Thursday, October 2, 2025

🚀 Understanding Middleware and Dependency Injection (DI) in ASP.NET Core with Examples

When building modern web applications using ASP.NET Core, two concepts you cannot ignore are Middleware and Dependency Injection (DI). These are the backbone of the framework, ensuring clean architecture, scalability, and maintainability.

In this article, we will dive deep into:

  • What is Middleware in ASP.NET Core?

  • Real-world examples of Middleware.

  • What is Dependency Injection (DI)?

  • Types of Dependency Injection in .NET Core.

  • Code examples for both Middleware and DI.

By the end, you’ll not only understand these concepts but also be ready to confidently explain them in interviews or implement them in real projects.


🔹 What is Middleware in ASP.NET Core?

Middleware is a component in the HTTP request/response pipeline of an ASP.NET Core application. Every request that comes to the server passes through a series of middleware components before reaching the controller (or endpoint). Each middleware can:

  1. Perform an action before passing the request forward.

  2. Call the next middleware in the pipeline.

  3. Perform an action on the response before sending it back.

👉 In simple words: Middleware acts like a chain of checkpoints where each component can process requests and responses.


✅ Real-World Analogy for Middleware

Imagine an airport security check:

  • First, your ticket is verified (Authentication Middleware).

  • Next, your luggage goes through scanning (Authorization Middleware).

  • Finally, customs may inspect your items (Custom Middleware).

Only then are you allowed to board the plane (Endpoint execution).


✅ Example of Middleware in ASP.NET Core

public void Configure(IApplicationBuilder app, IWebHostEnvironment env) { // Custom Middleware app.Use(async (context, next) => { Console.WriteLine("Request Path: " + context.Request.Path); await next.Invoke(); // Pass to next middleware Console.WriteLine("Response Status: " + context.Response.StatusCode); }); app.UseRouting(); app.UseAuthorization(); app.UseEndpoints(endpoints => { endpoints.MapGet("/", async context => { await context.Response.WriteAsync("Hello World from Middleware!"); }); }); }

Explanation:

  • First middleware logs the request and response.

  • UseRouting handles route matching.

  • UseAuthorization checks permissions.

  • Endpoint returns the final response.

👉 SEO Keywords: Middleware in ASP.NET Core, ASP.NET Core pipeline, custom middleware in .NET Core, request response pipeline in ASP.NET Core.


🔹 What is Dependency Injection (DI) in ASP.NET Core?

Dependency Injection (DI) is a design pattern where objects receive their dependencies from an external container instead of creating them directly.

👉 This ensures loose coupling, easy testing, and maintainability of code.


✅ Real-World Analogy for DI

Think of a car:

  • The car requires an engine.

  • Instead of the car building its own engine, we inject an engine from outside.

  • This way, we can replace a PetrolEngine with a DieselEngine without changing the car itself.


✅ Example without DI (Tightly Coupled Code)

public class Car { private PetrolEngine _engine; public Car() { _engine = new PetrolEngine(); // tightly coupled } public void Drive() { _engine.Start(); Console.WriteLine("Car is running..."); } }

❌ Problem: If we want to use DieselEngine, we must modify the Car class.


✅ Example with DI (Loosely Coupled Code)

// 1. Abstraction public interface IEngine { void Start(); } // 2. Implementations public class PetrolEngine : IEngine { public void Start() => Console.WriteLine("Petrol Engine Started"); } public class DieselEngine : IEngine { public void Start() => Console.WriteLine("Diesel Engine Started"); } // 3. Car depends on abstraction public class Car { private readonly IEngine _engine; public Car(IEngine engine) // Constructor Injection { _engine = engine; } public void Drive() { _engine.Start(); Console.WriteLine("Car is running..."); } }

✅ Registering DI in ASP.NET Core

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args); // Register services builder.Services.AddScoped<IEngine, PetrolEngine>(); var app = builder.Build(); app.MapGet("/drive", (Car car) => { car.Drive(); return "Driving with Dependency Injection!"; }); app.Run();

Here, the ASP.NET Core built-in DI container automatically injects the dependency (IEngine) when creating Car.



🔹 Types of Dependency Injection in ASP.NET Core

  1. Constructor Injection (most common) → Dependencies are passed via constructor.

  2. Method Injection → Dependencies are passed as method parameters.

  3. Property Injection → Dependencies are set using public properties.


🔹 DI Lifetimes in ASP.NET Core

  • Transient → New instance is created every time.

