I have been attempting to use the zip task of msbuild in a project I am working on at the moment.
My project file looks something like this:
<PropertyGroup> <MSBuildCommunityTasksPath>$(SolutionDir)\.build</MSBuildCommunityTasksPath> </PropertyGroup>
<Import Project="$(MSBuildCommunityTasksPath)\MSBuild.Community.Tasks.Targets" />
<ItemGroup>
<FileToZip include="C:\FilePath"></FilesToZip>
<FileToZip include="C:\FilePath"></FilesToZip>
</ItemGroup>
<Target Name="BeforeBuild">
<PropertyGroup>
<ReleasePath>\releasepath</ReleasePath>
<Zip Files="#(FilesToZip)" WorkingDirectory="$(ReleasePath)" ZipFileName="HTMLeditor.html" ZipLevel="9" />
</Target>
However, the zip file updates but does not contain the files specified in the item group FilesToZip. I cannot figure out why they aren't being recognised! I have double checked file paths and they are correct. Any ideas?
I think you want to do something like this:
<ItemGroup>
<FileToZip include="C:\FilePath;C:\FilePath"/>
</ItemGroup>
As I mentioned in my comment, simply creating a variable (FileToZip) and repeating it twice with different values does not give you an array that contains both of the values. You end up with only the last value (and not an array at all). Your include attribute is a selector which is used to build the array and it can contain multiple values, wildcards and other patterns which are used to build out that array for you.
Here's a link to MSDN that gives you more information on how to use the Include attribute: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms171454.aspx
I ditched the ItemGroup in the end, and went with another way of doing it.
<Target Name="Zip">
<CreateItem Include="FilesToInclude" >
<Output ItemName="ZipFiles" TaskParameter="Include"/>
<Zip ZipFileName="ZipFile.zip" WorkingDirectory="FolderToWriteZipTo" Files="#(ZipFiles)" />
</Target>
This method seemed to be easier and wasn't adding files to the root of the file.
Thanks for the help though guys.
Related
I have an ItemGroup declared as follows:
<ItemGroup>
<MyCustomProjectType Include="..\path_to_my_project">
<Name>MyProjectName</Name>
</MyCustomProjectType>
</ItemGroup>
This is a custom project type that I want to perform some specific manipulations on.
Later I have a Target (example only but it communicates what I am after):
<Target Name="MyTarget">
<ItemGroup>
<CustomProjectReferenceFiles
KeepMetadata="Name"
Include="#(MyCustomProjectType->'%(Identity)\%(Name)\**\*')"
Exclude="**\*.x;**\*.y"
/>
</ItemGroup>
<Message Text="#(CustomProjectReferenceFiles)" />
</Target>
So I have a Target based ItemGroup where I am attempting, using a transform, to create a new Include. This does run, but it appears the Include is literally set to:
..\path_to_my_project\MyProjectName\**\*
AKA that glob/wildcards are not expanded.
I'm pretty new to MSBuild so maybe I am missing something in my search of the documentation. One solution I thought of here would be just just create a new Custom Task that handles pulling out the files I need and setting that Output on an intermediate Target.
I also found this SO question:
https://stackoverflow.com/a/3398872/1060314
Which brings up the point about CreateItem being deprecated which leaves me with not knowing what the alternatives are.
The easiest way is to use an intermediate property so that the actual text is used and not the escaped transformed items:
<PropertyGroup>
<_CustomProjectReferenceFileIncludes>#(MyCustomProjectType->'%(Identity)\%(Name)\**\*')</_CustomProjectReferenceFileIncludes>
</PropertyGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<CustomProjectReferenceFiles
KeepMetadata="Name"
Include="$(_CustomProjectReferenceFileIncludes)"
Exclude="**\*.x;**\*.y"
/>
</ItemGroup>
I'm trying to create a reusable Target in msbuild, following the basic model outlined in How to invoke the same msbuild target twice?
I'm stuck trying to pass a property that I want interpreted as a list. I haven't found an example online that deals with this situation. As I understand it, the problem is that Properties is already treated as a list item, so it doesn't like having a list item passed in as well. Is there a way to get msbuild to pack and unpack the list correctly here?
Msbuild is complaining with:
error MSB4012: The expression "FilesToZip=#(Scripts)" cannot be used in this context. Item lists cannot be concatenated with other strings where an item list is expected. Use a semicolon to separate multiple item lists.
