Learn how to access and manipulate files on local and removable drives, how to roam settings between devices and how to store data in the cloud. To learn more about Windows 8 data storage visit http://lunarfrog.com/blog/category/file-system/

1. All about data
persistence in Windows
8
Andrei Marukovich
contact@lunarfrog.com
twitter: @amarukovich

2. Windows Runtime
Desktop applications Windows Store apps
WPF SL HTML DX HTML5 XAML DirectX
C# / VB JavaScript JavaScript C# / VB
C++ C++
.NET IE IE Engine .NET
Windows Runtime Services and APIs
Storage Sensors Media
Win32 APIs
Metadata UI XAML Controls
Network …

3. Windows Runtime
Sandboxed environment
• No direct communications between the apps
• Brokered access to system resources
File system direct access
• Local data
• Temporary data
• Installation folder
• Downloads

4. .NET Framework
Windows Store profile
• Subset of client profile .NET framework
• No File / FileInfo
• No Directory / DirectoryInfo

5. File system entities
File system items
• StorageFolder
• StorageFile
Helper classes
• PathIO
• FileIO

6. Demo: Local data
• Windows.Storage.ApplicationData
• Folders
• Settings
• StorageFolder, StorageFile
• PathIO, FileIO
• ms-appx:///, ms-appdata:///local|temp|roaming/

7. Roaming
RoamingFolder
RoamingSetting
s
SkyDrive

8. Roaming API
var roamingFolder = ApplicationData.Current.RoamingFolder;
StorageFile file = await roamingFolder.CreateFileAsync("dataFile.txt");
await FileIO.WriteTextAsync(file, “some text");
ulong quota = ApplicationData.RoamingStorageQuota;
ApplicationData.DataChanged += DataChangedHandler;

9. Roaming
• Files
• Settings
DO
• Small data set synchronization between
devices
DON’T
• Real-time communication

10. Libraries
Windows.Storage.KnownFolders
• PicturesLibrary
• MusicLibrary
• VideosLibrary
• DocumentsLibrary
• HomeGroup
• RemovableDevices

11. Demo: Libraries
• Libraries
• App Manifest
• Windows Property System

12. Demo: Pickers
• FolderPicker, FilePicker
• AccessCache
• Picker Contract

13. Files and settings
Application data
• Local/Roaming folder and settings
User data
• Libraries
Other folders and files
• Pickers

14. Databases
Current state
• No System.Data
Options
• SQLite
• ESENT
• Azure Mobile Servces
• Web/Cloud services of you choice

15. SQLite
• SQLite for Windows Runtime extension
• Managed SQLlite library, e.g. sqlite-net
using (var db = new SQLite.SQLiteConnection(dbPath))
{
db.CreateTable<City>();
db.RunInTransaction(() =>
{
db.Insert(new City() { Name = "Toronto" });
});
}

16. ESENT
Extensible Storage Engine
• Indexed sequential access data storage
• Used by Windows 8 Zune Music and Video
Managed wrapper
• ManagedEsent.codeplex.com
Overview
http://lunarfrog.com/blog/2012/09/23/extensible-storage-engine/

17. Demo: Azure Mobile Services
https://manage.windowsazure.com/

18. App-to-app data sharing
Share Contract
• Text
• HTML
• URI
• Bitmap
• File
• Custom data
• schema.org formats
• https://github.com/AndreiMarukovich/Transhipment

19. Data
Local storages
• XML, SQLite, ESENT, etc.
Cloud storages
• SkyDrive, Azure Mobile Services, custom
services

20. Thank you!
Andrei Marukovich
contact@lunarfrog.com
twitter: @amarukovich