Description
You double-click a program and get "you must install .NET", or you want to write some C# and cannot tell whether you need the Runtime, the Desktop Runtime or the SDK.
.NET is Microsoft's free, open-source, cross-platform platform. One runtime and SDK builds web services, desktop apps, cloud apps and AI-powered apps on Windows, Linux and macOS. To run someone else's program you only need the matching runtime. To develop, install the SDK, which already includes it.
Several runtimes: .NET Runtime, Desktop Runtime and ASP.NET Core Runtime for console apps, Windows desktop apps and web services.
SDK and CLI: the dotnet command creates, builds, tests and publishes projects, and works with Visual Studio.
LTS and preview releases: LTS for production, STS and release candidates to try new features early.
Broad coverage: libraries and templates for web, mobile and desktop, cloud, AI and machine learning, games and IoT.
.NET is Microsoft's free, open-source, cross-platform platform. One runtime and SDK builds web services, desktop apps, cloud apps and AI-powered apps on Windows, Linux and macOS. To run someone else's program you only need the matching runtime. To develop, install the SDK, which already includes it.
Features
Several runtimes: .NET Runtime, Desktop Runtime and ASP.NET Core Runtime for console apps, Windows desktop apps and web services.
SDK and CLI: the dotnet command creates, builds, tests and publishes projects, and works with Visual Studio.
LTS and preview releases: LTS for production, STS and release candidates to try new features early.
Broad coverage: libraries and templates for web, mobile and desktop, cloud, AI and machine learning, games and IoT.
