dotnet-scaffold-project

name	dotnet-scaffold-project
description	Creates a new .NET project. Generates solution with CPM, analyzers, editorconfig, SourceLink.
license	MIT
targets	["*"]
category	developer-experience
subcategory	project
tags	["tooling","dotnet","skill","project","scaffolding"]
version	1.0.0
author	dotnet-agent-harness
invocable	true
related_skills	["dotnet-project-structure","dotnet-project-analysis","dotnet-version-detection"]
claudecode	{"allowed-tools":["Read","Grep","Glob","Bash","Write","Edit"]}
codexcli	{"short-description":".NET skill guidance for project tasks"}
opencode	{"allowed-tools":["Read","Grep","Glob","Bash","Write","Edit"]}
copilot	{}
geminicli	{}
antigravity	{}

dotnet-scaffold-project

Scaffolds a new .NET project with all modern best practices applied. Generates the full solution structure including Central Package Management, analyzers, .editorconfig, SourceLink, and deterministic builds.

Prerequisites: Run [skill:dotnet-version-detection] first to determine available SDK version — this affects which features and templates are available.

Scope

• Full solution structure generation (src/, tests/, .sln)
• Central Package Management and Directory.Build.props
• Analyzers, .editorconfig, SourceLink, deterministic builds

Out of scope

• Solution layout rationale and conventions -- see [skill:dotnet-project-structure]
• Analyzer configuration details -- see [skill:dotnet-add-analyzers]
• CI workflow generation -- see [skill:dotnet-add-ci]

Cross-references: [skill:dotnet-project-structure] for layout rationale, [skill:dotnet-add-analyzers] for analyzer configuration, [skill:dotnet-add-ci] for adding CI after scaffolding.

---

Step 1: Create Solution Structure

Create the directory layout and solution file.

# Create the directory structure
mkdir -p MyApp/src MyApp/tests

# Create solution file
cd MyApp
dotnet new sln -n MyApp

# For .NET 9+ SDK, convert to .slnx
dotnet sln MyApp.sln migrate

```text

### Choose Project Template

Select the appropriate template based on the application type:

| Template | Command | SDK |
|----------|---------|-----|
| Web API (minimal) | `dotnet new webapi -n MyApp.Api -o src/MyApp.Api` | `Microsoft.NET.Sdk.Web` |
| Web API (controllers) | `dotnet new webapi -n MyApp.Api -o src/MyApp.Api --use-controllers` | `Microsoft.NET.Sdk.Web` |
| Console app | `dotnet new console -n MyApp.Cli -o src/MyApp.Cli` | `Microsoft.NET.Sdk` |
| Worker service | `dotnet new worker -n MyApp.Worker -o src/MyApp.Worker` | `Microsoft.NET.Sdk.Worker` |
| Class library | `dotnet new classlib -n MyApp.Core -o src/MyApp.Core` | `Microsoft.NET.Sdk` |
| Blazor web app | `dotnet new blazor -n MyApp.Web -o src/MyApp.Web` | `Microsoft.NET.Sdk.Web` |
| MAUI app | `dotnet new maui -n MyApp.Mobile -o src/MyApp.Mobile` | `Microsoft.Maui.Sdk` |
| xUnit test | `dotnet new xunit -n MyApp.Tests -o tests/MyApp.Tests` | `Microsoft.NET.Sdk` |

```bash

# Example: Web API with class library and tests
dotnet new classlib -n MyApp.Core -o src/MyApp.Core
dotnet new webapi -n MyApp.Api -o src/MyApp.Api
dotnet new xunit -n MyApp.UnitTests -o tests/MyApp.UnitTests


dotnet sln add src/MyApp.Core/MyApp.Core.csproj
dotnet sln add src/MyApp.Api/MyApp.Api.csproj
dotnet sln add tests/MyApp.UnitTests/MyApp.UnitTests.csproj


dotnet add src/MyApp.Api/MyApp.Api.csproj reference src/MyApp.Core/MyApp.Core.csproj
dotnet add tests/MyApp.UnitTests/MyApp.UnitTests.csproj reference src/MyApp.Core/MyApp.Core.csproj

```csharp

---



Pin the SDK version  reproducible builds.

```json

{
  : {
    : ,
    : 
  }
}

```text

Adjust the version to match the output of `dotnet --version`.

---



Create at the repo root to share build settings across all projects.

```xml

<Project>
  <PropertyGroup>
    <TargetFramework>net10.0</TargetFramework>
    <LangVersion>14</LangVersion>
    <Nullable></Nullable>
    <ImplicitUsings></ImplicitUsings>
    <TreatWarningsAsErrors></TreatWarningsAsErrors>
    <EnforceCodeStyleInBuild></EnforceCodeStyleInBuild>
    <AnalysisLevel>latest-all</AnalysisLevel>
  </PropertyGroup>

  <!-- Deterministic builds and SourceLink ( libraries) -->
  <PropertyGroup>
    <PublishRepositoryUrl></PublishRepositoryUrl>
    <EmbedUntrackedSources></EmbedUntrackedSources>
    <DebugType>embedded</DebugType>
    <ContinuousIntegrationBuild Condition=></ContinuousIntegrationBuild>
  </PropertyGroup>

  <!-- NuGet audit -->
  <PropertyGroup>
    <NuGetAudit></NuGetAudit>
    <NuGetAuditLevel>low</NuGetAuditLevel>
    <NuGetAuditMode>all</NuGetAuditMode>
    <RestorePackagesWithLockFile></RestorePackagesWithLockFile>
  </PropertyGroup>
</Project>

```text

After creating this, **remove** `<TargetFramework>`, `<Nullable>`, and `<ImplicitUsings>` from individual `.csproj` files to avoid duplication.



```xml

<!-- tests/Directory.Build.props -->
<Project>
  <Import Project= />
  <PropertyGroup>
    <IsPackable></IsPackable>
    <IsTestProject></IsTestProject>
    <!-- Use Microsoft.Testing.Platform v2 runner (requires Microsoft.NET.Test.Sdk 17.13+/18.x) -->
    <UseMicrosoftTestingPlatformRunner></UseMicrosoftTestingPlatformRunner>
    <!-- Tests donVersion=