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Q&A .NET dependency management: `dotnet add package` vs. Paket?

Many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the Paket .NET dependency manager (e.g., Suave), so I started digging into it, got confused, then gave up for while because er...

1 answer · posted 2mo ago by toraritte‭ · last activity 1mo ago by toraritte‭

Question .net-core nuget paket

#4: Post edited by

toraritte‭ · 2024-03-26T12:31:05Z (about 1 month ago)

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Many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the [Paket][1] .NET dependency manager (e.g., [Suave][2]), so I started digging into it, [got confused][3], then gave up for while because errors kept cropping up and I just wanted to make progress.
I reached a point in my project where I have to add packages properly (instead of just pulling them in on the CLI when testing), so I did a search for the term `dotnet add external package project to solution` where the most prominent results were:
+ [Microsoft Learn] [Install and manage NuGet packages with the `dotnet` CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-dotnet-cli)
+ [Microsoft Learn] [`dotnet add package` command - .NET CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/tools/dotnet-add-package)
After reading, `dotnet add package` looks exactly what [Paket][1] is doing: adding NuGet packages to a .NET project. Am I missing something?
**edit**: [Suave's NuGet page](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Suave) seems to confirm that they provide the same functionality, but, unlike the .NET CLI instructions, there is a warning below the [Paket][1] ones, implying that it is a third-party solution:
> The NuGet Team does not provide support for this client. Please contact its maintainers for support.
----
~~As far as I can tell,~~
* there's a historical explanation: [Paket][1] has been created more than 10 years ago, when there probably wasn't any native dependency management solution. (Reading the .NET history made my head spin, and looks like things started to speed up significantly after the 2020s.)
* [Paket][1] also allows adding dependencies that are not in NuGet, such as GitHub repos. (Most questions I've seen where people wanted to achieve the same thing - e.g., [1](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/41806018/asp-net-core-application-that-references-a-project-in-another-git-repository), [2](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/60396634/git-use-solution-from-another-repository) -, the reply was that those projects should be converted to NuGet packages and uploaded there - unless I misread something..)
* [Paket][1] creates an external lock file that can be added to version control. (`dotnet add package` can also add specific versions of packages, but not sure how it compares to using a lock file.)
[1]: https://fsprojects.github.io/Paket/
[2]: https://suave.io/index.html
[3]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77467563/how-to-automatically-add-package-reference-into-project-file-after-installing-n

Many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the [Paket][1] .NET dependency manager (e.g., [Suave][2]), so I started digging into it, [got confused][3], then gave up for while because errors kept cropping up and I just wanted to make progress.
I reached a point in my project where I have to add packages properly (instead of just pulling them in on the CLI when testing), so I did a search for the term `dotnet add external package project to solution` where the most prominent results were:
+ [Microsoft Learn] [Install and manage NuGet packages with the `dotnet` CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-dotnet-cli)
+ [Microsoft Learn] [`dotnet add package` command - .NET CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/tools/dotnet-add-package)
After reading, `dotnet add package` looks exactly what [Paket][1] is doing: adding NuGet packages to a .NET project. Am I missing something?
**edit**: [Suave's NuGet page](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Suave) seems to confirm that they provide the same functionality, but, unlike the .NET CLI instructions, there is a warning below the [Paket][1] ones, implying that it is a third-party solution:
> The NuGet Team does not provide support for this client. Please contact its maintainers for support.
----
[1]: https://fsprojects.github.io/Paket/
[2]: https://suave.io/index.html
[3]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77467563/how-to-automatically-add-package-reference-into-project-file-after-installing-n

#3: Post edited by

toraritte‭ · 2024-03-24T21:04:04Z (about 2 months ago)

