Compare .Net Assemblies with Framework Design Studio

Compare .Net Assemblies with Framework Design Studio

Trying to keep up with all the Alphas, Betas and CTP's, I was looking for a tool that will help me to compare .Net assemblies so that I can easily spot what's new in each drop. Just when I didn't find a suitable tool and was about to write one for my self, I noticed Framework Design Studio, by Krzysztof Cwalina, Hongping Lim and David Fowler.

From the Framework Design Studio Home Page:

"Framework Design Studio is a set of tools for reusable library designers. The package contains a GUI tool for viewing, reviewing, and comparing versions of managed APIs. It also contains a command line tool for generating API diff reports. Simple user guide explaining the basics of the tool is included in the setup."

The rest of this post is a step by step guide on how to compare two assemblies (or two versions of the same assembly) with the Framework Design Studio.

0. Download the latest version of Framework Design Studio from MSDN Code Gallery.

1. Open the studio and start a new project.

2. In the Assembly Explorer add the newer version of the assembly.

3. Right click the newly added assembly and choose Select Assemblies to Compare...

4. After you select the older version of the assembly, switch to the Diff tab, and see the differences between the two versions:

• Red - Removed from the new version
• Green - Added in the new version
• Gray - Inherited

Very simple, very helpful!

Enjoy!