wixproj/msbuild program creating automatically unwanted folder in the solution tree - msbuild

I want to remove folder from my deployment folder.
I'm using removedir task.
<ItemGroup>
<FolderToExcludefromDeploymentFolder Include="$(SourceDir)\Support" />
</ItemGroup>
<Target Name="BeforeBuild" BeforeTargets="Build">
<RemoveDir Condition="Exists('$(sourceDir)\Support')" Directories="#(FolderToExcludefromDeploymentFolder)" />
</Target>
In that case i get a folder in the solution tree.
In case of trying to delete the folder i get this error and the itemgroup element will automatically will be removed.
How can i fix this?

The only way I could fix this issue is to move all problematic properties to BeforeBuild target and set them as DefineConstants.
<Target Name="BeforeBuild">
<PropertyGroup>
<SourceDir>$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)..\..\..\Example</SourceDi>
<FolderToExclude>$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)..\..\..\Example\Support</FolderToExclude>
<DefineConstants>$(DefineConstants);SourceDir=$(SourceDir);FolderToExclude=$(FolderToExclude)</DefineConstants>
</PropertyGroup>
<RemoveDir Condition="Exists('$(sourceDir)\Support')" Directories="#(FolderToExclude)" />
</Target>
This solution worked for me but didn't find the reason behind this.

Related

Remove Files and Folders Copied From AfterBuild Target

I would like to avoid hard coding the dll and folder names in the AfterClean target, is there a dynamic way to do this? Ideally it would only delete the files and folders created by the Copy in the AfterBuild target.
I tried to simplify this by changing the DestinationFolder to include a subdirectory in the OutputPath. The AfterClean target would only have to remove that subdirectory at this point. However, some of the library's DLLImport paths don't take that subdirectory into consideration which results in a crash.
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Project ToolsVersion="4.0" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
<Target Name="AfterBuild">
<ItemGroup>
<NativeLibs Include="$(MSBuildThisFileDirectory)..\lib\native\**\*.*" />
</ItemGroup>
<Copy SourceFiles="#(NativeLibs)" DestinationFolder="$(OutputPath)\%(RecursiveDir)" />
</Target>
<Target Name="AfterClean">
<Delete Files="$(OutputPath)\LumiAPI.dll" />
<Delete Files="$(OutputPath)\LumiCore.dll" />
<Delete Files="$(OutputPath)\LumiInOpAPI.dll" />
<RemoveDir Directories="$(OutputPath)\SPM" />
<RemoveDir Directories="$(OutputPath)\plugin" />
</Target>
</Project>
Project Structure:
src
ConsumingProject
ConsumingProject.csproj
ConsumingProject.sln
packages
my-project.5.7.0.12
build
lib
native
plugin
VenusDvc.dll
SPM
sSPM_1.bin
LumiAPI.dll
LumiCore.dll
LumiInOpAPI.dll
net45
my-project.5.7.0.12.nupkg
Essentially I want to delete all the files and folders that were copied from the native folder to the output of the project (ie LumiAPI.dll, LumiCore.dll, SPM (folder), eSPM_1.bin, etc). However I want it to be generic enough so that if I add another folder to the native directory, it will delete those folders/files as well.
Use a seperate target which lists input and output files, then use that list in both other targets. Note this uses the DestinationFiles attribute from the Copy task instead of DestinationFolders. And it might print some messages about non-existing directories being passed to RemoveDir because the top directory gets removed already before child directories.
update since you don't want to remove the root output directory as it still has files, figured applying the 'only remove output directory if it's empty' principle for any destination directory is probably the safest way to go. Credits go to the answer here.
<Target Name="GetMyOutputFiles">
<ItemGroup>
<NativeLibs Include="$(MSBuildThisFileDirectory)..\lib\native\**\*.*" />
<!--Now add some metadata: output dir and output file-->
<NativeLibs>
<DestinationDir>$(OutputPath)\%(RecursiveDir)</DestinationDir>
<Destination>$(OutputPath)\%(RecursiveDir)%(FileName)%(Extension)</Destination>
</NativeLibs>
</ItemGroup>
</Target>
<Target Name="AfterBuild" DependsOnTargets="GetMyOutputFiles">
<!--Copy one-to-one-->
<Copy SourceFiles="#(NativeLibs)" DestinationFiles="#(NativeLibs->'%(Destination)')" />
</Target>
<Target Name="AfterClean" DependsOnTargets="GetMyOutputFiles">
<Delete Files="#(NativeLibs->'%(Destination)')" />
<!--Find number of files left in each destination directory-->
<ItemGroup>
<NativeLibs>
<NumFiles>0</NumFiles>
<!--Condition is to avoid errors when e.g. running this target multiple times-->
<NumFiles Condition="Exists(%(DestinationDir))">$([System.IO.Directory]::GetFiles("%(DestinationDir)", "*", System.IO.SearchOption.AllDirectories).get_Length())</NumFiles>
</NativeLibs>
</ItemGroup>
<!--Only remove empty directories, use 'Distinct' to skip duplicate directories-->
<RemoveDir Directories="#(NativeLibs->'%(DestinationDir)'->Distinct())" Condition="%(NumFiles)=='0'" />
</Target>

