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dotnet-skills

Topic: dotnet-skills

228 skills in this topic.

eval-performance Guide for diagnosing and improving MSBuild project evaluation performance. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. USE FOR: builds slow before any compilation starts, high evaluation time in binlog analysis, expensive glob patterns walking large directories (node_modules, .git, bin/obj), deep import chains (>20 levels), preprocessed output >10K lines indicating heavy evaluation, property functions with file I/O ($([System.IO.File]::ReadAllText(...))), multiple evaluations per project. Covers the 5 MSBuild evaluation phases, glob optimization via DefaultItemExcludes, import chain analysis with /pp preprocessing. DO NOT USE FOR: compilation-time slowness (use build-perf-diagnostics), incremental build issues (use incremental-build), non-MSBuild build systems. INVOKES: dotnet msbuild -pp:full.xml for preprocessing, /clp:PerformanceSummary.
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including-generated-files Fix MSBuild targets that generate files during the build but those files are missing from compilation or output. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. USE FOR: generated source files not compiling (CS0246 for a type that should exist), custom build tasks that create files but they are invisible to subsequent targets, globs not capturing build-generated files because they expand at evaluation time before execution creates them, ensuring generated files are cleaned by the Clean target. Covers correct BeforeTargets timing (CoreCompile, BeforeBuild, AssignTargetPaths), adding to Compile/FileWrites item groups, using $(IntermediateOutputPath) instead of hardcoded obj/ paths. DO NOT USE FOR: C# source generators that already work via the Roslyn pipeline, T4 design-time generation that runs in Visual Studio, non-MSBuild build systems. INVOKES: no tools — pure knowledge skill.
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incremental-build Guide for optimizing MSBuild incremental builds. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. USE FOR: builds slower than expected on subsequent runs, 'nothing changed but it rebuilds anyway', diagnosing why targets re-execute unnecessarily, fixing broken no-op builds. Covers 8 common causes: missing Inputs/Outputs on custom targets, volatile properties in output paths (timestamps/GUIDs), file writes outside tracked Outputs, missing FileWrites registration, glob changes, Visual Studio Fast Up-to-Date Check (FUTDC) issues. Key diagnostic: look for 'Building target completely' vs 'Skipping target' in binlog. DO NOT USE FOR: first-time build slowness (use build-perf-baseline), parallelism issues (use build-parallelism), evaluation-phase slowness (use eval-performance), non-MSBuild build systems. INVOKES: dotnet build /bl, binlog replay with diagnostic verbosity.
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msbuild-antipatterns Catalog of MSBuild anti-patterns with detection rules and fix recipes. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. USE FOR: reviewing, auditing, or cleaning up .csproj, .vbproj, .fsproj, .props, .targets, or .proj files. Each anti-pattern has a symptom, explanation, and concrete BAD→GOOD transformation. Covers Exec-instead-of-built-in-task, unquoted conditions, hardcoded paths, restating SDK defaults, scattered package versions, and more. DO NOT USE FOR: non-MSBuild build systems (npm, Maven, CMake, etc.), project migration to SDK-style (use msbuild-modernization).
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msbuild-modernization Guide for modernizing and migrating MSBuild project files to SDK-style format. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. USE FOR: converting legacy .csproj/.vbproj with verbose XML to SDK-style, migrating packages.config to PackageReference, removing Properties/AssemblyInfo.cs in favor of auto-generation, eliminating explicit <Compile Include> lists via implicit globbing, consolidating shared settings into Directory.Build.props. Indicators of legacy projects: ToolsVersion attribute, <Import Project="$(MSBuildToolsPath)">, .csproj files > 50 lines for simple projects. DO NOT USE FOR: projects already in SDK-style format, non-.NET build systems (npm, Maven, CMake), .NET Framework projects that cannot move to SDK-style. INVOKES: dotnet try-convert, upgrade-assistant tools.
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msbuild-server Guide for using MSBuild Server to improve CLI build performance. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. Activate when developers report slow incremental builds from the command line, or when CLI builds are noticeably slower than IDE builds. Covers MSBUILDUSESERVER=1 environment variable for persistent server-based caching. Do not activate for IDE-based builds (Visual Studio already uses a long-lived process).
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resolve-project-references Guide for interpreting ResolveProjectReferences time in MSBuild performance summaries. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. Activate when ResolveProjectReferences appears as the most expensive target and developers are trying to optimize it directly. Explains that the reported time includes wait time for dependent project builds and is misleading. Guides users to focus on task self-time instead. Do not activate for general build performance -- use build-perf-diagnostics instead.
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convert-to-cpm Convert .NET projects and solutions (.sln, .slnx) to NuGet Central Package Management (CPM) using Directory.Packages.props. USE FOR: converting to CPM, centralizing or aligning NuGet package versions across multiple projects, inlining MSBuild version properties from Directory.Build.props into Directory.Packages.props, resolving version conflicts or mismatches across a solution or repository, updating or bumping or syncing package versions across projects. Also activate when packages are out of sync, drifting, or inconsistent -- even without the user mentioning CPM. Provides baseline build capture, version conflict resolution, build validation with binlog comparison, and a structured post-conversion report. DO NOT USE FOR: packages.config projects (must migrate to PackageReference first) or repositories that already have CPM fully enabled.
