.NET (dotnet/docs)

.NET

https://github.com/dotnet/docs
Admin
This repository contains .NET Documentation.

Tokens:8,917,342
Snippets:31,174
Trust Score:9.1
Update:1 day ago
Show doc for...
Context Summary (auto-generated)
Raw
# .NET Documentation

The .NET Documentation repository (dotnet/docs) is the official source for conceptual documentation for the .NET platform. It provides comprehensive guides, tutorials, API references, and best practices for C#, F#, Visual Basic, .NET Core, .NET Framework, and related technologies. The documentation covers everything from language fundamentals to advanced topics like asynchronous programming, dependency injection, serialization, and cloud-native development.

This repository serves as one of several repositories that build the .NET documentation site at learn.microsoft.com/dotnet. It focuses on conceptual content while API reference documentation is maintained in separate repositories. The content spans multiple .NET versions and includes breaking changes documentation, migration guides, and what's new articles for each release.

## C# Top-Level Statements

Top-level statements allow you to write executable C# code directly at the file root without explicit `Main` method boilerplate. This feature is the default for new console applications and supports async/await, command-line arguments, and return codes.

```csharp
// Program.cs - A complete C# program with top-level statements
using System.Net.Http;

// Access command-line arguments via the implicit 'args' variable
if (args.Length > 0)
{
    Console.WriteLine($"Arguments: {string.Join(", ", args)}");
}

// Use async/await directly
var client = new HttpClient();
var response = await client.GetStringAsync("https://api.github.com/zen");
Console.WriteLine($"GitHub Zen: {response}");

// Return an exit code
return 0;

// Types can be defined after top-level statements
public record Person(string Name, int Age);
```

## Asynchronous Programming with async/await

The Task Asynchronous Programming (TAP) model provides high-level abstractions for asynchronous operations using async and await keywords. This enables writing non-blocking code that reads sequentially while executing asynchronously.

```csharp
using System.Net.Http;

public class DataService
{
    private readonly HttpClient _client = new();

    // Async method returning Task<T>
    public async Task<string> FetchDataAsync(string url, CancellationToken cancellationToken = default)
    {
        try
        {
            // await releases the thread while waiting
            var response = await _client.GetAsync(url, cancellationToken);
            response.EnsureSuccessStatusCode();
            return await response.Content.ReadAsStringAsync(cancellationToken);
        }
        catch (HttpRequestException ex)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Request failed: {ex.Message}");
            throw;
        }
    }

    // Running multiple async operations concurrently
    public async Task<string[]> FetchMultipleAsync(string[] urls)
    {
        // Start all tasks without awaiting
        var tasks = urls.Select(url => FetchDataAsync(url));

        // Wait for all to complete
        return await Task.WhenAll(tasks);
    }

    // Process items as they complete
    public async Task ProcessAsCompletedAsync(string[] urls)
    {
        var tasks = urls.Select(url => FetchDataAsync(url)).ToList();

        while (tasks.Count > 0)
        {
            var completed = await Task.WhenAny(tasks);
            tasks.Remove(completed);
            Console.WriteLine($"Completed: {await completed}");
        }
    }
}
```

## LINQ Query Syntax and Method Syntax

Language Integrated Query (LINQ) provides a consistent query experience across different data sources using either query syntax or method syntax with lambda expressions.

```csharp
public class LinqExamples
{
    record Student(string Name, int Grade, string[] Courses);

    public void DemonstrateLinq()
    {
        var students = new List<Student>
        {
            new("Alice", 95, new[] { "Math", "Physics" }),
            new("Bob", 82, new[] { "Chemistry", "Biology" }),
            new("Carol", 88, new[] { "Math", "Chemistry" })
        };

        // Query syntax - declarative approach
        var topStudents = from s in students
                          where s.Grade >= 85
                          orderby s.Grade descending
                          select new { s.Name, s.Grade };

        // Method syntax - fluent approach (equivalent)
        var topStudentsMethod = students
            .Where(s => s.Grade >= 85)
            .OrderByDescending(s => s.Grade)
            .Select(s => new { s.Name, s.Grade });

        // Grouping with query syntax
        var byGradeRange = from s in students
                           group s by s.Grade / 10 into g
                           select new { Range = g.Key * 10, Students = g.ToList() };

        // Aggregation methods
        var average = students.Average(s => s.Grade);      // 88.33
        var max = students.Max(s => s.Grade);              // 95
        var count = students.Count(s => s.Grade > 80);     // 3

        // SelectMany - flatten nested collections
        var allCourses = students
            .SelectMany(s => s.Courses)
            .Distinct()
            .OrderBy(c => c);

        // Join operations
        var grades = new[] { (Name: "Alice", Score: 95), (Name: "Bob", Score: 82) };
        var joined = from s in students
                     join g in grades on s.Name equals g.Name
                     select new { s.Name, s.Courses, g.Score };

        // Deferred execution - query runs when enumerated
        foreach (var student in topStudents)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"{student.Name}: {student.Grade}");
        }
    }
}
```

