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Installation

Get started with UnionGenerator in minutes. Choose the packages you need based on your use case.

Core Package​

The core package provides all basic union functionality.

NuGet Package Manager​

dotnet add package UnionGenerator

Package Manager Console​

Install-Package UnionGenerator

PackageReference​

<PackageReference Include="UnionGenerator" Version="1.0.0" />

Integration Packages​

Add these packages for framework-specific features.

ASP.NET Core​

For automatic ProblemDetails mapping and HTTP status code integration:

dotnet add package UnionGenerator.AspNetCore

Features:

  • Automatic IActionResult conversion
  • HTTP status code attributes
  • ProblemDetails generation
  • Middleware integration

Entity Framework Core​

For database storage and querying:

dotnet add package UnionGenerator.EntityFrameworkCore

Features:

  • Automatic value converters
  • JSON column storage
  • Query translation
  • Migration support

FluentValidation​

For validation error mapping:

dotnet add package UnionGenerator.FluentValidation

Features:

  • Validation result to union conversion
  • Error aggregation
  • Property path mapping

OneOf Compatibility​

For migrating from the OneOf library:

dotnet add package UnionGenerator.OneOfCompat

Features:

  • OneOf-compatible API
  • Migration helpers
  • Drop-in replacement

Analyzer Packages (Optional)​

Add Roslyn analyzers for compile-time warnings and code fixes.

Analyzers​

dotnet add package UnionGenerator.Analyzers

Features:

  • Exhaustive pattern matching warnings
  • Unused case detection
  • Invalid access warnings
  • Performance suggestions

Code Fixes​

dotnet add package UnionGenerator.Analyzers.CodeFixes

Features:

  • Automatic pattern completion
  • Missing case generation
  • Quick fixes for common issues

Version Compatibility​

Package.NET VersionC# Version
UnionGenerator.NET 6.0+C# 10.0+
UnionGenerator.AspNetCore.NET 6.0+C# 10.0+
UnionGenerator.EntityFrameworkCore.NET 6.0+C# 10.0+
UnionGenerator.FluentValidation.NET 6.0+C# 10.0+
UnionGenerator.OneOfCompat.NET 6.0+C# 10.0+
UnionGenerator.Analyzers.NET 6.0+C# 10.0+

Recommended: .NET 8.0+ and C# 12.0+ for the best experience.

Project Setup​

Enable Source Generators​

Source generators are enabled by default in modern .NET projects. If you're using an older SDK, ensure your project file has:

<PropertyGroup>
    <LangVersion>latest</LangVersion>
    <Nullable>enable</Nullable> <!-- Recommended -->
</PropertyGroup>

Verify Installation​

Create a simple union to verify everything works:

using UnionGenerator.Attributes;

[GenerateUnion]
public partial class TestUnion
{
    public static TestUnion CaseA(string value) => new CaseACase(value);
    public static TestUnion CaseB(int value) => new CaseBCase(value);
}

Build your project. If IntelliSense shows CaseACase and CaseBCase, you're all set! ✅

Troubleshooting​

Generator Not Running​

If generated code doesn't appear:

  1. Clean and rebuild:

    dotnet clean
    dotnet build

  2. Check build output for generator errors

  3. Restart your IDE (Visual Studio/Rider)

  4. Verify package is restored:

    dotnet restore

IntelliSense Not Working​

  1. Reload project in your IDE
  2. Close and reopen the solution
  3. Delete obj/ and bin/ folders, then rebuild

Version Conflicts​

If you see version conflicts:

# Update all UnionGenerator packages to the same version
dotnet add package UnionGenerator --version 1.0.0
dotnet add package UnionGenerator.AspNetCore --version 1.0.0

IDE Support​

Visual Studio​

  • ✅ Full support in VS 2022 17.0+
  • ✅ IntelliSense for generated code
  • ✅ Go to definition works
  • ✅ Debugger support

JetBrains Rider​

  • ✅ Full support in Rider 2021.3+
  • ✅ IntelliSense for generated code
  • ✅ Refactoring support
  • ✅ Debugger support

Visual Studio Code​

  • ✅ Works with C# extension
  • ✅ Basic IntelliSense support
  • ⚠️ Some features may require reload

Next Steps​

Installation complete! Now:

  1. Learn basic concepts
  2. Create your first union
  3. Explore common patterns

All packages are available on NuGet.org:

Need Help?​