sentry-dotnet-sdk

All Skills > SDK Setup > .NET SDK

Sentry .NET SDK

Opinionated wizard that scans your .NET project and guides you through complete Sentry setup: error monitoring, distributed tracing, profiling, structured logging, and cron monitoring across all major .NET frameworks.

Invoke This Skill When

• User asks to "add Sentry to .NET", "set up Sentry in C#", or "install Sentry for ASP.NET Core"
• User wants error monitoring, tracing, profiling, logging, or crons for a .NET app
• User mentions SentrySdk.Init, UseSentry, Sentry.AspNetCore, or Sentry.Maui
• User wants to capture unhandled exceptions in WPF, WinForms, MAUI, or Azure Functions
• User asks about SentryOptions, BeforeSend, TracesSampleRate, or symbol upload

Note: SDK version and APIs below reflect Sentry NuGet packages ≥6.1.0 (OTLP export requires ≥6.5.0). Always verify against docs.sentry.io/platforms/dotnet/ before implementing.

---

Phase 1: Detect

Run these commands to understand the project before making any recommendations:

# Detect framework type — find all .csproj files
find . -name "*.csproj" | head -20

# Detect framework targets
grep -r "TargetFramework\|Project Sdk" --include="*.csproj" .

# Check for existing Sentry packages
grep -r "Sentry" --include="*.csproj" . | grep "PackageReference"

# Check startup files
ls Program.cs src/Program.cs App.xaml.cs MauiProgram.cs 2>/dev/null

# Check for appsettings
ls appsettings.json src/appsettings.json 2>/dev/null

# Check for logging libraries
grep -r "Serilog\|NLog\|log4net" --include="*.csproj" .

# Check for companion frontend
ls ../frontend ../client ../web 2>/dev/null
cat ../package.json 2>/dev/null | grep -E '"next"|"react"|"vue"' | head -3

What to determine:

Framework → Package mapping:

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Phase 2: Recommend

Present a concrete recommendation based on what you found. Lead with a proposal — don't ask open-ended questions.

Recommended (core coverage):

• ✅ Error Monitoring — always; captures unhandled exceptions, structured captures, scope enrichment
• ✅ Tracing — always for ASP.NET Core and hosted apps; auto-instruments HTTP requests and EF Core queries
• ✅ Logging — recommended for all apps; routes ILogger / Serilog / NLog entries to Sentry as breadcrumbs and events

Optional (enhanced observability):

• ⚡ Profiling — CPU profiling; recommend for performance-critical services running on .NET 6+
• ⚡ Metrics — counters, gauges, distributions linked to traces; recommend for apps that need custom business metrics
• ⚡ Crons — detect missed/failed scheduled jobs; recommend when Hangfire, Quartz.NET, or scheduled endpoints detected

Recommendation logic:

Propose: "I recommend setting up Error Monitoring + Tracing + Logging. Want me to also add Profiling or Crons?"

---

Phase 3: Guide

Option 1: Wizard (Recommended)

You need to run this yourself — the wizard opens a browser for login and requires interactive input that the agent can't handle. Copy-paste into your terminal: `` npx @sentry/wizard@latest -i dotnet `` It handles login, org/project selection, DSN configuration, and MSBuild symbol upload setup for readable stack traces in production. Once it finishes, come back and skip to Verification.

If the user skips the wizard, proceed with Option 2 (Manual Setup) below.

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Option 2: Manual Setup

Install the right package

# ASP.NET Core
dotnet add package Sentry.AspNetCore -v 6.1.0

# WPF or WinForms or Console
dotnet add package Sentry -v 6.1.0

# .NET MAUI
dotnet add package Sentry.Maui -v 6.1.0

# Blazor WebAssembly
dotnet add package Sentry.AspNetCore.Blazor.WebAssembly -v 6.1.0

# Azure Functions (Isolated Worker)
dotnet add package Sentry.Extensions.Logging -v 6.1.0
dotnet add package Sentry.OpenTelemetry -v 6.1.0

# Classic ASP.NET (System.Web / .NET Framework)
dotnet add package Sentry.AspNet -v 6.1.0

---

ASP.NET Core — Program.cs

var builder = WebApplication.CreateBuilder(args);

builder.WebHost.UseSentry(options =>
{
    options.Dsn = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("SENTRY_DSN")
                  ?? "___YOUR_DSN___";
    options.Debug = true;                         // disable in production
    options.SendDefaultPii = true;                // captures user IP, name, email
    options.MaxRequestBodySize = RequestSize.Always;
    options.MinimumBreadcrumbLevel = LogLevel.Debug;
    options.MinimumEventLevel = LogLevel.Warning;
    options.TracesSampleRate = 1.0;               // tune to 0.1–0.2 in production
    options.SetBeforeSend((@event, hint) =>
    {
        @event.ServerName = null;                 // scrub hostname from events
        return @event;
    });
});

var app = builder.Build();
app.Run();

appsettings.json (alternative configuration):

