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Common MSBuild Project Properties

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The following table lists frequently used properties that are defined in the Visual Studio project files or included in .targets files that MSBuild provides.

Project files in Visual Studio (.csproj,.vbproj, vcxproj, and others) contain MSBuild XML code that runs when you build a project by using the IDE. Projects typically import one or more .targets files to define their build process. For more information, see MSBuild .Targets Files.

List of Common Properties and Parameters

Property or Parameter Name

Description

AdditionalLibPaths

Specifies additional folders in which compilers should look for reference assemblies.

AddModules

Causes the compiler to make all type information from the specified files available to the project you are compiling. This property is equivalent to the /addModules compiler switch.

ALToolPath

The path where AL.exe can be found. This property overrides the current version of AL.exe to enable use of a different version.

ApplicationIcon

The .ico icon file to pass to the compiler for embedding as a Win32 icon. The property is equivalent to the /win32icon compiler switch.

ApplicationManifest

Specifies the path of the file that is used to generate external User Account Control (UAC) manifest information. Applies only to Visual Studio projects targeting Windows Vista.

In most cases, the manifest is embedded. However, if you use Registration Free COM or ClickOnce deployment, then the manifest can be an external file that is installed together with your application assemblies. For more information, see the NoWin32Manifest property in this topic.

AssemblyOriginatorKeyFile

Specifies the file that's used to sign the assembly (.snk or .pfx) and that's passed to the ResolveKeySource Task to generate the actual key that's used to sign the assembly.

AssemblySearchPaths

A list of locations to search during build-time reference assembly resolution. The order in which paths appear in this list is meaningful because paths listed earlier takes precedence over later entries.

AssemblyName

The name of the final output assembly after the project is built.

BaseAddress

Specifies the base address of the main output assembly. This property is equivalent to the /baseaddress compiler switch.

BaseOutputPath

Specifies the base path for the output file. If it is set, MSBuild will use OutputPath = $(BaseOutputPath)\$(Configuration)\. Example syntax: <BaseOutputPath>c:\xyz\bin\</BaseOutputPath>

BaseIntermediateOutputPath

The top-level folder where all configuration-specific intermediate output folders are created. The default value is obj\. The following code is an example: <BaseIntermediateOutputPath>c:\xyz\obj\</BaseIntermediateOutputPath>

BuildInParallel

A boolean value that indicates whether project references are built or cleaned in parallel when Multi-Proc MSBuild is used. The default value is true, which means that projects will be built in parallel if the system has multiple cores or processors.

BuildProjectReferences

A boolean value that indicates whether project references are built by MSBuild. Set false if you are building your project in the Visual Studio integrated development environment (IDE), true if otherwise.

CleanFile

The name of the file that will be used as the "clean cache." The clean cache is a list of generated files to be deleted during the cleaning operation. The file is put in the intermediate output path by the build process.

This property specifies only file names that do not have path information.

CodePage

Specifies the code page to use for all source-code files in the compilation. This property is equivalent to the /codepage compiler switch.

CompilerResponseFile

An optional response file that can be passed to the compiler tasks.

Configuration

The configuration that you are building, either "Debug" or "Release."

CscToolPath

The path of csc.exe, the Visual C# compiler.

CustomBeforeMicrosoftCommonTargets

The name of a project file or targets file that is to be imported automatically before the common targets import.

DebugSymbols

A boolean value that indicates whether symbols are generated by the build.

Setting /p:DebugSymbols=false on the command line disables generation of program database (.pdb) symbol files.

DefineConstants

Defines conditional compiler constants. Symbol/value pairs are separated by semicolons and are specified by using the following syntax:

symbol1 = value1 ; symbol2 = value2

The property is equivalent to the /define compiler switch.

DefineDebug

A boolean value that indicates whether you want the DEBUG constant defined.

DefineTrace

A boolean value that indicates whether you want the TRACE constant defined.

DebugType

Defines the level of debug information that you want generated. Valid values are "full," "pdbonly," and "none."

DelaySign

A boolean value that indicates whether you want to delay-sign the assembly rather than full-sign it.

DisabledWarnings

Suppresses the specified warnings. Only the numeric part of the warning identifier must be specified. Multiple warnings are separated by semicolons. This parameter corresponds to the /nowarn switch of the vbc.exe compiler.

DisableFastUpToDateCheck

A boolean value that applies to Visual Studio only. The Visual Studio build manager uses a process called FastUpToDateCheck to determine whether a project must be rebuilt to be up to date. This process is faster than using MSBuild to determine this. Setting the DisableFastUpToDateCheck property to true lets you bypass the Visual Studio build manager and force it to use MSBuild to determine whether the project is up to date.

DocumentationFile

The name of the file that is generated as the XML documentation file. This name includes only the file name and has no path information.

ErrorReport

Specifies how the compiler task should report internal compiler errors. Valid values are "prompt," "send," or "none." This property is equivalent to the /errorreport compiler switch.

ExcludeDeploymentUrl

The GenerateDeploymentManifest Task adds a deploymentProvider tag to the deployment manifest if the project file includes any of the following elements:

  • UpdateUrl

  • InstallUrl

  • PublishUrl

Using ExcludeDeploymentUrl, however, you can prevent the deploymentProvider tag from being added to the deployment manifest even if any of the above URLs are specified. To do this, add the following property to your project file:

<ExcludeDeploymentUrl>true</ExcludeDeploymentUrl>

Note

ExcludeDeploymentUrl is not exposed in the Visual Studio IDE and can be set only by manually editing the project file. Setting this property does not affect publishing within Visual Studio; that is, the deploymentProvider tag will still be added to the URL specified by PublishUrl.

