The Socket.Select method returns immediately and doesn't block as expected when an infinite timeout value of -1 is specified
This article helps you resolve the problem that the Socket.Select method of the Microsoft .NET 2.0 framework returns immediately and doesn't block as expected when an infinite timeout value of -1 is specified.
Original product version: .NET Framework 3.5 Service Pack 1
Original KB number: 2615314
Symptoms
You're developing a sockets-based application by using the System.Net.Sockets.Socket.Select method. When you provide an infinite value for the timeout by specifying a value -1, you'll experience that the Socket.Select call returns immediately and doesn't block as expected. It occurs even if there are no sockets that meet the requested criteria of read, write, or error. This issue only happens for applications based on the .NET 2.0 framework.
If you target this same application to run with the .NET 4.0 framework, the Socket.Select call behaves as expected when the timeout parameter is set to -1 indicating an infinite timeout.
Cause
It happens because when the timeout is set to -1, the Socket.Select method of the .NET 2.0 framework doesn't correctly disable the timeout when calling into the Winsock select function. The .NET 4.0 version of the Socket.Select method has however been changed to behave as expected.
Resolution
To work around this problem, applications that are targeted to run with the .NET 2.0 framework are recommended to set a high value of a timeout such as System.Int32.MaxValue to mimic an infinite timeout.
Applications that are targeted to run with the .NET 4.0 framework don't need to use the workaround and can continue to use a value of -1 to indicate an infinite timeout and behave as expected.