## Dependency Injection

.NET provides built-in dependency injection through `IServiceCollection` and `IServiceProvider`. Services can be registered with different lifetimes: Transient (new instance each request), Scoped (per scope), and Singleton (single instance).

```csharp
using Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;

// Define service interfaces
public interface IMessageService
{
    string GetMessage();
}

public interface INotificationService
{
    void Notify(string message);
}

// Implement services
public class EmailMessageService : IMessageService
{
    public string GetMessage() => "Hello from Email Service!";
}

public class ConsoleNotificationService : INotificationService
{
    private readonly IMessageService _messageService;

    // Constructor injection
    public ConsoleNotificationService(IMessageService messageService)
    {
        _messageService = messageService;
    }

    public void Notify(string message)
    {
        Console.WriteLine($"[Notification] {_messageService.GetMessage()}: {message}");
    }
}

// Program.cs - Configure and use DI
var builder = Host.CreateApplicationBuilder(args);

// Register services with different lifetimes
builder.Services.AddTransient<IMessageService, EmailMessageService>();    // New instance each time
builder.Services.AddScoped<INotificationService, ConsoleNotificationService>(); // Per scope
builder.Services.AddSingleton<AppSettings>();  // Single instance for app lifetime

// Register with factory method
builder.Services.AddTransient<IMessageService>(sp =>
    new EmailMessageService());

var host = builder.Build();

// Resolve and use services
using var scope = host.Services.CreateScope();
var notifier = scope.ServiceProvider.GetRequiredService<INotificationService>();
notifier.Notify("Application started");

// Output: [Notification] Hello from Email Service!: Application started
```

## JSON Serialization with System.Text.Json

The `System.Text.Json` namespace provides high-performance JSON serialization and deserialization with support for customization through attributes and options.

```csharp
using System.Text.Json;
using System.Text.Json.Serialization;

public class WeatherForecast
{
    public DateTime Date { get; set; }

    [JsonPropertyName("temp_c")]  // Custom JSON property name
    public int TemperatureCelsius { get; set; }

    public string? Summary { get; set; }

    [JsonIgnore]  // Exclude from serialization
    public string? InternalNotes { get; set; }
}

public class JsonExamples
{
    public void SerializeAndDeserialize()
    {
        var forecast = new WeatherForecast
        {
            Date = DateTime.Now,
            TemperatureCelsius = 25,
            Summary = "Warm and sunny",
            InternalNotes = "This won't be serialized"
        };

        // Configure serialization options
        var options = new JsonSerializerOptions
        {
            WriteIndented = true,                    // Pretty print
            PropertyNamingPolicy = JsonNamingPolicy.CamelCase,
            DefaultIgnoreCondition = JsonIgnoreCondition.WhenWritingNull
        };

        // Serialize to string
        string json = JsonSerializer.Serialize(forecast, options);
        Console.WriteLine(json);
        // Output:
        // {
        //   "date": "2024-01-15T10:30:00",
        //   "temp_c": 25,
        //   "summary": "Warm and sunny"
        // }

        // Serialize to UTF-8 bytes (faster)
        byte[] utf8Json = JsonSerializer.SerializeToUtf8Bytes(forecast, options);

        // Deserialize from string
        var deserialized = JsonSerializer.Deserialize<WeatherForecast>(json, options);

        // Serialize to file
        using var stream = File.Create("forecast.json");
        JsonSerializer.Serialize(stream, forecast, options);

        // Async file operations
        await using var readStream = File.OpenRead("forecast.json");
        var fromFile = await JsonSerializer.DeserializeAsync<WeatherForecast>(readStream, options);
    }
}
```

