dotnet-add-package(1)                                    .NET Documentation                                   dotnet-add-package(1)

dotnet add package
       This article applies to: ✔️ .NET Core 3.1 SDK and later versions

NAME
       dotnet-add-package - Adds or updates a package reference in a project file.

SYNOPSIS
              dotnet add [<PROJECT>] package <PACKAGE_NAME>
                  [-f|--framework <FRAMEWORK>] [--interactive]
                  [-n|--no-restore] [--package-directory <PACKAGE_DIRECTORY>]
                  [--prerelease] [-s|--source <SOURCE>] [-v|--version <VERSION>]

              dotnet add package -h|--help

DESCRIPTION
       The  dotnet  add  package command provides a convenient option to add or update a package reference in a project file.  When
       you run the command, there’s a compatibility check to ensure the package is compatible with the frameworks in  the  project.
       If  the  check  passes  and  the  package isn’t referenced in the project file, a <PackageReference> element is added to the
       project file.  If the check passes and the package is already referenced in the project file, the <PackageReference> element
       is updated to the latest compatible version.  After the project file is updated, dotnet restore is run.

       For example, adding Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore to ToDo.csproj produces output similar to the following example:

                Determining projects to restore...
                Writing C:\Users\username\AppData\Local\Temp\tmp24A8.tmp
              info : Adding PackageReference for package 'Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore' into project 'C:\ToDo\ToDo.csproj'.
              info :   CACHE https://api.nuget.org/v3/registration5-gz-semver2/microsoft.entityframeworkcore/index.json
              info :   GET https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/dnceng/9ee6d478-d288-47f7-aacc-f6e6d082ae6d/_packaging/516521bf-6417-457e-9a9c-0a4bdfde03e7/nuget/v3/registrations2-semver2/microsoft.entityframeworkcore/index.json
              info :   CACHE https://api.nuget.org/v3/registration5-gz-semver2/microsoft.entityframeworkcore/page/0.0.1-alpha/3.1.3.json
              info :   CACHE https://api.nuget.org/v3/registration5-gz-semver2/microsoft.entityframeworkcore/page/3.1.4/7.0.0-preview.2.22153.1.json
              info :   CACHE https://api.nuget.org/v3/registration5-gz-semver2/microsoft.entityframeworkcore/page/7.0.0-preview.3.22175.1/7.0.0-preview.3.22175.1.json
              info :   NotFound https://pkgs.dev.azure.com/dnceng/9ee6d478-d288-47f7-aacc-f6e6d082ae6d/_packaging/516521bf-6417-457e-9a9c-0a4bdfde03e7/nuget/v3/registrations2-semver2/microsoft.entityframeworkcore/index.json 257ms
              info : Restoring packages for C:\ToDo\ToDo.csproj...
              info : Package 'Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore' is compatible with all the specified frameworks in project 'C:\ToDo\ToDo.csproj'.
              info : PackageReference for package 'Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore' version '6.0.4' added to file 'C:\ToDo\ToDo.csproj'.
              info : Writing assets file to disk. Path: C:\ToDo\obj\project.assets.json
              log  : Restored C:\ToDo\ToDo.csproj (in 171 ms).

       The ToDo.csproj file now contains a <PackageReference> element for the referenced package.

              <PackageReference Include="Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore" Version="6.0.4" />

   Implicit restore
       You  don’t  have  to run dotnet restore because it’s run implicitly by all commands that require a restore to occur, such as
       dotnet new, dotnet build, dotnet run, dotnet test, dotnet publish, and dotnet pack.  To disable implicit  restore,  use  the
       --no-restore option.

       The  dotnet  restore command is still useful in certain scenarios where explicitly restoring makes sense, such as continuous
       integration builds in Azure DevOps Services or in build systems that need to explicitly control when the restore occurs.

       For information about how to manage NuGet feeds, see the dotnet restore documentation.

ARGUMENTS
       • PROJECT

         Specifies the project file.  If not specified, the command searches the current directory for one.

       • PACKAGE_NAME

         The package reference to add.

OPTIONS
       • -f|--framework <FRAMEWORK>

         Adds a package reference only when targeting a specific framework.

       • -?|-h|--help

         Prints out a description of how to use the command.

       • --interactive

         Allows the command to stop and wait for user input or action.  For example, to complete authentication.

       • -n|--no-restore

         Adds a package reference without performing a restore preview and compatibility check.

       • --package-directory <PACKAGE_DIRECTORY>

         The directory where to restore the packages.  The default package restore  location  is  %userprofile%\.nuget\packages  on
         Windows and ~/.nuget/packages on macOS and Linux.  For more information, see Managing the global packages, cache, and temp
         folders in NuGet.

       • --prerelease

         Allows prerelease packages to be installed.  Available since .NET Core 5 SDK

       • -s|--source <SOURCE>

         The URI of the NuGet package source to use during the restore operation.

       • -v|--version <VERSION>

         Version of the package.  See NuGet package versioning.

EXAMPLES
       • Add Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore NuGet package to a project:

                dotnet add package Microsoft.EntityFrameworkCore

       • Add a specific version of a package to a project:

                dotnet add ToDo.csproj package Microsoft.Azure.DocumentDB.Core -v 1.0.0

       • Add a package using a specific NuGet source:

                dotnet add package Microsoft.AspNetCore.StaticFiles -s https://dotnet.myget.org/F/dotnet-core/api/v3/index.json

SEE ALSO
       • Managing the global packages, cache, and temp folders in NuGet

       • NuGet package versioning

                                                             2022-10-10                                       dotnet-add-package(1)