NCrunch 5.21.0.10 blocks Rider 2026.1.2 project template expansion and prevents solution load comple

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

Hi, thanks for sharing this issue.

It looks to me like something is exploding during initialisation. Does the NCrunch corner menu allow you to submit a bug report after the failure? If so, can you send one through? The logs will likely indicate the source of the problem.

Another way to investigate, is under Rider, go to Help->Diagnostic Tools->Show Log In Explorer. This should open an explorer window giving access to the Rider logs. There's a very high chance we'll find a big nasty exception in one of them.