.NET Core Commands

Essential .NET Core CLI commands for development, building, publishing, and package management.

Publishing Applications

Cross-Platform Publishing

bash

# Publish for Linux (64-bit)
dotnet publish --configuration release --runtime linux-x64

# Publish for macOS (64-bit)
dotnet publish --configuration release --runtime osx-x64 --self-contained true -p:PublishSingleFile=true

# Publish for Windows (64-bit)
dotnet publish --configuration Release --runtime win-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true -p:PublishTrimmed=true

Runtime Identifiers (RIDs)

Common runtime identifiers for publishing:

OS	Architecture	RID
Windows	x64	`win-x64`
Windows	x86	`win-x86`
Windows	ARM64	`win-arm64`
Linux	x64	`linux-x64`
Linux	ARM	`linux-arm`
Linux	ARM64	`linux-arm64`
macOS	x64	`osx-x64`
macOS	ARM64 (M1)	`osx-arm64`

Publishing Options

bash

# Self-contained deployment (includes .NET runtime)
dotnet publish --runtime win-x64 --self-contained true

# Framework-dependent deployment (requires .NET runtime on target)
dotnet publish --runtime win-x64 --self-contained false

# Single file executable
dotnet publish --runtime win-x64 -p:PublishSingleFile=true

# Trim unused assemblies (reduce size)
dotnet publish --runtime win-x64 -p:PublishTrimmed=true

# Ready to run (improve startup time)
dotnet publish --runtime win-x64 -p:PublishReadyToRun=true

# Output directory
dotnet publish --output ./publish/

Build Configurations

bash

# Debug build (default)
dotnet publish --configuration Debug

# Release build (optimized)
dotnet publish --configuration Release

# Custom configuration
dotnet publish --configuration Production

Complete Publishing Examples

Windows Executable:

bash

dotnet publish \
  --configuration Release \
  --runtime win-x64 \
  --self-contained true \
  -p:PublishSingleFile=true \
  -p:PublishTrimmed=true \
  -p:PublishReadyToRun=true \
  --output ./publish/win-x64

Linux Server:

bash

dotnet publish \
  --configuration Release \
  --runtime linux-x64 \
  --self-contained false \
  --output /var/www/myapp

macOS Application:

bash

dotnet publish \
  --configuration Release \
  --runtime osx-x64 \
  --self-contained true \
  -p:PublishSingleFile=true \
  --output ./publish/osx-x64

Project Management

Create Projects

bash

# Create console application
dotnet new console -n MyApp

# Create web API
dotnet new webapi -n MyApi

# Create ASP.NET Core web app
dotnet new webapp -n MyWebApp

# Create class library
dotnet new classlib -n MyLibrary

# Create xUnit test project
dotnet new xunit -n MyApp.Tests

# Create solution
dotnet new sln -n MySolution

Solution Management

bash

# Add project to solution
dotnet sln add ./MyApp/MyApp.csproj

# Add multiple projects
dotnet sln add **/*.csproj

# Remove project from solution
dotnet sln remove ./MyApp/MyApp.csproj

# List projects in solution
dotnet sln list

Project References

bash

# Add project reference
dotnet add reference ../MyLibrary/MyLibrary.csproj

# Remove project reference
dotnet remove reference ../MyLibrary/MyLibrary.csproj

# List project references
dotnet list reference

Building

Build Commands

bash

# Build project
dotnet build

# Build with specific configuration
dotnet build --configuration Release

# Build without restoring packages
dotnet build --no-restore

# Build and show detailed output
dotnet build --verbosity detailed

# Clean build output
dotnet clean

# Clean and rebuild
dotnet clean && dotnet build

Running Applications

Run Commands

bash

# Run application
dotnet run

# Run with arguments
dotnet run -- --arg1 value1 --arg2 value2

# Run specific project
dotnet run --project ./MyApp/MyApp.csproj

# Run with specific configuration
dotnet run --configuration Release

# Watch for changes and restart (development)
dotnet watch run

Watch Mode

bash

# Watch and rebuild on changes
dotnet watch build

# Watch and run tests
dotnet watch test

# Watch specific project
dotnet watch --project ./MyApp/MyApp.csproj run

NuGet Package Management

Clear NuGet Cache

bash

# Clear all NuGet caches (from README)
dotnet nuget locals all --clear

# Clear specific caches
dotnet nuget locals http-cache --clear
dotnet nuget locals global-packages --clear
dotnet nuget locals temp --clear

