How to Test NuGet Packages Locally Before Publishing to NuGet Feed

When developing NuGet packages, testing them in real projects before official publication is crucial. Here's a comprehensive guide to setting up local testing:

STEP-1: Configure Local Package Source

Add to your .csproj file:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk.Web">
    <PropertyGroup>
        <TargetFramework>net9.0</TargetFramework>
        <!-- Add local package source -->
        <RestoreAdditionalProjectSources>
            $(RestoreAdditionalProjectSources);
            D:\P_Bikiran\Bikiran.Validation\bin\Release\
        </RestoreAdditionalProjectSources>
    </PropertyGroup>

    <ItemGroup>
        <PackageReference Include="Bikiran.Validation" Version="1.0.7" />
    </ItemGroup>
</Project>

2. Package Development Workflow

1. Build your package

   Ensure your package project is built in the Release configuration

   dotnet build -c Release
   

2. Generate a .nupkg file

   dotnet pack --configuration Release
   

3. Verify package structure

   Confirm the .nupkg file exists in your output directory:

   D:\P_Bikiran\Bikiran.Validation\bin\Release\Bikiran.Validation.1.0.7.nupkg
   

3. Consumption in Live Projects

using Bikiran.Validation; // Your local package
using Bikiran.Utils.ApiResp;

public class DomainCnsAddProperty
{
    public string Cns { get; set; } = "";
    public List<string> Ips { get; set; } = [];

    public ApiResponse Validate()
    {
        var validationResult = ValidateBasic.ValidateAll([
            ValDomain.IsValidDomainFormat(Cns, "Child Name Server"),
            ValIP.IsValidIpFormatAll(Ips, "IP Addresses"),
        ]);

        return new ApiResponse {
            Error = validationResult.Error,
            Message = validationResult.Message,
            ReferenceName = GetReferenceName(validationResult.ErrorIndex)
        };
    }

    private string GetReferenceName(List<string> names, int? errorIndex)
        => errorIndex.HasValue ? names[errorIndex.Value] : "Validation";
}

Best Practices

1. Version Management

   • Increment versions systematically (SemVer recommended)

   • Use wildcards for development versions: 1.0.*

2. Dependency Isolation

   <PackageReference Include="Bikiran.Validation" Version="1.0.7">
     <PrivateAssets>all</PrivateAssets>
   </PackageReference>
   

3. CI/CD Integration

   Consider adding a local package directory in your build pipeline:

   <RestoreAdditionalProjectSources>
     $(RestoreAdditionalProjectSources);
     $(Build.SourcesDirectory)\artifacts
   </RestoreAdditionalProjectSources>
   

Troubleshooting Common Issues

1. Package Not Found

   • Verify the .nupkg file exists at the specified path

   • Check package version consistency

   • Clear NuGet caches: dotnet nuget locals all --clear

2. Version Conflicts

   Use exact versions during development:

   <PackageReference Include="Bikiran.Validation" Version="[1.0.7]" />
   

3. IntelliSense Issues

   • Restart IDE after package updates

   • Run dotnet restore manually

CONTACT:

I’m Kumar Bishojit Paul, the Founder and CEO of BIKIRAN. If you need further assistance, please leave a comment. I’m interested in helping you.

---

🏢 About Bikiran

Bikiran is a software development and cloud infrastructure company founded in 2012, headquartered in Khulna, Bangladesh. With 15,000+ clients and over a decade of experience, Bikiran builds and operates a suite of products spanning domain services, cloud hosting, app deployment, workflow automation, and developer tools.

SL	Topic	Product	Description
1	Website	Bikiran	Main platform — Domain, hosting & cloud services
2	Website	Edusoft	Education management software for institutions
3	Website	n8n Clouds	Managed n8n workflow automation hosting
4	Website	Timestamp Zone	Unix timestamp converter & timezone tool
5	Website	PDFpi	Online PDF processing & manipulation tool
6	Website	Blog	Technical articles, guides & tutorials
7	Website	Support	24/7 customer support portal
8	Website	Probackup	Automated database backup for SQL, PostgreSQL & MongoDB
9	Service	Domain	Domain registration, transfer & DNS management
10	Service	Hosting	Web, app & email hosting on NVMe SSD
11	Service	Email & SMS	Bulk email & SMS notification service
12	npm	Chronopick	Date & time picker React component
13	npm	Rich Editor	WYSIWYG rich text editor for React
14	npm	Button	Reusable React button component library
15	npm	Electron Boilerplate	CLI to scaffold Electron.js project templates
16	NuGet	Bkash	bKash payment gateway integration for .NET
17	NuGet	Bikiran Engine	Core .NET engine library for Bikiran services
18	Open Source	PDFpi	PDF processing tool — open source
19	Open Source	Bikiran Engine	Core .NET engine — open source
20	Open Source	Drive CLI	CLI tool to manage Google Drive from terminal
21	Docker	Pgsql	Docker setup for PostgreSQL
22	Docker	n8n	Docker setup for n8n automation
23	Docker	Pgadmin	Docker setup for pgAdmin
24	Social Media	LinkedIn	Bikiran on LinkedIn
25	Social Media	Facebook	Bikiran on Facebook
26	Social Media	YouTube	Bikiran on YouTube
27	Social Media	FB n8nClouds	n8n Clouds on Facebook