Why Does My C# Console Window Close Instantly, and How Can I Keep It Open?

Troubleshooting the Disappearing C# Console Window

New C# programmers often encounter a frustrating problem: the console window closes instantly after the program finishes. This is especially noticeable when following examples like those found on MSDN. The reason is simple: console applications terminate automatically upon completion.

Understanding the Default Behavior

A console app's lifecycle dictates that it closes its window once execution ends. This is standard behavior.

Keeping the Console Window Open

To prevent the window from closing, you need to add a pause. The easiest way is to use Console.ReadLine() at the end of your Main method. This forces the program to wait for user input before closing.

Debugging Strategies

For debugging, avoid using the debugger (F5) and instead run your application directly using Ctrl F5. This gives you debugging capabilities without the automatic closure.

Alternatively, conditionally include the Console.ReadLine() using a preprocessor directive, making it active only during debugging:

<code class="language-csharp">#if DEBUG
    Console.WriteLine("Press any key to exit...");
    Console.ReadLine();
#endif</code>

To ensure the console remains open even if exceptions occur, use a finally block:

<code class="language-csharp">
#if DEBUG
    try
    {
        // Your code here
    }
    finally
    {
        Console.WriteLine("Press any key to exit...");
        Console.ReadLine();
    }
#endif
```  This guarantees the pause, regardless of errors.</code>

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