Working with C# 2.0

PowerDesigner provides full support for modeling all aspects of C# 2.0 including round-trip engineering.

C# 2.0 is a modern, type-safe, object-oriented language that combines the advantages of rapid development with the power of C++.

PowerDesigner can be used as a standalone product and as a plug-in for the Visual Studio 2005 development environment, allowing you to integrate its enterprise-level modeling capabilities in your standard .NET workflow. For more information, see Chapter 15, Working with the PowerDesigner Plugin for Visual Studio in the Core Features Guide manual.

In addition to PowerDesigner's standard pallets, the following custom tools are available to help you rapidly develop your class and composite structure diagrams:

• C# 2.0 Assemblies
  An assembly is a collection of C# files that forms a DLL or executable. PowerDesigner provides support for both single-assembly models (where the model represents the assembly) and multi-assembly models (where each assembly appears directly below the model in the Browser tree and is modeled as a standard UML package with a stereotype of <<Assembly>>).
• C# 2.0 Compilation Units
  By default, PowerDesigner generates one source file for each class, interface, delegate, or other type, and bases the source directory structure on the namespaces defined in the model.
• C# 2.0 Namespaces
  Namespaces restrict the scope of an object's name. Each class or other type must have a unique name within the namespace.
• C# 2.0 Classes
  PowerDesigner models C# 2.0 classes as standard UML classes, but with additional properties.
• C# 2.0 Interfaces
  PowerDesigner models C# 2.0 interfaces as standard UML interfaces, with additional properties.
• C# 2.0 Structs
  Structs are lightweight types that make fewer demands on the operating system and on memory than conventional classes. PowerDesigner models C# 2.0 structs as classes with a stereotype of <<Structure>>.
• C# 2.0 Delegates
  Delegates are type-safe reference types that provide similar functions to pointers in other languages. PowerDesigner models delegates as classes with a stereotype of <<Delegate>> with a single operation code-named "<signature>". The visibility, name, comment, flags and attributes are specified on the class object whereas the return-type and parameters are specified on the operation.
• C# 2.0 Enums
  Enums are sets of named constants. PowerDesigner models enums as classes with a stereotype of <<Enum>>.
• C# 2.0 Fields
  PowerDesigner models C# fields as standard UML attributes.
• C# 2.0 Methods
  PowerDesigner models C# methods as operations.
• C# 2.0 Events, Indexers, and Properties
  PowerDesigner represents C# events, indexers, and properties as standard UML attributes with additional properties.
• C# 2.0 Inheritance and Implementation
  PowerDesigner models C# inheritance links between types as standard UML generalizations.
• C# 2.0 Custom Attributes
  PowerDesigner provides full support for C# 2.0 custom attributes, which allow you to add metadata to your code. This metadata can be accessed by post-processing tools or at run-time to vary the behavior of the system.
• Generating C# 2.0 Files
  You generate C# 2.0 source files from the classes and interfaces of a model. A separate file, with the file extension .cs, is generated for each class or interface that you select from the model, along with a generation log file.
• Reverse Engineering C# 2.0 Code
  You can reverse engineer C# files into an OOM.