  • Scoped → One instance per request.

  • Singleton → One instance for the entire application.

Example:

builder.Services.AddTransient<IService, MyService>(); // Every time new builder.Services.AddScoped<IService, MyService>(); // Per request builder.Services.AddSingleton<IService, MyService>(); // One for all

📝 Summary

  • Middleware in ASP.NET Core controls how requests and responses flow through the pipeline. You can build custom middleware for logging, error handling, or authentication.

  • Dependency Injection (DI) helps reduce tight coupling by injecting dependencies instead of creating them inside classes. ASP.NET Core comes with a powerful built-in DI container.

These two features are core to building clean, scalable, and testable web applications in ASP.NET Core

How Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) works — and a step-by-step configuration guide

Short summary (TL;DR):

Azure Kubernetes Service (AKS) is Microsoft’s managed Kubernetes offering: Azure manages the control plane and operational plumbing while you run containerized workloads on node pools (VMs/VMSS). You configure network, identity, storage, monitoring and autoscaling, then deploy apps the same way you would on vanilla Kubernetes. This article explains AKS architecture, how it works, and shows a practical step-by-step cluster configuration (CLI + example manifests). Microsoft Learn+1


1) What AKS is and how it works (high level)

AKS is a managed Kubernetes service: Azure hosts and operates the Kubernetes control plane (API server, scheduler, etc.), automatically patches and upgrades it, and provides integrations (monitoring, ingress, identity, networking). Your responsibility is the node pools (worker VMs), cluster configuration, and the apps that run in Kubernetes. This separation means you focus on apps while Azure handles the Kubernetes control plane operational burden. Microsoft Learn+1

Core runtime model

  • Control plane (managed by Azure): API server, etcd, controller-manager — Azure maintains HA, scaling and upgrades.

  • Node pools (you manage): groups of worker VMs (Virtual Machine Scale Sets by default) that run kubelet/kube-proxy and your pods. AKS supports multiple node pools (Linux/Windows, GPU, spot). Microsoft Learn+1

  • Add-ons / Extensions: monitoring agent (Azure Monitor/Container Insights), ingress controllers, virtual nodes (ACI), and cluster extensions. Microsoft Learn+1

Common AKS features you’ll encounter

  • Managed identities and Microsoft Entra (Azure AD) integration for auth.

  • Multiple networking models (Azure CNI, kubenet, and Azure CNI overlay). Note: legacy kubenet behaviour and legacy CNIs are evolving — plan your networking. Microsoft Learn+1


2) Key AKS components (quick reference)

  • Control plane (managed) — invisible VM/tenant to you; Azure guarantees availability and upgrades. Microsoft Learn

  • Node Pools — system vs user pools; each pool is a VM scale set (VMSS) and can be sized/typed independently. Use system pools for critical system pods and user pools for workloads. Microsoft Learn+1

  • Networking — choose between azure (Azure CNI) or kubenet (basic) or overlay modes; each has IP planning/scale tradeoffs. Kubenet is being phased/retired in legacy docs — plan migration if you rely on it. Microsoft Learn+1

  • Identity — use managed identities + Microsoft Entra for user auth and Workload Identity (OIDC + federated credentials) for pod-level access to Azure resources (preferred over old AAD Pod Identity). Microsoft Learn+1

  • Monitoring & Logging — Azure Monitor / Container Insights (Log Analytics + Managed Prometheus) hooks into AKS for cluster and workload telemetry. Microsoft Learn+1

  • Autoscaling — cluster autoscaler and node-pool autoscaling let AKS scale nodes up/down automatically; pod autoscaling (HPA/VPA) still operates inside Kubernetes. Microsoft Learn


3) When to use AKS

Use AKS when you want a production-ready Kubernetes environment with:

  • Reduced control-plane ops burden (patching/HA/upgrades).

  • Deep Azure integrations (Azure AD, Key Vault, ACR, Monitor, Load Balancer).

