ReSharper 2026.2 Brings Debugging to VS Code, Cursor, and Every Editor Microsoft Locked Out
ReSharper 2026.2 ships the most requested feature for its VS Code extension: a full debugger built on the Rider engine. With Microsoft's C# Dev Kit banned from Cursor and other editors, JetBrains now offers the only complete .NET development experience outside Visual Studio and Rider.
The MSBuild Binlog MCP Server Turns Your AI Assistant into a Build Detective
Microsoft's Binlog MCP Server exposes 38 tools that let AI assistants query MSBuild binary logs directly, turning cryptic build failures and performance bottlenecks into natural-language conversations.
dotnetup: The .NET SDK Version Manager That Should Have Existed Years Ago
Microsoft is building dotnetup, an official cross-platform .NET SDK and runtime version manager inspired by rustup. Here's what it does, how it works with global.json, and why it matters for teams and CI pipelines.
SkiaSharp 4.0 Reaches Stable with 24% Faster GPU Rendering and Animated WebP Support
SkiaSharp 4.148.0 is the first production-ready v4 release, delivering up to 24% faster GPU rendering, animated WebP encoding via SKWebpEncoder, a legacy-free API surface, and critical lifecycle fixes. Here is what changed since Preview 1 and how to migrate.
Foundry Local 1.1: Running AI Models on Device in Any .NET Application
Foundry Local lets you ship AI-powered .NET applications that run entirely on the user's device — no cloud, no per-token costs, no network latency. Version 1.1 adds text embeddings, live audio transcription, and broadens .NET compatibility all the way back to .NET Framework 4.6.1.
Durable Workflows in the Microsoft Agent Framework: From Prototype to Production
The Microsoft Agent Framework can define multi-agent workflows, but they vanish when the process dies. The Durable Task extension fixes that, taking your workflows from in-memory prototypes to fault-tolerant, scalable Azure Functions deployments without changing your workflow code.
A2A v1 in .NET: Cross-Platform Agent Communication Without the Glue Code
The A2A protocol gives AI agents a standard way to discover and talk to each other across frameworks, languages, and vendors. With v1 shipping in the Microsoft Agent Framework for .NET, here is how to expose and consume agents over A2A using familiar ASP.NET Core patterns.
PostgreSQL as a Distributed Cache in .NET: One Database, Two Jobs
Microsoft's new Caching.Postgres package turns your existing PostgreSQL instance into a distributed cache. Combined with HybridCache, it delivers a tiered caching architecture without adding Redis to your infrastructure.
Governing MCP Tool Calls in .NET with the Agent Governance Toolkit
The Agent Governance Toolkit gives .NET developers policy-based control over MCP tool execution, from prompt injection detection to privilege rings. Here is how to lock down your AI agents before they reach production.
SkiaSharp 4.0 Preview 1: Variable Fonts, Immutable Paths, and a New Co-Maintainer
SkiaSharp 4.0 Preview 1 lands with Skia milestone 147, a proper variable font API, immutable SKPath backed by SKPathBuilder, colour font palettes, and Uno Platform stepping in as co-maintainer. Here is what changed and what it means for your .NET graphics code.
Node.js Native Addons in C#: Replacing C++ and node-gyp with .NET Native AOT
The C# Dev Kit team replaced their C++ Node.js addon with C# compiled via .NET Native AOT, eliminating Python and node-gyp from their build chain. Here's how N-API, UnmanagedCallersOnly, and LibraryImport make it work.
Asp.Versioning Meets Built-In OpenAPI: Versioned API Documentation in .NET 10
Asp.Versioning v10.0.0 brings first-class integration with .NET 10's built-in OpenAPI library, replacing the Swashbuckle-era workarounds with a single AddOpenApi call, automatic per-version documents, and RFC 9745 deprecation headers.
Visual Studio Goes Rolling: What the 2027 Announcement Means for .NET Teams
At VSLive! Las Vegas, Microsoft confirmed that Visual Studio 2027 will arrive as an in-place update to 2026 — not a side-by-side install. Here is how the new annual rolling release model, decoupled build tools, and LTSC channels change daily life for .NET developers.
UnsafeAccessorAttribute: Zero-Overhead Private Member Access Without Reflection
UnsafeAccessorAttribute lets you access private fields, methods, and constructors at the same speed as direct calls — no reflection, no Reflection.Emit, and full Native AOT compatibility. Here's how to use it, when it makes sense, and where developers trip up.
CVE-2026-40372: The Data Protection HMAC Bug That Made Cookie Forgery Trivial on Linux
Microsoft's emergency .NET 10.0.7 out-of-band update patches a CVSS 9.1 flaw in the Data Protection managed encryptor. If you run ASP.NET Core on Linux, your HMAC validation was effectively broken since .NET 10 shipped.
#:include Lands in .NET 11: File-Based Apps Finally Go Multi-File
.NET 11 Preview 3 adds the #:include and #:exclude directives to file-based apps, letting you split scripts across multiple files without reaching for a .csproj. Here is how they work, what they don't do, and where the edges still need sanding.
.NET April 2026 Security Patches: SMTP Header Injection and XML Recursion Bombs Explained
Microsoft's April 2026 servicing update patches two high-severity vulnerabilities in System.Net.Mail and System.Security.Cryptography.Xml. Here is how they work, why they matter, and what you need to do.
System.Threading.Lock: The Purpose-Built Lock That Replaces Your object Hack
Since .NET 9, the System.Threading.Lock type gives you a dedicated, faster, and semantically clearer alternative to locking on a bare object. Here is how it works, why it is roughly 25% faster than Monitor, and what to watch out for when migrating.
System.IO.Pipelines: The High-Performance I/O API You're Still Not Using
System.IO.Pipelines is the API that powers Kestrel's legendary throughput, yet most .NET developers still reach for raw streams and byte arrays. Learn how PipeReader and PipeWriter eliminate the buffer-management nightmare and give you backpressure for free.
Orleans: The Virtual Actor Framework That Makes Distributed .NET Feel Like Local Code
Orleans turns distributed systems into a problem you already know how to solve. Its virtual actor model lets you write single-server C# that the runtime scales across a cluster, handling activation, placement, and fault recovery behind the scenes.
Azure MCP Server 2.0: The Bridge Between Your AI Agents and Your Azure Infrastructure
Azure MCP Server 2.0 ships with self-hosted remote deployment, 276 tools across 57 Azure services, and enterprise-grade authentication. Here is what .NET developers need to know to wire AI agents into their cloud infrastructure.
XenoAtom.Terminal.UI: A Reactive TUI Framework That Treats the Terminal Like a Real UI Platform
XenoAtom.Terminal.UI brings retained-mode rendering, reactive state binding, and 60+ composable controls to .NET terminal applications. Here is why it is worth your attention if you build CLI tools or dashboards.
TUnit: The Source-Generated Testing Framework That Skips Reflection Entirely
TUnit replaces runtime reflection with compile-time source generation for test discovery, delivering faster execution, Native AOT support, and compile-time safety that xUnit, NUnit, and MSTest cannot match.
SQL MCP Server: Microsoft's Answer to the NL2SQL Problem
Microsoft's SQL MCP Server gives AI agents deterministic, RBAC-secured access to SQL Server, PostgreSQL, Cosmos DB, and MySQL without generating a single line of raw SQL. Here is how it works and why it deliberately avoids NL2SQL.
The .slnx Solution Format: .NET 10's Quiet Revolution in Project Organisation
.NET 10 makes .slnx the default solution format, replacing the decades-old .sln with clean XML, zero GUIDs, and merge-friendly structure. Here is how to migrate and what to watch out for.