Diagnose why the dotnet-msbuild binlog MCP server will not start or connect. Check the selected SDK, package sources, and launch logs, then identify a recovery that respects organizational policies and verify that the host discovers the server’s tools.
- Investigating CONNECTION_CLOSED during server startup
- Checking SDK selection and package source settings
- Diagnosing Microsoft.AITools.BinlogMcp resolution failures
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Identify repeated NuGet package restores across .NET build, test, and publish steps. Check whether earlier restores cover each later step, apply targeted changes, and validate the pipeline without removing required dependency restoration.
- Remove repeated package restores from CI pipelines
- Check where --no-restore can safely be added
- Investigate NETSDK1004 or NETSDK1047 after skipping restore
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Assess whether tests detect the wrong behavior relevant to a specific change, PR, or commit. Link findings to exact revisions, compare faulty and correct behavior when execution is authorized, and distinguish observed results from predictions.
- Check whether a regression test detects the original bug
- Assess tests for a new feature
- Review behavior preservation during a refactor
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Use the new Process APIs in .NET 11 applications to run external commands, capture output and errors, and manage child processes. Guidance covers waiting for completion, reading output, and controlling whether processes survive their parent.
- Capturing output and errors from external commands
- Stopping child processes when the parent exits
- Reading process output one line at a time
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Match C# and .NET tasks to the appropriate specialist skill using the request and project evidence. Invoke available specialists, explain how to obtain missing plugins, and complete suitable tasks with standard tooling when possible.
- Choosing a specialist for a C# or .NET task
- Finding the plugin needed for a missing specialist
- Restoring discovery of already installed skills
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Add, repair, and strengthen tests for existing code using the project's testing framework. Covers regression cases, boundary conditions, flaky tests, and coverage gaps, with validation that links requested behaviors to specific tests.
- Add unit tests for existing code
- Repair failing or flaky tests
- Cover regression cases, boundaries, and error paths
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Create Vally evaluation specifications for skills, custom agents, and workflow packages. Design distinct test requests, prepare fixture files, define automated checks and outcome rubrics, and size comparisons to provide meaningful evidence without favoring the skill’s wording.
- Create an eval.yaml for a skill or custom agent
- Define outcome-based checks and judging rubrics
- Prepare fixture files that reproduce specific failures
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Write and review GitHub Actions workflows for syntax and structural correctness. Check quoting around expressions and special characters, then validate with actionlint, a workflow checker, to catch errors that ordinary YAML parsing can miss.
- Reviewing new or edited GitHub Actions workflow files
- Checking quotes around expressions containing special characters
- Investigating workflow failures before any jobs start
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Diagnose why an existing skill fails evaluations or shows no clear improvement. Separate content problems from test data, execution failures, activation issues, and insufficient evaluation tasks, then apply targeted fixes and validate them.
- Investigating a regression after a skill change
- Diagnosing evaluations that return no results
- Fixing a skill that fails to activate
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Create the starting files for a new agent skill, including SKILL.md, metadata, and optional folders. It guides descriptions that help agents select the skill, actionable workflows, ownership entries, and validation checks.
- Creating a new agent skill from scratch
- Writing descriptions that help agents select the right skill
- Organizing SKILL.md and supporting files
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Create VS Code custom agents for roles such as planning or code review. It builds .agent.md files with role instructions, permitted tools, and optional handoffs that let users move work to another agent.
- Creating an agent dedicated to planning
- Defining a code review agent
- Restricting tools to match an agent's role
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Route GitHub Agentic Workflows requests to the appropriate task guide. It selects prompts for design, creation, updates, debugging, or upgrades, with additional guidance for specialized tasks and repository-specific instructions when available.
- Starting workflow design through an interview
- Selecting guidance for creating or updating workflows
- Finding debugging or upgrade procedures
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Prepare .NET projects for Native AOT, compilation before execution, and trimming, which removes unused code. Use build warnings to guide type annotations, reflection changes, and source-generated JSON serialization, then check all target frameworks.
- Preparing a .NET project for Native AOT
- Resolving IL warnings from trimming analysis
- Adding annotations to reflection code
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Write and repair custom MSBuild targets, the steps that organize build tasks. Preserve existing build sequences, choose appropriate insertion points, distinguish returned results from rebuild checks, and register generated files for cleanup.
- Add custom steps to an existing build sequence
- Repair dependency settings that replace SDK build steps
- Correct stale results returned by query targets
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Create a missing .NET test project or repair references and solution registration in an existing one. Follow the repository’s framework and package conventions, then verify the build or test entry point used by CI, the automated integration process.
- Set up a new .NET test project
- Repair tests missing from CI discovery
- Restore a reference to production code
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Upgrade MSTest v3 test projects to v4 by updating packages, adapting code to changed APIs, and checking execution behavior. It also helps resolve build errors and problems finding tests in CI after an upgrade.
- Upgrading an MSTest v3 project to v4
- Fixing compilation errors after an upgrade
- Updating custom TestMethodAttribute implementations
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Review explicitly selected tests or bounded pull request changes without running or editing code. Receive a follow-up decision for each test, A–F quality bands where assessable, evidence-based notes, and concrete suggestions for improvement.
- Reviewing a named test method
- Assessing every test in explicitly selected files
- Preparing per-test feedback for pull request changes
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Find source files with no matching test references by parsing code without building or running tests. Produces a source-to-test map and suggested test locations, helping plan test additions across supported programming languages.
- List source files with no matching tests
- Choose locations for new test files
- Check source-to-test pairing after adding tests
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Make C# code testable when it directly uses static services such as time, files, or processes. It introduces existing abstractions or minimal wrappers, supplies dependency registration, and demonstrates tests with controlled substitutes for real resources.
- Introducing TimeProvider for time-dependent tests
- Testing file operations with MockFileSystem
- Wrapping Environment, Console, or Process calls
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Migrate .NET tests from xUnit.net v2 to v3 while preserving the existing test runner. Update packages, project settings, and affected test code, then verify test discovery, execution, and skip behavior.
- Upgrading xUnit.net v2 test projects to v3
- Fixing compilation errors caused by v3 changes
- Updating custom test attributes and async tests
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Upgrade an existing .NET 10 project to .NET 11 by updating framework targets and packages, fixing compatibility issues, reviewing runtime behavior changes, and verifying builds, tests, and deployment configuration.
- Upgrading a project from net10.0 to net11.0
- Fixing build errors after an SDK upgrade
- Reviewing changes in runtime and EF Core behavior
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Turn an existing .NET project into a reusable dotnet new template while preserving its settings and conventions. Create parameters and conditional content, test generated projects, and prepare the packaging files needed for NuGet distribution.
- Turn an existing project into a reusable template
- Add template parameters and conditional files
- Validate template installation and generated builds
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Set up a persistent Microsoft Testing Platform console host that applies code edits and automatically reruns tests. It covers package setup, test selection, and restarting the host when an edit cannot be applied while running.
- Setting up MTP console hot reload
- Automatically rerunning selected tests after edits
- Restarting after unsupported code changes
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026
Make specific C# behavior testable by adding a minimal way to replace time, randomness, or other external dependencies. Preserve public APIs and production behavior, then run repeatable tests without real file access or waiting.
- Testing deadlines and delays with controlled time
- Testing file operations without touching real files
- Testing random or environment-dependent behavior
dotnet/skills☆ 5.7KUpdated Oct 21, 2026