C# How To Assembly Version Auto Increment

In C#, you can use the AssemblyVersionAttribute to specify the version of an assembly. The AssemblyVersionAttribute has the following format:

[assembly: AssemblyVersion("1.2.3.4")]

The four components of the version number (1.2.3.4 in this example) are known as the major version, minor version, build number, and revision number, respectively. You can use these components to specify the version of your assembly in a hierarchical and structured way.

To automatically increment the assembly version, you can use the * wildcard character in place of one or more of the version components. For example, you can use the following AssemblyVersionAttribute to automatically increment the revision number:

[assembly: AssemblyVersion("1.2.3.*")]

When you compile your code, the C# compiler will replace the * wildcard with the next available number, based on the current date and time. For example, if the current date and time are January 1, 2021, at 12:00 PM, the compiled version number will be "1.2.3.202101011200".

Using the * wildcard in the AssemblyVersionAttribute is a convenient way to automatically increment the assembly version without having to manually update the attribute each time you make a change to your code. However, keep in mind that using the * wildcard can lead to inconsistencies in the assembly version, especially if you have multiple developers working on the same codebase. It is recommended to use the * wildcard only for development and testing purposes and to specify a fixed version number for production releases.