  • Ability to run mixed workloads (Linux/Windows/GPU/Spot) with fine control over node pools. Microsoft Azure+1


4) Planning checklist (before you create a cluster)

  1. Azure subscription & region — pick a region that supports required VM SKUs and AKS features.

  2. Network design — will you use Azure CNI (pods get VNet IPs) or kubenet? (Azure CNI requires careful IP planning; kubenet consumes fewer IPs but is more limited). Consider API server VNet integration and private clusters for higher isolation. Microsoft Learn+1

  3. Identity & auth — plan Microsoft Entra (Azure AD) integration and whether you’ll use Workload Identity for pod access to Key Vault and other resources. Microsoft Learn

  4. Monitoring & logging — create or select a Log Analytics workspace to enable Container Insights. Microsoft Learn

  5. Node sizing — choose VM sizes for system node pool (>=4 vCPU/4GB recommended for system pools) and user pools (on-demand / spot / GPU). Microsoft Learn


5) Step-by-step: create and configure an AKS cluster (CLI focused)

Below is a practical set of commands you can copy/paste and adapt. These follow Azure docs patterns (Azure CLI). Replace variables with your values.

Prerequisites

az login az account set --subscription <YOUR-SUBSCRIPTION-ID> az extension add --name aks-preview # optional if you need preview features

1) Create a resource group

az group create --name rg-aks-demo --location eastus

2) (Optional but recommended) Create a Log Analytics workspace for monitoring

az monitor log-analytics workspace create \ --resource-group rg-aks-demo \ --workspace-name aks-logs-demo

You can also let AKS create a workspace automatically when enabling monitoring. Microsoft Learn+1

3) Create an AKS cluster (example — Azure CNI, monitoring, managed identity, OIDC + workload identity enabled)

This example creates a 3-node cluster, enables monitoring, sets Azure CNI networking (pods take VNet IPs), and enables OIDC + workload identity to allow secure pod → Azure resource access.

# variables RG=rg-aks-demo CLUSTER=aks-demo LOC=eastus WORKSPACE_ID=$(az monitor log-analytics workspace show -g $RG -n aks-logs-demo --query id -o tsv) az aks create \ --resource-group $RG \ --name $CLUSTER \ --location $LOC \ --node-count 3 \ --node-vm-size Standard_D2s_v3 \ --network-plugin azure \ --enable-managed-identity \ --enable-addons monitoring \ --workspace-resource-id $WORKSPACE_ID \ --generate-ssh-keys \ --enable-oidc-issuer \ --enable-workload-identity

Notes & references: --network-plugin azure chooses Azure CNI; --enable-addons monitoring wires Container Insights; --enable-oidc-issuer --enable-workload-identity prepares the cluster for Microsoft Entra Workload Identity (pod → Azure resource federation). See Azure AKS CLI quickstarts for full parameter details. Microsoft Learn+2Microsoft Learn+2

4) Get kubeconfig (connect to cluster)

az aks get-credentials --resource-group $RG --name $CLUSTER kubectl get nodes

5) Add a new user node pool (example: spot / autoscaling)

az aks nodepool add \ --resource-group $RG \ --cluster-name $CLUSTER \ --name spotpool \ --node-count 1 \ --priority Spot \ --spot-max-price -1 \ --enable-cluster-autoscaler \ --min-count 0 \ --max-count 3

You can also enable the cluster autoscaler cluster-wide or on individual node pools; AKS supports both. Microsoft Learn+1

6) Enable/adjust cluster autoscaler after creation

# enable cluster autoscaler on the cluster (cluster-wide) az aks update --resource-group $RG --name $CLUSTER --enable-cluster-autoscaler --min-count 1 --max-count 5 # or update a specific node pool az aks nodepool update \ --resource-group $RG \ --cluster-name $CLUSTER \ --name spotpool \ --update-cluster-autoscaler \ --min-count 0 \ --max-count 3

Autoscaler docs explain min/max constraints and tuning. Microsoft Learn


6) Deploy a simple .NET Core app to AKS (example manifests)

Assume you have container image myregistry.azurecr.io/echo-api:1.0 pushed to ACR (or Docker Hub).

