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deps - Dependency Graph

Overview

The deps command generates visual dependency graphs for your .NET solutions and projects. You can output in multiple formats: interactive dynamic HTML, Mermaid markdown, plain HTML, or SVG images. This helps you understand project relationships, identify coupling, and document your architecture.

Syntax 

nmbl deps <ProjectOrSolution> [options]

Arguments

  • ProjectOrSolution - Path to a .csproj or .slnx file, or a directory containing a single .slnx file.

Options

  • --output <path>, -o <path> - Output file path. The format is inferred from the file extension when --format is omitted.
  • --format <fmt>, -f <fmt> - Override output format: md, mermaid, html, svg, dynamic-svg.
  • --include-nuget, -n - Include NuGet package nodes (name only).
  • --include-nuget-versions - Include NuGet package nodes with version numbers. Implies --include-nuget.
  • --include-project-versions - Annotate project nodes with their version strings (SVG and dynamic HTML only).
  • --highlight <pattern:color> - Highlight projects matching the pattern with a fill color. Format: pattern:fillColor or pattern:fillColor:strokeColor. First matching rule wins. May be repeated.
  • --color-by-module, -m - Auto-color projects by their <Module> element (or .nmbl module definitions). Each unique module gets a distinct color. See Module Configuration.
  • --module-boxes - Group projects by module into labeled boxes (SVG and dynamic HTML only). Automatically enables --color-by-module. See Module Configuration.
  • --with-legend - Show a module color legend (requires --color-by-module or --module-boxes). See Module Configuration.
  • --module <name> - Show only projects with the specified <Module> value, plus their direct external dependencies. Requires a .slnx file. See Module Configuration.
  • --all-modules <folder> - Generate a dynamic.html dependency graph for every module in the solution, plus an index.html table of contents. Requires a .slnx file. See Module Configuration.
  • --exclude <patterns>, -e <patterns> - Comma-separated substrings; projects whose name contains any pattern are excluded (case-insensitive). May be repeated. See Filtering & Highlighting.
  • --hide <pattern> - Remove or mask text in project display names (case-sensitive). Use pattern to remove, or pattern:* to mask with ***. May be repeated. See Filtering & Highlighting.

Output Formats

The output format is automatically determined by the file extension (or override with --format):

Extension Format Description
.dynamic.html dynamic-svg Recommended. Interactive HTML + SVG with hover highlighting
.html html Interactive HTML with Mermaid pan/zoom
.svg svg Static SVG image (MSAGL layout)
.mermaid mermaid Raw Mermaid diagram text
.md md Mermaid in a fenced code block (default)

See Output Formats for full details on each format.

Live Examples

Here’s an interactive dependency graph generated from the eShopOnWeb reference application:

Open in new tab

Generated with:

nmbl deps .\eShopOnWeb.slnx -o dependencies.dynamic.html --highlight test:lightblue

Here’s a live module index generated from the RiverBooks solution using --all-modules to write an index.html table of contents plus one interactive *.dynamic.html diagram per module into a folder:

Open the RiverBooks module diagrams

See the RiverBooks architecture docs page that incorporates these module diagrams

Generated with:

nmbl deps .\RiverBooks.slnx --all-modules .\docs\diagrams\modules

Examples

Generate Mermaid Markdown 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output deps.md

Creates a Mermaid diagram that can be viewed in GitHub README files or documentation.

Generate Interactive HTML 

nmbl deps MyProject.csproj --output deps.html

Creates an HTML file with an interactive, zoomable dependency graph.

Generate an Interactive Dynamic HTML Diagram 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output deps.dynamic.html

Creates a self-contained interactive HTML file where you can hover over nodes to highlight dependencies. This is the recommended default format.

Generate SVG Image 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output deps.svg

Creates a static SVG image suitable for embedding in presentations or tools that do not support HTML.

Include NuGet Packages 

nmbl deps MyProject.csproj --include-nuget --output deps.dynamic.html

Shows both project dependencies and NuGet package dependencies.

Include NuGet Package Versions 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --include-nuget-versions --output deps.dynamic.html

Shows NuGet packages with their version numbers for detailed dependency analysis.

Exclude Projects 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --exclude Tests --output deps.dynamic.html

Excludes any project whose name contains Tests (case-insensitive). Useful for focusing on production code.

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --exclude Tests,Fakes --output deps.dynamic.html

Excludes projects matching any of the comma-separated patterns.

See Filtering & Highlighting for full details.

Highlight Projects 

nmbl deps . --highlight "Core:lightgreen" --highlight "Tests:gray" --output deps.dynamic.html

Applies custom fill colors to matching projects. First matching rule wins.

See Filtering & Highlighting for full details.

Color by Module 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --color-by-module --output deps.dynamic.html

Auto-colors projects by their <Module> element value (or .nmbl module definitions). Each unique module gets a distinct color.

See Module Configuration for how to define modules.

Filter to a Single Module 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --module Users --output users-module.dynamic.html

Shows only projects in the Users module plus their direct external dependencies.

Generate All Module Graphs 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --all-modules ./docs/modules

Generates a dynamic.html dependency graph for every module in the solution plus an index.html table of contents.

See Module Configuration for full details.

Hide or Mask Company Names 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --hide Acme --output deps.dynamic.html

Removes Acme from project names (e.g., Acme.Web becomes Web). Useful for sharing diagrams without exposing company/product names.

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --hide "Acme:*" --output deps.dynamic.html

Masks Acme with *** instead of removing it (e.g., Acme.Web becomes ***.Web).

See Filtering & Highlighting for full details.

Generate Multiple Formats 

# Generate all formats for the same solution
nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output deps.md
nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output deps.html
nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output deps.svg
nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output deps.dynamic.html

Creates multiple formats for different use cases.

Use Cases

Documentation 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output docs/architecture/dependencies.dynamic.html

Generate dependency diagrams for your architecture documentation.

Code Reviews 

nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --include-nuget --output review.dynamic.html

Create interactive graphs to help reviewers understand changes.

eShopOnWeb Dependency Graph

Architecture Validation 

# Generate before making changes
nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output before.dynamic.html

# Make architectural changes

# Generate after changes
nmbl deps MySolution.slnx --output after.dynamic.html

# Compare the two diagrams

More Details

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