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DeploymentDirectory is 'Out' folder using .NET Framework, but build folder using .NET 6

See original GitHub issue

Description

When running a unit test with MSTest under .NET Framework, the TestContext.DeploymentDirectory path is the ‘Out’ folder inside the test run directory, e.g:

C:\Repositories\MySolution\TestResults\Deploy_User yyyy-MM-dd HH_mm_ss\Out

When running the same test under .NET 6, the TestContext.DeploymentDirectory path is the build directory, e.g:

C:\Repositories\MySolution\MyUnitTestProject\bin\Debug\net6.0

I’ve looked around but this change in behavior between Framework & Core doesn’t seem to be documented anywhere. In fact, the documentation for the DeploymentDirectory property says it’s “typically a subdirectory of TestRunDirectory” - which isn’t the case under .NET 6.

I’ve looked at existing issues; #653 seems similar at first but I think that’s actually related to DeploymentItem rather than DeploymentDirectory despite the title - whereas the issue I’m describing is present whether or not DeploymentItem is used.

Is this a bug or intended behavior?

The reason I’m asking is that I have existing tests which are dependent on this directory being isolated for each run.

Steps to reproduce

Create a new unit test project in .NET 6. Add the following unit test and run it.

[TestMethod]
public void TestDeploymentDirectory()
{
    Assert.IsTrue(TestContext.DeploymentDirectory.StartsWith(TestContext.TestRunDirectory));
}

Expected behavior

The test passes, since the DeploymentDirectory is inside the TestRunDirectory. This is the current behavior if you change the target framework to net480.