Solution Snapshot for .NET

Turn any .NET workspace into a readable Markdown summary in one command: which projects exist, what they target, which NuGet packages they pull in, how they reference each other — and where package versions disagree.

Useful when onboarding onto an unfamiliar repository, preparing a code review or architecture note, auditing package versions before an upgrade, or pasting solid context about a solution into a chat or an issue.

Commands

Open the Command Palette (Ctrl+Shift+P) and run:

• Solution Snapshot: Open as Markdown Document — builds the report and opens it in a new editor tab.
• Solution Snapshot: Copy Markdown to Clipboard — same report, straight to the clipboard.

What the report contains

• Summary — counts of solutions, projects and distinct packages.
• Solutions — every .sln and .slnx file with the projects it declares.
• Projects — target framework(s), output type, package and reference counts.
• Project references — who depends on whom.
• Version conflicts — packages referenced with more than one version, with the projects responsible.
• NuGet packages — full inventory, marking versions that come from Central Package Management.
• Project details — SDK and selected MSBuild properties.

Example output

# Solution snapshot — Acme.Billing

## Summary

- Solutions: 1
- Projects: 3
- Distinct NuGet packages: 7
- Central Package Management: yes
- Packages with conflicting versions: 1

## Projects

| Project | Target framework(s) | Output | Packages | Project refs |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Acme.Billing.Api | net8.0 | Exe | 5 | 2 |
| Acme.Billing.Core | net8.0 | Library | 1 | 0 |
| Acme.Billing.Tests | net8.0 | Library | 4 | 2 |

## Version conflicts

- **Serilog**
  - `3.1.1` — Acme.Billing.Tests
  - `4.0.0` — Acme.Billing.Api

Settings

Notes and limitations

• Project files are read as text; MSBuild is not executed. Imported .props and .targets files are not evaluated, apart from Directory.Packages.props, and MSBuild variables are reported as written.
• Nothing is sent anywhere: the extension reads files in your workspace and produces text locally. No telemetry, no network calls.

Contributing

Issues and pull requests are welcome: https://github.com/stonebyteio/dotnet-solution-snapshot

License

MIT © Stonebyte LLC