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template-authoring Guides creation and validation of custom dotnet new templates. Generates templates from existing projects and validates template.json for authoring issues. USE FOR: creating a reusable dotnet new template from an existing project, validating template.json files for schema compliance and parameter issues, bootstrapping .template.config/template.json with correct identity, shortName, parameters, and post-actions, packaging templates as NuGet packages for distribution. DO NOT USE FOR: finding or using existing templates (use template-discovery and template-instantiation), MSBuild project file issues unrelated to template authoring, NuGet package publishing (only template packaging structure).
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template-instantiation Creates .NET projects from templates with validated parameters, smart defaults, Central Package Management adaptation, and latest NuGet version resolution. USE FOR: creating new dotnet projects, scaffolding solutions with multiple projects, installing or uninstalling template packages, creating projects that respect Directory.Packages.props (CPM), composing multi-project solutions (API + tests + library), getting latest NuGet package versions in newly created projects. DO NOT USE FOR: finding or comparing templates (use template-discovery), authoring custom templates (use template-authoring), modifying existing projects or adding NuGet packages to existing projects.
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template-validation Validates custom dotnet new templates for correctness before publishing. Catches missing fields, parameter bugs, shortName conflicts, constraint issues, and common authoring mistakes that cause templates to fail silently. USE FOR: checking template.json files for errors before publishing or testing, diagnosing why a template doesn't appear after installation, reviewing template parameter definitions for type mismatches and missing defaults, finding shortName conflicts with dotnet CLI commands, validating post-action and constraint configuration. DO NOT USE FOR: finding or using existing templates (use template-discovery), creating projects from templates (use template-instantiation), creating templates from existing projects (use template-authoring).
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code-testing-agent Generates comprehensive, workable unit tests for any programming language using a multi-agent pipeline. Use when asked to generate tests, write unit tests, improve test coverage, add test coverage, create test files, or test a codebase. Supports C#, TypeScript, JavaScript, Python, Go, Rust, Java, and more. Orchestrates research, planning, and implementation phases to produce tests that compile, pass, and follow project conventions.
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coverage-analysis Automated, project-wide code coverage and CRAP (Change Risk Anti-Patterns) score analysis for .NET projects with existing unit tests. Auto-detects solution structure, runs coverage collection via `dotnet test` (supports both Microsoft.Testing.Extensions.CodeCoverage and Coverlet), generates reports via ReportGenerator, calculates CRAP scores per method, and surfaces risk hotspots — complex code with low test coverage that is dangerous to modify. Use when the user wants project-wide coverage analysis with risk prioritization, coverage gap identification, CRAP score computation across an entire solution, or to diagnose why coverage is stuck or plateaued and identify what methods are blocking improvement. DO NOT USE FOR: targeted single-method CRAP analysis (use crap-score skill), writing tests, general test execution unrelated to coverage/CRAP analysis, or coverage reporting without CRAP context.
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crap-score Calculates CRAP (Change Risk Anti-Patterns) score for .NET methods, classes, or files. Use when the user asks to assess test quality, identify risky untested code, compute CRAP scores, or evaluate whether complex methods have sufficient test coverage. Requires code coverage data (Cobertura XML) and cyclomatic complexity analysis. DO NOT USE FOR: writing tests, general test execution unrelated to coverage/CRAP analysis, or general code coverage reporting without CRAP context.
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dotnet-test-frameworks Reference data for .NET test framework detection patterns, assertion APIs, skip annotations, setup/teardown methods, and common test smell indicators across MSTest, xUnit, NUnit, and TUnit. DO NOT USE directly — loaded by test analysis skills (test-anti-patterns, exp-test-smell-detection, exp-assertion-quality, exp-test-maintainability, exp-test-tagging) when they need framework-specific lookup tables.
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filter-syntax Reference data for test filter syntax across all platform and framework combinations: VSTest --filter expressions, MTP filters for MSTest/NUnit/xUnit v3/TUnit, and VSTest-to-MTP filter translation. DO NOT USE directly — loaded by run-tests, mtp-hot-reload, and migrate-vstest-to-mtp when they need filter syntax.
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migrate-mstest-v1v2-to-v3 Migrate MSTest v1 or v2 test project to MSTest v3. Use when user says "upgrade MSTest", "upgrade to MSTest v3", "migrate to MSTest v3", "update test framework", "modernize tests", "MSTest v3 migration", "MSTest compatibility", "MSTest v2 to v3", or build errors after updating MSTest packages from 1.x/2.x to 3.x. USE FOR: upgrading from MSTest v1 assembly references (Microsoft.VisualStudio.QualityTools.UnitTestFramework) or MSTest v2 NuGet (MSTest.TestFramework 1.x-2.x) to MSTest v3, fixing assertion overload errors (AreEqual/AreNotEqual), updating DataRow constructors, replacing .testsettings with .runsettings, timeout behavior changes, target framework compatibility (.NET 5 dropped -- use .NET 6+; .NET Fx older than 4.6.2 dropped), adopting MSTest.Sdk. First step toward MSTest v4 -- after this, use migrate-mstest-v3-to-v4. DO NOT USE FOR: migrating to MSTest v4 (use migrate-mstest-v3-to-v4), migrating between frameworks (MSTest to xUnit/NUnit), or general .NET upgrades unrelated to MSTest.