Package Operations

bash

# Add NuGet package
dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json

# Add specific version
dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json --version 13.0.1

# Remove package
dotnet remove package Newtonsoft.Json

# List packages
dotnet list package

# List outdated packages
dotnet list package --outdated

# Update packages
dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json --version 13.0.2

Package Sources

bash

# List NuGet sources
dotnet nuget list source

# Add NuGet source
dotnet nuget add source https://myget.org/F/myfeed/api/v3/index.json --name MyFeed

# Remove NuGet source
dotnet nuget remove source MyFeed

# Enable source
dotnet nuget enable source MyFeed

# Disable source
dotnet nuget disable source MyFeed

Testing

Run Tests

bash

# Run all tests
dotnet test

# Run tests with detailed output
dotnet test --logger "console;verbosity=detailed"

# Run tests and collect coverage
dotnet test --collect:"XPlat Code Coverage"

# Run specific test
dotnet test --filter FullyQualifiedName=MyNamespace.MyClass.MyTest

# Run tests matching pattern
dotnet test --filter "Name~Integration"

# Run tests without building
dotnet test --no-build

Test Filters

bash

# Run by category
dotnet test --filter Category=Unit

# Run by trait
dotnet test --filter Priority=1

# Run by class name
dotnet test --filter ClassName=MyTests

# Combine filters
dotnet test --filter "Category=Unit&Priority=1"

Database Migrations (Entity Framework Core)

Migration Commands

bash

# Install EF Core tools globally
dotnet tool install --global dotnet-ef

# Update EF Core tools
dotnet tool update --global dotnet-ef

# Add migration
dotnet ef migrations add InitialCreate

# Update database
dotnet ef database update

# Remove last migration
dotnet ef migrations remove

# List migrations
dotnet ef migrations list

# Generate SQL script
dotnet ef migrations script

# Drop database
dotnet ef database drop

Common EF Core Workflows

bash

# Create initial migration and database
dotnet ef migrations add InitialCreate
dotnet ef database update

# Add new migration after model changes
dotnet ef migrations add AddUserTable
dotnet ef database update

# Rollback to specific migration
dotnet ef database update PreviousMigration

# Generate SQL script for production
dotnet ef migrations script --output migration.sql

Tools Management

Global Tools

bash

# List installed global tools
dotnet tool list --global

# Install global tool
dotnet tool install --global dotnet-ef

# Update global tool
dotnet tool update --global dotnet-ef

# Uninstall global tool
dotnet tool uninstall --global dotnet-ef

# Search for tools
dotnet tool search entityframework

Local Tools

bash

# Create tool manifest
dotnet new tool-manifest

# Install local tool
dotnet tool install dotnet-ef

# Run local tool
dotnet tool run dotnet-ef

# Update local tool
dotnet tool update dotnet-ef

# List local tools
dotnet tool list

Information Commands

Version Information

bash

# Display .NET SDK version
dotnet --version

# Display detailed info
dotnet --info

# List installed SDKs
dotnet --list-sdks

# List installed runtimes
dotnet --list-runtimes

Project Information

bash

# Display project file
cat MyApp.csproj

# Display project properties
dotnet msbuild MyApp.csproj /t:Properties

# Check target framework
dotnet msbuild MyApp.csproj /t:GetTargetFramework

Docker Integration

Dockerfile for .NET

dockerfile

# Build stage
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/sdk:8.0 AS build
WORKDIR /src
COPY ["MyApp/MyApp.csproj", "MyApp/"]
RUN dotnet restore "MyApp/MyApp.csproj"
COPY . .
WORKDIR "/src/MyApp"
RUN dotnet build "MyApp.csproj" -c Release -o /app/build

# Publish stage
FROM build AS publish
RUN dotnet publish "MyApp.csproj" -c Release -o /app/publish

# Runtime stage
FROM mcr.microsoft.com/dotnet/aspnet:8.0 AS final
WORKDIR /app
COPY --from=publish /app/publish .
ENTRYPOINT ["dotnet", "MyApp.dll"]

