TypeDependencies

A command-line tool for analyzing and visualizing type dependencies in C# assemblies. Extract dependency graphs from compiled DLLs and export them in DOT (Graphviz), JSON, or Mermaid format. Works as both a CLI tool and an MCP (Model Context Protocol) server for AI agents.

Dependencies are types that a given type depends on (outgoing), while dependents are types that depend on a given type (incoming). For more information about this see the section about Understanding Dependencies vs Dependents and What to Query For.

What You Can Do

The tool enables you to answer questions like:

• Find all dependencies of a type: See what types a specific type depends on
• Find all dependents of a type: See which types depend on a specific type
• Find types with the fewest dependencies: Identify leaf nodes or types with minimal coupling
• Find types with the most dependents: Identify highly-used types that many other types rely on
• Detect circular dependencies: Find dependency cycles that can indicate design issues
• Analyze transitive relationships: Follow dependency chains recursively to understand indirect relationships
• Export dependency graphs: Visualize the entire dependency structure in various formats

Table of Contents

• Installation
• MCP Server Mode
• Usage
  • CLI Tool
  • Export Formats
  • Querying the Dependency Graph
  • Available MCP Tools
• What Gets Analyzed
• Understanding Dependencies vs Dependents and What to Query For
• Development
• License

Installation

As a .NET Global Tool

dotnet tool install --global TypeDependencies

After installation, the type-dep command will be available globally, the CLI is ready to use.

MCP Server Mode

TypeDependencies can also run as an MCP server, making it available to AI agents through the Model Context Protocol.

Run as MCP server:

type-dep --mcp

If you want it as an MCP tool in for example Cursor, add this to your MCP configuration:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "type-dep": {
      "name": "TypeDependencies MCP Server",
      "stdio": true,
      "command": "type-dep",
      "args": ["--mcp"]
    }
  }
}

For Codex, run the following command:

codex mcp add type-dep -- type-dep --mcp

Uninstall:

dotnet tool uninstall -g TypeDependencies

Usage

CLI Tool

Workflow

1. Initialize a new analysis session
2. Add DLL files to analyze
3. Generate the dependency graph
4. Export the graph in your desired format (or query it)

Commands

Initialize a session:

type-dep init

Add DLL files to analyze:

type-dep add path/to/your/assembly.dll
type-dep add path/to/another/assembly.dll

Suggest DLL files based on .csproj files:

type-dep suggest                    # Search current directory
type-dep suggest --directory ./src  # Search specific directory

This command recursively searches for .csproj files and suggests matching .dll files with the same name. Output format: ProjectName -> FullDllPath.

Generate the dependency graph:

type-dep generate

Export the dependency graph:

type-dep export                           # Export as DOT (default)
type-dep export --format dot              # Export as DOT
type-dep export --format json             # Export as JSON
type-dep export --format mermaid          # Export as Mermaid
type-dep export --output my-dependencies.json  # Custom output path

Query the dependency graph:

type-dep query dependents-of MyNamespace.MyType
type-dep query dependencies-of MyNamespace.MyType
type-dep query transitive-dependencies-of MyNamespace.MyType
type-dep query transitive-dependents-of MyNamespace.MyType
type-dep query circular-dependencies
type-dep query dependents 0          # Types with exactly 0 dependents
type-dep query dependents >5         # Types with more than 5 dependents
type-dep query dependencies 0        # Types with no dependencies

Get help:

type-dep help

Examples

# Basic workflow
type-dep init
type-dep add MyProject/bin/Debug/net8.0/MyProject.dll
type-dep generate
type-dep export --format json --output dependencies.json

# Discover DLL files automatically
type-dep suggest                    # Find DLLs based on .csproj files
type-dep suggest --directory ./src  # Search in specific directory

# Export in multiple formats
type-dep generate
type-dep export --format dot --output graph.dot
type-dep export --format json --output graph.json
type-dep export --format mermaid --output graph.mmd

# Query the graph
type-dep generate
type-dep query dependents-of MyNamespace.MyType
type-dep query dependencies 0          # Find leaf nodes
type-dep query dependencies 0 --detailed  # Find leaf nodes with dependent counts
type-dep query circular-dependencies   # Detect cycles

Export Formats

After generating the dependency graph, you can export it in multiple formats:

DOT format (default):

type-dep export
# or explicitly
type-dep export --format dot

JSON format:

type-dep export --format json

Mermaid format:

type-dep export --format mermaid

Custom output path:

type-dep export --output my-dependencies.json

By default, the output file is saved to the current working directory as type-dependencies.dot (or type-dependencies.json for JSON format, type-dependencies.mmd for Mermaid format).

Multiple exports: Since the graph is generated once and stored, you can export it multiple times in different formats without regenerating it. The session persists until you manually clear it or start a new one with init.

Querying the Dependency Graph

After generating the dependency graph, you can query it to find specific information:

Find types that depend on a specific type:

type-dep query dependents-of MyNamespace.MyType

Find types that a specific type depends on:

type-dep query dependencies-of MyNamespace.MyType

Filter types by dependent count:

type-dep query dependents 0          # Types with exactly 0 dependents
type-dep query dependents >5         # Types with more than 5 dependents
type-dep query dependents >=3        # Types with 3 or more dependents
type-dep query dependents <2         # Types with less than 2 dependents
type-dep query dependents <=1        # Types with 1 or fewer dependents
type-dep query dependents 2-10       # Types with between 2 and 10 dependents (inclusive)

Filter types by dependency count (outgoing dependencies):

type-dep query dependencies 0          # Types with no dependencies (leaf nodes)
type-dep query dependencies >5         # Types that depend on more than 5 types
type-dep query dependencies >=3        # Types with 3 or more dependencies
type-dep query dependencies <2         # Types with less than 2 dependencies
type-dep query dependencies <=1        # Types with 1 or fewer dependencies
type-dep query dependencies 2-10       # Types with between 2 and 10 dependencies (inclusive)

Show detailed output with additional count information:

type-dep query dependencies 0 --detailed    # Shows dependent counts: TypeName (N dependents)
type-dep query dependents 0 --detailed      # Shows dependency counts: TypeName (N dependencies)

When using --detailed, results are sorted by: dependency count → dependent count → name (all ascending). This makes it easy to identify types that are completely isolated (0 dependencies and 0 dependents) at a glance.

