MCPInstall

dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection

Registering or resolving services with MS DI. Keyed services, scopes, decoration, hosted services.

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Install

Works with every agent the skills CLI supports.

npx skills add https://github.com/wshaddix/dotnet-skills --skill dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection
  1. 01

    Install

    Run the command in your project. The CLI asks which agents to install for.

  2. 02

    Describe the task

    Ask your agent for something this skill covers. It loads dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection automatically when relevant.

  3. 03

    Review the result

    The agent follows the SKILL.md steps, scripts and references bundled with the skill.

SKILL.md

The instructions your agent reads when the skill is triggered.

dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection

Advanced Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection patterns for .NET applications. Covers service lifetimes, keyed services (net8.0+), decoration, factory delegates, scope validation, and hosted service registration.

Cross-references: [skill:dotnet-csharp-async-patterns] for BackgroundService async patterns, [skill:dotnet-csharp-configuration] for IOptions<T> binding.


Service Lifetimes

LifetimeRegistrationWhen to Use
TransientAddTransient<T>()Lightweight, stateless services. New instance per injection.
ScopedAddScoped<T>()Per-request state (EF Core DbContext, unit of work).
SingletonAddSingleton<T>()Thread-safe, stateless, or shared state (caches, config).

Lifetime Mismatches (Captive Dependencies)

Never inject a shorter-lived service into a longer-lived one:

// WRONG -- scoped DbContext captured in singleton = same context for all requests
builder.Services.AddSingleton<OrderService>();    // singleton
builder.Services.AddScoped<AppDbContext>();        // scoped -- CAPTIVE!

// CORRECT -- use IServiceScopeFactory in singletons
public sealed class OrderService(IServiceScopeFactory scopeFactory)
{
    public async Task ProcessAsync(CancellationToken ct = default)
    {
        using var scope = scopeFactory.CreateScope();
        var db = scope.ServiceProvider.GetRequiredService<AppDbContext>();
        await db.Orders.Where(o => o.IsPending).ToListAsync(ct);
    }
}

Enable Scope Validation (Development)

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);
// In Development, ValidateScopes is already true by default.
// For non-web hosts:
var host = Host.CreateDefaultBuilder(args)
    .UseDefaultServiceProvider(options =>
    {
        options.ValidateScopes = true;
        options.ValidateOnBuild = true;  // Validates all registrations at startup
    })
    .Build();

Registration Patterns

Interface-Implementation Pair

builder.Services.AddScoped<IOrderRepository, SqlOrderRepository>();

Multiple Implementations

// Register multiple implementations
builder.Services.AddScoped<INotifier, EmailNotifier>();
builder.Services.AddScoped<INotifier, SmsNotifier>();
builder.Services.AddScoped<INotifier, PushNotifier>();

// Inject all -- order matches registration order
public sealed class CompositeNotifier(IEnumerable<INotifier> notifiers)
{
    public async Task NotifyAsync(string message, CancellationToken ct = default)
    {
        foreach (var notifier in notifiers)
        {
            await notifier.NotifyAsync(message, ct);
        }
    }
}

Factory Delegates

builder.Services.AddScoped<IOrderService>(sp =>
{
    var repo = sp.GetRequiredService<IOrderRepository>();
    var logger = sp.GetRequiredService<ILogger<OrderService>>();
    var options = sp.GetRequiredService<IOptions<OrderOptions>>();
    return new OrderService(repo, logger, options.Value.MaxRetries);
});

TryAdd for Library Registrations

Libraries should use TryAdd so applications can override:

// Library code -- won't overwrite app registrations
builder.Services.TryAddScoped<IOrderRepository, DefaultOrderRepository>();

// Application code -- takes precedence if registered first
builder.Services.AddScoped<IOrderRepository, CustomOrderRepository>();

Keyed Services (net8.0+)

Register and resolve services by a key, replacing the need for named service patterns.

// Registration
builder.Services.AddKeyedScoped<ICache, RedisCache>("distributed");
builder.Services.AddKeyedScoped<ICache, MemoryCache>("local");

// Injection via attribute
public sealed class OrderService(
    [FromKeyedServices("distributed")] ICache distributedCache,
    [FromKeyedServices("local")] ICache localCache)
{
    public async Task<Order?> GetAsync(int id, CancellationToken ct = default)
    {
        // Check local cache first, then distributed
        return await localCache.GetAsync<Order>(id.ToString(), ct)
            ?? await distributedCache.GetAsync<Order>(id.ToString(), ct);
    }
}

// Manual resolution
var cache = sp.GetRequiredKeyedService<ICache>("distributed");

net8.0+ only. On earlier TFMs, use factory patterns or a dictionary-based approach.