## Configuration in .NET

The configuration system reads key-value pairs from multiple sources (JSON files, environment variables, command-line arguments) and provides a unified API through `IConfiguration`.

```csharp
using Microsoft.Extensions.Configuration;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;

// appsettings.json content:
// {
//   "Database": {
//     "ConnectionString": "Server=localhost;Database=myapp",
//     "MaxRetries": 3
//   },
//   "Features": {
//     "EnableCache": true
//   }
// }

// Strongly-typed configuration class
public class DatabaseSettings
{
    public string ConnectionString { get; set; } = "";
    public int MaxRetries { get; set; } = 1;
}

public class FeatureSettings
{
    public bool EnableCache { get; set; }
}

// Program.cs
var builder = Host.CreateApplicationBuilder(args);

// Configuration is automatically loaded from:
// 1. appsettings.json
// 2. appsettings.{Environment}.json
// 3. Environment variables
// 4. Command-line arguments

// Access configuration directly
var connString = builder.Configuration["Database:ConnectionString"];
var maxRetries = builder.Configuration.GetValue<int>("Database:MaxRetries");

// Bind to strongly-typed objects (Options pattern)
builder.Services.Configure<DatabaseSettings>(
    builder.Configuration.GetSection("Database"));
builder.Services.Configure<FeatureSettings>(
    builder.Configuration.GetSection("Features"));

var host = builder.Build();

// Use in services via IOptions<T>
public class DataService
{
    private readonly DatabaseSettings _settings;

    public DataService(IOptions<DatabaseSettings> options)
    {
        _settings = options.Value;
        Console.WriteLine($"Connecting to: {_settings.ConnectionString}");
        Console.WriteLine($"Max retries: {_settings.MaxRetries}");
    }
}

// Override via environment variables: Database__ConnectionString=Server=prod
// Override via command-line: --Database:MaxRetries=5
```

## Logging in .NET

The `Microsoft.Extensions.Logging` API provides structured logging with support for multiple providers, log levels, and categories.

```csharp
using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;

var builder = Host.CreateApplicationBuilder(args);

// Configure logging
builder.Logging.ClearProviders();
builder.Logging.AddConsole();
builder.Logging.AddDebug();
builder.Logging.SetMinimumLevel(LogLevel.Information);

// Filter by category
builder.Logging.AddFilter("Microsoft", LogLevel.Warning);
builder.Logging.AddFilter("MyApp.DataService", LogLevel.Debug);

var host = builder.Build();

// Using ILogger in a service
public class OrderService
{
    private readonly ILogger<OrderService> _logger;

    public OrderService(ILogger<OrderService> logger)
    {
        _logger = logger;
    }

    public async Task<Order> ProcessOrderAsync(int orderId)
    {
        // Structured logging with message templates
        _logger.LogInformation("Processing order {OrderId}", orderId);

        try
        {
            var order = await FetchOrderAsync(orderId);

            // Log at different levels
            _logger.LogDebug("Order details: {Order}", order);

            if (order.Total > 10000)
            {
                _logger.LogWarning("Large order detected: {OrderId}, Total: {Total}",
                    orderId, order.Total);
            }

            // Use scopes for correlated logs
            using (_logger.BeginScope("OrderId: {OrderId}", orderId))
            {
                _logger.LogInformation("Validating order");
                _logger.LogInformation("Charging payment");
                _logger.LogInformation("Order completed");
            }

            return order;
        }
        catch (Exception ex)
        {
            _logger.LogError(ex, "Failed to process order {OrderId}", orderId);
            throw;
        }
    }
}

// High-performance logging with source generators
public static partial class LogMessages
{
    [LoggerMessage(Level = LogLevel.Information, Message = "Processing order {orderId}")]
    public static partial void LogProcessingOrder(ILogger logger, int orderId);
}
```

