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SUCCESS!–VB on Linux!

OK, so the time has finally come. VB on Linux… OFFICIALLY!

First, let me discuss the hardware:

An HP MediaSmart Server circa 2007 upgraded to 1GB of ram and 13TB of storage.

Second, the OS:

After researching the various distributions, I’ve decided to go with Debian. I’ve installed the x64 version of Debian 9.1.

Third, the Core:

[].NET Core 2.0](https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/index) was released a bit ago; however, running it for the first time on Windows the templates for VB were still MIA. I can happily confirm that installing .NET Core 2.0 on the Debian presents the following templates available for VB.

  • Console Application
  • Class Library
  • Unit Test Project
  • xUnit Test Project

I’d like to see templates for some of the others, such as ASP.NET Core Web API (among others – hint, hint); however, having those that are currently available is a very positive start.

To get started, create a folder to house the files and then (from within that folder)…

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# dotnet new console –lang VB

Yes, that is a mouthful; however, it works like a charm. To get it to run, you can “jump ahead” and…

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# dotnet run

Most documentation states that you would do a dotnet build before the dotnet run; however, my experience results in dotnet run will detect that a build is needed and automatically do so.

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# nano Project.vb

As I’m using a very trimmed down Debian install (console only); I’m using nano` as the editor. It seems like a relatively decent editor for those new to Linux (as I am – to some degree).

I have some projects in mind where having this environment setup will come in handy; I’ll keep everyone posted as I move forward. If you’d like to ask me any questions, feel free to send them my way and I’ll be happy to reply.

This post is licensed under CC BY 4.0 by the author.