Deleting files on a remote machine (shared folder) using msbuild

I want to delete files kept in a shared folder on a remote machine using msbuild. I have googled but couldn't get a proper solution. Please help.
Thank you
To answer my own question: Following code is working.
<ItemGroup>
<ServiceLocation Include="\\ServerName\FolderName\*.*"></ServiceLocation>
</ItemGroup>
<Target Name="Deploy">
<Delete Files="#(ServiceLocation)" />
</Target>
try with this one,
<Target Name="SomeTarget">
<ItemGroup>
<FilesToDelete Include="Path\To\Obj\**\*"/>
</ItemGroup>
<Delete Files="#(FilesToDelete)" />
</Target>

Additional paths in msbuild script

How to specify additional assembly reference paths for the MSBuild tasks?
I have following script so far, but can't figure out how to specify additional search paths.
<ItemGroup>
<ProjectsToBuild Include="..\Main\Main.sln" />
</ItemGroup>
<!-- The follwing paths should be added to reference search paths for the build tasks -->
<ItemGroup>
<MyAddRefPath Include="$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)\..\..\Build\Lib1" />
<MyAddRefPath Include="$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)\..\..\Build\Lib2" />
</ItemGroup>
<MSBuild
Projects="#(ProjectsToBuild)"
Properties="Configuration=Debug;OutputPath=$(BuildOutputPath)">
</MSBuild>
UPDATE:
Please show one complete working script which invokes original project, such as an SLN with multiple additional reference paths.
No suggestions on how to improve the project structure please.
I know how to build a good structure, but now it's the task of building an existing piece of crap.
I have finaly figured out how to do it:
<Project xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
<ItemGroup>
<ProjectsToBuild Include="ConsoleApplication1\ConsoleApplication1.csproj" />
</ItemGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<AdditionalReferencePaths Include="..\Build\ClassLibrary1" />
<AdditionalReferencePaths Include="..\Build\ClassLibrary2" />
</ItemGroup>
<PropertyGroup>
<BuildOutputPath>..\Build\ConsoleApplication1</BuildOutputPath>
</PropertyGroup>
<Target Name="MainBuild">
<PropertyGroup>
<AdditionalReferencePathsProp>#(AdditionalReferencePaths)</AdditionalReferencePathsProp>
</PropertyGroup>
<MSBuild
Projects="ConsoleApplication1\ConsoleApplication1.csproj"
Properties="ReferencePath=$(AdditionalReferencePathsProp);OutputPath=$(BuildOutputPath)"
>
</MSBuild>
</Target>
The property you want to modify is AssemblySearchPaths. See the ResolveAssemblyReference task more information.
<Target Name="AddToSearchPaths">
<CreateProperty Value="x:\path\to\assemblies;$(AssemblySearchPaths)">
<Output PropertyName="AssemblySearchPaths" TaskParameter="Value" />
</CreateProperty>
</Target>
Making use of item groups, as in your example, it would look like:
<Target Name="AddToSearchPaths">
<CreateProperty Value="#(MyAddRefPath);$(AssemblySearchPaths)">
<Output PropertyName="AssemblySearchPaths" TaskParameter="Value" />
</CreateProperty>
</Target>
Looking in %WINDIR%\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\Microsoft.Common.targets, you can see that the ResolveAssemblyReference Task is executed as part of the ResolveAssemblyReferences target. Thus, you want the newly added target to modify the AssemblySearchPaths property before ResolveAssemblyReferences is executed.
You've stated that you want to be able to modify the assembly search paths without modifying the project files directly. In order to accomplish that requirement you need to set an environment variable that will override the AssemblySearchPaths. With this technique you will need to provide every assembly reference path used by all the projects in the solutions. (Modifying the projects or copies of the projects would be easier. See final comments.)
One technique is to create a batch file that runs your script at sets the environment variable:
set AssemblySearchPaths="C:\Tacos;C:\Burritos;C:\Chalupas"
msbuild whatever.msbuild
Another way is to define a PropertyGroup in your custom msbuild file (otherwise known as the "hook" needed to make this work):
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Project ToolsVersion="4.0" DefaultTargets="Build" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
<ItemGroup>
<ProjectsToBuild Include="..\Main\Main.sln" />
</ItemGroup>
<PropertyGroup>
<AssemblySearchPaths>$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)\..\..\Build\Lib1;$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)\..\..\Build\Lib2</AssemblySearchPaths>
</PropertyGroup>
<Target Name="Build">
<MSBuild Projects="#(ProjectsToBuild)" Properties="AssemblySearchPaths=$(AssemblySearchPaths);Configuration=Debug;OutputPath=$(OutputPath)" />
</Target>
</Project>
Now if it were me, and for whatever unexplained reason I couldn't modify the project files to include the updated references that I am going to build with, I would make copies of the project files, load them into the IDE, and correct the references in my copies. Synching the projects becomes a simple diff/merge operation which is automatic with modern tools like mercurial (heck I'm sure clearcase could manage it too).
...and remember that you don't need to use a target for this, you can use project-scoped properties or items, as...
<ItemGroup>
<MyAddRefPath Include="$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)\..\..\Build\Lib1" />
<MyAddRefPath Include="$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)\..\..\Build\Lib2" />
</ItemGroup>
<PropertyGroup>
<MyAddRefPath>$(MSBuildProjectDirectory)\..\..\Build\Lib3</MyAddRefPath>
<!-- add in the property path -->
<AssemblySearchPaths>$(MyAddRefPath);$(AssemblySearchPaths)</AssemblySearchPaths>
<!-- add in the item paths -->
<AssemblySearchPaths>#(MyAddRefPath);$(AssemblySearchPaths)</AssemblySearchPaths>
</PropertyGroup>
...and if you do need to do this in a target to pick up paths from a dynamically populated item group, use inline properties, not the CreateProperty task (if you are not stuck in v2.0)
<Target Name="AddToSearchPaths">
<PropertyGroup>
<!-- add in the item paths -->
<AssemblySearchPaths>#(MyDynamicAddRefPath);$(AssemblySearchPaths)</AssemblySearchPaths>
</PropertyGroup>
</Target>

verify the existence of a folder using the msbuild extension pack?

How can I dependably verify the existence of a folder using an msbuild extension pack task?
How could i do it without throwing an error and stopping the build?
Could you use the Exists condition on a target?
This will execute the OnlyIfExists target only if there is a directory or file called Testing in the same directory as the msbuild file.
<ItemGroup>
<TestPath Include="Testing" />
</ItemGroup>
<Target Name="OnlyIfExists" Condition="Exists(#(TestPath))">
<Message Text="This ran!" Importance="high" />
</Target>
There is no need to use the extension pack, MSBuild can handle this just fine. You need to consider whether this is a folder that might be created or deleted as part of the build. If it is, then you want to be sure to use a dynamic item group declared within a target (in the case of checking more than one folder) or you can use a path if just checking one. This example shows both:
<Target Name="MyTarget">
<!-- single folder with property -->
<PropertyGroup>
<_CheckOne>./Folder1</_CheckOne>
<_CheckOneExistsOrNot
Condition="Exists('$(_CheckOne)')">exists</_CheckOneExistsOrNot>
<_CheckOneExistsOrNot
Condition="!Exists('$(_CheckOne)')">doesn't exist</_CheckOneExistsOrNot>
</PropertyGroup>
<Message
Text="The folder $(_CheckOne) $(_CheckOneExistsOrNot)"
/>
<!-- multiple folders with items -->
<ItemGroup>
<_CheckMultiple Include="./Folder2" />
<_CheckMultiple Include="./Folder3" />
</ItemGroup>
<Message
Condition="Exists('%(_CheckMultiple.Identity)')"
Text="The folder %(_CheckMultiple.Identity) exists"
/>
<Message
Condition="!Exists('%(_CheckMultiple.Identity)')"
Text="The folder %(_CheckMultiple.Identity) does not exist"
/>
</Target>

MSBuild - how to copy files that may or may not exist?

I have a situation where I need to copy a few specific files in a MSBuild script, but they may or may not exist. If they don't exist it's fine, I don't need them then. But the standard <copy> task throws an error if it cannot find each and every item in the list...
Use the Exists condition on Copy task.
<CreateItem Include="*.xml">
<Output ItemName="ItemsThatNeedToBeCopied" TaskParameter="Include"/>
</CreateItem>
<Copy SourceFiles="#(ItemsThatNeedToBeCopied)"
DestinationFolder="$(OutputDir)"
Condition="Exists('%(RootDir)%(Directory)%(Filename)%(Extension)')"/>
The easiest would be to use the ContinueOnError flag http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/7z253716.aspx
<Project xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
<ItemGroup>
<MySourceFiles Include="a.cs;b.cs;c.cs"/>
</ItemGroup>
<Target Name="CopyFiles">
<Copy
SourceFiles="#(MySourceFiles)"
DestinationFolder="c:\MyProject\Destination"
ContinueOnError="true"
/>
</Target>
</Project>
But if something else is wrong you will not notice it. So the condition exist from madgnome's answer would be better.
It looks like you can mark MySourceFiles as SkipUnchangedFiles="true" and it won't copy the files if they already exist.