Outlook Attachment Organization
My organization sends out daily emails with long lists of separate items submitted by each team member, with related documents corresponding to each individual item. The current accessibility options for organizing attachments in either Outlook or Outlook (classic)--I use the latter--often make this somewhat of a challenge. The protocol for sending these emails is not going to change within my organization, and I'm not in a position to suggest any kind of third-party subscription (e.g., NetDocuments) to help organize attachments or even to ask my team members to all download a plugin, regardless of the price. So, I've come here to ask for help. The default, of course, is for all documents included in an email to be held within an attachments pane above the message. See Illustration 1. This, however, does not lend itself well to the daily emails. For instance, take Illustration 1 but instead of just seven attachments, imagine 30. Now also imagine 10 items instead of 3, with lengthy paragraphs included in the {Summary} placeholders. This may give you an idea of the issue I am trying to solve. One workaround is to send messages in rich text format. See Illustration 2. This allows each of the documents to appear under the corresponding items and, overall, is much more efficient at organizing attachments for the task at hand. However, the workaround presents several of its own issues. First, my team is not an altogether tech-savvy bunch. The thought of trying to get everyone to remember to send their daily email updates--and only these emails in particular--in rich text format is somewhat of a nonstarter. Second, and more importantly, the appearance of the attachments using this method does not allow for the full document title to be displayed to the reader, which defeats the entire purpose of my endeavor: to make it easy to identify and access documents corresponding to each item in a list without having to open multiple documents at once or sift through a sea of attachments to find the one you're looking for. What I'm hoping for is something akin to what is shown in Illustrations 3a (above) and 3b (below). (Note: I've prepared these illustrations by inserting screenshots of the attachment pane icons below the placeholder text. Clearly, this is not something I've composed using existing features, otherwise I wouldn't be posting this query.) Ideally, one would have the option to choose between a layout akin to either Illustration 3a or Illustration 3b. Thank you!
Windows insider's glitches
I'm unable to start Valorant since I switched to the windows insider program, it was stopping the vanguard to run. Vanguard is anti-cheat program which was run with the Valorant. I'm using latest windows insider experimental and I'm unable to uninstall it. How would I will solve this problem..NET
Hi everyone! 👋 I’m new to this community and currently learning .NET App Development. I’m really excited to join and connect with developers here. I believe the discussions and knowledge shared in this community are very valuable, especially for beginners like me. I’m looking forward to learning from your experiences and improving my development skills. If you have any tips, recommended resources, or advice for someone starting with .NET, I would really appreciate it. Happy to be part of this community! 😊
Configure registry permissions
Hi I have strange problem to set specific permission to a registry key. According to Microsoft's https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/api/system.security.accesscontrol.registrysecurity?view=net-10.0, it should work like this: private static RegistryKey CreateRegistryKey(RegistryKey parentPath) { RegistryKey childKey = parentPath.CreateSubKey("myKey"); RegistryAccessRule rule = new RegistryAccessRule( new SecurityIdentifier(WellKnownSidType.AuthenticatedUserSid, null), RegistryRights.ReadKey | RegistryRights.Delete, InheritanceFlags.ContainerInherit, PropagationFlags.None, AccessControlType.Allow); RegistrySecurity childACL = childKey.GetAccessControl(); childACL.AddAccessRule(rule); ShowSecurity(childACL); childKey.SetAccessControl(childACL); return childKey; } But if the code is executed in a windows service, I missing my permission!? How can this be? Am I doing something wrong? Have I overlooked something?