{
  "Sentry": {
    "Dsn": "___YOUR_DSN___",
    "SendDefaultPii": true,
    "MaxRequestBodySize": "Always",
    "MinimumBreadcrumbLevel": "Debug",
    "MinimumEventLevel": "Warning",
    "AttachStacktrace": true,
    "Debug": true,
    "TracesSampleRate": 1.0,
    "Environment": "production",
    "Release": "my-app@1.0.0"
  }
}

Environment variables (double underscore as separator):

export Sentry__Dsn="https://examplePublicKey@o0.ingest.sentry.io/0"
export Sentry__TracesSampleRate="0.1"
export Sentry__Environment="staging"

---

WPF — App.xaml.cs

⚠️ Critical: Initialize in the constructor, NOT in OnStartup(). The constructor fires earlier, catching more failure modes.

using System.Windows;
using Sentry;

public partial class App : Application
{
    public App()
    {
        SentrySdk.Init(options =>
        {
            options.Dsn = "___YOUR_DSN___";
            options.Debug = true;
            options.SendDefaultPii = true;
            options.TracesSampleRate = 1.0;
            options.IsGlobalModeEnabled = true;   // required for all desktop apps
        });

        // Capture WPF UI-thread exceptions before WPF's crash dialog appears
        DispatcherUnhandledException += App_DispatcherUnhandledException;
    }

    private void App_DispatcherUnhandledException(
        object sender,
        System.Windows.Threading.DispatcherUnhandledExceptionEventArgs e)
    {
        SentrySdk.CaptureException(e.Exception);
        // Set e.Handled = true to prevent crash dialog and keep app running
    }
}

---

WinForms — Program.cs

using System;
using System.Windows.Forms;
using Sentry;

static class Program
{
    [STAThread]
    static void Main()
    {
        Application.EnableVisualStyles();
        Application.SetCompatibleTextRenderingDefault(false);

        // Required: allows Sentry to see unhandled WinForms exceptions
        Application.SetUnhandledExceptionMode(UnhandledExceptionMode.ThrowException);

        using (SentrySdk.Init(new SentryOptions
        {
            Dsn = "___YOUR_DSN___",
            Debug = true,
            TracesSampleRate = 1.0,
            IsGlobalModeEnabled = true,           // required for desktop apps
        }))
        {
            Application.Run(new MainForm());
        } // Disposing flushes all pending events
    }
}

---

.NET MAUI — MauiProgram.cs

public static class MauiProgram
{
    public static MauiApp CreateMauiApp()
    {
        var builder = MauiApp.CreateBuilder();
        builder
            .UseMauiApp<App>()
            .UseSentry(options =>
            {
                options.Dsn = "___YOUR_DSN___";
                options.Debug = true;
                options.SendDefaultPii = true;
                options.TracesSampleRate = 1.0;
                // MAUI-specific: opt-in breadcrumbs (off by default — PII risk)
                options.IncludeTextInBreadcrumbs = false;
                options.IncludeTitleInBreadcrumbs = false;
                options.IncludeBackgroundingStateInBreadcrumbs = false;
            });

        return builder.Build();
    }
}

---

Blazor WebAssembly — Program.cs

var builder = WebAssemblyHostBuilder.CreateDefault(args);

builder.UseSentry(options =>
{
    options.Dsn = "___YOUR_DSN___";
    options.Debug = true;
    options.SendDefaultPii = true;
    options.TracesSampleRate = 0.1;
});

// Hook logging pipeline without re-initializing the SDK
builder.Logging.AddSentry(o => o.InitializeSdk = false);

await builder.Build().RunAsync();

---

Azure Functions (Isolated Worker) — Program.cs

Recommended: Install Sentry.OpenTelemetry.Exporter (≥6.5.0) for OTLP export. Alternatively, use Sentry.OpenTelemetry for the bridge pattern.

using Microsoft.Extensions.Hosting;
using Microsoft.Extensions.Logging;
using OpenTelemetry.Trace;

