ASP.NET Configuration

Abstract

We have been using the Web.config file since the start of the book without explaining how it really works and how it is used to configure the ASP.NET Framework. In this chapter, we dig into the detail and explain how the Web.config file is just one part of a larger and flexible configuration system. We show you where the Web.config file we have been using fits in, how to use the configuration system to define custom configuration values and how to create your own additions. What we don’t do in this chapter is talk about the standard ASP.NET configuration elements—we have been describing the main configuration settings in the context of the features they relate to and we’ll continue to do this for the rest of the book. This chapter is all about the configuration mechanism and how you can apply it to your advantage.