Metadata in an Assembly

Metadata is data that describes the state of the assembly and a detailed description of each type, attribute within the assembly. Metadata stores the following information:
  • Description of the assembly.
    • Identity (name, version, culture, public key).
    • The types that are exported.
    • Other assemblies that this assembly depends on.
    • Security permissions needed to run.
  • Description of types.
    • Name, visibility, base class, and interfaces implemented.
    • Members (methods, fields, properties, events, nested types).
  • Attributes.
    • Additional descriptive elements that modify types and members.