MSBuild Task Reference

Tasks provide the code that runs during the build process. The tasks in the following list are included with MSBuild. When Visual C++ is installed, additional tasks are available that are used to build Visual C++ projects. For more information, see MSBuild Tasks Specific to Visual C++.

In addition to the parameters listed in the topics in this section, each task also has the following parameters:

Parameter	Description
Condition	Optional String parameter. A Boolean expression that the MSBuild engine uses to determine whether this task will be executed. For information about the conditions that are supported by MSBuild, see MSBuild Conditions.
ContinueOnError	Optional parameter. Can contain one of the following values: WarnAndContinue or true. When a task fails, subsequent tasks in the Target element and the build continue to execute, and all errors from the task are treated as warnings. ErrorAndContinue. When a task fails, subsequent tasks in the Target element and the build continue to execute, and all errors from the task are treated as errors. ErrorAndStop or false (default). When a task fails, the remaining tasks in the Target element and the build aren't executed, and the entire Target element and the build is considered to have failed. Versions of the .NET Framework before 4.5 supported only the true and false values. For more information, see How to: Ignore Errors in Tasks.

In This Section

• Task Base Class
  Adds several parameters to the tasks that derive from the Task class.

• TaskExtension Base Class
  Adds several parameters to the tasks that derive from the TaskExtension class.

• ToolTaskExtension Base Class
  Adds several parameters to the tasks that derive from the ToolTaskExtension class.

• AL (Assembly Linker) Task
  Creates an assembly with a manifest from one or more files that are either modules or resource files.

• AspNetCompiler Task
  Wraps aspnet_compiler.exe, a utility to precompile ASP.NET applications.

• AssignCulture Task
  Assigns culture identifiers to items.

• AssignProjectConfiguration Task
  Accepts a list of configuration strings and assigns them to specified projects.

• AssignTargetPath Task
  Accepts a list of files and adds <TargetPath> attributes if they are not already specified.

• CallTarget Task
  Invokes a target in the project file.

• CombinePath Task
  Combines the specified paths into a single path.

• ConvertToAbsolutePath Task
  Converts a relative path or reference into an absolute path.

• Copy Task
  Copies files to a new location.

• CreateCSharpManifestResourceName Task
  Creates a Visual C#-style manifest name from a given .resx file name or other resource.

• CreateItem Task
  Populates item collections from the input items, allowing items to be copied from one list to another.

• CreateProperty Task
  Populates properties from the input values, allowing values to be copied from one property or string to another.

• CreateVisualBasicManifestResourceName Task
  Creates a Visual Basic-style manifest name from a given .resx file name or other resource.

• Csc Task
  Invokes the Visual C# compiler to produce executables, dynamic-link libraries, or code modules.

• Delete Task
  Deletes the specified files.

• Error Task
  Stops a build and logs an error based on an evaluated conditional statement.

• Exec Task
  Runs the specified program or command with the specified arguments.

• FindAppConfigFile Task
  Finds the app.config file, if any, in the provided lists.

• FindInList Task
  Finds an item in a specified list that has the matching itemspec.

• FindUnderPath Task
  Determines which items in the specified item collection exist in the specified folder and all of its subfolders.

• FormatUrl Task
  Converts a URL to a correct URL format.

• FormatVersion Task
  Appends the revision number to the version number.

• GenerateApplicationManifest Task
  Generates a ClickOnce application manifest or a native manifest.

• GenerateBootstrapper Task
  Provides an automated way to detect, download, and install an application and its prerequisites.

• GenerateDeploymentManifest Task
  Generates a ClickOnce deployment manifest.

• GenerateResource Task
  Converts .txt and .resx files to common language runtime binary .resources files.

• GenerateTrustInfo Task
  Generates the application trust from the base manifest, and from the TargetZone and ExcludedPermissions parameters.

• GetAssemblyIdentity Task
  Retrieves the assembly identities from the specified files and outputs the identity information.

• GetFrameworkPath Task
  Retrieves the path to the .NET Framework assemblies.

• GetFrameworkSdkPath Task
  Retrieves the path to the Windows Software Development Kit (SDK).

• GetReferenceAssemblyPaths Task
  Returns the reference assembly paths of the various frameworks.

• LC Task
  Generates a .license file from a .licx file.

• MakeDir Task
  Creates directories and, if necessary, any parent directories.

• Message Task
  Logs a message during a build.

• Move Task
  Moves files to a new location.

• MSBuild Task
  Builds MSBuild projects from another MSBuild project.

• ReadLinesFromFile Task
  Reads a list of items from a text file.

• RegisterAssembly Task
  Reads the metadata within the specified assembly and adds the necessary entries to the registry.

• RemoveDir Task
  Removes the specified directories and all of its files and subdirectories.

• RemoveDuplicates Task
  Removes duplicate items from the specified item collection.

• RequiresFramework35SP1Assembly Task
  Determines whether the application requires the .NET Framework 3.5 SP1.

• ResGen Task
  Obsolete. Use the GenerateResource Task task to convert .txt and .resx files to and from common language runtime binary .resources files.

• ResolveAssemblyReference Task
  Determines all assemblies that depend on the specified assemblies.

• ResolveComReference Task
  Takes a list of one or more type library names or .tlb files and resolves those type libraries to locations on disk.

• ResolveKeySource Task
  Determines the strong name key source

• ResolveManifestFiles Task
  Resolves the following items in the build process to files for manifest generation: built items, dependencies, satellites, content, debug symbols, and documentation.

• ResolveNativeReference Task
  Resolves native references.

• ResolveNonMSBuildProjectOutput Task
  Determines the output files for non-MSBuild project references.

• SGen Task
  Creates an XML serialization assembly for types in the specified assembly.

• SignFile Task
  Signs the specified file using the specified certificate.

• Touch Task
  Sets the access and modification times of files.

• UnregisterAssembly Task
  Unregisters the specified assemblies for COM interop purposes.

• UpdateManifest Task
  Updates selected properties in a manifest and resigns.

• Vbc Task
  Invokes the Visual Basic compiler to produce executables, dynamic-link libraries, or code modules..

• Warning Task
  Logs a warning during a build based on an evaluated conditional statement.

• WriteCodeFragment Task
  Generates a temporary code file by using the specified generated code fragment. Does not delete the file.

• WriteLinesToFile Task
  Writes the specified items to the specified text file.

• XmlPeek Task
  Returns values as specified by XPath query from an XML file.

• XmlPoke Task
  Sets values as specified by an XPath query into an XML file.

• XslTransformation Task
  Transforms an XML input by using an Extensible Stylesheet Language Transformation (XSLT) or compiled XSLT and outputs to an output device or a file.

See Also

Concepts

Task Writing

MSBuild Tasks

Other Resources

MSBuild Reference