Tutorial: Install and use a .NET local tool using the .NET CLI

2025-10-02

This article applies to: ✔️ .NET Core 3.0 SDK and later versions

This tutorial teaches you how to install and use a local tool. You use a tool that you create in the first tutorial of this series.

Prerequisites

Complete the first tutorial of this series.
Install the .NET Core 2.1 runtime.
.NET 10.0.100 SDK or later (for dnx) - optional but recommended.

For this tutorial you install and use a tool that targets .NET Core 2.1, so you need to have that runtime installed on your machine. To install the 2.1 runtime, go to the .NET Core 2.1 download page and find the runtime installation link in the Run apps - Runtime column.

Create a manifest file

To install a tool for local access only (for the current directory and subdirectories), it has to be added to a manifest file.

From the microsoft.botsay folder, navigate up one level to the repository folder:

cd ..

Create a manifest file by running the dotnet new command:

dotnet new tool-manifest

The output indicates successful creation of the file.

The template "Dotnet local tool manifest file" was created successfully.

The .config/dotnet-tools.json file has no tools in it yet:

{
  "version": 1,
  "isRoot": true,
  "tools": {}
}

The tools listed in a manifest file are available to the current directory and subdirectories. The current directory is the one that contains the .config directory with the manifest file.

When you use a CLI command that refers to a local tool, the SDK searches for a manifest file in the current directory and parent directories. If it finds a manifest file, but the file doesn't include the referenced tool, it continues the search up through parent directories. The search ends when it finds the referenced tool or it finds a manifest file with isRoot set to true.

Install botsay as a local tool (traditional approach)

Install the tool from the package that you created in the first tutorial:

dotnet tool install --add-source ./microsoft.botsay/nupkg microsoft.botsay

This command adds the tool to the manifest file that you created in the preceding step. The command output shows which manifest file the newly installed tool is in:

You can invoke the tool from this directory using the following command:
'dotnet tool run botsay' or 'dotnet botsay'
Tool 'microsoft.botsay' (version '1.0.0') was successfully installed.
Entry is added to the manifest file /home/name/repository/.config/dotnet-tools.json

The .config/dotnet-tools.json file now has one tool:

{
  "version": 1,
  "isRoot": true,
  "tools": {
    "microsoft.botsay": {
      "version": "1.0.0",
      "commands": [
        "botsay"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Use the installed local tool

Once installed as a local tool, you can invoke it in multiple ways:

Run the tool directly using dnx:
```
dnx microsoft.botsay --add-source ./nupkg hello from the bot
```
Note

When using dnx with a local tool manifest, it automatically uses the version specified in the manifest.
Using dotnet botsay:
```
dotnet botsay hello from the bot
```

Using dotnet tool run

dotnet tool run botsay hello from the bot

Restore a local tool installed by others

You typically install a local tool in the root directory of the repository. After you check in the manifest file to the repository, other developers can get the latest manifest file. To install all of the tools listed in the manifest file, they can run a single dotnet tool restore command.

Open the .config/dotnet-tools.json file, and replace the contents with the following JSON:

{
  "version": 1,
  "isRoot": true,
  "tools": {
    "microsoft.botsay": {
      "version": "1.0.0",
      "commands": [
        "botsay"
      ]
    },
    "dotnetsay": {
      "version": "2.1.3",
      "commands": [
        "dotnetsay"
      ]
    }
  }
}

Save your changes.

Making this change is the same as getting the latest version from the repository after someone else installed the package dotnetsay for the project directory.

Run the dotnet tool restore command.

dotnet tool restore

The command produces output like the following example:

Tool 'microsoft.botsay' (version '1.0.0') was restored. Available commands: botsay
Tool 'dotnetsay' (version '2.1.3') was restored. Available commands: dotnetsay
Restore was successful.

Verify that the tools are available:

dotnet tool list

The output is a list of packages and commands, similar to the following example:

Package Id      Version      Commands       Manifest
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
microsoft.botsay 1.0.0        botsay         /home/name/repository/.config/dotnet-tools.json
dotnetsay        2.1.3        dotnetsay      /home/name/repository/.config/dotnet-tools.json

Test the tools:

dotnet tool run dotnetsay hello from dotnetsay
dotnet tool run botsay hello from botsay

Update a local tool

The installed version of local tool dotnetsay is 2.1.3. Use the dotnet tool update command to update the tool to the latest version.

dotnet tool update dotnetsay

The output indicates the new version number:

Tool 'dotnetsay' was successfully updated from version '2.1.3' to version '2.1.7'
(manifest file /home/name/repository/.config/dotnet-tools.json).

The update command finds the first manifest file that contains the package ID and updates it. If there is no such package ID in any manifest file that is in the scope of the search, the SDK adds a new entry to the closest manifest file. The search scope is up through parent directories until a manifest file with isRoot = true is found.

Remove local tools

Remove the installed tools by running the dotnet tool uninstall command:

dotnet tool uninstall microsoft.botsay

dotnet tool uninstall dotnetsay

Troubleshoot

If you get an error message while following the tutorial, see Troubleshoot .NET tool usage issues.

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