NuGet: Managing Dependencies in .NET

If you work with C# or .NET, you use NuGet. It is the central repository for over 300,000 unique packages.

How to Use NuGet

There are three main ways to interact with NuGet:

1. Visual Studio GUI: Right-click project -> “Manage NuGet Packages”. The classic point-and-click interface.
2. .NET CLI: The modern, cross-platform way.

   dotnet add package Newtonsoft.Json

3. Package Manager Console: A PowerShell console inside VS.

   Install-Package Newtonsoft.Json

Managing Versions

Dependencies are stored in your project file (.csproj).

<ItemGroup>
  <PackageReference Include="Newtonsoft.Json" Version="13.0.3" />
</ItemGroup>

Private Feeds

For enterprise development, NuGet supports private feeds (like Azure Artifacts or GitHub Packages), allowing you to share code internally securely.

Conclusion

NuGet is essential for the modern .NET developer. With the new CLI tools, it is faster and easier than ever to manage dependencies on Windows, Mac, or Linux.