How to Download .NET 6 SDK for Windows, Linux, and macOS
How to Download .NET 6 SDK
If you want to develop applications with .NET, you need to download and install the .NET Software Development Kit (SDK). The .NET SDK includes everything you need to create, run, test, and debug .NET apps and libraries. In this article, you will learn how to download and install the latest version of the .NET SDK, which is .NET 6.
download .net 6 sdk
What is .NET 6 SDK and why you need it
.NET 6 is the latest release of the .NET platform, which is a unified framework for building web, desktop, mobile, IoT, and cloud applications. .NET 6 delivers many new features and improvements, such as simplified development, better performance, ultimate productivity, cross-platform support, and long-term support. To learn more about what's new in .NET 6, see this article.
.NET 6 SDK features and benefits
The .NET 6 SDK allows you to develop apps with .NET 6 using various languages, such as C#, F#, and Visual Basic. The .NET 6 SDK also includes the following features and benefits:
The base .NET Runtime, which contains the components needed to run a console app.
The ASP.NET Core Runtime, which enables you to run web/server applications.
The .NET Desktop Runtime, which supports Windows Presentation Foundation (WPF) and Windows Forms apps.
The dotnet CLI tool, which provides commands for creating, building, running, testing, publishing, and managing .NET projects.
The dotnet watch tool, which enables hot reload for C# and Visual Basic code changes while your app is running.
The dotnet monitor tool, which provides diagnostics and observability capabilities for your .NET apps.
The dotnet workload command, which allows you to install optional components for specific scenarios, such as .NET MAUI or Blazor WebAssembly.
The C# compiler (Roslyn), which supports C# 10 language features.
The F# compiler (FSharp), which supports F# 6 language features.
The Visual Basic compiler (VBC), which supports Visual Basic 16.9 language features.
The NuGet client (NuGet), which manages dependencies and packages for your projects.
The MSBuild engine (MSBuild), which builds your projects based on project files.
The project templates (dotnet new), which provide a starting point for various types of apps.
The code analysis tools (Roslyn analyzers), which help you write quality code and follow best practices.
The testing tools (xUnit.net), which enable you to write and run unit tests for your code.
.NET 6 SDK system requirements and compatibility
To download and install the .NET 6 SDK, you need a supported operating system and hardware configuration. The following table lists the minimum system requirements for each platform:
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Download .net 6 sdk hot reload support
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Install .net 6 sdk on windows
Install .net 6 sdk on linux
Install .net 6 sdk on macos
Install .net 6 sdk on visual studio 2022
Install .net 6 sdk on visual studio code
Install .net 6 sdk using offline installer
Install .net 6 sdk using zip file
Install .net 6 sdk using arm64 architecture
Install .net 6 sdk using x86 architecture
Install .net 6 sdk using x64 architecture
Install .net 6 sdk using alpine distribution
Install .net 6 sdk using docker container
Install .net 6 sdk using latest version available
Install .net 6 sdk using preview version available
Install .net 6 sdk using long term support version available
PlatformOperating SystemProcessorMemoryDisk SpaceWindowsWindows 7 SP1 or laterx64, x86, ARM641 GB4 GB
LinuxVarious distributionsx64, ARM32, ARM641 GB4 GB
macOSmacOS 10.13 or laterx64, ARM641 GB4 GB
The .NET 6 SDK is compatible with previous versions of the .NET SDK and Runtime, such as .NET 5, .NET Core 3.1, and .NET Framework 4.8. You can install multiple versions of the .NET SDK and Runtime on the same machine and switch between them using the global.json file or the DOTNET_ROOT environment variable. To learn more about .NET SDK and Runtime compatibility, see this article.
How to download and install .NET 6 SDK on Windows
If you are using Windows as your development platform, you can download and install the .NET 6 SDK in several ways. The easiest way is to use the Windows Installer or the Windows Package Manager. Alternatively, you can also download the binaries manually and extract them to a folder of your choice.
Download .NET 6 SDK from the official website
To download the .NET 6 SDK from the official website, follow these steps:
Go to https://dotnet.microsoft.com/download/dotnet/6.0.
Select the Windows tab and choose your architecture (x64, x86, or ARM64).
Click on the Download .NET SDK button to download the installer file (.exe) or the Download x64/x86/ARM64 link to download the binaries file (.zip).
Save the file to your preferred location.
Install .NET 6 SDK with Windows Installer or Windows Package Manager
To install the .NET 6 SDK with Windows Installer, follow these steps:
Double-click on the installer file (.exe) that you downloaded from the official website.
Follow the instructions on the screen to complete the installation.
You may need to restart your computer after the installation.
To install the .NET 6 SDK with Windows Package Manager, follow these steps:
Open a command prompt or PowerShell window as an administrator.
Type the following command and press Enter: winget install Microsoft.dotnetSDK
The package manager will automatically download and install the latest version of the .NET 6 SDK.
You may need to restart your computer after the installation.
Verify the installation and check the version
To verify that the installation was successful and check the version of the .NET 6 SDK, follow these steps:
Open a command prompt or PowerShell window.
Type the following command and press Enter: dotnet --version
You should see something like this: 6.0.100-preview.7.21379.14
This means that you have installed the .NET 6 SDK version 6.0.100-preview.7.21379.14.
If you see an error message or a different version, you may need to update your PATH environment variable or use the global.json file or the DOTNET_ROOT environment variable to specify the location of the .NET 6 SDK.
How to download and install .NET 6 SDK on Linux or macOS
If you are using Linux or macOS as your development platform, you can also download and install the .NET 6 SDK in several ways. The easiest way is to use a package manager that is supported by your distribution or operating system. Alternatively, you can also use dotnet-install scripts or download the binaries manually and extract them to a folder of your choice.
