/dotnet:install-tool

Install, manage, and upgrade .NET tools with alias resolution and tool manifest support.

Arguments

Parse arguments from $ARGUMENTS:

Flag	Description	Default
--tool <name|alias>	Tool name or alias (see table below)	Required unless --list or --upgrade-all
--global	Install globally	false (local by default)
--version <version>	Specific version	Latest
--upgrade	Upgrade specific tool to latest	false
--upgrade-all	Upgrade all tools in manifest (interactive)	false
--list	List installed tools	false
--create-manifest	Create tool manifest if missing	Auto

Tool Aliases

Alias	Full Package Name	Description
coverage	dotnet-coverage	Code coverage collection
reportgen	dotnet-reportgenerator-globaltool	Coverage report generation
ef	dotnet-ef	Entity Framework Core tools
outdated	dotnet-outdated-tool	Check outdated packages
stryker	dotnet-stryker	Mutation testing
csharpier	csharpier	Opinionated C# formatter
husky	husky	Git hooks management
nbgv	nbgv	Nerdbank.GitVersioning CLI
swagger	swashbuckle.aspnetcore.cli	Swagger/OpenAPI generation
httprepl	microsoft.dotnet-httprepl	HTTP REPL for API testing

Built-in tools (no install needed):

• format - Code formatting (SDK 6+)
• user-secrets - User secrets management
• watch - Hot reload
• dev-certs - HTTPS development certificates

Workflow

Step 1: Resolve Tool Name

If alias provided, resolve to full package name:

coverage -> dotnet-coverage
ef -> dotnet-ef

If built-in tool requested:

'format' is a built-in SDK tool. No installation needed.

Usage:
  dotnet format [<PROJECT | SOLUTION>]

Run 'dotnet format --help' for options.

Step 2: Check Current State

List installed tools:

# Global tools
dotnet tool list --global

# Local tools (from manifest)
dotnet tool list

Check for manifest:

# Look for .config/dotnet-tools.json
ls .config/dotnet-tools.json 2>/dev/null

Step 3: Handle Manifest

If local install (default) and no manifest exists:

No tool manifest found. Create one?

A tool manifest (.config/dotnet-tools.json) tracks local tools
for this project, making them reproducible across machines.

Options:
- Yes, create manifest (Recommended)
- No, install globally instead

Create manifest if approved:

dotnet new tool-manifest

Step 4: Install Tool

Local install (default):

dotnet tool install <package-name> [--version <version>]

Global install:

dotnet tool install --global <package-name> [--version <version>]

Step 5: Provide Usage Hints

After installation, provide relevant usage information:

Tool Installed: dotnet-ef (alias: ef)

Usage:
  dotnet ef migrations add <name>
  dotnet ef database update
  dotnet ef dbcontext scaffold

Common commands:
  dotnet ef migrations add InitialCreate
  dotnet ef database update
  dotnet ef migrations script

Documentation: https://learn.microsoft.com/ef/core/cli/dotnet

Upgrade Mode

Single Tool Upgrade (--upgrade)

/dotnet:install-tool --tool ef --upgrade

Workflow:

1. Check current version
2. Check latest version
3. If newer available, upgrade:

dotnet tool update <package-name> [--global]

Upgrade All (--upgrade-all)

/dotnet:install-tool --upgrade-all

Workflow:

1. Read .config/dotnet-tools.json
2. Check each tool for updates
3. Present interactive list:

Tool Updates Available

  Tool                              Current   Latest    Action
  dotnet-ef                         8.0.0     10.0.0    [ ] Upgrade
  dotnet-coverage                   17.8.0    17.12.0   [ ] Upgrade
  dotnet-reportgenerator-globaltool 5.2.0     5.4.0     [ ] Upgrade

Select tools to upgrade:
  1. Upgrade all
  2. Select individually
  3. Skip (no changes)

4. Apply selected upgrades
5. Report results

Output Format

List Mode:

Installed .NET Tools

Local Tools (from .config/dotnet-tools.json):
  Package                             Version   Commands
  dotnet-ef                           10.0.0    dotnet-ef
  dotnet-coverage                     17.12.0   dotnet-coverage
  csharpier                           0.29.0    dotnet-csharpier

Global Tools:
  Package                             Version   Commands
  dotnet-outdated-tool                4.6.0     dotnet-outdated
  nbgv                                3.6.0     nbgv

Manifest: .config/dotnet-tools.json

Install Success:

Tool Installed Successfully

  Package: dotnet-ef
  Alias: ef
  Version: 10.0.0
  Scope: Local (manifest)

Manifest updated: .config/dotnet-tools.json

Quick Start:
  dotnet ef migrations add InitialCreate
  dotnet ef database update

Run 'dotnet ef --help' for all commands.

Upgrade Success:

Tool Upgrade Complete

  Updated:
    - dotnet-ef: 8.0.0 -> 10.0.0
    - dotnet-coverage: 17.8.0 -> 17.12.0

  Skipped:
    - csharpier: already at latest (0.29.0)

Manifest updated: .config/dotnet-tools.json

Built-in Tool:

'format' is a built-in SDK tool (no installation required)

The 'dotnet format' command is included with .NET SDK 6.0+.

Usage:
  dotnet format                    # Format entire solution
  dotnet format --verify-no-changes # Check formatting (CI)
  dotnet format whitespace         # Format whitespace only
  dotnet format style              # Format code style only
  dotnet format analyzers          # Apply analyzer fixes

Your SDK: 10.0.100 (format included)

Manifest Structure

.config/dotnet-tools.json:

{
  "version": 1,
  "isRoot": true,
  "tools": {
    "dotnet-ef": {
      "version": "10.0.0",
      "commands": ["dotnet-ef"]
    },
    "dotnet-coverage": {
      "version": "17.12.0",
      "commands": ["dotnet-coverage"]
    }
  }
}

Examples

# Install EF Core tools locally
/dotnet:install-tool --tool ef

# Install coverage tool globally
/dotnet:install-tool --tool coverage --global

# Install specific version
/dotnet:install-tool --tool ef --version 9.0.0

# List all installed tools
/dotnet:install-tool --list

# Upgrade specific tool
/dotnet:install-tool --tool ef --upgrade

# Upgrade all local tools interactively
/dotnet:install-tool --upgrade-all

# Use full package name
/dotnet:install-tool --tool dotnet-reportgenerator-globaltool

Restore Tools

After cloning a repo with a tool manifest:

dotnet tool restore

This installs all tools from .config/dotnet-tools.json at their specified versions.