Albatross.CommandLine.Defaults 9.0.0-rc.266

Albatross.CommandLine.Defaults

Adds opinionated, ready-to-use configuration and logging to an Albatross.CommandLine application through a single .WithDefaults() call. Logging is written to a file (never the console), so a command's standard output and standard error stay clean for its own output — a contract that scripts, pipes, and tooling can rely on. This package is optional; if you need a different logging framework or dependency versions, wire those up yourself against the core library.

Key Features

• File-based logging by default - Serilog writes to a daily-rolling file under IApplicationPath.LogRoot; no console sink is attached, so stdout/stderr belong entirely to the command's output.
• Config-driven verbosity - the log level, per-namespace overrides, extra sinks, and enrichers are read from a Serilog section via ReadFrom.Configuration, so verbosity is editable at deploy time without recompiling.
• Sensible zero-config baseline - with no configuration at all, logging still works: Information level, FromLogContext + ThreadId enrichment, and the file sink are set in code; a Serilog section only layers on top.
• JSON configuration - loads appsettings.json (plus appsettings.{DOTNET_ENVIRONMENT}.json) and environment variables, and registers ProgramSetting, EnvironmentSetting, and IHostEnvironment.
• Composable - use .WithDefaults() for both, or .WithConfig() / .WithSerilog() individually.

Quick Start

Install alongside Albatross.CommandLine:

<PackageReference Include="Albatross.CommandLine.Defaults" Version="..." />

WithSerilog() writes to IApplicationPath.LogRoot, so register an IApplicationPath and pass its ConfigRoot to WithDefaults() (that is where appsettings.json is read from):

using Albatross.CommandLine;
using Albatross.CommandLine.Defaults;
using Albatross.Config;
using Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection;
using MyApp.AutoGenerated;   // generated RegisterCommands()/AddCommands() live in <RootNamespace>.AutoGenerated

static async Task<int> Main(string[] args) {
    var appPath = new ApplicationPath(false, ["myapp"], "myapp", null, args);
    appPath.Init();   // creates ConfigRoot / LogRoot / DataRoot

    await using var host = new CommandHost("My CLI App")
        .RegisterServices((result, services) => {
            services.AddSingleton<IApplicationPath>(appPath);
            services.RegisterCommands();
        })
        .AddCommands()
        .Parse(args)
        .WithDefaults(appPath.ConfigRoot)   // config + file logging
        .Build();
    return await host.InvokeAsync();
}

To change verbosity, drop a Serilog section into appsettings.json (in ConfigRoot) — no rebuild required:

{
  "Serilog": {
    "MinimumLevel": {
      "Default": "Debug",
      "Override": { "Microsoft": "Warning", "System": "Warning" }
    }
  }
}

Dependencies

• Albatross.Config (8.0.0-rc.51): application paths (IApplicationPath), configuration, and environment handling.
• Serilog (4.3.0), Serilog.Extensions.Hosting (8.0.0), Serilog.Settings.Configuration (8.0.4), Serilog.Sinks.File (6.0.0), Serilog.Enrichers.Thread (4.0.0): file logging configured directly against Serilog.
• Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting (8.0.1), Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection (8.0.1): host builder and service container.

Prerequisites

• .NET 8 (net8.0) or newer.
• Registering an IApplicationPath before the host is built is optional — it controls where logs are written. If none is registered, WithSerilog() falls back to a DefaultApplicationPath that logs to a log folder under the application base directory.

Documentation

Complete Documentation

Links

• Defaults Library — configuration and logging setup in depth.
• Logging & Verbosity — the v9 file-based logging model and how to control log levels.