What Is Blazor? A Complete Guide To Getting Started

Blazor framework is a well-known framework among the .Net tech community. It is an open-source framework that is utilized to build single-page applications. It was created by Microsoft, which combines the traditional razor framework with the modern .Net and WebAssembly framework. What's more? It helps to build both server-side and client-side applications.

Blazor development enables developers to develop rich and sophisticated graphic user interfaces (UIs) for applications and websites. The remarkable ability of Blazor is to streamline development by integrating backend and frontend procedures leveraging the single language, which can work well in a browser and offline functionalities.

Building a web application using Blazor development, requires writing code for the server-side and client side. Many programming languages are available that help to write codes.

For building the server-side development, the developer can use the programming languages like C#, Java, PHP, etc.  For client-side development, the JavaScript frameworks that can be utilized are Vue, Angular, React, and so on.

 

S.No	Development	Tech stack	Examples
	Server-Side Development	Programming languages	C#, Java, PHP
	Client-Side Development	Counter.razor	Vue, Angular, React, and so on.

 

BLAZOR HOSTING MODELS

Blazor generally has two hosting models, one for the client-side and the other for server-side

1. Blazor WebAssembly (refer to client-side)
2. Blazor Server (refer to server-side)
 

1.BLAZOR WEBASSEMBLY (WASM)

Microsoft launched Blazor WebAssembly in May 2020. Wasm apps work in the browser. When a user accesses a web app or web page, all the client-side logic-related code and dependencies will get downloaded. Once everything is downloaded, any disconnect issues do not cause any complications. We can resume the program offline and synchronize the changes later.

PROS & CONS OF BLAZOR WEBASSEMBLY

PROS:

•  This allows the client site to run the application within the browser. Once the application is downloaded, you can disconnect the server. However, the app resumes work but is unable to interact with the server to extract new data.
•  The best thing about this hosting model is that it can fully harness customer capabilities and resources.
•  It does not require an ASP.NET core web server to host the application.
•  It significantly lowers the server load by fasting the load time as it requires only making the modifications in the DOM (Document Object Model).

CONS:

•  This hosting model is limited to browser capabilities.
•  There are limitations to the .NET standard compatibility and its debugging.
•  It requires Wasm-compatible client software and hardware. It means it only supports the latest browsers.

 

2. BLAZOR SERVER

Microsoft released Blazor server-side hosting model in September 2019. In the server-side hosting model, every change or event done on the client side can be conveyed to the server with the help of SignalR communication. The next step that the server does is to process the modifications and perform the necessary updates on the client-side UI. If this happens, it indicates that the UI rendering performs at the server end

PROS:

•  Blazor web apps can load much faster as the server side pre-renders the HTML content.
•  It can effectively leverage the server's capabilities.
•  Server-side apps do not have any browser version restrictions. Therefore, it can work even with old browsers.
•  The pro advantage of the server-side hosting model is that it has enhanced security as it does not transmit the app code to the client.

CONS:

•  It requires that the connection to the server needs to be active. The web app cannot run without internet connectivity.
•  This hosting model needs an ASP.NET core server.
•  It has significant latency because the data is continually transmitted to and from the client server.  

 

BLAZOR PROJECT STRUCTURE

 
To build a Blazor app, you must know the project structure of Blazor development. Let’s look at its structure.

 

1. PROGRAM.CS

• This file comprises the Main()method, an entry point for Blazor Server and WebAssembly.
• The Main()method is also known as CreateHostBuilder() in a Blazor Server project responsible for configuring the ASP.NET Core host.
• For the Blazor WebAssembly project, the app component (a root component) is described in the main method. In the "App.razor file", the root component can be placed in the root project folder.  

 

2.WWWROOT

• It is a folder that is present in the root project folder and is considered a webroot folder.

• The webroot folder access static files like images, stylesheets, and more with a relative path to the webroot folder.

 

3. RAZOR COMPONENTS

• Most of the files present in the Blazor projects are considered .razor files. It defines the necessary components which are responsible for the building of app UI.
• The components used in the Blazor WebAssembly and Blazor server apps are identical in most cases.  

 

4. PAGES FOLDER

This folder comprises _Host razor page and routable components, which has .razor extension.
 

S.NO	Component	Syntax	Description
	Index Component	Index.razor	When navigation happens to the URL of the root application, then rendering takes place.
	Counter Component	Counter.razor	When navigation happens to the counter/path, then rendering takes place.
	FetchData Component	Fetch Data.razor	When navigation happens to the fetchData/path, then rendering takes place.
	Error Component	Error.razor	When any unexpected error arises in the Blazor app, the rendering occurs.

  

5. SHARED FOLDER

It consists of Razor components and additional elements which can be shared within pages.

• MainLayout component ( MainLayout.razor): It is the component of the app layout.
• MainLayout.razor.css: It's the stylesheet for the main layout of the app.
• NavMenu component (NavMenu.razor): it utilizes a sidebar for navigation along with the Navlink component, which can enable links for navigation to further Razor components.
• Navmenu.razor.css: It is a stylesheet for the navigation menu of the Blazor app.
• SurveyPrompt component (SurveyPrompt.razor): It is a Blazor survey component.  

 

6. _IMPORTS.RAZOR

It incorporates razor directives that can be included in the component of an app.

 

7. APP SETTING FILES

Environmental app setting files and appsettings.json help in offering the configuration setting to the Blazor app.
 

8. DATA FOLDER

This folder contains the WeatherForecast class and the WeatherForecastService implementation, which is capable of providing weather data to the FetchData component.

Many reasons that make Blazor a good framework for creating web applications. One of the USPs of Blazor development is that it can build rich UI experiences for the web by leveraging CSS, HTML, and C# rather than using JavaScript. Some other reasons listed below indicate why Blazor is grabbing developer eyeballs

1. It utilizes the critical advantages of .NET runtime.
2. Blazor development allows for optimization of the development cycle.
3. Simple and easy download.
4. The clients can download the code from the server without downloading it.
5. Blazor framework is incredibly flexible.
 

Many companies use the Blazor framework for their apps and websites, including Weland solutions, Scopeland technology, PocketPal, etc.

Businesses can leverage the Blazor development services in the following considerations

1. When they need a quick turnaround time.
2. When businesses are looking to develop an MVC-type app or SPA with the aim of having a strong UI component.
3. In the case of developing a client-facing CRM or public system requires a robot and effective UI/UX.

Blazor is an excellent framework for developing rich and seamless UIs for web applications leveraging the C# and the .NET platform. It can effectively integrate backend and frontend operations by utilizing a single language and works great for offline and browser.

Blazor emerges as a sophisticated framework as it keeps on updating to fulfill the evolving market requirements.

Want to develop a marvelous web app? Utilize the Blazor framework before it gets late. Zenesys Blazor development services work on both the client-side and server-side to build an immersive application to meet your business requirements.