How to install and use a project template using dotnet CLI

[amine-aboufirass]

crossposting from stackexchange

I recently made a post in which I was asking about how to disable implicit usings in Visual Studio 2022. From that post I understood a couple of things:

• This can only be done per project basis using the .csproj file by not including the ImplicitUsings tag
• It is possible to export a template of such a project and reuse it in other projects using dotnet.

Since I am interested in generating customized console applications directly from the command line (Powershell, to be specific), I first exported my adjusted console app as a template using the Visual Studio 2022 UI under Project > Export Template > Project template. This generated a .zip file which was dumped in a generic Templates folder in the Visual Studio installation directory.

According to the link in the reddit post, it should be possible to then make use of this template using dotnet new --install and then dotnet new template.

I have tried the following obvious commands:

dotnet new <path_to_zip_template_file
dotnet new --install <path_to_zip_template_file

The first command crashed with:

No templates found matching <path_to_zip_template_file>

The second command crashed with:

<path_to_zip_template_file is not supported

I'm probably doing something way off. Does anyone know what that might be?

[sayedihashimi]

Hi @awa5114 the Export Template functionality in Visual Studio is using a different technology and doesn't work with dotnet new. I have guidance on how to create templates for dotnet new and Visual Studio at https://aka.ms/netcore-templates.

[amine-aboufirass]

Thanks, I was already familiar with that documentation and also watched a couple of your videos on youtube. Unfortunately it all seems primarily concerned with how to make a template from scratch, which is an overkill for what I'm trying to do. I simply need a way to start from an existing template (i.e. Console App), make a few minor changes to it and then make that available to dotnet new...

[sayedihashimi]

@awa5114 you don't need to start from scratch with a new project, just add the .template.config folder with the template.json file inside of it to your existing project folder.