Docker Commands

bash

# Build Docker image
docker build -t myapp:latest .

# Run container
docker run -d -p 8080:80 --name myapp myapp:latest

# Multi-stage build with cache
docker build --target publish -t myapp:latest .

Performance and Diagnostics

Diagnostics Tools

bash

# Install diagnostics tools
dotnet tool install --global dotnet-counters
dotnet tool install --global dotnet-trace
dotnet tool install --global dotnet-dump

# Monitor process counters
dotnet-counters monitor --process-id <PID>

# Collect trace
dotnet-trace collect --process-id <PID>

# Capture memory dump
dotnet-dump collect --process-id <PID>

Common Workflows

New Web API Project

bash

# Create project
dotnet new webapi -n MyApi
cd MyApi

# Add packages
dotnet add package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore.SqlServer
dotnet add package Swashbuckle.AspNetCore

# Run in development
dotnet run

# Publish for production
dotnet publish --configuration Release --runtime linux-x64 --output ./publish

New Console Application

bash

# Create project
dotnet new console -n MyConsole
cd MyConsole

# Add packages
dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json

# Run
dotnet run

# Publish single executable
dotnet publish --configuration Release --runtime win-x64 --self-contained -p:PublishSingleFile=true

Library with Tests

bash

# Create solution
dotnet new sln -n MyLibrary

# Create library project
dotnet new classlib -n MyLibrary.Core
dotnet sln add MyLibrary.Core/MyLibrary.Core.csproj

# Create test project
dotnet new xunit -n MyLibrary.Tests
dotnet sln add MyLibrary.Tests/MyLibrary.Tests.csproj

# Add project reference
cd MyLibrary.Tests
dotnet add reference ../MyLibrary.Core/MyLibrary.Core.csproj

# Run tests
dotnet test

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

Clear NuGet cache:

bash

dotnet nuget locals all --clear
dotnet restore

Build errors after package update:

bash

dotnet clean
dotnet restore
dotnet build

Runtime not found:

bash

# Check installed runtimes
dotnet --list-runtimes

# Install required runtime or publish as self-contained
dotnet publish --self-contained true

.NET Core Commands ​

Publishing Applications ​

Cross-Platform Publishing ​

Runtime Identifiers (RIDs) ​

Publishing Options ​

Build Configurations ​

Complete Publishing Examples ​

Project Management ​

Create Projects ​

Solution Management ​

Project References ​

Building ​

Build Commands ​

Running Applications ​

Run Commands ​

Watch Mode ​

NuGet Package Management ​

Clear NuGet Cache ​

Package Operations ​

Package Sources ​

Testing ​

Run Tests ​

Test Filters ​

Database Migrations (Entity Framework Core) ​

Migration Commands ​

Common EF Core Workflows ​

Tools Management ​

Global Tools ​

Local Tools ​

Information Commands ​

Version Information ​

Project Information ​

Docker Integration ​

Dockerfile for .NET ​

Docker Commands ​

Performance and Diagnostics ​

Diagnostics Tools ​

Common Workflows ​

New Web API Project ​

New Console Application ​

Library with Tests ​

Troubleshooting ​

Common Issues ​

See Also ​

External Resources ​

.NET Core Commands

Publishing Applications

Cross-Platform Publishing

Runtime Identifiers (RIDs)

Publishing Options

Build Configurations

Complete Publishing Examples

Project Management

Create Projects

Solution Management

Project References

Building

Build Commands

Running Applications

Run Commands

Watch Mode

NuGet Package Management

Clear NuGet Cache

Package Operations

Package Sources

Testing

Run Tests

Test Filters

Database Migrations (Entity Framework Core)

Migration Commands

Common EF Core Workflows

Tools Management

Global Tools

Local Tools

Information Commands

Version Information

Project Information

Docker Integration

Dockerfile for .NET

Docker Commands

Performance and Diagnostics

Diagnostics Tools

Common Workflows

New Web API Project

New Console Application

Library with Tests

Troubleshooting

Common Issues

See Also

External Resources