The Version 4.1 release of the .NET Micro Framework is now available at the Microsoft Download Center (link).  This release has been in public beta for some time and we expect it to be very stable.  It is available at the Microsoft Download Center – just search for “.NET Micro Framework 4.1” or follow the specific links below to the parts you are interested in.  .

Note:  Please remove previous versions of .NET Micro Framework before trying to install.  With the Multi-targeting support mentioned below, this release will support your work on multiple versions.  The installations with multiple files (like the Porting Kit) are much more successful if you save the extracted files to your local disk and install from there. 

Parts

There are 7 files to choose from in this release.  These are:

  • The .NETMF SDK(.NET Micro Framework 4.1 SDK ) – to integrate with Visual Studio 2010 and create managed code applications that can run on devices supporting versions 4.1, 4.0, and 3.0 of the .NET Micro Framework. 
  • The .NETMF Porting Kit (.NET Micro Framework 4.1 Porting Kit ) – to enable developers to see all the code and to build their own versions if needed.  This is the package that allows developers to migrate the platform to new hardware.  New in this release is support for the Renesas SH2/A processors and HEW tools.
  • The .NETMF Crypto Companion Libraries (.NET Micro Framework 4.1 Cryptographic Libraries ) – to give developer access to the XTEA, RSA, and other crypto functionality that has been part of the .NET Micro Framework since the beginning.
  • The .NETMF TCP/IP and SDSL libraries build for four instruction sets:
  • SH2/A (Tested on Renesas HEW 4.04 and 4.07)
  • ARM ( Tested on ARM RVDS 3.1 and 4.0, Keil MDK 3.1 and 3.8, and GCC – CodeSourcery Distribution 4.2.1)
  • Thumb ( Tested on ARM RVDS 3.1 and 4.0, Keil MDK 3.1 and 3.8, and GCC – CodeSourcery Distribution 4.2.1)
  • Thumb2 (Tested on ARM RVDS 3.1 and 4.0, Keil MDK 3.1 and 3.8, and GCC – CodeSourcery Distribution 4.2.1)

Features and Changes

  • Big Endian support – in previous versions, only Little Endian architectures were supported.  With Big Endian support we can now support a new set of processors
  • New ports included – along with Big Endian support, we have support from our newest partner – Renesas Electronics (www.renesas.com).  The processors and development boards that they have provided ports for are:
    • SH7216 RSK
    • SH27264 M3A HS64
    • SH7264 RSK
    • SH7619 EVB
  • Support for Visual Studio 2010 – In this release,we are supporting multi-targeting which allows the 4.1 product working in VS2010 to support development of 4.0 and 3.0 projects as well. 
  • DPWS Enhancements – supporting full compatibility with Windows 7 and WCF 4.0 as well as support for Custom Bindings
  • Two TCP/IP Stack options
    • EBSnet Stack – This is the excellent stack that has been in .NETMF for years now and continues to be the default stack.  This stack is supported by EBSnet and a number of extensions are also available through them (ebsnetinc.com).
    • lwIP – this is an Open Source stack that has been added to .NETMF in this version
  • OpenSSL – this is an Open Source SSL stack to be used in conjunction with the lwIP Open Source stack
  • Improved Application Diagnostics to assist in determining the size of the application
  • Hashtable implementation 
  • SPI interface changes to ad flexibility and increase performance
  • Port for SAM7S256 to support simple applications in very small footprint devices

Next Steps

Of course, a soon as we are done with one thing, the question is ‘What’s next’?  The .NET Micro Framework team is looking hard at the problems on network connected devices – this is a very exciting area that we will be working on.  There are a number of ideas floating around from the input that we have gotten on the discussion site.  The Core Tech team will be reviewing those again now that we are finished with this release.  So, keep your suggestions coming into the Product Change Proposals discussion group.  Also, this is the first release that has included the work of the community.  We want to see that contribution grow so think about what you might be able to do help and how we can increase the ability for the community to participate.  In that vein, we will be announcing some changes in the development process to make it more visible and interactive in the near future.

If you have any issues that you want to discuss, please contact us at the Support, Queries, Bug Reports discussion group.

Thanks to everyone for their support on the platform and especially to the volunteers who contributed to this release – Eric Harlow, Jens Kühner,  Jan Kučera, and the folks who contributed issues and suggestions.