target-authoring

Canonical patterns for writing custom MSBuild targets. USE FOR: diagnosing and fixing custom target authoring anti-patterns; broken SDK target chains across files (e.g., Directory.Build.targets silently redefining SDK targets); targets that replace CompileDependsOn instead of extending it with $(CompileDependsOn); query targets returning stale results from Outputs vs Returns misuse; missing Inputs/Outputs causing unnecessary rebuilds; missing FileWrites registration. Covers DependsOnTargets vs BeforeTargets vs AfterTargets, the Build→CoreBuild three-level pattern, and the $(XxxDependsOn) chain-extension pattern. DO NOT USE FOR: incremental build tuning (use incremental-build), parallelization (use build-parallelism), general anti-patterns (use msbuild-antipatterns), non-MSBuild build systems.

v1.0.1New

#dotnet

Unsigned, install at your own risk

Unverified

This skill has no cryptographic signature attached. We can't verify the contents match what the publisher intended.

Install this skill

Run this command in your terminal. No account required — it auto-detects your AI tool and installs the skill file.

npx @skills-hub-ai/cli install dotnet-target-authoring

Or download directly:

Browse all CLI commands →

Setup by platform

Claude Code

~/.claude/skills/<skill>/SKILL.md

Setup guide →

Install

One-click setup for your editor

Run in your project root

npx @skills-hub-ai/cli install dotnet-target-authoring --target claude-code

Instructions

This skill doesn’t include stateful context yet, instructions only. Learn about stateful skills.

Security

Loading security scan...

Reviews (0)

View full changelog & diffs →

Browse all →

code-testing-agentALWAYS USE whenever asked to write, add, or generate unit tests for existing code in xUnit, MSTest, NUnit, pytest, Vitest/Jest, Go, or another framework, including "tests only for" one helper, function, class, or missing regression case as well as project-wide suites. Also use for "cover this untested method", scaffolding tests where none exist, sparse workspaces, classic packages.config MSTest, and extending healthy suites. Focused requests use a proportional direct workflow; broad requests use the full pipeline. DO NOT USE for only running/diagnosing tests, coverage/audits, a test blocked on a missing production seam (testability-obstacle), or correcting supplied MSTest assertions, attributes, lifecycle, or configuration without designing new cases (writing-mstest-tests).2 installs configure-authAdd authentication and authorization to a Blazor Web App, accounting for the app's render mode. USE WHEN the user needs [Authorize] on pages, AuthorizeView, role or policy-based access, login/logout Identity pages, or AuthenticationStateProvider. Also USE WHEN auth state is null after WebAssembly loads, SignInManager throws in an interactive component, <NotAuthorized> content never renders in static SSR, or HttpContext.User is null in an interactive component. DO NOT USE for general component authoring (see author-component), for prerendering concerns unrelated to auth (see support-prerendering), or for managing non-auth cascading state (see coordinate-components).1 installs build-perf-baselineEstablish build performance baselines and apply systematic optimization techniques. USE FOR: diagnosing slow builds, establishing before/after measurements (cold, warm, no-op scenarios), applying optimization strategies like static graph builds, artifacts output, and dependency graph trimming. Start here before diving into build-perf-diagnostics, incremental-build, or build-parallelism. DO NOT USE FOR: non-MSBuild build systems, detailed bottleneck analysis (use build-perf-diagnostics after baselining).1 installs plan-ui-changePlan complex Blazor UI features by decomposing them into focused components. USE FOR: building a complex Blazor page with multiple sections, planning component decomposition, designing a multi-section dashboard or layout, breaking down a large UI feature into composable components, pages with sidebars and content panels, any page with 3+ distinct visual sections or multiple interacting sub-features, identifying parent-child relationships and data flow. DO NOT USE FOR: creating new Blazor projects or apps from scratch (use create-blazor-project), implementing a single individual component (use author-component), writing component code with parameters and EventCallback (use author-component), or simple single-component pages.1 installs create-blazor-projectCreate a new ASP.NET Core web application or web site using Blazor. USE FOR: creating a new Blazor web app, scaffolding a new web project, starting a new web site, choosing render modes (Static SSR, Interactive Server, Interactive WebAssembly, Auto), running dotnet new blazor with the right options, setting up initial project structure. DO NOT USE FOR: adding features to existing projects, changing how an existing app renders, or component authoring (use author-component).1 installs migrate-nullable-referencesEnable nullable reference types in a C# project and systematically resolve all warnings. USE FOR: adopting NRTs in existing codebases, file-by-file or project-wide migration, fixing CS8602/CS8618/CS86xx warnings, annotating APIs for nullability, cleaning up null-forgiving operators, upgrading dependencies with new nullable annotations. DO NOT USE FOR: projects already fully migrated with zero warnings (unless auditing suppressions), fixing a handful of nullable warnings in code that already has NRTs enabled, suppressing warnings without fixing them, C# 7.3 or earlier projects. INVOKES: Get-NullableReadiness.ps1 scanner script.1 installs