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I'm still new to .NET, and many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the [Paket][1] .NET dependency manager (e.g., [Suave][2]), so I started digging into it, [got confused][3], then gave up for while because errors kept cropping up and I just wanted to make progress.
I reached a point in my project where I have to add packages properly (instead of just pulling them in on the CLI when testing), so I did a search for the term `dotnet add external package project to solution` where the most prominent results were:
+ [Microsoft Learn] [Install and manage NuGet packages with the `dotnet` CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-dotnet-cli)
+ [Microsoft Learn] [`dotnet add package` command - .NET CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/tools/dotnet-add-package)
After reading, `dotnet add package` looks exactly what [Paket][1] is doing: adding NuGet packages to a .NET project. Am I missing something?
**edit**: [Suave's NuGet page](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Suave) seems to confirm that they provide the same functionality, but, unlike the .NET CLI instructions, there is a warning below the [Paket][1] ones, implying that it is a third-party solution:
> The NuGet Team does not provide support for this client. Please contact its maintainers for support.
---
As far as I can tell,
* there's a historical explanation: [Paket][1] has been created more than 10 years ago, when there probably wasn't any native dependency management solution. (Reading the .NET history made my head spin, and looks like things started to speed up significantly after the 2020s.)
* [Paket][1] also allows adding dependencies that are not in NuGet, such as GitHub repos. (Most questions I've seen where people wanted to achieve the same thing - e.g., [1](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/41806018/asp-net-core-application-that-references-a-project-in-another-git-repository), [2](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/60396634/git-use-solution-from-another-repository) -, the reply was that those projects should be converted to NuGet packages and uploaded there - unless I misread something..)
* [Paket][1] creates an external lock file that can be added to version control. (`dotnet add package` can also add specific versions of packages, but not sure how it compares to using a lock file.)
[1]: https://fsprojects.github.io/Paket/
[2]: https://suave.io/index.html
[3]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77467563/how-to-automatically-add-package-reference-into-project-file-after-installing-n

Many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the [Paket][1] .NET dependency manager (e.g., [Suave][2]), so I started digging into it, [got confused][3], then gave up for while because errors kept cropping up and I just wanted to make progress.
I reached a point in my project where I have to add packages properly (instead of just pulling them in on the CLI when testing), so I did a search for the term `dotnet add external package project to solution` where the most prominent results were:
+ [Microsoft Learn] [Install and manage NuGet packages with the `dotnet` CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-dotnet-cli)
+ [Microsoft Learn] [`dotnet add package` command - .NET CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/tools/dotnet-add-package)
After reading, `dotnet add package` looks exactly what [Paket][1] is doing: adding NuGet packages to a .NET project. Am I missing something?
**edit**: [Suave's NuGet page](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Suave) seems to confirm that they provide the same functionality, but, unlike the .NET CLI instructions, there is a warning below the [Paket][1] ones, implying that it is a third-party solution:
> The NuGet Team does not provide support for this client. Please contact its maintainers for support.
---
As far as I can tell,
* there's a historical explanation: [Paket][1] has been created more than 10 years ago, when there probably wasn't any native dependency management solution. (Reading the .NET history made my head spin, and looks like things started to speed up significantly after the 2020s.)
* [Paket][1] also allows adding dependencies that are not in NuGet, such as GitHub repos. (Most questions I've seen where people wanted to achieve the same thing - e.g., [1](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/41806018/asp-net-core-application-that-references-a-project-in-another-git-repository), [2](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/60396634/git-use-solution-from-another-repository) -, the reply was that those projects should be converted to NuGet packages and uploaded there - unless I misread something..)
* [Paket][1] creates an external lock file that can be added to version control. (`dotnet add package` can also add specific versions of packages, but not sure how it compares to using a lock file.)
[1]: https://fsprojects.github.io/Paket/
[2]: https://suave.io/index.html
[3]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77467563/how-to-automatically-add-package-reference-into-project-file-after-installing-n

#2: Post edited by

toraritte‭ · 2024-03-23T14:18:23Z (about 2 months ago)

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I'm still new to .NET, and many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the [Paket][1] .NET dependency manager (e.g., [Suave][2]), so I started digging into it, [got confused][3], then gave up for while because errors kept cropping up and I just wanted to make progress.
I reached a point in my project where I have to add packages properly (instead of just pulling them in on the CLI when testing), so I did a search for the term `dotnet add external package project to solution` where the most prominent results were:
+ [Microsoft Learn] [Install and manage NuGet packages with the `dotnet` CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-dotnet-cli)
+ [Microsoft Learn] [`dotnet add package` command - .NET CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/tools/dotnet-add-package)
After reading, `dotnet add package` looks exactly what [Paket][1] is doing: adding NuGet packages to a .NET project. Am I missing something?
---
As far as I can tell,
* there's a historical explanation: [Paket][1] has been created more than 10 years ago, when there probably wasn't any native dependency management solution. (Reading the .NET history made my head spin, and looks like things started to speed up significantly after the 2020s.)
* [Paket][1] also allows adding dependencies that are not in NuGet, such as GitHub repos. (Most questions I've seen where people wanted to achieve the same thing - e.g., [1](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/41806018/asp-net-core-application-that-references-a-project-in-another-git-repository), [2](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/60396634/git-use-solution-from-another-repository) -, the reply was that those projects should be converted to NuGet packages and uploaded there - unless I misread something..)
* [Paket][1] creates an external lock file that can be added to version control. (`dotnet add package` can also add specific versions of packages, but not sure how it compares to using a lock file.)
[1]: https://fsprojects.github.io/Paket/
[2]: https://suave.io/index.html
[3]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77467563/how-to-automatically-add-package-reference-into-project-file-after-installing-n

