ASP (Active Server Pages) was first released in December 1996. Since then, it has undergone major changes and has grown and adapted to new methods of developing websites and Internet applications over time. There are two main forms of ASP:
or classic ASP and
or ASP.net
In ASP.net, the main weight is on the n-tier architecture in application development and there is a separation of data presentation, business logic, and data access layers. In classic ASP, these layers get mixed up, leading to the development of inefficient solutions with a huge architecture that are difficult to maintain. ASP.net offers an object-oriented approach to software development where ASP does not support classes. Only VBScript and Javascript were available for scripting in ASP, while in ASP.net there are no such restrictions.
.net compatible languages can be used with ASP.net such as C# and VB.net, both of which are server-side languages where, like ASP, only VBScript and Javascript are available as options to use. The ASP pages are then interpreted and the ASP.net code is compiled. Traditional ASP can only run on Microsoft platforms, but ASP.net can also run on non-Microsoft platforms. ASP runs in the inetinfo.exe IIS (Internet Information Server) process space and can cause application crashes due to the start and stop process used by IIS. While the ASP.net process is separate from inetinfo.exe and is not related to the IIS process isolation settings. The debugging process is easier in ASP.NET.
In classic ASP, executable code cannot be separated from HTML, making the page difficult to read and maintain. The code block must be placed whenever the output is displayed. This code limitation is overcome in ASP.NET through the use of server controls. Web and HTML server controls created on the server require an attribute to function. This attribute indicates that the page will be rendered on the server. At the same time, it means that server scripts can access attached controls. Validation server controls are a big plus in ASP.NET. It saves a lot of time and developers don’t have to write their own functions like they do with ASP. Built-in validation increases the reliability of the application. Through this, a double validation can be performed on the client and server side.
Using ASP.net pages offers a performance and security benefit. Supports the use of any .Net language. There are no restrictions on the use of JavaScript or VB Script on your web pages. Finally, it can be said that ASP.net has opened up a whole new programming model with the mix and match of web forms, server side controls, data binding along with web services. ASP and ASP.net have just scratched the surface of Microsoft Active Server Page technology, which will continue to improve in the coming years with the latest additions to the technology front.