More from .NET

View source →

create-skillScaffolds new agent skills for the dotnet/skills repository. Use when creating a new skill, generating SKILL.md files, writing a skill description that the runtime will actually route to, or setting up skill directory structures. Handles frontmatter generation, section templates, and validation guidance. Do not use for fixing a skill that already fails its evaluation (use improve-skill-quality) or for writing eval.yaml (use create-skill-test).6 installs analyzing-dotnet-performanceScans .NET code for ~50 performance anti-patterns across async, memory, strings, collections, LINQ, regex, serialization, and I/O with tiered severity classification. Use when analyzing .NET code for optimization opportunities, reviewing hot paths, or auditing allocation-heavy patterns.4 installs csharp-scriptsRun file-based C# apps with the .NET CLI when the user explicitly wants C#/.NET code without creating a project. Use for C# language/API experiments, one-file C# apps, small multi-file C# apps composed with `#:include`/`#:exclude`, or C# file-based apps linked with `#:ref`. Do not use for language-agnostic throwaway scripts, generic computations, Python/PowerShell-style automation, full projects, or existing app integration.4 installs code-testing-extensionsProvides file paths to language-specific extension files for the code-testing pipeline. Call this skill to discover available extension guidance files (e.g., dotnet.md for .NET, cpp.md for C++). Do not use directly — invoked by code-testing agents and skills that need language-specific references.4 installs msbuild-serverGuide for using MSBuild Server to improve CLI build performance. Activate when developers report slow incremental builds from the command line, or when CLI builds are noticeably slower than IDE builds. Covers MSBUILDUSESERVER=1 environment variable for persistent server-based caching. Do not activate for IDE-based builds (Visual Studio already uses a long-lived process).2 installs system-text-json-net11Imperative guidance for the System.Text.Json APIs added in .NET 11: the built-in `JsonNamingPolicy.PascalCase` naming policy, and the strongly-typed `JsonSerializerOptions.GetTypeInfo<T>()` and `JsonSerializerOptions.TryGetTypeInfo<T>(out JsonTypeInfo<T>? info)` metadata accessors. USE ONLY when the user is targeting net11.0 or later and needs PascalCase JSON property or dictionary-key names without writing a custom naming policy, a strongly-typed `JsonTypeInfo<T>` instead of the non-generic `JsonTypeInfo`, or a no-throw way to probe whether a type's serialization metadata is resolved. DO NOT USE when the target is earlier than net11.0, the requested behavior uses an established pre-net11 naming policy, or the user explicitly selected another JSON library.2 installs

More Build skills

Browse category →

ui-design-systemUI design system toolkit for Senior UI Designer including design token generation, component documentation, responsive design calculations, and developer handoff tools. Use when creating design systems, generating design tokens, maintaining visual consistency, or facilitating design-dev collaboration and developer handoff.302 installs senior-frontendFrontend development skill for React, Next.js, TypeScript, and Tailwind CSS applications. Use when building React components, optimizing Next.js performance, analyzing bundle sizes, scaffolding frontend projects, implementing accessibility, or reviewing frontend code quality.239 installs frontend-designGuidance for distinctive, intentional visual design when building new UI or reshaping an existing one. Helps with aesthetic direction, typography, and making choices that don't read as templated defaults.172 installs self-improving-agentCurate Claude Code's auto-memory into durable project knowledge. Analyze MEMORY.md for patterns, promote proven learnings to CLAUDE.md and .claude/rules/, extract recurring solutions into reusable skills. Use when: (1) reviewing what Claude has learned about your project, (2) graduating a pattern from notes to enforced rules, (3) turning a debugging solution into a skill, (4) checking memory health and capacity.106 installs senior-backendDesigns and implements backend systems including REST APIs, microservices, database architectures, authentication flows, and security hardening. Use when the user asks to "design REST APIs", "optimize database queries", "implement authentication", "build microservices", "review backend code", "set up GraphQL", "handle database migrations", or "load test APIs". Covers Node.js/Express/Fastify development, PostgreSQL optimization, API security, and backend architecture patterns.103 installs using-superpowersUse when starting any conversation - establishes how to find and use skills, requiring skill invocation before ANY response including clarifying questions84 installs

Frequently asked questions about target-authoring

What does the target-authoring skill do?

How do I install the target-authoring skill?

Run `npx @skills-hub-ai/cli install dotnet-target-authoring` from your terminal. The CLI writes the SKILL.md to the correct location for your AI tool (e.g. ~/.claude/skills/dotnet-target-authoring/ for Claude Code or ~/.cursor/skills/ for Cursor with --target cursor) and adds it to your project's .skills.json lockfile.

Which AI tools does target-authoring work with?

target-authoring runs in Claude Code. It follows the open Agent Skills standard (SKILL.md), so the same skill works in every supported tool without modification.

Is the target-authoring skill free?

Yes. Every skill on skills-hub.ai is free and open-source. There are no premium tiers, paywalls, or usage limits. You only pay for whatever AI assistant you're already using.

How do I use target-authoring after installing it?

In Claude Code, type `/dotnet-target-authoring` (or whatever slash command the skill registers) and the AI follows the skill's instructions immediately. You can also reference it by name in natural language, your AI loads the skill into context when relevant.

Can I share the target-authoring skill with my team?

Yes. Commit your project's .skills.json lockfile and teammates run `npx @skills-hub-ai/cli install` (no args) to install every skill at the exact version you pinned. Organization-scoped installs work via skills-hub.ai organizations.