## IHttpClientFactory

`IHttpClientFactory` manages `HttpClient` instances with proper lifetime management, avoiding socket exhaustion and DNS issues common with manual `HttpClient` creation.

```csharp
using Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;
using System.Net.Http.Json;

public record Todo(int UserId, int Id, string Title, bool Completed);

// Basic usage with IHttpClientFactory
public class BasicTodoService
{
    private readonly IHttpClientFactory _clientFactory;

    public BasicTodoService(IHttpClientFactory clientFactory)
    {
        _clientFactory = clientFactory;
    }

    public async Task<Todo[]> GetTodosAsync()
    {
        var client = _clientFactory.CreateClient();
        return await client.GetFromJsonAsync<Todo[]>(
            "https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/todos") ?? [];
    }
}

// Typed client approach (recommended)
public class TypedTodoService
{
    private readonly HttpClient _client;

    public TypedTodoService(HttpClient client)
    {
        _client = client;
        _client.BaseAddress = new Uri("https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/");
        _client.DefaultRequestHeaders.Add("User-Agent", "MyApp/1.0");
    }

    public async Task<Todo[]> GetUserTodosAsync(int userId)
    {
        return await _client.GetFromJsonAsync<Todo[]>($"todos?userId={userId}") ?? [];
    }

    public async Task<Todo> CreateTodoAsync(Todo todo)
    {
        var response = await _client.PostAsJsonAsync("todos", todo);
        response.EnsureSuccessStatusCode();
        return await response.Content.ReadFromJsonAsync<Todo>()
            ?? throw new InvalidOperationException("Failed to create todo");
    }
}

// Program.cs - Registration
var builder = Host.CreateApplicationBuilder(args);

// Basic registration
builder.Services.AddHttpClient();

// Named client
builder.Services.AddHttpClient("github", client =>
{
    client.BaseAddress = new Uri("https://api.github.com/");
    client.DefaultRequestHeaders.Add("Accept", "application/vnd.github.v3+json");
    client.DefaultRequestHeaders.Add("User-Agent", "MyApp");
});

// Typed client
builder.Services.AddHttpClient<TypedTodoService>(client =>
{
    client.BaseAddress = new Uri("https://jsonplaceholder.typicode.com/");
    client.Timeout = TimeSpan.FromSeconds(30);
});

var host = builder.Build();
```

## Pattern Matching

C# pattern matching enables concise conditional logic using `is` expressions and `switch` expressions with declaration, type, constant, relational, property, and list patterns.

```csharp
public class PatternMatchingExamples
{
    // Type and declaration patterns
    public string DescribeObject(object obj) => obj switch
    {
        null => "null value",
        string s => $"String of length {s.Length}",
        int n when n < 0 => $"Negative number: {n}",
        int n => $"Non-negative number: {n}",
        IEnumerable<int> nums => $"Collection with {nums.Count()} items",
        _ => $"Unknown type: {obj.GetType().Name}"
    };

    // Property patterns
    public record Person(string Name, int Age, Address? Address);
    public record Address(string City, string Country);

    public decimal CalculateDiscount(Person person) => person switch
    {
        { Age: < 18 } => 0.5m,                              // Under 18
        { Age: >= 65 } => 0.3m,                             // Senior
        { Address.Country: "US", Age: >= 21 } => 0.1m,      // US adult
        { Address: null } => 0m,                            // No address
        _ => 0.05m
    };

    // Relational and logical patterns
    public string GetTemperatureDescription(int temp) => temp switch
    {
        < 0 => "Freezing",
        >= 0 and < 10 => "Cold",
        >= 10 and < 20 => "Cool",
        >= 20 and < 30 => "Warm",
        >= 30 => "Hot"
    };

    // List patterns (C# 11+)
    public string AnalyzeSequence(int[] numbers) => numbers switch
    {
        [] => "Empty array",
        [var single] => $"Single element: {single}",
        [var first, var second] => $"Two elements: {first}, {second}",
        [var first, .., var last] => $"First: {first}, Last: {last}",
        [_, _, _, ..] => "Three or more elements"
    };

    // Using 'is' with patterns
    public void ProcessValue(object value)
    {
        if (value is string { Length: > 0 } text)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Non-empty string: {text}");
        }

        if (value is int num and > 0 and < 100)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Number between 1-99: {num}");
        }

        if (value is not null)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"Value is not null: {value}");
        }
    }
}
```

