pcpm convert

pcpm convert [options]

pcpm convert is a one-shot migration command. It takes an existing .NET solution (with or without Central Package Management) and turns it into a PCPM workspace.

What it does

1. Walks the workspace, collecting every <PackageReference />.
2. Adopts your existing Directory.Packages.props if you have one; otherwise creates one.
3. Strips Version="…" from every <PackageReference /> and writes the version as a <PackageVersion /> in CPM.
4. Writes pcpm.json.
5. With --workspace, writes pcpm-workspace.yaml covering all projects.
6. Runs pcpm install to materialise the store and write pcpm.lock.

Options

Flag	Effect
--workspace	Also write pcpm-workspace.yaml.
--no-install	Skip the implicit pcpm install.
--no-cpm	Don’t create or touch Directory.Packages.props.
--force	Re-run even if pcpm.json already exists.
--backup	Snapshot every modified file to pcpm-convert.bak/ before editing.

Examples

# Standard migration
pcpm convert

# Monorepo migration
pcpm convert --workspace

# Migration that doesn't change the lockfile
pcpm convert --no-install

What it doesn’t change

pcpm convert is conservative. It does not:

• Touch anything other than the files described above.
• Update package versions. It normalises what you have.
• Change your NuGet feed configuration.
• Modify the build graph or properties.

Rolling back

pcpm convert is git-friendly. The full set of changes is visible in git status:

git status
# On branch main
# Changes to be committed:
#   new file:   pcpm.json
#   modified:   Directory.Packages.props
#   modified:   src/Api/Api.csproj
#   ...

To roll back:

git restore .

If you used --backup, the originals are in pcpm-convert.bak/ and can be restored manually.

See also

• Migrating from CPM — full guide.
• pcpm init — for greenfield projects.