Windows Forms user control layout issues at runtime
I'm hoping the good folls of this community can help me figure out what's going on with a Windows Forms user control that I created and am trying to use. I created a user control that represents a single band of a parametric equalizer. In the designer, the control looks like this: When I debug the control in the Test Container, things look good: If we take a look at the actual PEQ application that will use the control, things still look OK in the designer: It's only when I fire up the application that things go... awry: What happened to all the TextBoxes? And the ComboBoxes? I''ve got a feeling that the fix for this is something really simple, and I'm going to feel like a complete idiot for not figuring out the obvious. Can anyone tell me what my dumb self did wrong?Using Entra ID Authentication with Arc-Enabled SQL Server in a .NET Windows Forms Application
Introduction: This guide demonstrates how to securely connect a .NET Framework Windows Forms application to an Arc-enabled SQL Server 2022 instance using Entra ID (Azure AD) authentication. It covers user authentication, token management, and secure connection practices, with code samples and screenshots. In many modern applications, it is common practice to use an application web service to mediate access to SQL Server. This approach can offer several advantages, such as improved security, scalability, and centralized management of database connections. However, there are scenarios where directly connecting to SQL Server is more appropriate. This guide focuses on such scenarios, providing a solution for applications that need direct access to SQL Server. This model is particularly useful for applications like SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS), which require direct database connections to perform their functions. By using Entra ID authentication, we can ensure that these direct connections are secure and that user credentials are managed efficiently. By following the steps outlined in this guide, developers can ensure secure and efficient connections between their .NET Windows Forms applications and Arc-enabled SQL Server instances using Entra ID authentication. This approach not only enhances security but also simplifies the management of user credentials and access tokens, providing a robust solution for modern application development. SAMPLE CODE: GitHub Repository Prerequisites Arc-enabled SQL Server 2022/2025 configured for Entra ID authentication Entra ID (Azure AD) tenant and app registration .NET Framework 4.6.2 Windows Forms application (Not required .NET version, only what the solution is based on) Microsoft.Identity.Client, Microsoft.Data.SqlClient NuGet packages Application Overview User authenticates with Entra ID Token is acquired and used to connect to SQL Server Option to persist token cache or keep it in memory Data is retrieved and displayed in a DataGridView Similar setup to use SSMS with Entra ID in articles below. Windows Form Sample Check User Button shows the current user The Connect to Entra ID at Login button will verify if you are logged in and try to connect to SQL Server. If the user is not logged in, an Entra ID authentication window will be displayed or ask you to log in. Once logged in it shows a Connection successful message box stating the connection to the database was completed. The Load Data button queries the Adventure Works database Person table and loads the names into the datagridview. The Cache Token to Disk checkbox option either caches to memory when unchecked and would require reauthentication after the application closes, or the option to cache to disk the token to be read on future application usage. If the file is cached to disk, the location of the cached file is (C:\Users\[useraccount]\AppData\Local). This sample does not encrypt the file which is something that would be recommended for production use. This code uses MSAL (Microsoft Authentication Library) to authenticate users in a .NET application using their Microsoft Entra ID (Azure AD) credentials. It configures the app with its client ID, tenant ID, redirect URI, and logging settings to enable secure token-based authentication. //Application registration ClientID, and TenantID are required for MSAL authentication private static IPublicClientApplication app = PublicClientApplicationBuilder.Create("YourApplicationClientID") .WithAuthority(AzureCloudInstance.AzurePublic, "YourTenantID") .WithRedirectUri("http://localhost") .WithLogging((level, message, containsPii) => Debug.WriteLine($"MSAL: {message}"), LogLevel.Verbose, true, true) .Build(); This method handles user login by either enabling persistent token caching or setting up temporary in-memory caching, depending on the input. It then attempts to silently acquire an access token for Azure SQL Database using cached credentials, falling back to interactive login if no account is found. private async Task<AuthenticationResult> LoginAsync(bool persistCache) { if (persistCache) TokenCacheHelper.EnablePersistence(app.UserTokenCache); else { app.UserTokenCache.SetBeforeAccess(args => { }); app.UserTokenCache.SetAfterAccess(args => { }); } string[] scopes = new[] { "https://database.windows.net//.default" }; var accounts = await app.GetAccountsAsync(); if (accounts == null || !accounts.Any()) return await app.AcquireTokenInteractive(scopes).ExecuteAsync(); var account = accounts.FirstOrDefault(); return await app.AcquireTokenSilent(scopes, account).ExecuteAsync(); } Connecting to SQL Server with Access Token This code connects to an Azure SQL Database using a connection string and an access token obtained through MSAL authentication. It