Provider
Encyclopedia
The provider model is a design pattern
formulated by Microsoft
for use in the ASP.NET Starter Kits and formalized in .NET version 2.0. It is used to allow an application to choose from one of multiple implementations or "condiments" in the application configuration, for example, to provide access to different data stores to retrieve login information, or to use different storage methodologies such as a database, binary to disk, XML, etc.
The .NET extensible provider model allows a "component" to have multiple implementations using an abstract factory pattern
approach. Providers are a subclass of the ProviderBase class and typically instantiated using a factory method
.
The provider model in ASP.NET 2.0 provides extensibility points for developers to plug their own implementation of a feature into the runtime. Both the membership and role features in ASP.NET 2.0 follow the provider pattern by specifying an interface, or contract. The provider model begins with the abstract class ProviderBase. ProviderBase exists to enforce the contract that all providers need public Name and Description properties, as well as a public Initialize method. Inheriting from ProviderBase are the MembershipProvider and RoleProvider abstract classes. These classes add additional properties and methods to define the interface for their specific areas of functionality.
Design pattern
A design pattern in architecture and computer science is a formal way of documenting a solution to a design problem in a particular field of expertise. The idea was introduced by the architect Christopher Alexander in the field of architecture and has been adapted for various other disciplines,...
formulated by Microsoft
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American public multinational corporation headquartered in Redmond, Washington, USA that develops, manufactures, licenses, and supports a wide range of products and services predominantly related to computing through its various product divisions...
for use in the ASP.NET Starter Kits and formalized in .NET version 2.0. It is used to allow an application to choose from one of multiple implementations or "condiments" in the application configuration, for example, to provide access to different data stores to retrieve login information, or to use different storage methodologies such as a database, binary to disk, XML, etc.
The .NET extensible provider model allows a "component" to have multiple implementations using an abstract factory pattern
Abstract factory pattern
The abstract factory pattern is a software design pattern that provides a way to encapsulate a group of individual factories that have a common theme. In normal usage, the client software creates a concrete implementation of the abstract factory and then uses the generic interfaces to create the...
approach. Providers are a subclass of the ProviderBase class and typically instantiated using a factory method
Factory method pattern
The factory method pattern is an object-oriented design pattern to implement the concept of factories. Like other creational patterns, it deals with the problem of creating objects without specifying the exact class of object that will be created.The creation of an object often requires complex...
.
The provider model in ASP.NET 2.0 provides extensibility points for developers to plug their own implementation of a feature into the runtime. Both the membership and role features in ASP.NET 2.0 follow the provider pattern by specifying an interface, or contract. The provider model begins with the abstract class ProviderBase. ProviderBase exists to enforce the contract that all providers need public Name and Description properties, as well as a public Initialize method. Inheriting from ProviderBase are the MembershipProvider and RoleProvider abstract classes. These classes add additional properties and methods to define the interface for their specific areas of functionality.