dotnet-skills
Tool MSBuild v0.1.0

MSBuild Server for CLI Caching

Guide for using MSBuild Server to improve CLI build performance. Only activate in MSBuild/.NET build context. 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).

Workflow

Step 1: Confirm CLI context

Verify the developer is building from the command line (dotnet build), not from Visual Studio or another IDE. The MSBuild Server provides no benefit inside an IDE.

Step 2: Set the environment variable

# Bash / CI
export MSBUILDUSESERVER=1

# PowerShell
$env:MSBUILDUSESERVER = "1"

# Windows (persistent)
setx MSBUILDUSESERVER 1

Step 3: Validate improvement

Run two sequential builds of the same project and compare times:

  1. First build (cold): dotnet build -- server starts, no cache benefit
  2. Second build (warm): dotnet build -- should be noticeably faster

The most noticeable improvement is in repos with many projects or complex Directory.Build.props chains.

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