Individual skill
item-management
Own concrete MSBuild ItemGroup and item-expression questions. USE FOR: Include, Remove, Update, item identity and metadata, transforms, filtering, batching, duplicate or overlapping items, and reviews that verify whether those operations are correct. Generated items stay in scope when the central defect is item identity, metadata, batching, duplicate declarations, or glob/Remove/Update semantics. For a generated artifact missing from compilation or output, wrong target timing/path, or FileWrites clean tracking without a broader item-semantics defect, use including-generated-files. The item operation may be broken, suspected, or already correct. Exclude property-only issues, general incrementality with no item question, broad reviews with no concrete item concern, and non-MSBuild systems.
plugins/dotnet-msbuild/skills/item-management/SKILL.md
Source commit 281e39451fb4487b4828d62fcb51ca853589a185
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- Last checked
- Nov 4, 2026
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- Repository last updated
- Nov 6, 2026
- License
- MIT
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- agent-skills Repository topic
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# MSBuild Item Management Patterns
Canonical patterns for working with item groups, from `Microsoft.Common.CurrentVersion.targets`.
## Include / Remove / Update — Three Operations
| Operation | Purpose | When to use |
|---|---|---|
| `Include` | Add new items to the group | Creating items with identity + metadata |
| `Remove` | Remove items matching a pattern | Excluding files or clearing a group |
| `Update` | Modify metadata on existing items | Adding/changing metadata without re-adding |
### Include — Add Items