I'm still new to .NET, and many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the [Paket][1] .NET dependency manager (e.g., [Suave][2]), so I started digging into it, [got confused][3], then gave up for while because errors kept cropping up and I just wanted to make progress.
I reached a point in my project where I have to add packages properly (instead of just pulling them in on the CLI when testing), so I did a search for the term `dotnet add external package project to solution` where the most prominent results were:
+ [Microsoft Learn] [Install and manage NuGet packages with the `dotnet` CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-dotnet-cli)
+ [Microsoft Learn] [`dotnet add package` command - .NET CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/tools/dotnet-add-package)
After reading, `dotnet add package` looks exactly what [Paket][1] is doing: adding NuGet packages to a .NET project. Am I missing something?
**edit**: [Suave's NuGet page](https://www.nuget.org/packages/Suave) seems to confirm that they provide the same functionality, but, unlike the .NET CLI instructions, there is a warning below the [Paket][1] ones, implying that it is a third-party solution:
> The NuGet Team does not provide support for this client. Please contact its maintainers for support.
---
As far as I can tell,
* there's a historical explanation: [Paket][1] has been created more than 10 years ago, when there probably wasn't any native dependency management solution. (Reading the .NET history made my head spin, and looks like things started to speed up significantly after the 2020s.)
* [Paket][1] also allows adding dependencies that are not in NuGet, such as GitHub repos. (Most questions I've seen where people wanted to achieve the same thing - e.g., [1](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/41806018/asp-net-core-application-that-references-a-project-in-another-git-repository), [2](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/60396634/git-use-solution-from-another-repository) -, the reply was that those projects should be converted to NuGet packages and uploaded there - unless I misread something..)
* [Paket][1] creates an external lock file that can be added to version control. (`dotnet add package` can also add specific versions of packages, but not sure how it compares to using a lock file.)
[1]: https://fsprojects.github.io/Paket/
[2]: https://suave.io/index.html
[3]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77467563/how-to-automatically-add-package-reference-into-project-file-after-installing-n

#1: Initial revision by

toraritte‭ · 2024-03-23T11:09:31Z (about 2 months ago)

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.NET dependency management: `dotnet add package` vs. Paket?

I'm still new to .NET, and many older projects (i.e., older than 5 years) provide instructions to the [Paket][1] .NET dependency manager (e.g., [Suave][2]), so I started digging into it, [got confused][3], then gave up for while because errors kept cropping up and I just wanted to make progress.

I reached a point in my project where I have to add packages properly (instead of just pulling them in on the CLI when testing), so I did a search for the term `dotnet add external package project to solution` where the most prominent results were:

+ [Microsoft Learn] [Install and manage NuGet packages with the `dotnet` CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/consume-packages/install-use-packages-dotnet-cli)

+ [Microsoft Learn] [`dotnet add package` command - .NET CLI](https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/core/tools/dotnet-add-package)

After reading, `dotnet add package` looks exactly what [Paket][1] is doing: adding NuGet packages to a .NET project. Am I missing something?

---

As far as I can tell,

* there's a historical explanation: [Paket][1] has been created more than 10 years ago, when there probably wasn't any native dependency management solution. (Reading the .NET history made my head spin, and looks like things started to speed up significantly after the 2020s.)

* [Paket][1] also allows adding dependencies that are not in NuGet, such as GitHub repos. (Most questions I've seen where people wanted to achieve the same thing - e.g., [1](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/41806018/asp-net-core-application-that-references-a-project-in-another-git-repository), [2](https://stackoverflow.com/questions/60396634/git-use-solution-from-another-repository) -, the reply was that those projects should be converted to NuGet packages and uploaded there - unless I misread something..)


* [Paket][1] creates an external lock file that can be added to version control. (`dotnet add package` can also add specific versions of packages, but not sure how it compares to using a lock file.)

  [1]: https://fsprojects.github.io/Paket/
  [2]: https://suave.io/index.html
  [3]: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/77467563/how-to-automatically-add-package-reference-into-project-file-after-installing-n

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