Using Smart Card with C#

Tuesday, June 8, 2004

C# Security

I was looking for a way to use GemPlus 433 Smart card reader through C# and thought it shouldn't be hard to find some samples... after security these days is a main business issue to all of us.

well i was wrong ! GemPlus has an sdk at their site but this sdk doesn't have any samples in .net all they have are C samples which didn't have much documentation.

I needed more... so after a long search I came up with a sample on GotDotNet : C# Windows Form Demonstrating SmartCards Using PC/SC which was OK but I really needed some more functionality and didn't want to invent everything from the start interoping WinScard ...

I've noticed in one of the forums on GotDotNet an invitation to evaluate a Smart Card framework for managed .NET applications I thought to my self well... what do i have to loose... and sent this guy a letter... In return I got a full working component for evaluation purposes and.... Its a life saver !

Andreas Selle had implemented a great framework for working with Smart Cards using C# and it comes even with sample code !

Highly recommended solution for working with smart cards !

Update: Andreas just published version 2.0 of the framework !
you can download an evaluation version over here

Update: Andreas just published version 3.0 of the framework
The following major features have been added:

* Special support for SLE 4418, SLE 4428, SLE 4432, SLE 4442, and compatible memory cards with many card readers. For example: Reiner SCT cyberJack (through PC/SC and CT-API); Various SCM Readers (through MCard API), all MKT

(CT-API) compliant readers, Athena ASEDrive III (through PC/SC) and many others.

* Special support for ACR 80 reader from Advanced Card Systems Ltd. based on ACR80.DLL.

* Special support for memory card access through the SCM Microsystems Inc.

MCard API.

* Framework enhanced to standardize and ease development of card services. A standard card service should now derived from the CardHandle class. The CardCriteria are then used to hook up a card service with its card. A source code example of a simple card service is provided by the modified Taschenkartenleser example. More examples will be provided in a future release.

* The CardTerminalConfigurator was enhanced to support configuration of ACR 80 card readers and enable usage of MCARD API with SCM PC/SC card readers.

16 Comments

We are dealing a lot with smart cards, and it's really nice to know there is a managed framework for that. We've just started to plan our migration path to .NET (from plain old ASP...), and I hope it'll help shorten our dev time.

Alas' Looks like the site is Offline...

BTW - welcome! Looks like we the Israelis are becoming a critical mass in the blogsphere.

Memi Lavi - Tuesday, June 8, 2004 10:07:00 PM

Have you been working with GemPlus card readers ?

ps. Andreas site is up again !.

Ohad

Ohad Israeli - Thursday, June 10, 2004 3:31:00 PM

Nope. We've been working with OTI cards & readers.

Memi Lavi - Friday, June 11, 2004 6:58:00 PM

Hi,

thanks for the recommendation.

Today I released version 2.0 of the SmartCard Subsembly. An evaluation version can now be downloaded straight from the homepage.

Andreas Selle - Thursday, June 17, 2004 1:31:00 PM

Note:

Andreas' Framework is great and he supports his software very well and with strong knowledge.

I would heartily reccomend.

Lance

Lance Rasmussen - Friday, July 16, 2004 10:31:00 AM

hi

I wonder whether it`s based on winscard.dll or something else?

Also,isnt there any COM component so that i could use it with other lanfuages like VB,C++ or QT?

thanks

-adnan

Adnan Siddiqi - Wednesday, July 28, 2004 8:21:00 AM

Can Smart Card Sub-assembly be used for ASP.NET Application Development?

Sreedhar - Friday, June 16, 2006 6:46:05 AM

I have just started to deal with smart cards 4 days ago. I wanted to use them with c#.net and I think I found the exact solution "Subsembly". I downloaded the evaluation version. I wonder if there are more sample source codes in licenced version.???

K.Serdar AY - Thursday, June 22, 2006 1:39:31 PM

Hi all,
Whether Subsembly SmartCard API can be used for read and write operation with contactless cards like mifare 1k and 4k.

Mohamed Iqbal - Friday, April 6, 2007 7:25:27 AM

Is contactless cards can be accessed with this smardcard API.

Hyder - Thursday, April 12, 2007 1:07:07 PM

This doesn't appear to work with SLE4442 either. Keen to license it but doesn't work... or does it?

Cory - Sunday, July 6, 2008 4:17:27 AM

How is it possible to retrieve serial number from the smart card?

pkershin - Sunday, September 14, 2008 1:48:35 PM

I Am getting so frustrated with card readers, all i need to do is latch the reader i have done all the other things i needed but its just everything i havedone takes so long and so much time
im over it..

barry andersen - Wednesday, October 29, 2008 2:03:36 PM

I am using subemly smartcard api and i would like to know if someone knows, how to initialize smart card and create PIN? thanks

boss-tech - Tuesday, March 17, 2009 2:58:35 PM

I would like to know if someone knows, how to initialize smartcard in .net with http://www.smartcard-api.com/professional.html and create PIN? thanks

boss-tech - Tuesday, March 17, 2009 4:20:59 PM

Hello, I want to interface my Mifare Reader with the C# Application. Is this code is valid for that ? And From where I get the library of Mifare Reader or these libraries are just enough to interface ??

ASH - Friday, April 16, 2010 12:30:22 AM

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