80

Does anyone know how to insert a line break into a summary comment in order for the line break to be reflected in Intellisense documentation?

To clarify, assume code documentation..

/// <summary>
/// Some text documentation
///  - a line break - 
/// Some more documentation
/// </summary>
public void SomeMethod() { }

So when using this method Intellisense offers a summary for the method formatted like this:

Some text documentation

Some more documentation

(Note - the 'para' tag doesn't create empty line breaks - I've tried it!)

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2
  • A "para" is half answer (it's actually double break), beginning and end of line gets truncated. To enforce break a line at the beginning and the end of summary add following "<para>&#129;</para>" (&#129; character get omitted - actually non visible and zero space). Commented Mar 17, 2018 at 9:14
  • 2
    As of Visual Studio 2019, you can add line breaks using <br/> in xml documentation. Refer the answer here. Commented Sep 18, 2019 at 14:32

5 Answers 5

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77

Try using this.

/// <summary>
/// <para>Paragraph 1.</para>
/// <para>Paragraph 2.</para>
/// </summary>

But I don't think you can have an actual empty line. Empty para tag gets ignored.

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6 Comments

I thought you just wanted a line break. I don't think you can have an actual empty line.
how does MS do it with exceptions in methods for example?
Exceptions are separate tags in the XML. It's not a blank line in the summary, it's just rendering different sections of the documentation
A slightly nicer version: /// <summary> /// <para>Paragraph 1.</para> /// <para>Paragraph 2.</para> /// </summary>
Basically replace "<para>XYZ</para>" by "XYZ<para/>"
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47

Try this:

/// <summary>
/// <para> [Non-Breaking Space] </para>
/// </summary>

[Non-Breaking Space] is obtained using Alt+255 (using the Numpad).

It will show up as an empty new line. I know this is old, but it worked for me today.

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9 Comments

+1: I finally have a place to write //Magic, do not touch.
Just something I want to say: WOW!
That maybe the most awesome and yet horrible thing to happen simultaneously at so many of the same levels that I have ever seen. For adding empty lines, I'll use Al Erickson's suggestion of &#160; but for doing indenting, this is way nicer.
Alt + 0173 looks more like magic. It's the invisible character and works, too.
how to use Alt+255 in VS 2015? when i try Alt+255 in VS 2015 nothing happens
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28 
/// <summary><br />
/// <para>To treat comment line like a DIV tag, surround them with PARA tags.</para><br />
/// <para>To add a break with whitespace, add the following line:</para><br />
/// <para>&#160;</para><br />
/// </summary>
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7 Comments

<br /> alone worked for me. Using the <para> tags created too much padding which pushed the rest of my comments beyond the overflow.
<para>&#160;</para> was the thing I was looking for, tnx :)
<br /> doesn't work in VS 2017.
<br/> DOES work in VS 2019.
should be accepted answer still works in vs 2022 despite its pretty old html tag
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7

Your only hope is probably something cludgy like this:

/// <summary>
/// <para>line one</para>
/// <para>_</para>
/// <para>line two</para>
/// </summary>
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1 Comment

cludgy yes, but thats as close as ive got so far
-3

Well, it is Xml. Maybe &#10;&#13;

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1 Comment

nope that doesn't do it either ...

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