Here's an example caller:
<Target Name="BuildMigrationZip">
<MSBuild Projects="BuildZip.msbuild"
Targets="BuildZip"
Properties="FilesToZip=#(Scripts);OutputZipFile=$(MigrationPackageFilePath);OutputFolder=$(MigrationPackagePath);Flatten=true"/>
<Message Text="Created database migration zip: $(MigrationPackageFilePath)" Importance="high"/>
</Target>
And the base target:
<Target Name="BuildZip">
<MakeDir Directories="$(OutputFolder)"/>
<Zip Files="#(FilesToZip)"
ZipFileName="$(OutputZipFile)"
Flatten="$(Flatten)"
ParallelCompression="false" />
</Target>
I'm basically at the point of just going back to cut and paste for these, although I want to package up a number of zips here.
UPDATE: The same issue applies to setting Inputs on the reusable target. My question up to this point addresses the raw functionality, but it would be nice to keep dependencies working. So for example:
<Target Name="BuildZip"
Inputs="#(FilesToZip)"
Outputs="$(OutputZipFile)">
<MakeDir Directories="$(OutputFolder)"/>
<Zip Files="#(FilesToZip)"
ZipFileName="$(OutputZipFile)"
Flatten="$(Flatten)"
ParallelCompression="false" />
</Target>
They key is to pass the list around as a property. So when your Scripts list is defined as
<ItemGroup>
<Scripts Include="A"/>
<Scripts Include="B"/>
<Scripts Include="C"/>
</ItemGroup>
then you first convert it into a property (which just makes semicolon seperated items, but msbuild knows how to pass this via the Properties of the MSBuild target) then pass it to the target:
<Target Name="BuildMigrationZip">
<PropertyGroup>
<ScriptsProperty>#(Scripts)</ScriptsProperty>
</PropertyGroup>
<MSBuild Projects="$(MSBuildThisFile)" Targets="BuildZip"
Properties="FilesToZip=$(ScriptsProperty)" />
</Target>
(note I'm using $(MSBuildThisFile) here: you don't necessarily need to create seperate build files for every single target, in fact for small targets like yours it's much more convenient to put it in the same file)
Then in your destination target you turn the property into a list again:
<Target Name="BuildZip">
<ItemGroup>
<FilesToZipList Include="$(FilesToZip)"/>
</ItemGroup>
<Message Text="BuildZip: #(FilesToZipList)" />
</Target>
Output:
BuildZip: A;B;C
Update
When working with Inputs, you cannot pass #(FilesToZip) since that expands to nothing because is not a list: it's a property - which happens to be a number of semicolon-seperated strings. And as such, it is usable for Inputs you just have to expand it as the property it is i.e. $(FilesToZip):
<Target Name="BuildZip"
Inputs="$(FilesToZip)"
Outputs="$(OutputZipFile)">
...
</Target>
Output of second run:
BuildZip:
Skipping target "BuildZip" because all output files are up-to-date with respect to the input files.
I am trying to modify property value depending on certain condition in another file.
For ex.
I have one file that calls target file.
<Import Project="sample.vcxproj"/>
<PropertyGroup>
<Gender>Boy</Gender>
<Search>UNIQUE_NAME</Search>
</PropertyGroup>
<Target Name="Build">
<callTarget Targets="SetName"/>
<Message Text="$(Person)"/>
</Target>
I have one file that includes item group to decide and target that modifies
<ItemGroup>
<Name Include="UNIQUE_NAME">
<Boy>DAVID</Boy>
<Girl>REBECCA</Girl>
</NAME>
</ItemGroup>
<Target Name="SetName">
<PropertyGroup Condition="'$(Search)'=='#(Name)'">
<Person>#(Name->'%($(Gender))')</Person>
</PropertyGroup>
</target>
But when I print 'Person' I get empty string. And I checked that 'SetName' is called and correct name is set.
What am I missing here?
This has to do with the accessibility of MSBuild properties, depending on whether you are using DependsOnTargets or CallTarget. When using DependsOnTargets you will have greater access to properties. That is why your example works when using that method.
There is an existing stackoverflow article that speaks to this issue.
It works fine using 'DependsOnTarget' attrib instead of callTarget task
This seems like it should be simple but I can't work it out from the reference and my google-fu is apparently weak.
I just want to specify the file names and base folder separately in the build file...