securely opens the database connection by assigning the token to the SqlConnection object, enabling authenticated access without storing credentials in the connection string. This sample uses a self-signed certificate, in production always configure SQL Server protocols with a certificate issued by a trusted Certificate Authority (CA). TrustServerCertificate=True bypasses certificate validation and can allow MITM attacks. For production, use a trusted Certificate Authority and change TrustServerCertificate=True to TrustServerCertificate=False. Configure Client Computer and Application for Encryption - SQL Server | Microsoft Learn string connectionString = $"Server={txtSqlServer.Text};Database=AdventureWorks2019;Encrypt=True;TrustServerCertificate=True;"; var result = await LoginAsync(checkBox1.Checked); using (var conn = new SqlConnection(connectionString)) { conn.AccessToken = result.AccessToken; conn.Open(); // ... use connection ... } Fetching Data into DataGridView This method authenticates the user and connects to an Azure SQL Database using an access token, and runs a SQL query to retrieve the top 1,000 names from the Person table. It loads the results into a DataTable, which can then be used for display or further processing in the application. private async Task<DataTable> FetchDataAsync() { var dataTable = new DataTable(); var result = await LoginAsync(checkBox1.Checked); using (var conn = new SqlConnection(connectionString)) { conn.AccessToken = result.AccessToken; await conn.OpenAsync(); using (var cmd = new SqlCommand("SELECT TOP (1000) [FirstName], [MiddleName], [LastName] FROM [AdventureWorks2019].[Person].[Person]", conn)) using (var reader = await cmd.ExecuteReaderAsync()) { dataTable.Load(reader); } } return dataTable; } Configure Azure Arc SQL Server to use Entra ID authentication Using SQL Server 2022 follow the instructions here to setup the key vault and certificate when configuring. This article can also be used to configure SSMS to use Entra ID authentication. Detailed steps located here: Set up Microsoft Entra authentication for SQL Server - SQL Server | Microsoft Learn Using SQL Server 2025 the setup is much easier as you do not need to configure a Key Vault, or certificates as it is relying on using the managed identity for the authentication. Entra ID App Registration Steps Register a new app in Azure AD Add a redirect URI (http://localhost) Add API permissions for https://database.windows.net/.default On the Entra ID app registration, click on API Permissions. Add the API’s for Microsoft Graph: User.Read.All Application.Read.All Group.Read.All Add a permission for Azure SQL Database. If Azure SQL database is not shown in the list ensure that the Resource Provider is registered for Microsoft.Sql. Choose Delegated permissions and select user_impersonation, Click Add permission for the Azure SQL Database. NOTE: Once the permissions are added ensure that you grant admin consent on the items. Security Considerations Never store client secrets in client apps Use in-memory token cache for higher security, or encrypted disk cache for convenience Use user tokens for auditing and least privilege References Microsoft Docs: Azure AD Authentication for SQL Server MSAL.NET Documentation Arc-enabled SQL Server Documentation Conclusion: By following the steps outlined in this guide, developers can ensure secure and efficient connections between their .NET Windows Forms applications and Arc-enabled SQL Server instances using Entra ID authentication. This approach not only enhances security but also simplifies the management of user credentials and access tokens, providing a robust solution for modern application development. *** Disclaimer *** The sample scripts are not supported under any Microsoft standard support program or service. The sample scripts are provided AS IS without warranty of any kind. Microsoft further disclaims all implied warranties including, without limitation, any implied warranties of merchantability or of fitness for a particular purpose. The entire risk arising out of the use or performance of the sample scripts and documentation remains with you. In no event shall Microsoft, its authors, or anyone else involved in the creation, production, or delivery of the scripts be liable for any damages whatsoever (including, without limitation, damages for loss of business profits, business interruption, loss of business information, or other pecuniary loss) arising out of the use of or inability to use the sample scripts or documentation, even if Microsoft has been advised of the possibility of such damages.
Versioning my Maui Android App
Previously the way to define version code for Android in Maui .csproj file was like this: <!-- Versions --> <ApplicationVersion>3.1.2</ApplicationVersion> <AndroidVersionCode>3</AndroidVersionCode> With the new release of Visual Studio Preview, this has changed to: <ApplicationVersion>3</ApplicationVersion> It works, from Visual Studio, I can bundle a new .aab package (see image below). We see the version code is defined to 3. Unfortunately the version is defined to 1.0.0 and I don't know how to change this. ...when imported on the Google Play Console, it look like this: Unfortunately, when imported I only see the versionCode 3 (which is defined in the .csproj file as ApplicationVersion). What about the versionName (in parentheses) ? Nothing is planned in the .csproj file ? When imported on the Google Play Console, I don't want to have 3 (1.0.0) but I want 3 (3.1.2)... https://developer.android.com/studio/publish/versioning versionCode — A positive integer used as an internal version number. versionName — A string used as the version number shown to users.