Download .NET 6 SDK from the official website or package manager
To download the .NET 6 SDK from the official website, follow these steps:
Go to https://dot net/6.0.
Select the Linux or macOS tab and choose your distribution or operating system.
Click on the Download .NET SDK button to download the binaries file (.tar.gz) or the Download x64/ARM32/ARM64 link to download the binaries file (.tar.gz).
Save the file to your preferred location.
To download the .NET 6 SDK from a package manager, follow the instructions for your distribution or operating system. For example, on Ubuntu, you can use the following commands:
sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install -y apt-transport-https sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install -y dotnet-sdk-6.0
Install .NET 6 SDK with dotnet-install scripts or package manager
To install the .NET 6 SDK with dotnet-install scripts, follow these steps:
Download the dotnet-install script for Linux or macOS from https://dot.net/v1/dotnet-install.sh.
Make the script executable by running the following command: chmod +x dotnet-install.sh
Run the script with the following command: ./dotnet-install.sh -c Current -v latest
This will install the latest version of the .NET 6 SDK in the default location, which is $HOME/.dotnet.
You may need to add this location to your PATH environment variable or use the DOTNET_ROOT environment variable to specify the location of the .NET 6 SDK.
To install the .NET 6 SDK with a package manager, follow the instructions for your distribution or operating system. For example, on Ubuntu, you can use the following commands:
sudo apt-get update sudo apt-get install -y dotnet-sdk-6.0
Verify the installation and check the version
To verify that the installation was successful and check the version of the .NET 6 SDK, follow these steps:
Open a terminal window.
Type the following command and press Enter: dotnet --version
You should see something like this: 6.0.100-preview.7.21379.14
This means that you have installed the .NET 6 SDK version 6.0.100-preview.7.21379.14.
If you see an error message or a different version, you may need to update your PATH environment variable or use the DOTNET_ROOT environment variable to specify the location of the .NET 6 SDK.
How to troubleshoot common issues and errors with .NET 6 SDK installation
Sometimes, you may encounter some issues or errors when installing or using the .NET 6 SDK. Here are some tips on how to troubleshoot them and find solutions.
Check the release notes and known issues for .NET 6 SDK
The first thing you should do is to check the release notes and known issues for .NET 6 SDK. The release notes provide information about what's new, what's changed, and what's fixed in each version of the .NET 6 SDK. The known issues list any bugs, limitations, or workarounds that may affect your experience with .NET 6 SDK. You can find both documents at https://github.com/dotnet/core/blob/main/release-notes/6.0/README.md.
Update or repair the installation if needed
If you find that your installation is outdated, corrupted, or missing some components, you can try to update or repair it. To update your installation, you can download and run the latest installer file (.exe) for Windows or use a package manager for Linux or macOS. To repair your installation, you can run the installer file (.exe) again for Windows or use a package manager for Linux or macOS with a --repair option.
Contact support or report a bug if the issue persists
If none of the above steps resolve your issue, you can contact support or report a bug to get help from the .NET community and developers. You can use one of the following channels:
The .NET forums at https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/answers/products/dotnet, where you can ask questions and get answers from other users and experts.
The .NET GitHub repository at https://github.com/dotnet/core, where you can report issues, submit pull requests, and contribute to the code.
The .NET Twitter account at https://twitter.com/dotnet, where you can follow the latest news and announcements about .NET.
The .NET Discord server at https://discord.gg/dotnet, where you can chat with other .NET developers and enthusiasts.
The .NET Stack Overflow tag at https://stackoverflow.com/questions/tagged/.net, where you can ask and answer technical questions about .NET.
Conclusion and FAQs
In this article, you learned how to download and install the .NET 6 SDK on Windows, Linux, or macOS. You also learned how to verify the installation, check the version, and troubleshoot common issues and errors. With the .NET 6 SDK, you can start developing amazing apps with .NET 6 using your favorite language and tools. To learn more about .NET 6 and the .NET 6 SDK, you can visit the official website at https://dotnet.microsoft.com/.
Here are some frequently asked questions about the .NET 6 SDK:
Q: How do I update the .NET 6 SDK to the latest version?
A: You can update the .NET 6 SDK to the latest version by downloading and running the latest installer file (.exe) for Windows or using a package manager for Linux or macOS. You can also use the dotnet-install scripts to update the .NET 6 SDK to the latest version.
Q: How do I uninstall the .NET 6 SDK from my machine?
A: You can uninstall the .NET 6 SDK from your machine by using the Windows Control Panel or Settings app for Windows or using a package manager for Linux or macOS. You can also delete the folder where you extracted the binaries file (.zip or .tar.gz) if you installed the .NET 6 SDK manually.
Q: How do I switch between different versions of the .NET SDK and Runtime on my machine?
A: You can switch between different versions of the .NET SDK and Runtime on your machine by using the global.json file or the DOTNET_ROOT environment variable. The global.json file allows you to specify the version of the .NET SDK that you want to use for a specific project or solution. The DOTNET_ROOT environment variable allows you to specify the location of the .NET SDK that you want to use for all projects and solutions.
Q: How do I check which workloads are installed with the .NET 6 SDK?
A: You can check which workloads are installed with the .NET 6 SDK by using the dotnet workload command. For example, you can run dotnet workload list to see a list of all installed workloads. You can also run dotnet workload search to see a list of all available workloads.
Q: How do I install additional components or tools for the .NET 6 SDK?
A: You can install additional components or tools for the .NET 6 SDK by using the dotnet workload command or the dotnet tool command. The dotnet workload command allows you to install optional components for specific scenarios, such as .NET MAUI or Blazor WebAssembly. The dotnet tool command allows you to install global or local tools that extend the functionality of the dotnet CLI, such as Entity Framework Core tools or Azure CLI tools.