The long awaited Enterprise Library is out. You can download it from here. From the same page:
The Enterprise Library Application Blocks
Application blocks help to address the common problems that developers face from one project to the next. They are designed to encapsulate the Microsoft recommended best practices for .NET applications. They can be plugged into .NET applications quickly and easily. For example, the Data Access Application Block provides access to the most frequently used features of ADO.NET, exposing them through easily-used classes. The application block also adds related functionality not directly supported by the underlying class libraries.
The application blocks that comprise the Enterprise Library are the following:
- Caching Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate a local cache in their applications.
- Configuration Application Block. This application block allows applications to read and write configuration information.
- Data Access Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate standard database functionality in their applications.
- Cryptography Application Block. This application block allows developers to include encryption and hashing functionality in their applications.
- Exception Handling Application Block. This application block allows developers and policy makers to create a consistent strategy for processing exceptions that occur throughout the architectural layers of enterprise applications.
- Logging and Instrumentation Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate standard logging and instrumentation functionality in their applications.
- Security Application Block. This application block allows developers to incorporate security functionality in their applications. Applications can use the application block in a variety of situations, such as authenticating and authorizing users against a database, retrieving role and profile information, and caching user profile information.