Learn how to improve the maintainability of C# code using modern tools and techniques to resolve technical debt while working safely and efficiently with legacy code

Key Features

• Apply a wide range of refactoring techniques using the latest tools and features of C#
• Discover ways to safely improve your code using tests, Roslyn analyzers, and AI assistance
• Find ways of communicating technical debt and improving your code in agile and enterprise settings

Book Description

Software projects start as brand-new greenfield projects, but invariably become muddied in technical debt far sooner than you’d expect. In Refactoring with C#, you'll explore what technical debt is and how it arises before walking through the process of safely refactoring C# code using modern tooling in Visual Studio and more recent C# language features using C# 12 and .NET 8. This book will guide you through the process of refactoring safely through advanced unit testing with XUnit and libraries like Moq, Snapper, and Scientist .NET. You'll explore maintainable code through SOLID principles and defensive coding techniques made possible in newer versions of C#. You'll also find out how to run code analysis and write custom Roslyn analyzers to detect and resolve issues unique to your code.

The nature of coding is changing, and you'll explore how to use AI with the GitHub Copilot Chat to refactor, test, document, and generate code before ending with a discussion about communicating technical debt to leadership and getting organizational buy-in to refactor your code in enterprise organizations and in agile teams.

By the end of this book, you'll understand the nature of refactoring and see how you can safely, effectively, and repeatably pay down the technical debt in your application while adding value to your business.

What you will learn

• Understand technical debt, its causes and effects, and ways to prevent it
• Explore different ways of refactoring classes, methods, and lines of code
• Discover how to write effective unit tests supported by libraries such as Moq
• Understand SOLID principles and factors that lead to maintainable code
• Use AI to analyze, improve, and test code with the GitHub Copilot Chat
• Apply code analysis and custom Roslyn analyzers to ensure that code stays clean
• Communicate tech debt and code standards successfully in agile teams

Who this book is for

This book is for any developer familiar with C# who wants to improve the code they work with on a day-to-day basis. While this book will be most beneficial to new developers with only a year or two of experience, even senior engineers and engineering managers can make the most of this book by exploring not just the process of refactoring, but advanced techniques with libraries like Moq, Snapper, Scientist .NET, and writing custom Roslyn analyzers.

Table of Contents

1. Technical Debt, Code Smells, and Refactoring
2. Introduction to Refactoring
3. Method-Level Refactorings
4. Class-Level Refactorings
5. Code-Level Refactorings
6. Unit Testing
7. Test Driven Development
8. Avoiding Code Anti-Patterns with SOLID
9. Advanced Unit Testing
10. Defensive Coding Techniques
11. AI-Assisted Refactoring with GitHub Copilot
12. Code Analysis in Visual Studio
13. Creating a Roslyn Analyzer
14. Refactoring Code with Roslyn Analyzers
15. Communicating Technical Debt
16. Adopting Code Standards
17. Agile Refactoring

About the Author

Matt Eland is a Microsoft MVP in Artificial Intelligence (AI) who has been working with .NET since 2001. Matt has served as a senior engineer, software engineering manager, and .NET programming instructor. He is currently an AI specialist and senior consultant at Leading EDJE near Columbus, Ohio, where he helps companies with their software engineering and data science needs using C# and related technologies. Matt speaks and writes in his community and co-organizes the Central Ohio .NET Developers Group while pursuing a master's degree in data analytics.