Deployment + Service

# deploy.yaml apiVersion: apps/v1 kind: Deployment metadata: name: echo-api spec: replicas: 2 selector: matchLabels: app: echo-api template: metadata: labels: app: echo-api spec: containers: - name: echo-api image: myregistry.azurecr.io/echo-api:1.0 ports: - containerPort: 80 resources: requests: cpu: "100m" memory: "128Mi" limits: cpu: "500m" memory: "512Mi" --- apiVersion: v1 kind: Service metadata: name: echo-api-svc spec: selector: app: echo-api ports: - port: 80 targetPort: 80 type: ClusterIP

Ingress (NGINX) — assumes NGINX ingress controller is installed

# ingress.yaml apiVersion: networking.k8s.io/v1 kind: Ingress metadata: name: echo-api-ingress annotations: kubernetes.io/ingress.class: nginx spec: rules: - host: echo.example.com http: paths: - path: / pathType: Prefix backend: service: name: echo-api-svc port: number: 80

AKS supports several ingress choices (NGINX, Application Gateway, Istio/Envoy); choose based on features and Azure integrations. Microsoft Learn+1


7) Identity: Workload Identity (pod → Azure resources) — short how-to

  1. Ensure cluster has OIDC issuer & workload identity enabled (--enable-oidc-issuer --enable-workload-identity). Azure Docs

  2. Create a user-assigned managed identity (UAMI) and note its clientId.

  3. Create a Kubernetes ServiceAccount annotated with azure.workload.identity/client-id: "<clientId>".

  4. Create a Federated Identity Credential connecting the UAMI to the cluster’s OIDC issuer and the service account subject.

  5. Grant the UAMI RBAC rights on the Azure resource (Key Vault, Storage, etc.).

  6. Your pod can now acquire tokens via the workload identity flow — no secrets in Kubernetes. See the AKS workload identity tutorials for commands and examples. Microsoft Learn+1


8) Monitoring, logging & observability

  • Enable Container Insights (Log Analytics) when creating the cluster (--enable-addons monitoring) or afterwards with az aks enable-addons. The Container Insights agent (daemonset) collects logs and metrics; you can add Managed Prometheus and Managed Grafana for metrics and dashboards. Microsoft Learn+1

  • Use alerts & dashboards: push critical metrics (node pressure, pod restarts, app errors) into Log Alerts and dashboards in Azure Monitor. Microsoft Learn


9) Security & production hardening (top checklist)

  • Use managed Identities / Microsoft Entra instead of long-lived service principals. Enable Azure RBAC for Kubernetes Authorization if you want unified Azure role management. Microsoft Learn+1

  • Private clusters / API server VNet integration for sensitive environments. Microsoft Learn

  • Network policies (Calico / Azure) to isolate namespaces/pods.

  • Pod security / admission (use policies to limit capabilities).

  • Image scanning / supply chain (CI pipeline should scan images before push).

  • Control plane & node upgrades — test upgrades in staging; use node pool rolling upgrades and max-surge settings. Microsoft Learn


10) Operational topics: upgrades, autoscale, cost, and limits

  • Upgrades: AKS supports in-place control plane upgrades; node pools are upgraded separately to control disruption. Use multiple node pools and max-surge to avoid downtime. Microsoft Learn

  • Autoscaler: cluster autoscaler handles node scaling (respecting min/max), HPA handles pod scaling. Tune autoscaler profile to match workload pattern. Microsoft Learn

  • Cost control: use spot node pools for fault-tolerant tasks, right-size VM SKUs, and monitor consumption (Log Analytics + Cost Management).

  • Quotas & IP planning: Azure CNI consumes VNet IPs per pod; plan subnets accordingly (or use Azure CNI overlay to save IP consumption). Kubenet may be simpler but has limitations and legacy behavior to consider. Microsoft Learn+1


11) Useful AKS CLI snippets (cheat sheet)

# Show AKS versions available in region az aks get-versions -l eastus -o table # Add node pool (Linux) az aks nodepool add -g rg-aks-demo -c aks-demo -n pool1 --node-count 2 --node-vm-size Standard_D4s_v3 # Scale node pool az aks nodepool scale -g rg-aks-demo --cluster-name aks-demo --name pool1 --node-count 4 # Enable monitoring addon az aks enable-addons --addons monitoring -g rg-aks-demo -n aks-demo --workspace-resource-id $WORKSPACE_ID # Update cluster to enable OIDC + workload identity az aks update -g rg-aks-demo -n aks-demo --enable-oidc-issuer --enable-workload-identity

Refer to Azure CLI az aks docs and az aks nodepool docs for complete parameter lists. Microsoft Learn+1



Wednesday, October 1, 2025

Top Advantages of .NET Core Over .NET Framework | 2025 Guide

 When it comes to building modern, scalable, and high-performance applications, developers often face the question: Should I choose .NET Core or .NET Framework? While both are powerful frameworks developed by Microsoft, .NET Core has emerged as the preferred choice for modern application development.

