Table of Contents

efcpt Compatibility

JD.Efcpt.Build wraps the ErikEJ.EFCorePowerTools.Cli (efcpt) dotnet tool to scaffold EF Core models at build time. Because efcpt is an external tool whose release lines track EF Core versions, a new upstream release can change or break scaffolding behavior without notice. This page documents which efcpt versions are supported and how the project continuously guards against regressions.

Supported versions

efcpt CLI release lines map directly to EF Core major versions:

efcpt line EF Core line Target frameworks Status
8.x EF Core 8 net8.0 Supported
9.x EF Core 9 net9.0 Supported
10.x EF Core 10 net10.0 Supported (default)
7.x and earlier EF Core 7- net7.0 Not tested (end of life)

The default pin is <EfcptToolVersion>10.*</EfcptToolVersion>. On .NET 10+ the CLI is executed via dnx with no installation required; on .NET 8/9 it must be installed as a global or manifest tool (see Getting Started). The 10.x CLI line is backward compatible and can scaffold EF Core 8/9/10 projects, so most consumers should stay on 10.* regardless of their target framework.

Pinning a specific version

Override the tool version per project:

<PropertyGroup>
  <EfcptToolVersion>10.*</EfcptToolVersion>
</PropertyGroup>

Note: On .NET 10+, generation runs through dnx, which resolves the tool package independently of EfcptToolVersion. To force an exact build (for example, to reproduce a specific version), set EfcptToolPath to an installed efcpt executable — this bypasses dnx and uses that binary directly.

Weekly compatibility matrix

The repository runs a scheduled GitHub Actions workflow, efcpt-compat.yml, that detects when a newly released efcpt version breaks the package:

  1. Resolve — Queries the nuget.org flat-container index for the latest stable efcpt release in each supported EF Core line (8, 9, 10).
  2. Build — For each resolved version, packs the local JD.Efcpt.Build package into a local feed, installs that exact efcpt version as a global tool, and rebuilds the representative sample samples/simple-generation (a database-first net10.0 / EF Core 10 project that scaffolds offline from a .sqlproj / DACPAC). The exact version is pinned via EfcptToolPath so dnx cannot substitute a different build.
  3. Report — Each matrix leg runs independently (fail-fast: false). A failing leg writes a job summary naming the incompatible efcpt version and an excerpt of the build error, so a breaking upstream release is surfaced loudly rather than silently.

The workflow runs weekly (Mondays 07:00 UTC) and can be triggered manually via workflow_dispatch.

Adjusting the tested lines

The set of tested EF Core lines is controlled by the EFCPT_SUPPORTED_LINES environment variable in the workflow (default "8 9 10"). Add or remove a major line there when the support matrix changes.

Reacting to a failure

When the compat matrix reports an incompatible version:

  1. Review the job summary and uploaded build log to identify the failing efcpt version and error.
  2. Reproduce locally by installing that version and building the sample with EfcptToolPath pinned.
  3. If the break is legitimate, pin consumers to the last known-good line (for example <EfcptToolVersion>10.1.*</EfcptToolVersion>) and track the upstream change before widening the range again.
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