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Change PrivateAssets from "all" to "runtime" in MSBL001 diagnostic #370

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Copilot Dec 2, 2025
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Change PrivateAssets from "all" to "runtime" in warning and docs
Copilot Dec 2, 2025
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14 changes: 7 additions & 7 deletions docs/diagnostics/MSBL001.md
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Expand Up @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@

## Error Message

> A PackageReference to the package '{PackageId}' at version '{Version}' is present in this project without ExcludeAssets="runtime" and PrivateAssets="all" set. This can cause errors at run-time due to MSBuild assembly-loading.
> A PackageReference to the package '{PackageId}' at version '{Version}' is present in this project without ExcludeAssets="runtime" and PrivateAssets="runtime" set. This can cause errors at run-time due to MSBuild assembly-loading.

## Cause

Expand All @@ -16,7 +16,7 @@ When MSBuild runtime assemblies are copied to your application's output director
2. **Missing SDKs and build logic**: The MSBuild assemblies in your output directory don't include the SDKs, targets, and build logic needed to build real projects
3. **Inconsistent behavior**: Your application may behave differently than `MSBuild.exe`, `dotnet build`, or Visual Studio when evaluating projects

Additionally, without `PrivateAssets="all"`, downstream projects that reference your project may still get these runtime assets transitively, causing the same issues in consuming projects.
Additionally, without `PrivateAssets="runtime"`, downstream projects that reference your project may still get these runtime assets transitively, causing the same issues in consuming projects.

## Example Runtime Error

Expand All @@ -36,19 +36,19 @@ This happens because your application loads MSBuild assemblies from your bin fol

## Solution

Add `ExcludeAssets="runtime"` and `PrivateAssets="all"` to all MSBuild PackageReferences in your project file:
Add `ExcludeAssets="runtime"` and `PrivateAssets="runtime"` to all MSBuild PackageReferences in your project file:

```xml
<ItemGroup>
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build" ExcludeAssets="runtime" PrivateAssets="all" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build.Framework" ExcludeAssets="runtime" PrivateAssets="all" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build.Utilities.Core" ExcludeAssets="runtime" PrivateAssets="all" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build" ExcludeAssets="runtime" PrivateAssets="runtime" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build.Framework" ExcludeAssets="runtime" PrivateAssets="runtime" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build.Utilities.Core" ExcludeAssets="runtime" PrivateAssets="runtime" />
...
</ItemGroup>
```

- `ExcludeAssets="runtime"` tells NuGet to use these packages only for compilation, not at runtime. At runtime, MSBuildLocator will load MSBuild assemblies from the registered Visual Studio or .NET SDK installation.
- `PrivateAssets="all"` prevents the package reference metadata from flowing to downstream projects, ensuring that projects referencing your library don't inadvertently get runtime assets from these packages.
- `PrivateAssets="runtime"` prevents the runtime assets from flowing to downstream projects, ensuring that projects referencing your library don't inadvertently get runtime assets from these packages. Using `"runtime"` instead of `"all"` allows downstream projects to still reference the compile-time assemblies if needed.

## Alternative: Disable the Check (Not Recommended)

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2 changes: 1 addition & 1 deletion src/MSBuildLocator/build/Microsoft.Build.Locator.targets
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<Error
Condition="@(_DistinctMSBuildPackagesReferencedPoorly->Count()) > 0"
Code="MSBL001"
Text="A PackageReference to the package '%(_DistinctMSBuildPackagesReferencedPoorly.NuGetPackageId)' at version '%(_DistinctMSBuildPackagesReferencedPoorly.NuGetPackageVersion)' is present in this project without ExcludeAssets=&quot;runtime&quot; and PrivateAssets=&quot;all&quot; set. This can cause errors at run-time due to MSBuild assembly-loading."
Text="A PackageReference to the package '%(_DistinctMSBuildPackagesReferencedPoorly.NuGetPackageId)' at version '%(_DistinctMSBuildPackagesReferencedPoorly.NuGetPackageVersion)' is present in this project without ExcludeAssets=&quot;runtime&quot; and PrivateAssets=&quot;runtime&quot; set. This can cause errors at run-time due to MSBuild assembly-loading."
HelpLink="https://aka.ms/msbuild/locator/diagnostics/MSBL001"
/>
</Target>
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