dotnet-xml-docs
dotnet-xml-docs
XML documentation comments for .NET: all standard tags (<summary>, <param>, <returns>, <exception>, <remarks>, <example>, <value>, <typeparam>, <typeparamref>, <paramref>), advanced tags (<inheritdoc> for interface and base class inheritance, <see cref="..."/>, <seealso>, <c> and <code>), enabling XML doc generation with <GenerateDocumentationFile> MSBuild property, warning suppression strategies for internal APIs (CS1591, <NoWarn>, InternalsVisibleTo), XML doc conventions for public NuGet libraries, auto-generation tooling (IDE quick-fix /// trigger, GhostDoc-style patterns), and IntelliSense integration showing XML docs in IDE tooltips and autocomplete.
Version assumptions: .NET 8.0+ baseline. XML documentation comments are a C# language feature available in all .NET versions. <GenerateDocumentationFile> MSBuild property works with .NET SDK 6+. <inheritdoc> fully supported since C# 9.0 / .NET 5+.
Scope
- Standard XML doc tags (summary, param, returns, exception, remarks, example)
- Advanced tags (inheritdoc, see cref, seealso, c, code)
- GenerateDocumentationFile MSBuild configuration
- Warning suppression strategies for internal APIs (CS1591)
- Conventions for public NuGet library documentation
Out of scope
- API documentation site generation (DocFX, Starlight) -- see [skill:dotnet-api-docs]
- General C# coding conventions and naming standards -- see [skill:dotnet-csharp-coding-standards]
- CI/CD deployment of documentation sites -- see [skill:dotnet-gha-deploy]