Project Setup

codewithmukesh/dotnet-claude-kit/skills/project-setup

by codewithmukesh23300897f4d1No license754 starsListed Oct 8, 2026Updated Oct 8, 2026Repository updated 2 months ago

Tech-stack selection advisor for .NET projects: recommended defaults for database, auth, caching, messaging, observability, and resilience, with the rationale behind each default. Load when choosing or reviewing a project's tech stack, or when the user says "tech stack", "which database", "pick a stack", "recommended defaults", or "what should I use for". For project initialization use dotnet-init, for codebase assessment use health-check, for upgrades and schema changes use migrate.

Instructions only

Project Setup — Tech-Stack Advisor

This skill owns one thing: the kit's recommended tech-stack defaults and why. The workflows that consume it live elsewhere:

  • Initializing a project / generating CLAUDE.md → dotnet-init (interactive flow, architecture questionnaire, CLAUDE.md generation)
  • Assessing an existing codebase → health-check (the canonical 8-dimension graded assessment)
  • EF Core schema, NuGet, or .NET version migrations → migrate
  • Choosing an architecture → architecture-advisor (always ask before recommending)

Core Principles

  1. Recommend a default, explain the why, let the user choose — Every dimension has a kit default, but defaults are starting points, not mandates. State the trade-off in one line so the choice is informed.
  2. Prefer built-in .NET over third-party — HybridCache over Redis-client wrappers, built-in rate limiting over packages, built-in OpenAPI over Swashbuckle. Fewer dependencies means fewer licensing surprises and upgrade breaks.
  3. License-aware picks — MediatR (v13+), MassTransit (v9+), and FluentAssertions (v8+) went commercial. The kit defaults to MIT alternatives: Mediator, Wolverine, plain xUnit asserts.
  4. Add messaging later, not never — Most projects don't need a message bus on day one. Default to "None (add later)" and reach for Wolverine when async workflows actually appear.

Patterns

Tech-Stack Dimensions and Defaults

DimensionOptionsDefaultWhy
DatabasePostgreSQL, SQL Server, SQLitePostgreSQLOpen source, best EF Core provider outside SQL Server, first-class Testcontainers support
AuthJWT Bearer, OIDC (Keycloak/Auth0), NoneJWT BearerSimplest secure default for APIs; move to OIDC when an external IdP exists
CachingHybridCache, Redis, NoneHybridCacheBuilt-in, stampede protection, L1+L2 — add Redis only as its L2 backend
MessagingWolverine (RabbitMQ), MassTransit, NoneNone (add later)Premature messaging adds ops burden; Wolverine (MIT) when needed
ObservabilitySerilog + OpenTelemetry, Basic loggingSerilog + OTELStructured logs + traces from day one are cheap; retrofitting is not
ResiliencePolly v8 pipelines, Basic retryPolly v8AddStandardResilienceHandler() is one line for production-grade defaults
API docsBuilt-in OpenAPI + ScalarOpenAPI + ScalarFramework-maintained spec generation; Scalar replaces Swagger UI
TestingxUnit v3 + TestcontainersxUnit v3 + TestcontainersReal databases in tests; in-memory providers hide real bugs

Once dimensions are chosen, dotnet-init bakes them into the generated CLAUDE.md, and each choice maps to a skill to load when working in that area (ef-core, authentication, caching, messaging, serilog, opentelemetry, resilience, openapi, scalar, testing).

Anti-patterns

Prescribing a Stack Without Asking

# BAD — assuming the kit defaults apply everywhere"You should use PostgreSQL and Wolverine."# The team runs SQL Server enterprise-wide and has zero async workflows.
# GOOD — default + trade-off + question"Kit default is PostgreSQL (best OSS EF provider). Any organizationalconstraint — existing SQL Server licenses, DBA support — that shouldoverride it?"

Re-Running Workflows This Skill Doesn't Own

# BAD — improvising a health grading or init flow from this skill"Let me grade your codebase across 5 categories..."# That grading conflicts with the canonical one.
# GOOD — route to the ownerInit/CLAUDE.md → dotnet-init | Assessment → health-check | Upgrades → migrate

Decision Guide

ScenarioRoute to
"Set up this project for Claude Code"dotnet-init
"Which database/auth/caching should I use?"This skill — table above
"How healthy is this codebase?"health-check
"Upgrade to .NET 10" / "update packages"migrate
"Which architecture fits?"architecture-advisor
Stack chosen, ready to buildscaffold for the first feature

Source and attribution

Source:codewithmukesh/dotnet-claude-kitinskills/project-setupat commit2330089

License: No license

Content belongs to its original authors. SourceWeft indexes it from a public repository.

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