stem/CS/Languages/dotNet.md

Common Language Infrastructure

CLI

• Language-neutral platform

Common Language Runtime

CLR

• Virtual Execution System
  • VES
  • Defined by CLI
• JIT managed code into machine instructions
• Execution engine
  • VM
• Services
  • Memory management
  • Type safety
  • Exception handling
  • Garbage collection
  • Security
  • Thread management

Common Intermediate Language

CIL

• Intermediate language for CLI
• Run by CLR
• Object-oriented, stack-based bytecode

Assemblies

• Compiled CLI code
• Portable executable (PE)
  • DLL, EXE