex.ProjectItem.Templates.

Note

To update NuGet packages for existing projects, you must use the NuGet Package Manager. See Microsoft documentation for more information (e.g., learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-visual-studio).

SDI also includes the following libraries:

Compile-time defines

The following compile-time defines enable you to conditionally compile code for .NET:

For more information, see Built-in compiler definitions.

Using environment variables

Environment variables can be used for Synergy .NET development (e.g., for build-time settings) and runtime settings. See Environment variables and Visual Studio development for information.

Using Synergy/DE repositories

To use a Synergy/DE repository with a Synergy .NET project, you can either create a repository project and then reference that project, or use RPSMFIL and RPSTFIL (or RPSDAT) to specify the location of repository files. See Using Synergy/DE repositories in Visual Studio for more information.

Other options for .NET

Synergy .NET is the primary solution for Microsoft .NET Framework on Windows, but there are other Synergy/DE options for .NET development for desktop and server applications on Windows: