In this post I look at how to create a simple .NET profiler. But instead of using C++, the profiler uses C# and NativeAOT with the Silhouette library

Andrew Lock's blog focuses on ASP.NET Core development, web APIs, and software architecture. Readers can find tutorials, code samples, and explanations covering topics such as RESTful API design, authentication, and authorization in ASP.NET Core. Additionally, they can learn about dependency injection, middleware, and performance optimization techniques.

.NET Escapades

NativeAOT and the Silhouette library enable building .NET CLR profilers using C# instead of C++. By deriving from base classes like CorProfilerCallbackBase and using the [Profiler] attribute, developers can create native profilers that hook into the CLR's unmanaged profiling APIs. The article demonstrates building a basic profiler that logs assembly loads, showing how Silhouette handles the complex interop boilerplate and exposes profiling events as simple method overrides. The profiler compiles to a self-contained native DLL and attaches via environment variables like CORECLR_ENABLE_PROFILING.

Creating a .NET CLR profiler using C# and NativeAOT with Silhouette