Find transitive dependencies (recursive):

type-dep query transitive-dependencies-of MyNamespace.MyType

This returns all types that the specified type depends on, directly and indirectly, following the entire dependency chain.

Find transitive dependents (recursive):

type-dep query transitive-dependents-of MyNamespace.MyType

This returns all types that depend on the specified type, directly and indirectly, following the entire dependency chain in reverse.

Detect circular dependencies:

type-dep query circular-dependencies

This finds and lists all circular dependency cycles in the graph. Each cycle is displayed as a chain of type names connected by arrows (e.g., TypeA -> TypeB -> TypeC -> TypeA).

All query results are output one type per line, sorted alphabetically by default (except circular dependencies which show the cycle path). When using the --detailed flag, results are sorted by dependency count, then dependent count, then alphabetically.

Note: Compiler-generated types (names starting with <) are automatically filtered out from query results.

Available MCP Tools

When running as an MCP server, the following tools are available:

Session Management:

• td_init() - Initialize a new analysis session

DLL Management:

• td_add(dllPath: string) - Add a DLL to the current session

Graph Generation:

• td_generate() - Generate dependency graph from added DLLs

Export:

• td_export(format?: string, outputPath?: string) - Export the generated graph
  • format: "dot", "json", or "mermaid" (defaults to "dot")
  • outputPath: Optional file path (defaults to type-dependencies.{ext} in current directory)

Query Tools:

• td_query_dependents_of(typeName: string) - Find types that depend on a type
• td_query_dependencies_of(typeName: string) - Find types a type depends on
• td_query_dependents(countExpression: string) - Filter by dependent count (supports: number, >number, >=number, <number, <=number, min-max)
• td_query_dependencies(countExpression: string) - Filter by dependency count (supports: number, >number, >=number, <number, <=number, min-max)
• td_query_transitive_dependencies_of(typeName: string) - Find recursive dependencies
• td_query_transitive_dependents_of(typeName: string) - Find recursive dependents
• td_query_circular_dependencies() - Detect circular dependencies

All MCP tools return string responses with success messages or error descriptions.

What Gets Analyzed

The tool extracts dependencies from:

• Base types
• Implemented interfaces
• Field types
• Property types
• Method return types and parameters
• Attribute types
• Generic type constraints

System and Microsoft namespaces are automatically filtered out to focus on your application code.

Understanding Dependencies vs Dependents and What to Query For

The distinction between dependencies and dependents can be confusing at first. Here's a clear explanation with practical examples:

The Basic Concept

• Dependencies (outgoing): Types that a given type depends on (what it uses/requires)
• Dependents (incoming): Types that depend on a given type (what uses/requires it)

A Concrete Example

Imagine you have three types:

• OrderService - uses Order and PaymentProcessor
• Order - a simple data class
• PaymentProcessor - handles payments

In this scenario:

• OrderService has dependencies on: Order and PaymentProcessor (it uses them)
• Order has a dependent: OrderService (something uses it)
• PaymentProcessor has a dependent: OrderService (something uses it)

Finding Types You Can Move Easily

When refactoring or reorganizing code, you often want to find types that are easy to move because they don't depend on other types. These are called leaf nodes - they have zero outgoing dependencies.

To find these types, use:

type-dep query dependencies 0

This command lists all types that have zero dependencies - meaning they don't depend on any other types in your codebase. These are typically the easiest to move or refactor because they don't pull in other dependencies.

Understanding the Full Picture

However, even if a type has zero dependencies, you should also consider its dependents (what depends on it). If many types depend on a type, moving it might require updating all those dependents.

To check what depends on a specific type:

type-dep query dependents-of MyNamespace.MyType

The easiest types to move are those with:

• Zero dependencies (they don't depend on anything)
• Zero dependents (nothing depends on them)

To find these easily, use the --detailed flag:

type-dep query dependencies 0 --detailed

This will show all types with 0 dependencies, sorted by dependent count (ascending), making it easy to spot types with both 0 dependencies and 0 dependents at the top of the list.

Alternatively, you can:

1. Find types with 0 dependencies: type-dep query dependencies 0
2. For each candidate, check its dependents: type-dep query dependents-of <TypeName>

Common Query Patterns

Find types that are easy to move (no dependencies):

type-dep query dependencies 0

Find types that are heavily used (many dependents):

type-dep query dependents >5

Find types that are isolated (no dependents):

type-dep query dependents 0

Find types that are completely isolated (no dependencies AND no dependents):

type-dep query dependencies 0 --detailed

The --detailed flag shows dependent counts, and results are sorted by dependent count (ascending). Types with 0 dependencies and 0 dependents will appear first in the output, making them easy to identify.

Development

Getting the repository

git clone https://github.com/AdamTovatt/type-dependencies.git
cd type-dependencies

Building

dotnet build

Installing from source

dotnet build
dotnet tool install -g --add-source "./TypeDependencies.Cli/bin/Debug" TypeDependencies

Running Tests

dotnet test

License

GPL-3.0