In this article, we’ll explore the key advantages of .NET Core over .NET Framework, helping developers, businesses, and IT teams make the right decision.


🔑 What is .NET Framework?

The .NET Framework is Microsoft’s original development platform, released in the early 2000s. It is designed primarily for building Windows-based applications such as desktop software, enterprise apps, and web applications using ASP.NET.

However, it is limited to the Windows ecosystem and is no longer actively evolving, as Microsoft has shifted its focus to .NET Core and the unified .NET 5/6+ platform.


🔑 What is .NET Core?

.NET Core is a cross-platform, open-source, and high-performance framework introduced by Microsoft in 2016. Unlike .NET Framework, it supports Windows, Linux, and macOS, making it highly flexible for cloud-based and containerized applications.

It is the foundation of the latest .NET 6/7/8 releases, ensuring long-term support and future growth.


🚀 Advantages of .NET Core Over .NET Framework

1. Cross-Platform Development

  • .NET Core Advantage: Runs seamlessly on Windows, Linux, and macOS.

  • Ideal for developers who want to build cloud-native, microservices, and containerized applications using Docker and Kubernetes.

  • Unlike .NET Framework (Windows-only), this flexibility allows businesses to reduce hosting costs by deploying on Linux servers.



2. High Performance and Scalability

  • .NET Core is optimized for speed and performance, often outperforming .NET Framework.

  • Supports asynchronous programming and lightweight architecture, making it suitable for high-traffic enterprise applications and real-time systems.

SEO Keywords: .NET Core performance, scalable .NET applications, high-performance .NET development


3. Open Source and Community-Driven

  • Unlike .NET Framework, .NET Core is fully open source on GitHub.

  • A large global community continuously contributes to improvements, libraries, and bug fixes.

  • Provides developers with transparency and faster updates.



4. Microservices and Cloud Support

  • .NET Core integrates seamlessly with Azure Cloud, AWS, and Google Cloud.

  • Perfect for building microservices-based architectures using Docker and Kubernetes.

  • Helps businesses adopt cloud-native strategies for digital transformation.



5. Unified Development Model

  • With .NET Core (and later .NET 5/6+), Microsoft has unified the development platform.

  • Developers can build web apps, mobile apps (Xamarin/.NET MAUI), desktop apps, IoT, and AI solutions all using a single platform.

  • Saves time, cost, and reduces complexity.



6. Improved Deployment and Versioning

  • .NET Core supports side-by-side versioning, meaning multiple versions can run on the same machine.

  • Eliminates “DLL Hell” issues commonly seen in .NET Framework.

  • Supports self-contained deployment, allowing applications to carry their own runtime without relying on system-wide installations.



7. Future-Proof and Actively Supported

  • Microsoft has shifted its focus from .NET Framework (only receiving security updates) to .NET Core and the unified .NET platform.

  • All future updates, features, and innovations will happen in .NET Core/.NET 6+.

  • Businesses choosing .NET Core ensure long-term stability and modernization.



📊 Quick Comparison Table: .NET Core vs .NET Framework

Feature.NET Core ✅.NET Framework ❌
Cross-platformYesNo (Windows-only)
PerformanceHighModerate
Open SourceYesLimited
Cloud & MicroservicesFully supportedLimited
DeploymentFlexible (self-contained)System-wide only
Future SupportActive (part of .NET 6/7/8)Only security updates

🏆 Conclusion

The advantages of .NET Core over .NET Framework are clear: cross-platform support, performance, scalability, cloud integration, and future readiness.

For businesses planning digital transformation and for developers aiming to build modern, secure, and scalable applications, .NET Core is the go-to choice.

🚀 What’s New in C#: Latest Features You Should Know (C# 11 & 12)

C# has always been one of the most popular programming languages in the world, thanks to its simplicity, flexibility, and strong support from Microsoft. With every new version, C# becomes more powerful, modern, and developer-friendly.

