Introduction  
 

The SocketTools Library Edition includes standard Windows dynamic link libraries (DLLs) which can be used in a wide variety of programming languages such as Visual C++, Visual C#, Visual Basic and Delphi. The Library Edition is ideal for the developer who requires the high performance, minimum resource utilization and flexibility of a lower level interface, without the inherent overhead of ActiveX components or the .NET Framework. The SocketTools Library Edition API has over 950 functions which can be used to develop applications that meet a wide range of needs. SocketTools covers it all, including uploading and downloading files, sending and retrieving email, remote command execution, terminal emulation, and much more.

The SocketTools Library Edition also includes support for the industry standard Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), Transport Security Layer (TLS) and Secure Shell (SSH) protocols which are used to ensure that data exchanged between the local system and a server is secure and encrypted. The Library Edition implements the major secure protocols such as HTTPS, FTPS, SFTP, SSH, SMTPS, POP3S, IMAPS and more. Your data is protected with up to 256-bit encryption and full support for client certificates. Using the popular SocketWrench API that is part of SocketTools, you can also write your own, custom secure server applications. And there's no need for you to understand the details of certificate management, data encryption or how the security protocols work. All it takes is a few lines of code to enable the security features, and SocketTools handles the rest.

The following are just some of the features in the SocketTools 7.2 Library Edition:

  • Standard Windows dynamic link libraries (DLLs) with minimal overhead
  • Low resource utilization and no external dependencies on third-party libraries
  • A comprehensive API with 19 libraries and over 950 functions
  • Fully compatible with the Windows Vista, Windows 7 and Windows Server 2008 operating systems
  • Fully compatible with Visual Studio 2005, Visual Studio 2008 and Visual Studio 2010
  • Includes both high level and lower level interfaces for maximum flexibility
  • Support for both synchronous and asynchronous network connections
  • Support for the standard SSL and TLS security protocols with up to 256-bit encryption
  • Support for the SSH protocol and integrated support for SFTP as part of the FTP API
  • Enhanced security options such as support for AES encryption
  • The ability to enable security features with just a few lines of code
  • Support for both implicit and explicit SSL and TLS connections
  • Create both secure client and server applications
  • Support for client certificates when required by the server
  • Support for using certificate files as well as using the Windows certificate store
  • No dependencies on external, third party security libraries
  • Thread-safe implementation with full support for multithreaded applications
  • Support for proxy servers, including secure proxies, using FTP and HTTP
  • An extensive Developer's Guide and online Technical Reference
  • A professional technical support staff and extensive online support resources
  • No runtime licensing fees or additional royalties
  • A trusted company with over 15 years of experience developing Internet components

Developer's Guide
To help you get started using SocketTools, the new Developer's Guide covers a variety of programming topics related to SocketTools, as well an overview of each of the libraries included in the product. Even if you have experience working with previous versions of SocketTools, we recommend that you review the Developer's Guide. If you are using a language other than Visual C++, you'll also find some very helpful information about how to make the most of SocketTools in other programming languages such as C#, Visual Basic and Delphi.

Technical Reference
The Technical Reference provides extensive documentation on all of the functions in each of the SocketTools libraries. It's here that you'll find information on how a function should be called, what the arguments are and what options are available. If it is your first time using a particular library, we recommend that you first read the overview of that library in the Developer's Guide.

  
 

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