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migrate-mstest-v3-to-v4 Migrate an MSTest v3 test project to MSTest v4. Use when user says "upgrade to MSTest v4", "update to latest MSTest", "MSTest 4 migration", "MSTest v4 breaking changes", "MSTest v4 compatibility", or has build errors after updating MSTest packages from 3.x to 4.x. Also use for target framework compatibility (e.g. net6.0/net7.0 support with MSTest v4). USE FOR: upgrading MSTest packages from 3.x to 4.x, fixing source breaking changes (Execute -> ExecuteAsync, CallerInfo constructor, ClassCleanupBehavior removal, TestContext.Properties, Assert API changes, ExpectedExceptionAttribute removal, TestTimeout enum removal), resolving behavioral changes (TreatDiscoveryWarningsAsErrors, TestContext lifecycle, TestCase.Id changes, MSTest.Sdk MTP changes), handling dropped TFMs (net5.0-net7.0 dropped, only net8.0+, net462, uap10.0 supported). DO NOT USE FOR: migrating from MSTest v1/v2 to v3 (use migrate-mstest-v1v2-to-v3 first), migrating between test frameworks, or general .NET upgrades unrelated to MSTest.
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migrate-vstest-to-mtp Migrates .NET test projects from VSTest to Microsoft.Testing.Platform (MTP). Use when user asks to "migrate to MTP", "switch from VSTest", "enable Microsoft.Testing.Platform", "use MTP runner", or mentions EnableMSTestRunner, EnableNUnitRunner, UseMicrosoftTestingPlatformRunner, or dotnet test exit code 8. Supports MSTest, NUnit, xUnit.net v2 (via YTest.MTP.XUnit2), and xUnit.net v3 (native MTP). Also covers translating xUnit.net v3 MTP filter syntax (--filter-class, --filter-trait, --filter-query). Covers runner enablement, CLI argument translation, Directory.Build.props and global.json configuration, CI/CD pipeline updates, and MTP extension packages. DO NOT USE FOR: migrating between test frameworks (MSTest/xUnit/NUnit), xUnit.net v2 to v3 API migration, MSTest version upgrades (use migrate-mstest-* skills), TFM upgrades, or UWP/WinUI test projects.
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migrate-xunit-to-xunit-v3 Migrates .NET test projects from xUnit.net v2 to xUnit.net v3. USE FOR: upgrading xunit to xunit.v3. DO NOT USE FOR: migrating between test frameworks (MSTest/NUnit to xUnit.net), migrating from VSTest to Microsoft.Testing.Platform (use migrate-vstest-to-mtp).
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mtp-hot-reload Suggests using Microsoft Testing Platform (MTP) hot reload to iterate fixes on failing tests without rebuilding. Use when user says "hot reload tests", "iterate on test fix", "run tests without rebuilding", "speed up test loop", "fix test faster", or needs to set up MTP hot reload to rapidly iterate on test failures. Covers setup (NuGet package, environment variable, launchSettings.json) and the iterative workflow for fixing tests. DO NOT USE FOR: writing test code, diagnosing test failures, CI/CD pipeline configuration, or Visual Studio Test Explorer hot reload (which is a different feature).
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platform-detection Reference data for detecting the test platform (VSTest vs Microsoft.Testing.Platform) and test framework (MSTest, xUnit, NUnit, TUnit) from project files. DO NOT USE directly — loaded by run-tests, mtp-hot-reload, and migrate-vstest-to-mtp when they need detection logic.
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run-tests Runs .NET tests with dotnet test. Use when user says "run tests", "execute tests", "dotnet test", "test filter", "filter by category", "filter by class", "run only specific tests", "tests not running", "hang timeout", "blame-hang", "blame-crash", "TUnit", "treenode-filter", or needs to detect the test platform (VSTest or Microsoft.Testing.Platform), identify the test framework, apply test filters, or troubleshoot test execution failures. Covers MSTest, xUnit, NUnit, and TUnit across both VSTest and MTP platforms. Also use for --filter-class, --filter-trait, and other framework-specific filter syntax. DO NOT USE FOR: writing or generating test code, CI/CD pipeline configuration, or debugging failing test logic.
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test-anti-patterns Quick pragmatic review of .NET test code for anti-patterns that undermine reliability and diagnostic value. Use when asked to review tests, find test problems, check test quality, or audit tests for common mistakes. Catches assertion gaps, flakiness indicators, over-mocking, naming issues, and structural problems with actionable fixes. Use for periodic test code reviews and PR feedback. For a deep formal audit based on academic test smell taxonomy, use exp-test-smell-detection instead. Works with MSTest, xUnit, NUnit, and TUnit.
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