How Can Library Code "know" it's hosting application type?

[Smithers]

I'm writing a code library that needs to be reused between a Windows Forms
application and and an ASP.NET Web application.

The library needs to do a couple of things differently depending on the type
of application the library has been loaded for.

What is a reliable and non-hacking way for the code to make that
determination (hosting application type)?

Using .NET 3.5

Thanks

[Nicholas Paldino [.NET/C# MVP]]

Re: How Can Library Code "know&quot ; it's hosting application type?

Smithers,

One way I know of is to set a reference to System.Web.dll and then check
the static Current poperty of the HttpContext class. If this returns null,
then there is no HttpContext, and no ASP.NET. Of course, this is only
applicable if you are actually processing a page. Calling this outside of a
request pipeline in ASP.NET will still return null, so if you need this for
one-time initialization, you might have to look for another option.


--
- Nicholas Paldino [.NET/C# MVP]
- mvp@spam.guard. caspershouse.co m

"Smithers" <A@B.comwrote in message
news:emfthEQ2HH A.5160@TK2MSFTN GP05.phx.gbl...

I'm writing a code library that needs to be reused between a Windows Forms
application and and an ASP.NET Web application.
>
The library needs to do a couple of things differently depending on the
type of application the library has been loaded for.
>
What is a reliable and non-hacking way for the code to make that
determination (hosting application type)?
>
Using .NET 3.5
>
Thanks
>

[Marc Gravell]

Re: How Can Library Code &quot;know&quot ; it's hosting application type?

Well, ASP.NET often has an HttpContext.Cur rent, but note that
personally I find this a bit hacky. It also doesn't work for things
like WCF hosted in IIS. I generally prefer to use a provider model,
where-by those bits that depend on the architecture are abstracted
through an interface (with some mechanism to register and obtain the
provider); in the web app I register one provider (perhaps using an
HttpModule to configure via web.config), and in the client I register
another.

But I guess it depends on how big the change is...

Marc

[Ralph]

Re: How Can Library Code &quot;know&quot ; it's hosting application type?


"Smithers" <A@B.comwrote in message
news:emfthEQ2HH A.5160@TK2MSFTN GP05.phx.gbl...

I'm writing a code library that needs to be reused between a Windows Forms
application and and an ASP.NET Web application.
>
The library needs to do a couple of things differently depending on the

type

of application the library has been loaded for.
>

You need to revisit your design. Those "couple of things" likely either
don't belong in the library or need to be "passed" by the client at the time
of use.

-ralph

[Brian]

Re: How Can Library Code &quot;know&quot ; it's hosting application type?

In the past I had always checked the current process image name. If it was
"w3wp.exe" then I knew it was running under IIS. I suggest you also check
against "WebDev.WebServ er.Exe" since this is what VS 2005 uses during
development. If I find either of these 2 I assume I'm running in a web
application - otherwise assume WinForms.

- Brian
"Smithers" <A@B.comwrote in message
news:emfthEQ2HH A.5160@TK2MSFTN GP05.phx.gbl...

I'm writing a code library that needs to be reused between a Windows Forms
application and and an ASP.NET Web application.
>
The library needs to do a couple of things differently depending on the
type of application the library has been loaded for.
>
What is a reliable and non-hacking way for the code to make that
determination (hosting application type)?
>
Using .NET 3.5
>
Thanks
>

[Samuel R. Neff]

Re: How Can Library Code &quot;know&quot ; it's hosting application type?


It's also possible to run ASP.NET under Apache.

http://weblogs.asp.net/israelio/archive/2005/09/11/424852.aspx

Although much less common. :-)

Sam

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On Tue, 7 Aug 2007 11:09:33 -0500, "Brian" <brianpatterson @ishcm.com>
wrote:

>In the past I had always checked the current process image name. If it was
>"w3wp.exe" then I knew it was running under IIS. I suggest you also check
>against "WebDev.WebServ er.Exe" since this is what VS 2005 uses during
>development. If I find either of these 2 I assume I'm running in a web
>application - otherwise assume WinForms.
>