dotnet

cross-platform .NET development CLI

TLDR

Create new project

$ dotnet new [console] -n [MyApp]

Build project

$ dotnet build

Run project

$ dotnet run

Run tests

$ dotnet test

Add NuGet package

$ dotnet add package [PackageName]

Restore dependencies

$ dotnet restore

Publish for deployment

$ dotnet publish -c Release

List installed SDKs

$ dotnet --list-sdks

dotnet is the .NET CLI for creating, building, running, and publishing .NET applications. It supports C#, F#, and Visual Basic across console apps, web APIs, libraries, and more.The CLI handles the full development workflow from project creation through deployment. It manages NuGet packages, runs tests, and produces deployment artifacts. Templates provide starting points for various application types.dotnet works cross-platform on Windows, macOS, and Linux, enabling .NET development everywhere.

PARAMETERS

COMMAND

Operation: new, build, run, test, publish, add, restore, etc.

new TEMPLATE

Create project from template.

build

Build the project.

run

Build and run the project.

test

Run unit tests.

publish

Publish for deployment.

add package NAME

Add NuGet package reference.

restore

Restore NuGet packages.

-c CONFIG

Build configuration (Debug, Release).

--help

Display help information.

CONFIGURATION

global.json

Specifies SDK version and project settings at solution level.

nuget.config

Configures NuGet package sources and credentials.

INSTALL

sudo dnf install dotnet-host

sudo pacman -S dotnet-host

sudo apk add dotnet-host

brew install dotnet

CAVEATS

Requires .NET SDK installed. Multiple SDK versions can coexist. Large projects may have slow build times. Some features require specific SDK versions.

HISTORY

The dotnet CLI was introduced with .NET Core in 2016 as Microsoft's cross-platform .NET implementation. It unified the fragmented .NET tooling under a single CLI, becoming the standard for .NET development.