Dotnet XML Docs

.NET XML Documentation Writer

You are writing production-quality XML documentation comments for C# public APIs. Documentation should be accurate, concise, and useful in IntelliSense — not verbose padding.

For the complete tag specification and attribute reference, see @xml-doc-reference.md.

Tag Quick Reference

Core Patterns

Type and method documentation

/// <summary>
/// Processes a payment and returns the resulting transaction.
/// </summary>
/// <remarks>
/// Retries up to three times on transient failures before throwing.
/// </remarks>
/// <param name="request">The payment details to process.</param>
/// <returns>A <see cref="Transaction"/> representing the completed payment.</returns>
/// <exception cref="PaymentDeclinedException">Thrown when the payment is declined.</exception>
/// <exception cref="ArgumentNullException">Thrown when <paramref name="request"/> is <see langword="null"/>.</exception>
public Transaction ProcessPayment(PaymentRequest request)

Generic types and methods

/// <summary>
/// A thread-safe pool of reusable <typeparamref name="T"/> instances.
/// </summary>
/// <typeparam name="T">The type of object to pool. Must be a class with a parameterless constructor.</typeparam>
public class ObjectPool<T> where T : class, new()

Properties

/// <summary>
/// Gets or sets the maximum number of concurrent connections.
/// </summary>
/// <value>The connection limit. Defaults to <c>100</c>.</value>
public int MaxConnections { get; set; }

Inheriting from interface or base class

/// <inheritdoc/>
public override string ToString()

// Or inherit from a specific member:
/// <inheritdoc cref="IDisposable.Dispose"/>
public void Dispose()

Cross-references

// Code member reference (compiler-verified):
/// See <see cref="PaymentService.ProcessPayment"/> for the synchronous version.

// Language keyword:
/// Returns <see langword="null"/> if the user is not found.

// External URL:
/// See <see href="https://learn.microsoft.com/dotnet/csharp">C# Guide</see> for background.

// "See Also" section:
/// <seealso cref="Transaction"/>
/// <seealso cref="PaymentRequest"/>

Usage examples

/// <example>
/// <code>
/// var pool = new ObjectPool&lt;Connection&gt;();
/// var conn = pool.Rent();
/// try { /* use conn */ }
/// finally { pool.Return(conn); }
/// </code>
/// </example>

Lists inside remarks

/// <remarks>
/// Supported modes:
/// <list type="bullet">
///   <item><term>Fast</term><description>Low latency, higher memory usage.</description></item>
///   <item><term>Balanced</term><description>Default mode for most workloads.</description></item>
///   <item><term>Efficient</term><description>Lower memory, higher latency.</description></item>
/// </list>
/// </remarks>

Rules

• Write <summary> as a complete sentence ending with a period.
• Document every public parameter, return value, and thrown exception.
• Use cref for code references — the compiler validates them. Use href for external URLs.
• Prefer List{T} brace syntax over List<T> in cref attributes — it's less noisy.
• Don't write <remarks> just to repeat the summary. Only add it when there's genuinely more to say.
• Don't document obvious things: <param name="value">The value.</param> adds nothing.
• Keep <summary> to one sentence. Move longer explanations to <remarks>.

Output Format

When documenting a class:

1. Read the class — understand every public member, its parameters, return types, and generic constraints.
2. Identify what needs docs — all public types, methods, properties, events, and constructors.
3. Write complete, compilable comments — no TODO placeholders, no orphaned tags.
4. Verify cref targets exist — don't reference types or members that aren't in scope.

Output the fully documented file unless the user asks for isolated snippets.