.NET SDK for Alpaca Markets API

Package	Stable	Pre-release
Alpaca.Markets
Alpaca.Markets.Extensions

.NET Core Usage Example

1. Create a new console application in a new, empty folder by running dotnet new console.
2. Add a reference for Alpaca .NET SDK with dotnet add package Alpaca.Markets.
3. Replace the content of the auto-generated Programm.cs file with this code snippet:

   
   using System;
   using Alpaca.Markets;
   using System.Threading.Tasks;

namespace AlpacaExample { internal static class Program { private const String KEY_ID = "";

    private const String SECRET_KEY = "";

    public static async Task Main()
    {
        var client = Environments.Paper
            .GetAlpacaTradingClient(new SecretKey(KEY_ID, SECRET_KEY));

        var clock = await client.GetClockAsync();

        if (clock != null)
        {
            Console.WriteLine(
                "Timestamp: {0}, NextOpen: {1}, NextClose: {2}",
                clock.TimestampUtc, clock.NextOpenUtc, clock.NextCloseUtc);
        }
    }
}

}

4.  Replace `KEY_ID` and `SECRET_KEY` values with your data from the Alpaca dashboard.
5.  Run the sample application using `dotnet run` command and check the output. You should see information about the current market timestamp and the times that the market will open and close next.

See the [UsageExamples](../../tree/develop/UsageExamples) project for near-to-real-world strategy implementation using this SDK and the [Alpaca.Markets.Tests](https://github.com/OlegRa/Alpaca.Markets.Tests) repository for SDK usage examples. The [Wiki](https://github.com/alpacahq/alpaca-trade-api-csharp/wiki) pages contain a lot of additional information about different aspects of this SDK (environments handling, authentication types, different order placement approaches, streaming client subscriptions handling, etc.).

## Alpaca Data API subscription plans

Alpaca provides 3 different subscription plans for the Data API v2 real-time streaming data: Free, Unlimited, and Business. The first one provides only IEX data and has some subscription limits. Other plans provide full SIP data without data subscription limits. The `IAlpacaDataStreamingClient` interface and its implementation from SDK provide unified access for both streams.

Use the `Environments.Paper.GetAlpacaDataStreamingClient(...)` factory method for creating a client connected to the Free IEX data stream. For the Unlimited and Business SIP data stream use the `Environments.Live.GetAlpacaDataStreamingClient(...)` code. So _Paper_ environment for free data tier and _Live_ for paid subscriptions.

## Mapping between branches and SDK versions

| Branch                                       | Version | Description                                  | Milestone                |
| -------------------------------------------- | ------- | -------------------------------------------- |--------------------------|
| [develop](../../tree/develop)                | 8.x     | Unstable - experimental, can contain bugs    | [SDK 8.x WIP](https://github.com/alpacahq/alpaca-trade-api-csharp/milestone/18) |
| [master](../../tree/develop)                 | 7.x     | LTS - good choice for the new development    | [SDK 7.x LTS](https://github.com/alpacahq/alpaca-trade-api-csharp/milestone/17) |

### Build instructions

1.  Install the latest version of the [.NET 8.0 SDK](https://dotnet.microsoft.com/download) for your OS.
2.  Clone the local version of this repository or your fork (if you want to make changes).
3.  Build the packages using the `dotnet build` command running in the root directory of the cloned repo.

## Contributors

Thanks a lot for all the contributors. See the full list of project supporters in the [CONTRIBUTORS](https://github.com/alpacahq/alpaca-trade-api-csharp/blob/develop/CONTRIBUTORS.md) file.