What Is Blazor And How It Works
Introduction
If you are looking for one of the best single-page application development frameworks, then Blazor is the best option to consider. So what is Blazor, it is a combination/mutation of the words Browser and Razor. Now many of you have this misconception that Blazor is similar to Silverlight which is not the case. Silverlight is Microsoft’s previous attempt at hosting in-browser applications. Also, this one requires a browser plugin to run on the client, and this is why it doesn’t seamlessly happen to run on iOS devices.
Whereas Blazor on the other hand doesn’t require any kind of plugin to be installed on the client just to execute within the browser. Blazor mainly works on the server side this is purely because seamless executions can be done on the server, there is a term called the dumb terminal which the browser precisely acts upon, or things run itself by utilizing WebAssembly. Now those who don’t know, web assembly is a web standard which highly supports major browsers. This also means client-side Blazor apps can successfully run within a browser on Windows/Linux/Mac/Android and iOS.
One of the most alluring aspects of Blazor is that it is an open-source web development platform. With blazor, it is possible to seamlessly deploy different web applications, net runtime, asp.net core, blazor web assembly app, blazor server, blazor hybrid, visual studio, net core, desktop applications, mobile apps, games and services.
With Blazor, it is possible to create next-generation asp.net core applications featuring .net runtime. So what’s more interesting about this modern web user interface development technology? It was developed by Microsoft and enables developers to successfully leverage a power-packed range of features that results in high-end scalability, interoperability, cloud computing capabilities, built-in security features, Visual Studio, net runtime, and so more.
Which technologies are used by Blazor? It uses HTML, CSS and C# which does lead to the successful development of interactive client-side web user interfaces.
@page "/counter"
<PageTitle>Counter</PageTitle>
<h1>Counter</h1>
<p role="status">Current count: @currentCount</p>
<button class="btn btn-primary" @onclick="IncrementCount">Click me</button>
@code {
private int currentCount = 0;
private void IncrementCount()
{
currentCount++;
}
}
This specific code is from a visual template for Blazor server applications. Here you are bound to find out different parts of a Blazor component. The technology successfully comprises a rare combination of the hosting model as well as the Blazor component model. Now since there are a wide range of hosting models available, blazor doesn't need to work in the same manner with each one of them.
The only interesting advantage to consider here is, it is possible to use the same components irrespective of the hosting model you choose. Moreover, it is possible to develop a class library featuring Blazor components and successfully share among different applications. Now this has nothing to do with what hosting model you are using, as long as it is possible to access the class library and proper usage of Blazor components.
As mentioned earlier there was also Silverlight which was quite popular due to its browser plugin. However, Apple didn’t want to support browser plugins due to several security issues and these plugins did consume lots and lots of battery life. So this brings us back to Blazor, the tech is open web standards successfully running on every browser. Down below I would like to mention some of the most prominent features that make Blazor stand out from the crowd.
Zero restrictions with HTML and CSS
Css isolation
SignalR as a NuGet package
Hot Reload
Virtualization
Lazy Loading
Two-way data binding
In today’s times, the concept of single-page application development seems to have dominated the world and every business is chasing the concept but without blazor things are impossible to achieve. With the help of technology, developers can create SPAs. Now you must be wondering how is this even possible? Well, you can seek assistance from three interactive strategies,
Interactive Server
Interactive WebAssembly
Interactive Auto.
Why Should One Choose Blazor?
#1 C
One of the most amazing reasons or features of Blazor technology is C# and .Net. No wonder the tech is highly considered for developing some of the most interactive web applications like never before. Also, the tech simplifies transitioning from backend to frontend development and those professionals who are already proficient in C# can work amazingly irrespective of the tech stack.
Here all the unnecessary boundaries between server and client development blur, so you are bound to receive a unified and efficient coding experience.
#2 Code Reusability
The next benefit worth considering is code reusability. With the help of existing .Net expertise and codebase, developers can minimize redundancy and seamlessly accelerate development. Code can be shared easily between frontend and backend resulting in more proficiency, efficiency, streamlining development procedures and more.
#3 Component-Based Architecture
Another benefit to consider is component-based architecture. Blazor works wonders with frameworks such as React and Angular. Also, it features a modern design which simplifies development and enhances maintainability and scalability. Developers can break down into reusable components and create as well as manage applications.
#4 Strong Ecosystem
The next one is a strong ecosystem. Since it is so collaborative with the .Net ecosystem, Blazor does offer a seamless range of libraries, tools and packages. Blazor WebAssembly offers an exciting range of possibilities for a wide range of web apps. Just watch out for the browser-based scenarios, and get the most out of the C# and .Net for your web development project.
#5 Large community support
Last but certainly not least, Blazor features a wide range of community and Microsoft’s robust support enabling developers to have easy access to a wide range of resources and assistance for absolute development. No wonder Blazor has proved itself as one of the most reliable choices for conducting a web development project. Moreover, with blazor, you are bound to receive a responsive and highly performant web application.
How Blazor Works?
Getting started with Blazor application development, well one of the ways of doing so is by developing a Blazor application using Visual Studio Which offers easy access to a large range of development tools that Microsoft has to offer, irrespective of the Visual Studio edition you are using. Here you can use visual studio code and a command-line interface.
Download and install the latest version of the SDK and pick the tool you are willing to use. Now let’s say you have decided on Visual Studio, then pick ASP.NET and do not forget to enable the Web development workload.
If we choose Visual Studio Code, So step 1 is to Install the latest VS Code C# extension, and if we choose common-line, all you have to do is run dotnet new.
So first you need to open Visual Studio
Create a new project option
Choose the Blazor app
Configure the project
Choose Blazor Server Application or Blazor WebAssembly App,
And you have created a Blazor project.
Final Words
So this is it, now you know what is Blazor, why is it beneficial in the long run, and most importantly how it works. I hope the following post turns out to be helpful for you to get started with Blazor. Good luck! Keep watching the space for more information and updates on the same.