What Is Global Assembly Cache (GAC)?

The Global Assembly Cache is where .NET assemblies go to the party. It could be more apparent because it's not like the GAC is a physical place or anything. It's just a folder on your computer that you can access only with permission. It is a machine-wide code cache used for the side-by-side execution of assemblies. The GAC implements the feature of a shared library where different applications reuse the code placed in the files located in a shared folder. It helps manage the versioning and deployment of application components, allowing multiple applications to use shared libraries without each application's developers having to worry about getting various versions of the same part installed on their computers. The GAC requires you to prove you are not a duplicate assembly to gain entrance. Please only consider sneaking in with an invitation! The Global Assembly Cache (GAC) is where all .NET assemblies are stored, so it's like a massive library for .NET assemblies. It's where all of your assemblies go to chill out and be friends forever. GAC is the standard location for storing assemblies for .NET Framework. The CLR (Common Language Runtime) determines the version of a community being loaded. The only requirement for a group deployed in GAC must have a unique name. Applications that call for a specific CLR version use a virtual file system to fetch the appropriate version of the assembly. GAC is an excellent tool at your disposal, but it has drawbacks. First, the version of the .NET Framework installed in the system where GAC is used and the one used for compiling the application need to be exact. That can be a pain if you're using Visual Studio for development, and then something about your system changes, and you get an error message. Strong names cannot be applied to assemblies residing in the GAC folder (like third-party code) because they depend on assemblies. This means you must painstakingly rename everything, so it does not conflict with anything else in your project.