dotx

Execute .NET tools without installation - optimized for MCP servers. The .NET equivalent of npx/uvx.

Features

• Offline mode: Runs cached tools directly without network access
• Auto-install: Automatically installs tools on first use via dotnet tool exec -y
• Auto-update: Checks for newer versions on NuGet in the background
• Version pinning: Pin to specific versions with @version syntax to skip updates
• MCP compatible: Clean stdio passthrough for Model Context Protocol servers
• Cross-platform: Works on Windows, macOS, and Linux

Installation

dotnet tool install -g Ave.DotnetTool.DotX

Usage

# Execute a tool (runs from cache, auto-updates in background)
dotx ave.mcpserver.chronos

# Pin to a specific version (no auto-update)
dotx ave.mcpserver.chronos@1.0.0

# Skip update check (pure offline mode)
dotx --no-update ave.mcpserver.chronos

# Pass arguments to the tool
dotx ave.mcpserver.chronos --some-arg value

# Show help
dotx --help

MCP Server Configuration

Configure in Claude Desktop or other MCP clients:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "chronos": {
      "command": "dotx",
      "args": ["ave.mcpserver.chronos"],
      "env": {
        "DefaultTimeZoneId": "Europe/Amsterdam"
      }
    }
  }
}

How It Works

1. Parse tool spec: Extracts tool name and optional version from toolname@version
2. Check cache: Looks for the tool in the NuGet packages cache (~/.nuget/packages)
3. Execute from cache: If cached, runs the tool directly via dotnet <dll-path> (no network required)
4. Auto-install if needed: If not cached, falls back to dotnet tool exec -y for auto-installation
5. Background update: Checks NuGet for newer versions and downloads for next run (unless pinned or --no-update)

Why dotx over dotnet tool exec -y?

• Works offline: dotnet tool exec -y always requires network, even for cached tools. dotx runs directly from cache.
• Faster startup: Running from cache skips the NuGet resolution step.
• Simpler syntax: dotx tool vs dotnet tool exec -y tool
• Cache management: Built-in commands to list, show, and remove cached tools.

Options

Option	Description
--no-update	Skip checking for updates (pure offline mode)
--verbose	Show detailed output
--help, -h	Show help message
--version, -v	Show version information

Cache Management

Tools are cached in the NuGet packages cache (typically ~/.nuget/packages on Linux/macOS or %USERPROFILE%\.nuget\packages on Windows).

# List all cached .NET tools
dotx cache list

# Show details for a specific tool (including all cached versions)
dotx cache show ave.mcpserver.chronos

# Download a tool to cache (for offline use)
dotx cache add ave.mcpserver.chronos

# Download a specific version to cache
dotx cache add ave.mcpserver.chronos@1.0.0

# Update all cached tools to latest version
dotx cache update

# Update a specific tool to latest version
dotx cache update ave.mcpserver.chronos

# Remove a specific tool from cache
dotx cache remove ave.mcpserver.chronos

# Remove all .NET tools from cache (with confirmation)
dotx cache clear

# Remove all .NET tools from cache (skip confirmation)
dotx cache clear -y

Cache Commands Reference

Command	Description
cache list	List all installed tools
cache show <id>	Show details for a specific tool
cache add <id>[@ver]	Download a tool to cache
cache update [<id>]	Update a tool (or all) to latest
cache remove <id>	Remove a specific tool
cache clear [-y]	Remove all tools

Note: The cache commands only affect .NET tools (packages with DotnetTool package type), not other NuGet packages.

Requirements

• .NET 10.0 or later

License

MIT