The .NET Framework is a development platform for building apps for web, Windows, Windows Phone, Windows Server, and Microsoft Azure. It consists of the common language runtime (CLR) and the .NET Framework class library, which includes a broad range of functionality and support for many industry standards. The .NET Framework provides many services, including memory management, type and memory safety, security, networking, and application deployment. It provides easy-to-use data structures and APIs that abstract the lower-level Windows operating system. You can use a variety of programming languages with the .NET Framework, including C#, F#, and Visual Basic. The Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 is a highly compatible, in-place update to the Microsoft .NET Framework 4. You can see the changes in the .NET Framework 4.5 in the [what's new list](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/framework/whats-new/index#v45). The matching Developer Pack is included in Visual Studio 2012, it is also available as part of the [Windows 8 SDK](https://developer.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/downloads/sdk-archive).