Decoration Pattern

The built-in container does not natively support decoration. Use one of these approaches:

Manual Decoration

builder.Services.AddScoped<SqlOrderRepository>();
builder.Services.AddScoped<IOrderRepository>(sp =>
{
    var inner = sp.GetRequiredService<SqlOrderRepository>();
    var logger = sp.GetRequiredService<ILogger<LoggingOrderRepository>>();
    return new LoggingOrderRepository(inner, logger);
});

public sealed class LoggingOrderRepository(
    IOrderRepository inner,
    ILogger<LoggingOrderRepository> logger) : IOrderRepository
{
    public async Task<Order?> GetByIdAsync(int id, CancellationToken ct = default)
    {
        logger.LogInformation("Getting order {OrderId}", id);
        return await inner.GetByIdAsync(id, ct);
    }
}

Scrutor Library (Popular Alternative)

builder.Services.AddScoped<IOrderRepository, SqlOrderRepository>();
builder.Services.Decorate<IOrderRepository, LoggingOrderRepository>();
builder.Services.Decorate<IOrderRepository, CachingOrderRepository>();
// Outer -> CachingOrderRepository -> LoggingOrderRepository -> SqlOrderRepository

Hosted Services and Background Workers

BackgroundService (Preferred)

public sealed class QueueProcessorWorker(
    IServiceScopeFactory scopeFactory,
    ILogger<QueueProcessorWorker> logger) : BackgroundService
{
    protected override async Task ExecuteAsync(CancellationToken stoppingToken)
    {
        logger.LogInformation("Queue processor starting");

        while (!stoppingToken.IsCancellationRequested)
        {
            try
            {
                using var scope = scopeFactory.CreateScope();
                var processor = scope.ServiceProvider
                    .GetRequiredService<IQueueProcessor>();

                await processor.ProcessNextBatchAsync(stoppingToken);
            }
            catch (Exception ex) when (ex is not OperationCanceledException)
            {
                logger.LogError(ex, "Error processing queue batch");
            }

            await Task.Delay(TimeSpan.FromSeconds(5), stoppingToken);
        }
    }
}

// Registration
builder.Services.AddHostedService<QueueProcessorWorker>();

IHostedService (Startup/Shutdown Hooks)

public sealed class DatabaseMigrationService(
    IServiceScopeFactory scopeFactory,
    ILogger<DatabaseMigrationService> logger) : IHostedService
{
    public async Task StartAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken)
    {
        using var scope = scopeFactory.CreateScope();
        var db = scope.ServiceProvider.GetRequiredService<AppDbContext>();
        await db.Database.MigrateAsync(cancellationToken);
        logger.LogInformation("Database migration completed");
    }

    public Task StopAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken) => Task.CompletedTask;
}

builder.Services.AddHostedService<DatabaseMigrationService>();

Key Rules for Hosted Services

  • Always use IServiceScopeFactory to create scopes -- hosted services are singletons
  • Never inject scoped services directly into hosted service constructors
  • Handle exceptions inside ExecuteAsync -- unhandled exceptions stop the host (net8.0+)
  • See [skill:dotnet-csharp-async-patterns] for async patterns in background workers

Organizing Registrations

Group related registrations into extension methods for clean Program.cs:

// ServiceCollectionExtensions.cs
public static class ServiceCollectionExtensions
{
    public static IServiceCollection AddOrderServices(this IServiceCollection services)
    {
        services.AddScoped<IOrderRepository, SqlOrderRepository>();
        services.AddScoped<IOrderService, OrderService>();
        services.AddHostedService<OrderProcessorWorker>();
        return services;
    }

    public static IServiceCollection AddNotificationServices(this IServiceCollection services)
    {
        services.AddScoped<INotifier, EmailNotifier>();
        services.AddScoped<INotifier, SmsNotifier>();
        return services;
    }
}

// Program.cs
builder.Services.AddOrderServices();
builder.Services.AddNotificationServices();

Testing with DI

[Fact]
public async Task OrderService_UsesRepository()
{
    // Arrange -- build a service provider for integration tests
    var services = new ServiceCollection();
    services.AddScoped<IOrderRepository, InMemoryOrderRepository>();
    services.AddScoped<IOrderService, OrderService>();
    services.AddLogging();

    using var provider = services.BuildServiceProvider();
    using var scope = provider.CreateScope();
    var service = scope.ServiceProvider.GetRequiredService<IOrderService>();

    // Act
    var order = await service.GetByIdAsync(1);

    // Assert
    Assert.NotNull(order);
}

For unit tests, prefer direct constructor injection with mocks rather than building a full container.


References

FAQ

What does the dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection skill do?

Registering or resolving services with MS DI. Keyed services, scopes, decoration, hosted services.

How do I install dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection?

Run npx skills add https://github.com/wshaddix/dotnet-skills --skill dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection in your project. The skills CLI detects the agents you use and copies the skill into the right folder. For Claude Code you can also place the skill folder at ~/.claude/skills/dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection/ (personal) or .claude/skills/dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection/ (project).

Which AI agents can use dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection?

Any agent that supports the open Agent Skills format (a folder with a SKILL.md file), including Claude Code, Codex, Cursor, GitHub Copilot, Gemini CLI, Windsurf, Cline, OpenCode and more.

Is dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection safe to install?

No partner security audit is available yet. Skills can run commands and scripts, so read the SKILL.md and any bundled files before installing.

Who maintains dotnet-csharp-dependency-injection?

It is published by wshaddix in wshaddix/dotnet-skills. It has 116 recorded installs.

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