The `dotnetCorePackages.sdk_X_Y` is preferred over the old dotnet-sdk as both major and minor version are very important for a dotnet environment. If a given minor version isn't present (or was changed), then this will likely break your ability to build a project.
## dotnetCorePackages.sdk vs dotnetCorePackages.net vs dotnetCorePackages.netcore vs dotnetCorePackages.aspnetcore {#dotnetcorepackages.sdk-vs-dotnetcorepackages.net-vs-dotnetcorepackages.netcore-vs-dotnetcorepackages.aspnetcore}
## dotnetCorePackages.sdk vs dotnetCorePackages.runtime vs dotnetCorePackages.aspnetcore {#dotnetcorepackages.sdk-vs-dotnetcorepackages.runtime-vs-dotnetcorepackages.aspnetcore}
The `dotnetCorePackages.sdk` contains both a runtime and the full sdk of a given version. The `net`, `netcore` and `aspnetcore` packages are meant to serve as minimal runtimes to deploy alongside already built applications. For runtime versions >= .NET 5 `net` is used while `netcore` is used for older .NET Core runtime version.
The `dotnetCorePackages.sdk` contains both a runtime and the full sdk of a given version. The `runtime` and `aspnetcore` packages are meant to serve as minimal runtimes to deploy alongside already built applications.
## Packaging a Dotnet Application {#packaging-a-dotnet-application}