The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 supports Windows Communication Foundation (WCF), which is Microsoft’s unified programming model for building service-oriented applications. Clients that are running the .NET Compact Framework can connect to existing WCF Web services on the desktop. In addition, support for a new WCF transport, the Microsoft Exchange Server mail transport, has been added for both .NET Compact Framework applications and desktop applications. For more information about WCF, see Messaging in the .NET Compact Framework and WCF Exchange Server Mail Transport.

Language-Integrated Query (LINQ) adds general-purpose query facilities to the .NET Compact Framework that apply to various sources of information such as relational databases, XML data, and in-memory objects. For more information, see LINQ in the .NET Compact Framework.

The following table describes the improvements that have been made to Windows Forms controls in the .NET Compact Framework 3.5.

The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 supports SoundPlayer, which enables you to play multiple sounds. A device can mix these sounds if the hardware supports this capability. For more information, see SoundPlayer in the .NET Compact Framework.

The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 adds support for the following classes in the System.IO.Compression namespace:

• CompressionMode

• DeflateStream

• GZipStream

In addition, the AutomaticDecompression property is supported.

The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 supports the CreateDelegate method.

The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 supports the CLR Profiler, which was previously available only with the full .NET Framework. The CLR Profiler enables you to view the managed heap of a process and investigate the behavior of the garbage collector. The CLR Profiler and its associated documentation are included in the Power Toys for .NET Compact Framework. For more information, see Power Toys for .NET Compact Framework.

Note:
The CLR Profiler requires the .NET Framework version 3.5 on the desktop.

The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 supports the Configuration Tool, which provides runtime version information and administrative functions, such as specifying which version of the .NET Compact Framework an application will run against. The Configuration Tool and its associated documentation are included in the Power Toys for .NET Compact Framework. For more information, see Power Toys for .NET Compact Framework.

Debugging enhancements to the .NET Compact Framework 3.5 include the following:

• Nested function evaluations are now supported.

• Unhandled exceptions now break where the exception occurred instead of breaking where you call the Run method.

The following improvements have been made to logging features:

• Interop logs now include information about marshaled objects that are contained in structures or in reference types. For more information, see Log File Information.

• Finalizer logging now includes information about the order and timing of the finalizer.

• Log files are no longer locked while the application is running. Therefore, you can read the logs at run time.

• Stack traces now include the full method signature to distinguish method overloads.

The .NET Compact Framework 3.5 provides new information about the platform type, specifically whether a platform is a Pocket PC or a Smartphone. For more information about platform IDs, see the WinCEPlatform enumeration.

The runtime tools library now provides support for running .NET Compact Framework SDK diagnostic tools, such as Remote Performance Monitor, with the emulator. The runtime tools and their associated documentation are included in the Power Toys for .NET Compact Framework. For more information, see Power Toys for .NET Compact Framework.

Strong names that are greater than 1,024 bytes are now supported.

Modifications to the architecture of the global assembly provide improved error handling and integration with Windows Embedded CE version 6.0.

The class library documentation for the .NET Compact Framework 3.5 includes improved platform support information for overloads. For more information, see How to: Find Supported Members of the .NET Compact Framework in the Class Library.

New samples are available that demonstrate features of the .NET Compact Framework 3.5 such as WCF, compression, LINQ, and XLINQ. For more information, see .NET Compact Framework Samples

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