Using Package Manager nuget while Offline

Question

_{Monday, February 13, 2017 4:25 PM}

Does Manage Packages for Solution try to access the internet even when no online package source is checked?

I have downloaded approx 50 packages from nuget.org and copied them to a machine which does not have internet access. Then I have created a package source pointing to the folder containing those 50 packages. I simply cannot scroll through the list of packages in the Manage NUGET Packages for Solution left hand window. It takes about one minute for the first four packages to appear. The scroll bar does not respond. Clicking on a package does not display the package in the right hand window, rather the wait cursor continues to display. Note that the ONLY package source selected is the local folder - the nuget.org source is not checked. It feels like package manager is trying to get out to the internet but I don't know where else to tell to stop doing that.

When I do this on a machine connected to the internet, but selecting only a local folder package source with 50 packages, everything works as expected with no wait cursor.

All replies (14)

_{Tuesday, February 14, 2017 6:59 AM}

Hi DreamU,

Welcome to MSDN forum.

As far as I know, it doesn’t need network connection because you have created a package source pointing to the folder containing those 50 packages. In your case, you used two computers to test it, I recommend you could the same computer to check if the issue persists with or without network connection.

Best regards,

Joyce

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_{Tuesday, February 14, 2017 2:51 PM}

Excellent suggestion! I turned off my network adapter on the machine which does not have internet access. Then Manage Packages for Solution worked instantly and flawlessly. Turn my network adapter back on and Manage Packages for Solution goes back to stalling, taking one minute to display first four packages in the window, etc.

Note that Visual Studio is installed on my C: drive, the folder containing the 50 packages is on my C: drive and the solution is also on my C: drive. Thus I can fire up Visual Studio and access the packages without network connection. Of-course, I cannot work that way normally as I have many network drives I need access to. As mentioned before, this is the machine that does not have internet access (for security reasons.)

I have to assume the package manager is attempting to access the internet when it sees a local network connection. Feels like a bug to me since no internet package sources are checked/selected.

_{Wednesday, February 15, 2017 9:18 AM}

Hi,

Thank you for your update.

>>I turned off my network adapter on the machine which does not have internet access. Then Manage Packages for Solution worked instantly and flawlessly. Turn my network adapter back on and Manage Packages for Solution goes back to stalling, taking one minute to display first four packages in the window

Did you invert the situation when with or without internet access?

I will test it on my side and if the issue also exits, I will report it to Microsoft.

Best regards,

Joyce

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_{Wednesday, February 15, 2017 5:49 PM}

Not sure what you mean by: "Did you invert the situation when with or without internet"?

That computer can never have internet access so it can't be turned on or off.

_{Monday, February 20, 2017 4:43 AM}

Hi,

Thank you for your update.

I have test it on my side, the nuget packages appear normally with or without internet connection. Because it is impossible to turn off the internet connection in our office location, so there will be a delay for few days. Thank you for understanding.

In your case, you could put some nuget packages in one package source and the rest of the nuget packages in another packages source.

Best regards,

Joyce

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_{Monday, February 20, 2017 4:35 PM}

I do not understand the two statements: you say nuget packages appear normally with or without an internet connection but then you say it is impossible to turn off your internet connection. So, how can you say that nuget packages appear normally when you are unable to turn off your internet?

To your suggestion I extracted 5 packages and put them in their own source. Then the package manager returns after 50 secs. Hence, there is a 10sec delay for each package (unless I turn off my network adapter.) Thus for 50 packages the delay would be almost 8 minutes - I did not want to wait that long to test it. Further each time I click on a package there is a 10sec delay before it is displayed in the right hand window.

BTW: using VS2015.

_{Tuesday, February 21, 2017 9:15 AM}

Hi DreamU,

Thank you for your update.

I understand that these will make trouble for you. In our office location, we couldn’t turn off the network connection, so I test it with visual studio 2015 with update 3 on my computer after work and everything works well in my computer.

Please make sure it is the latest version.

Or, could you please share some nuget packages you installed on your pc and I will test it again?

Best regards,

Joyce

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_{Tuesday, February 21, 2017 10:48 PM}

I installed nuget.VisualStudio 3.5.0 but it made no difference to the sluggish performance. 

Here are two images showing the 50 packages in the package source folder. Note that none of these are actually installed (yet).

_{Tuesday, February 21, 2017 10:59 PM}

I just noticed that nuget is reporting a missing assembly:  Microsoft.Windows.Design.Interaction Version 4.3.1.0. Don't know if this happened just since I upgraded to 3.5.0 or not, or whether this anything to do with the delay. Where would I get that missing assembly?

_{Thursday, February 23, 2017 8:44 AM}

Hi DreamU,

Thank you for your update.

I download 10+ nuget packages according to your screenshots, and then I turn off my network connection, everything works well.

So I am sure that nuget package manager doesn't attempt to access the internet.

Best regards,

Joyce

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_{Thursday, February 23, 2017 9:16 AM}

Hi DreamU,

Go the directory to check if the assembly is exits, if it is missing, you could download it from the internet or copy from the other pc.

Best regards,

Joyce

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_{Thursday, February 23, 2017 8:12 PM}

I can now answer my original question: 'Does Manage Packages for Solution try to access the internet even when no online package source is checked?' with a definite 'Yes'. I used Fiddler to look at outgoing http:// requests and here is the URL:

http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=288859

This is a simple 60*60 pixel (approx)  purple graphic with the letters '.Net' inside it. The Nuget Package Manager form displays this graphic to the left of .Net packages. Joyce, if you know who to contact, please ask the developer to embed this graphic in a package or .dll - there is no reason to go off to the internet to get it.

As to why your computer continued to work while not on the internet that has to do with network topology. I don't know exactly how you turned off internet access but your process may have been similar to me turning off my network adapter - Visual Studio knows not to try an internet request. But our local intranet does have a DNS server which only serves up local pages obviously. Visual Studio must have 'seen' the DNS and went out expecting that was an internet access point which there is not. Now, Windows itself is smarter. When I look at my network configuration Windows clearly shows the red 'X' and says 'no internet connection'. Apparently Visual Studio is not as smart and thinks that there is an internet connection.

My solution is to have a Network Admin go into the intranet DNS server and enter *.microsoft.com so that it can be resolved immediately (to nothing) without waiting for a timeout. I initially tried just putting go.microsoft.com in my hosts file as 127.0.0.1 but Microsoft has setup a policy that any *.microsoft.com addresses in the hosts file are ignored!

P.S. The Microsoft.Windows.Design.Interaction is in the exact folder you show above. Hence. not sure why VS 2015 should report it as missing but don't think that is germaine to this issue now.

_{Friday, February 24, 2017 3:59 PM}

Hi DreamU,

Thank you for your update.

Glad to know that you have got the solution about the issue and thank you for sharing it here.

>>The Nuget Package Manager form displays this graphic to the left of .Net packages. Joyce, if you know who to contact, please ask the developer to embed this graphic in a package or .dll - there is no reason to go off to the internet to get it.

I recommend you could post your idea in here:https://visualstudio.uservoice.com/forums/121579-visual-studio-ide

Best regards,

Joyce

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_{Friday, November 16, 2018 8:44 PM}

I know this is a somewhat old thread, but what worked for me was to turn off nuget.org as a source under package sources. Once I did that it quit trying to connect to the internet and the packages installed successfully. Hopefully this helps anyone who stumbles on this thread.