Classic ASP Vs ASP.Net: Exploring the key differences

Classic ASP Vs ASP.Net: Exploring the key differences

Ever since the release of ASP(Active Server Pages) in the year 1996, the server side scripting language has been remarkably used for development of high-performing websites and applications. While the Classic version of ASP came into existence in 1996, the advanced ASP.NET version was released way later in January 2002. Today, through this article, I'll be offering you a detailed insight into some key points of difference between Classic ASP and ASP.NET. These differences would definitely encourage you to opt for ASP.NET for your upcoming custom ASP.NET development project.

The Classic ASP version works on Internet Information Services(IIS) server and hence can't be separated from HTML. This makes the web pages difficult to maintain and read. On the contrary, ASP.NET uses Validation Server Controls that enable web pages to be processed on the server, with the enclosed controls being accessed by the sever scripts. This added feature of ASP.NET allows web developers to write their own functions, thereby increasing the overall readability of the applications.

While the Classic ASP can run only on Microsoft platform, ASP.NET Can run even on the non-Microsoft platforms. Also, unlike the case of Classic ASP, ASP.NET comes with multiple language options such as VBScript, JavaScript, C#(sharp) and VB.net. As compared to the contemporary ASP.NET, Classic ASP includes chances of application crashes initiated due to start and stop process that's being used by the inetinfo.exe IIS. It is due to this reason that you'll find a number of enterprises opting for Professional ASP.NET Development Services.

While Classic ASP doesn't offer any support for the object oriented approach for web development, ASP.NET does allow software developers to utilize the concepts of object oriented programming for building out-of-the-box websites and web applications.

Talking about web page scalability, Classic ASP allows the creation of web pages that can't be updated or replaced easily. This is simply because every time the web developer choose to make any changes, the IIS needs to be controlled, making it difficult to proceed ahead with tweaking the web pages. As compared to classic ASP, ASP.NET allows development of web pages that are easy to modify and update. With complete freedom from restarting the web server, the 'xcopy' deployment model of .NET allows the developer to make changes to the website/web app in real-time. That means, even if the website/web app is altered, there's no impact on the user base.

After having a clear idea about the basic points of difference between ASP and ASP.NET, I'm sure it'd have become feasible for you to make the right choice. So, get going and embrace the ASP version that'd suit your custom requirements to the fullest.