With JetBrains Rider 2026.1.2 on Windows 11, installing and enabling NCrunch 5.21.0.10 causes global Rider instability during project creation and solution loading. Specifically:

Rider cannot expand normal project templates (for example, Console App)
Rider shows“Updating project templates” and then fails with:

“Unable to expand project template”
“Updating project templates failed”


Existing solutions that open normally without NCrunch do not fully finish loading when NCrunch is enabled
NCrunch also reports:

“NCrunch will be available after analysis is complete”


Because analysis never completes, the license key dialog cannot be completed from solution context

NCrunch appears to be interfering with Rider’s project/template and/or project model initialization pipeline globally, not only for a specific solution. NCrunch documents that Rider support exists and that Rider compatibility is tied to supported Rider versions; NCrunch v5.21 specifically adds support for Rider 2026.1. [rider-supp...brains.com], [app.ncrunch.net]

Environment
IDE

JetBrains Rider 2026.1.2
Build: RD-261.24374.190
Built on: 2026-05-19

OS

Windows 11

.NET

Runtime reported by Rider:

.NET Core v10.0.5 x64


Project template target tested:

net10.0


dotnet new console -n TestApp works successfully from terminal, which indicates the .NET SDK and templates are healthy outside Rider+NCrunch integration. NCrunch v5.21 release/download information references current framework/tool support, and the compatibility page lists Rider on Windows as supported while noting support is version-sensitive. [rider-supp...brains.com], [app.ncrunch.net]

NCrunch

Plugin: org.remco.software.ncrunch
Version: 5.21.0.10

Other context

This is a first install of NCrunch in Rider
License key had not yet been entered at the start of testing