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Project DefaultTargets="Build" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
<PropertyGroup>
<TestFilesWithFolder>
B:\Root\Test1.*;
B:\Root\Test2.*
</TestFilesWithFolder>
<TestFiles>Test1.*;Test2.*</TestFiles>
<TestFileRoot>B:\Root</TestFileRoot>
</PropertyGroup>
<Target Name="Build">
<ItemGroup>
<TestFilesGroupWithFolder Include="$(TestFilesWithFolder)" />
<TestFilesGroup Include="$(TestFileRoot)\$(TestFiles)" />
</ItemGroup>
<Warning Text="Source files with folder: #(TestFilesGroupWithFolder)" />
<Warning Text="Source files: #(TestFilesGroup)" />
</Target>
</Project>
When I run this, the first warning shows both files as expected, but the second warning only shows the first file (since the straight string concat put the folder name on the first but not second).
How would I get the ItemGroup "TestFilesGroup" to include both the files given the "TestFiles" and "TestFileRoot" properties?
It is possible to convert a semicolon delimited list of things into an item, which would make this possible, except that the items in your property contain wildcards, so if you want to have MSBuild treat them as items in a list, at the moment MSBuild first sees it the path must be valid. There may be a way to do that but I can't think of one. In other words...
<ItemGroup>
<TestFiles Include="$(TestFiles)" />
</ItemGroup>
...only works if $(TestFiles) contains a delimited list of either things with no wildcards, or qualified paths that actually exist.
Further, MSBuild can't compose a path with a wildcard inside the Include attribute and evaluate it at the same time, so you need a trick to first compose the full path separately, then feed it into the Include attribute. The following will work, but it requires changing your delimited property into a set of items. It batches a dependent target on this item list, with each batched target execution calculating a meta value for one item, which is stored off in a new meta value. When the original target executes, it is able to use that meta value in a subsequent Include.
<PropertyGroup>
<TestFilesWithFolder>
D:\Code\Test1.*;
D:\Code\Test2.*
</TestFilesWithFolder>
<TestFileRoot>D:\Code</TestFileRoot>
</PropertyGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<TestFilePattern Include="TestFilePattern">
<Pattern>Test1.*</Pattern>
</TestFilePattern>
<TestFilePattern Include="TestFilePattern">
<Pattern>Test2.*</Pattern>
</TestFilePattern>
</ItemGroup>
<Target Name="Compose" Outputs="%(TestFilePattern.Pattern)">
<ItemGroup>
<TestFilePattern Include="TestFilePattern">
<ComposedPath>#(TestFilePattern->'$(TestFileRoot)\%(Pattern)')</ComposedPath>
</TestFilePattern>
</ItemGroup>
</Target>
<Target Name="Build" DependsOnTargets="Compose">
<ItemGroup>
<TestFilesGroupWithFolder Include="$(TestFilesWithFolder)" />
</ItemGroup>
<Warning Text="Source files with folder: #(TestFilesGroupWithFolder)" />
<ItemGroup>
<ComposedTestFiles Include="%(TestFilePattern.ComposedPath)" />
</ItemGroup>
<Warning Text="Source files: #(ComposedTestFiles)" />
</Target>
Which produces the following output:
(Build target) ->
d:\Code\My.proj(80,5): warning : Source files with folder:
D:\Code\Test1.txt;D:\Code\Test2.txt
d:\Code\My.proj(84,5): warning : Source files:
D:\Code\Test1.txt;D:\Code\Test2.txt
I have list of items like this:
<ItemGroup>
<ToCompile Include="clojure\core.clj;clojure\set.clj;clojure\zip.clj;clojure\test\junit.clj;"/>
</ItemGroup>
And I want to transform that to a list of items like this:
clojure.core clojure.set clojure.zip clojure.test.junit
Is there a way to do this with MSBuild transforms? I tried but I can only get at the file name; the extension and the root path, and I can change the separator. But not the path separators.
If not, any other solution that avoids using custom tasks is appreciated.
We can do it easily with fewer cheese:
<Message
Text="$([System.String]::Copy('%(ToCompile.Identity)').Replace('.clj','').Replace('\','.'))"/>
This is a bit cheesy, but it works in MSBuild 4.0+.
<Target Name="Namespaces">
<PropertyGroup>
<Cheesy>#(ToCompile -> '%(relativedir)%(filename)', ' ')</Cheesy>
</PropertyGroup>
<Message Text="$(Cheesy.Replace(`\`, `.`))" />
</Target>