// Package: Sentry.OpenTelemetry.Exporter
var host = new HostBuilder()
    .ConfigureFunctionsWorkerDefaults()
    .ConfigureLogging(logging =>
    {
        logging.AddSentry(options =>
        {
            options.Dsn = "___YOUR_DSN___";
            options.Debug = true;
            options.TracesSampleRate = 1.0;
            options.UseOtlp(); // send OTel spans via OTLP (requires 6.5.0+)
        });
    })
    .ConfigureServices(services =>
    {
        services.AddOpenTelemetry().WithTracing(builder =>
        {
            builder
                .AddHttpClientInstrumentation()
                .AddSentryOtlpExporter("___YOUR_DSN___"); // route spans to Sentry OTLP endpoint
        });
    })
    .Build();

await host.RunAsync();

---

AWS Lambda — LambdaEntryPoint.cs

public class LambdaEntryPoint : APIGatewayProxyFunction
{
    protected override void Init(IWebHostBuilder builder)
    {
        builder
            .UseSentry(options =>
            {
                options.Dsn = "___YOUR_DSN___";
                options.TracesSampleRate = 1.0;
                options.FlushOnCompletedRequest = true; // REQUIRED for Lambda
            })
            .UseStartup<Startup>();
    }
}

---

Classic ASP.NET — Global.asax.cs

public class MvcApplication : HttpApplication
{
    private IDisposable _sentry;

    protected void Application_Start()
    {
        _sentry = SentrySdk.Init(options =>
        {
            options.Dsn = "___YOUR_DSN___";
            options.TracesSampleRate = 1.0;
            options.AddEntityFramework(); // EF6 query breadcrumbs
            options.AddAspNet();          // Classic ASP.NET integration
        });
    }

    protected void Application_Error() => Server.CaptureLastError();

    protected void Application_BeginRequest() => Context.StartSentryTransaction();
    protected void Application_EndRequest() => Context.FinishSentryTransaction();

    protected void Application_End() => _sentry?.Dispose();
}

---

Symbol Upload (Readable Stack Traces)

Without debug symbols, stack traces show only method names — no file names or line numbers. Upload PDB files to unlock full source context.

Step 1: Create a Sentry auth token

Go to sentry.io/settings/auth-tokens/ and create a token with project:releases and org:read scopes.

Step 2: Add MSBuild properties to .csproj or Directory.Build.props:

<PropertyGroup Condition="'$(Configuration)' == 'Release'">
  <SentryOrg>___ORG_SLUG___</SentryOrg>
  <SentryProject>___PROJECT_SLUG___</SentryProject>
  <SentryUploadSymbols>true</SentryUploadSymbols>
  <SentryUploadSources>true</SentryUploadSources>
  <SentryCreateRelease>true</SentryCreateRelease>
  <SentrySetCommits>true</SentrySetCommits>
</PropertyGroup>

Step 3: Set SENTRY_AUTH_TOKEN in CI:

# GitHub Actions
- name: Build & upload symbols
  run: dotnet build -c Release
  env:
    SENTRY_AUTH_TOKEN: ${{ secrets.SENTRY_AUTH_TOKEN }}

---

For Each Agreed Feature

Load the corresponding reference file and follow its steps:

For each feature: read the reference file, follow its steps exactly, and verify before moving on.

---

Verification

After wizard or manual setup, add a test throw and remove it after verifying:

// ASP.NET Core: add a temporary endpoint
app.MapGet("/sentry-test", () =>
{
    throw new Exception("Sentry test error — delete me");
});

// Or capture explicitly anywhere
SentrySdk.CaptureException(new Exception("Sentry test error — delete me"));

Then check your Sentry Issues dashboard — the error should appear within ~30 seconds.

Verification checklist:

---

Config Reference

Core SentryOptions

ASP.NET Core Extended Options (SentryAspNetCoreOptions)

MAUI Extended Options (SentryMauiOptions)

Environment Variables

ASP.NET Core: use double underscore __ as hierarchy separator:

export Sentry__Dsn="https://..."
export Sentry__TracesSampleRate="0.1"

MSBuild Symbol Upload Properties

---

Phase 4: Cross-Link

After completing .NET setup, check for companion frontend projects:

# Check for frontend in adjacent directories
ls ../frontend ../client ../web ../app 2>/dev/null

# Check for JavaScript framework indicators
cat ../package.json 2>/dev/null | grep -E '"next"|"react"|"vue"|"nuxt"' | head -3

If a frontend is found, suggest the matching SDK skill:

Connecting frontend and backend with the same Sentry project enables distributed tracing — a single trace view spanning browser, .NET server, and any downstream APIs.

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Troubleshooting