FxCop

What Does FxCop Mean?

FxCop is a programming tool for .NET that allows developers to check that their programs conform to Microsoft .NET Framework Design Guidelines. It is available for free from Microsoft. It works by analyzing object code, as opposed to other tools that simply look at source code. It is available in both CLI and GUI versions.

Techopedia Explains FxCop

FxCop allows developers to check that their .NET managed code assemblies conform to Microsoft's .NET Framework Design Guidelines. FxCop examines code assemblies on a number of criteria, including COM interoperability, design, portability, security, maintainability and reliability.

It is similar to other programming tools such as Lint for C programming, but FxCop is unique in looking at compiled object code instead of just source code using CIL parsing and callgraph analysis. It is part of Microsoft Visual Studio but may also be downloaded for free from Microsoft's website.