The latest releases, C# 11 and C# 12, have introduced a number of exciting features that improve code readability, performance, and productivity. In this article, we’ll dive deep into the top new features in C#, with examples, pros & cons, and real-time use cases.


🔹 Why New Features Matter in C#

Before jumping into the list, let’s quickly understand why these updates are important:

  • Cleaner code → Less boilerplate, easier to read.

  • Faster execution → Performance improvements with UTF-8 literals, inline arrays, etc.

  • Stronger safety → Required members ensure you don’t forget important object initialization.

  • Better productivity → Developers spend less time writing repetitive code.

Now, let’s go feature by feature.


1️⃣ Raw String Literals (C# 11)

Working with JSON, XML, or SQL queries in C# often required lots of escape characters (\). With raw string literals, you can write multi-line strings exactly as they are.

✅ Example:

string json = """ { "name": "Hasitha", "age": 12, "city": "Hyderabad" } """; Console.WriteLine(json);

🔍 Real-time Use Case:

  • Writing SQL queries in C# without escaping ' or \.

  • Handling JSON templates for APIs.

👍 Pros:

  • Cleaner and more readable.

  • No escaping required.

👎 Cons:

  • May look confusing if developers are not aware of """.


2️⃣ List Patterns (C# 11)

Pattern matching got an upgrade with list patterns, making it easier to match arrays and collections.

✅ Example:

int[] numbers = { 1, 2, 3 }; if (numbers is [1, 2, 3]) Console.WriteLine("Perfect match!"); if (numbers is [1, ..]) Console.WriteLine("Starts with 1");

🔍 Real-time Use Case:

  • Data validation (e.g., verifying fixed-length codes).

  • Matching API response arrays.


3️⃣ Required Members (C# 11)

You can now enforce that certain properties must be initialized when creating objects.

✅ Example:

class Student { public required string Name { get; init; } public int Age { get; init; } } var s = new Student { Name = "Cherry", Age = 12 }; // ✅ Must set Name

🔍 Real-time Use Case:

  • Avoiding half-initialized objects (like a User without Email).


4️⃣ File-Scoped Types (C# 11)

Want to create helper classes just for a single file? Now you can!

file class Helper { public static void Print() => Console.WriteLine("File-scoped class"); }

✅ This prevents accidental usage of that class outside its file.


5️⃣ UTF-8 String Literals (C# 11)

C# now allows UTF-8 encoded strings with u8. This improves performance when working with text.

ReadOnlySpan<byte> utf8 = "Hello World"u8;

🔍 Use Case: High-performance applications like game development, IoT, and network protocols.


6️⃣ Primary Constructors for Classes & Structs (C# 12)

Earlier, primary constructors were available only for records. Now, classes and structs can also use them!

✅ Example:

class Employee(string name, int age) { public void Display() => Console.WriteLine($"{name}, {age}"); } var e = new Employee("Hasitha", 12); e.Display();

🔍 Real-time Use Case:

  • Quick creation of DTOs (Data Transfer Objects).

  • Reduces boilerplate constructors in small classes.


7️⃣ Collection Expressions (C# 12)

You can now use a short-hand syntax for creating collections.

✅ Example:

int[] numbers = [1, 2, 3]; List<string> names = ["Cherry", "Hasitha"];

🔍 Use Case: Cleaner initialization of arrays, lists, and dictionaries.


8️⃣ Inline Arrays (C# 12)

For performance-critical code, inline arrays reduce heap allocations.

✅ Example:

using System.Runtime.CompilerServices; [InlineArray(3)] struct MyArray<T> { private T _element0; }

🔍 Use Case: Gaming, AI, and systems programming where memory optimization is key.


🎯 Summary

C# is evolving rapidly to compete with modern languages like Python, Kotlin, and Rust. The latest features in C# 11 and C# 12 bring improvements in readability, safety, and performance.

  • ✅ Use raw strings for JSON & SQL.

  • ✅ Use list patterns for cleaner matching.

  • ✅ Use required members to enforce initialization.

  • ✅ Use primary constructors & collection expressions for less boilerplate.

  • ✅ Use inline arrays & UTF-8 literals for high-performance apps.

If you’re a .NET developer, upgrading to the latest version of C# will save you time, reduce bugs, and make your codebase modern. 🚀


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