Windows Communication Foundation what communication protocols are used to access the service, whether security mechanisms are to be used, and the like. WCF includes predefined bindings for most common communication protocols such as SOAP over HTTP, SOAP over TCP, and SOAP over Message Queues, etc. Interaction between WCF endpoint and client is done using a SOAP envelope. SOAP envelopes are in simple XML form, which makes WCF platform-independent. When a client wants to access the service via an endpoint, it not only needs to know the contract, but it also has to adhere to the binding specified by the endpoint. Thus, both client
Communication protocol of standardization and an overview of protocols using this scheme is given in the article on OSI protocols. In networking equipment configuration, a term-of-art distinction is often drawn: The term "protocol" strictly refers to the transport layer, and the term "service" refers to protocols utilizing a "protocol" for transport. In the common case of the TCP and UDP "protocols", "services" are distinguished by their port numbers. Conformance to these port numbers is voluntary, so in content inspection systems the term "service" strictly refers to port numbers, and the term "application" is often used to refer to protocols identified through inspection