What are .NET Local Tools?

Local tools are .NET CLI tools installed and versioned per-repository rather than globally, defined in a .config/dotnet-tools.json manifest file.

Why use local tools instead of global tools?

Local tools prevent version conflicts between different projects and ensure that every developer and build server uses the exact same tool versions.

How do I restore local tools in a new environment?

Simply run the command 'dotnet tool restore' at the repository root to install all tools specified in the manifest.

Can I use local tools for Entity Framework migrations?

Yes, 'dotnet-ef' is commonly installed as a local tool to ensure database migrations are handled by a specific version compatible with the project code.

How do I update a local tool?

You can use the 'dotnet tool update [PackageName]' command, which updates the tool and automatically refreshes the manifest file.

.NET Local Tools

Name: .NET Local Tools
Author: bbsbot

bybbsbot

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Developer Tools

Manages project-specific .NET CLI tools using manifest files for consistent development and CI/CD environments.

.NET Local Tools enables developers to define and version-control CLI utilities directly within a repository, ensuring every team member and CI/CD pipeline uses identical tool versions. By leveraging the dotnet-tools.json manifest, this skill helps automate tool installation and restoration, preventing global version conflicts and streamlining project-specific tasks like migrations, documentation generation, and code formatting. It is particularly useful for teams looking to eliminate 'it works on my machine' issues by standardizing the developer toolchain.

Key Features

01Support for popular utilities like EF Core, DocFX, and CSharpier

02Conflict prevention between different project-specific CLI versions

03Manifest-based tool management using dotnet-tools.json

04Precise version pinning for reproducible build environments

05Automated tool restoration for CI/CD pipeline integration

061 GitHub stars

Use Cases

01Synchronizing tool versions across a distributed development team

02Standardizing documentation and linting tools in automated pipelines

03Isolating database migration tools per project to avoid version mismatches

Key Features

01Support for popular utilities like EF Core, DocFX, and CSharpier

02Conflict prevention between different project-specific CLI versions

03Manifest-based tool management using dotnet-tools.json

04Precise version pinning for reproducible build environments

05Automated tool restoration for CI/CD pipeline integration

061 GitHub stars

Use Cases

01Synchronizing tool versions across a distributed development team

02Standardizing documentation and linting tools in automated pipelines

03Isolating database migration tools per project to avoid version mismatches