## .NET CLI Commands

The `dotnet` command is the generic driver for the .NET CLI, used for creating projects, building, running, testing, and publishing .NET applications.

```bash
# Display .NET SDK version and information
dotnet --version
dotnet --info
dotnet --list-sdks
dotnet --list-runtimes

# Create new projects
dotnet new console -n MyApp              # Console application
dotnet new webapi -n MyApi               # Web API
dotnet new classlib -n MyLibrary         # Class library
dotnet new xunit -n MyTests              # xUnit test project
dotnet new sln -n MySolution             # Solution file

# Project management
dotnet sln add MyApp/MyApp.csproj        # Add project to solution
dotnet add reference ../MyLibrary        # Add project reference
dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json       # Add NuGet package
dotnet remove package Newtonsoft.Json    # Remove NuGet package
dotnet list package                      # List packages

# Build and run
dotnet restore                           # Restore dependencies
dotnet build                             # Build the project
dotnet build -c Release                  # Build in Release mode
dotnet run                               # Build and run
dotnet run -- arg1 arg2                  # Pass arguments to app
dotnet watch run                         # Run with hot reload

# Testing
dotnet test                              # Run tests
dotnet test --filter "Category=Unit"     # Filter tests
dotnet test --collect:"XPlat Code Coverage"  # With coverage

# Publishing
dotnet publish -c Release                # Publish for deployment
dotnet publish -r win-x64 --self-contained  # Self-contained exe
dotnet publish -r linux-x64 -p:PublishSingleFile=true  # Single file

# Running applications
dotnet MyApp.dll                         # Run a published app
dotnet exec MyApp.dll                    # Explicit execution
```

## Records and Immutability

Records provide concise syntax for creating immutable reference types with value-based equality, built-in deconstruction, and non-destructive mutation via `with` expressions.

```csharp
// Record declaration with positional parameters
public record Person(string FirstName, string LastName, int Age);

// Record with additional members
public record Employee(string FirstName, string LastName, int Age, string Department)
    : Person(FirstName, LastName, Age)
{
    public string FullName => $"{FirstName} {LastName}";

    public bool IsManager { get; init; }
}

// Record struct (value type, C# 10+)
public readonly record struct Point(double X, double Y);

public class RecordExamples
{
    public void DemonstrateRecords()
    {
        // Creation
        var person1 = new Person("John", "Doe", 30);
        var person2 = new Person("John", "Doe", 30);

        // Value-based equality
        Console.WriteLine(person1 == person2);     // True
        Console.WriteLine(person1.Equals(person2)); // True

        // Non-destructive mutation with 'with'
        var person3 = person1 with { Age = 31 };
        Console.WriteLine(person3);  // Person { FirstName = John, LastName = Doe, Age = 31 }

        // Deconstruction
        var (firstName, lastName, age) = person1;
        Console.WriteLine($"{firstName} {lastName} is {age}");

        // ToString is auto-generated
        Console.WriteLine(person1);  // Person { FirstName = John, LastName = Doe, Age = 30 }

        // Inheritance
        var employee = new Employee("Jane", "Smith", 28, "Engineering") { IsManager = true };
        Console.WriteLine(employee.FullName);  // Jane Smith
    }
}
```

The .NET documentation repository provides comprehensive coverage of the entire .NET ecosystem, from language fundamentals in C#, F#, and Visual Basic to advanced topics like distributed systems with Orleans, machine learning with ML.NET, and IoT development. The documentation emphasizes practical examples, best practices, and integration patterns that help developers build robust, scalable applications.

For developers working with .NET, this documentation serves as the authoritative reference for understanding language features, framework capabilities, and recommended patterns. The content is continuously updated to reflect new releases, with dedicated sections for what's new in each version and migration guides for upgrading existing applications. Whether building console apps, web APIs, desktop applications, or cloud-native microservices, the documentation provides the guidance needed to leverage .NET effectively.