regions - Region Count

Overview#

The regions command counts #region directives in C# files. Regions are often considered a code smell as they can hide complexity and make code harder to navigate. This command helps you find files with regions so you can consider refactoring them.

Syntax#

nmbl regions <ProjectFileOrDirectory>

Arguments#

• ProjectFileOrDirectory - Path to a .csproj file or directory containing C# files

Output#

Displays files containing #region directives and their counts, helping you identify files that may benefit from refactoring.

Examples#

Count Regions in a Project#

nmbl regions src/MyProject/MyProject.csproj

Shows all files in the project that contain regions.

Count Regions in a Directory#

nmbl regions src/

Recursively finds and counts regions in all C# files in the directory tree.

Find Files with Many Regions#

nmbl regions src/ | sort -rn

Sort the output to see files with the most regions first (Unix/Linux).

Track Region Reduction#

# Before cleanup
nmbl regions src/ > metrics/regions-before.txt

# After removing regions
nmbl regions src/ > metrics/regions-after.txt

# Compare the results
diff metrics/regions-before.txt metrics/regions-after.txt

Why Regions Are Problematic#

Regions can indicate:

• Files that are too large - If you need regions to organize, the file might be too big
• Multiple responsibilities - Different regions often mean different concerns
• Hidden complexity - Collapsed regions hide code that should be visible

Refactoring Strategy#

When you find files with many regions:

1. Consider splitting the file - Each region might become its own class
2. Use folders instead - Organize by namespace and folder structure
3. Apply design patterns - Replace regions with proper object-oriented design

Examples of Refactoring#

Before (with regions)#

public class OrderService
{
    #region Validation
    // validation methods
    #endregion

    #region Processing
    // processing methods
    #endregion

    #region Notification
    // notification methods
    #endregion
}

After (without regions)#

// Split into three classes
public class OrderValidator { }
public class OrderProcessor { }
public class OrderNotifier { }

public class OrderService
{
    private readonly OrderValidator _validator;
    private readonly OrderProcessor _processor;
    private readonly OrderNotifier _notifier;
}

Related Commands#

• endregions - Remove region directives
• cc - Find complex methods
• cogc - Find hard-to-understand code
• loc - Find large files