.NET Standard vs .NET Core

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I have read about the difference between .NET Standard and .NET Core, but I really don't know what the difference is, or when to choose a .NET Standard library project and when to choose a .NET Core library project.

I have read that .NET Standard is to ensure that a set of APIs are always available, no matter the platform used (as long as that platform is compatible with the .NET Standard version that I have chosen). If I'm not mistaken, this means that I can create a class library of .NET Standard and then use it on any platform that is compatible with the .NET Standard version that I have chosen.

With .NET Core, I have read that it is intended for cross-platform use too, so if I choose a .NET Core library it seems that I can use it on many platforms too, just like .NET Standard.

So at the end, I don't see the difference. When should I use which? What is the difference between them?

.net-standard .net-core .net
7 Answers

.NET Standard is a specification of .NET APIs intended to be available on .NET implementations. This enables to define uniform set of BCL APIs for all .NET implementations.

.NET Core is one such implementation of .NET Standard. .NET Framework is another implementation of .NET Standard.

Image from .NET Blog

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Federicos answer gives you a graphical overview of how each framework evolve with versions. Take a look at below diagram from Microsoft Docs.

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Targeting .NET Standard increases your platform support whereas targeting a particular .NET platform such as .NET Core (or .NET Framework) will allow you to use all the platform features for that platform.

user_3400460

.NET Standard is a specification of APIs that all .NET implementations must provide. It brings consistency to the .NET family and enables you to build libraries you can use from any .NET implementation. It replaces PCLs for building shared components.

.NET Core is an implementation of the .NET Standard that’s optimized for building console applications, Web apps and cloud services using ASP.NET Core. Its SDK comes with a powerful tooling that in addition to Visual Studio development supports a full command line-based development workflow. You can learn more about them at aka.ms/netstandardfaq and aka.ms/netcore.

The above, together with a very clear explanation of most of the stuff discussed in this question can be found in the following extremely helpful article by Microsoft (MSDN - September 2017): .NET Standard - Demystifying .NET Core and .NET Standard

user_35038040

In simple terms, .NET standard is used for writing class library projects which compiles to dll. .NET Core can be used for developing actual web applications which can run on all operating systems (Windows, Linux, MacOS). (In .NET Core 3 Microsoft has provide the functionality to develop desktop apps using WPF, but uptil now these apps will not be cross platform and will only run on windows system. In future Microsoft might make them cross-platform too) .NET standard libraries/dlls can be used in any application which uses .NET (.NET framework, .NET Core) which means that you can use .NET standard with both .NET framework and .NET core.

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