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Aspire CLI Overview

The Aspire CLI (aspire) is a command-line tool for creating, running, and managing .NET Aspire applications. It provides a streamlined developer experience for building distributed cloud-native applications.

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Installation

The Aspire CLI is included with the .NET Aspire workload. Install it using: 
dotnet workload install aspire

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Available Commands

The Aspire CLI organizes commands into functional groups:

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Project Management

  • aspire new - Create a new app from an Aspire starter template
  • aspire init - Initialize Aspire in an existing codebase
  • aspire add - Add a hosting integration to the AppHost

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Development

  • aspire run - Run an Aspire AppHost interactively for development
  • aspire stop - Stop a running AppHost instance
  • aspire ps - List running AppHost processes
  • aspire logs - View logs from a running AppHost

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Deployment

  • aspire deploy - Deploy an AppHost to its deployment targets
  • aspire publish - Generate deployment manifests

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Configuration

  • aspire config - Manage CLI configuration settings
  • aspire doctor - Diagnose common issues with your Aspire installation
  • aspire update - Check for and install CLI updates

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Common Workflows

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Creating a New Application

Create a new Aspire application from a starter template: 
aspire new aspire-starter --name MyApp
cd MyApp
aspire run

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Adding Aspire to an Existing Solution

Initialize Aspire in an existing .NET solution: 
cd MySolution
aspire init
aspire run
The aspire init command will:
  • Detect your existing solution file
  • Create an AppHost project
  • Create a ServiceDefaults project
  • Prompt you to add existing projects to the AppHost

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Adding Integrations

Add hosting integrations (databases, message queues, etc.) to your AppHost: 
aspire add redis
aspire add postgres
aspire add rabbitmq
The CLI will automatically:
  • Search for available integration packages
  • Prompt you to select a version
  • Add the NuGet package to your AppHost project

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Running Your Application

Start your AppHost in development mode: 
aspire run
This opens the Aspire Dashboard where you can:
  • Monitor resource health and state
  • View structured logs and traces
  • Inspect environment variables and endpoints
  • Test service-to-service communication

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Deploying to Production

Deploy your application to Azure or Kubernetes: 
aspire deploy
The deployment workflow:
  • Generates deployment manifests
  • Provisions cloud resources
  • Deploys your services to the target environment

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Global Options

The following options are available for all commands:
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--log-level
string
Set the logging verbosity level: Trace, Debug, Information, Warning, Error, or Critical
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--non-interactive
boolean
Run in non-interactive mode (no prompts)
Suppress the Aspire banner on startup
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--wait-for-debugger
boolean
Wait for a debugger to attach before starting the AppHost (useful for debugging AppHost startup)

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Getting Help

View help for any command: 
aspire --help
aspire run --help
aspire add --help

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Next Steps

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