FileAlignment

Specifies, in bytes, where to align the sections of the output file. Valid values are 512, 1024, 2048, 4096, 8192. This property is equivalent to the /filealignment compiler switch.

FrameworkPathOverride

Specifies the location of mscorlib.dll and microsoft.visualbasic.dll. This parameter is equivalent to the /sdkpath switch of the vbc.exe compiler.

GenerateDocumentation

A boolean parameter that indicates whether documentation is generated by the build. If true, the build generates documentation information and puts it in an .xml file together with the name of the executable file or library that the build task created.

IntermediateOutputPath

The full intermediate output path as derived from BaseIntermediateOutputPath, if no path is specified. For example, \obj\debug\. If this property is overridden, then setting BaseIntermediateOutputPath has no effect.

KeyContainerName

The name of the strong-name key container.

KeyOriginatorFile

The name of the strong-name key file.

NoWin32Manifest

Determines whether the compiler generates the default Win32 manifest into the output assembly. The default value of false means that the default Win32 manifest is generated for all applications. This property is equivalent to the /nowin32manifest compiler switch of vbc.exe.

ModuleAssemblyName

The name of the assembly that the compiled module is to be incorporated into. The property is equivalent to the /moduleassemblyname compiler switch.

NoLogo

A boolean value that indicates whether you want compiler logo to be turned off. This property is equivalent to the /nologo compiler switch.

NoStdLib

A boolean value that indicates whether to avoid referencing the standard library (mscorlib.dll). The default value is false.

NoVBRuntimeReference

A boolean value that indicates whether the Visual Basic runtime (Microsoft.VisualBasic.dll) should be included as a reference in the project.

NoWin32Manifest

A boolean value that indicates whether User Account Control (UAC) manifest information will be embedded in the application's executable. Applies only to Visual Studio projects targeting Windows Vista. In projects deployed using ClickOnce and Registration-Free COM, this element is ignored. False (the default value) specifies that User Account Control (UAC) manifest information be embedded in the application's executable. True specifies that UAC manifest information not be embedded.

This property applies only to Visual Studio projects targeting Windows Vista. In projects deployed using ClickOnce and Registration-Free COM, this property is ignored.

You should add NoWin32Manifest only if you do not want Visual Studio to embed any manifest information in the application's executable; this process is called virtualization. To use virtualization, set <ApplicationManifest> in conjunction with <NoWin32Manifest> as follows:

  • For Visual Basic projects, remove the <ApplicationManifest> node. (In Visual Basic projects, <NoWin32Manifest> is ignored when an <ApplicationManifest> node exists.)

  • For Visual C# projects, set <ApplicationManifest> to False and <NoWin32Manifest> to True. (In Visual C# projects, <ApplicationManifest> overrides <NoWin32Manifest>.)

Optimize

A boolean value that when set to true, enables compiler optimizations. This property is equivalent to the /optimize compiler switch.

OptionCompare

Specifies how string comparisons are made. Valid values are "binary" or "text." This property is equivalent to the /optioncompare compiler switch of vbc.exe.

OptionExplicit

A boolean value that when set to true, requires explicit declaration of variables in the source code. This property is equivalent to the /optionexplicit compiler switch.

OptionInfer

A boolean value that when set to true, enables type inference of variables. This property is equivalent to the /optioninfer compiler switch.

OptionStrict

A boolean value that when set to true, causes the build task to enforce strict type semantics to restrict implicit type conversions. This property is equivalent to the /optionstrict switch of the vbc.exe compiler.

OutputPath

Specifies the path to the output directory, relative to the project directory, for example, "bin\Debug".

OutputType

Specifies the file format of the output file. This parameter can have one of the following values:

  • Library. Creates a code library. (Default value.)

  • Exe. Creates a console application.

  • Module. Creates a module.

  • Winexe. Creates a Windows-based program.

This property is equivalent to the /target switch of the vbc.exe compiler.

OverwriteReadOnlyFiles

A boolean value that indicates whether you want to enable the build to overwrite read-only files or trigger an error.

PdbFile

The file name of the .pdb file that you are emitting. This property is equivalent to the /pdb switch of the csc.exe compiler.

Platform

The operating system you are building for. Valid values are "Any CPU", "x86", and "x64".

RemoveIntegerChecks

A boolean value that indicates whether to disable integer overflow error checks. The default value is false. This property is equivalent to the /removeintchecks switch of the vbc.exe compiler.

SGenUseProxyTypes

A boolean value that indicates whether proxy types should be generated by SGen.exe.

The SGen target uses this property to set the UseProxyTypes flag. This property defaults to true, and there is no UI to change this. To generate the serialization assembly for non-webservice types, add this property to the project file and set it to false before importing the Microsoft.Common.Targets or the C#/VB.targets.

SGenToolPath

An optional tool path that indicates where to obtain SGen.exe when the current version of SGen.exe is overridden.

StartupObject

Specifies the class or module that contains the Main method or Sub Main procedure. This property is equivalent to the /main compiler switch.

ProcessorArchitecture

The processor architecture that is used when assembly references are resolved. Valid values are "msil," "x86," "amd64," or "ia64."

RootNamespace

The root namespace to use when you name an embedded resource. This namespace is part of the embedded resource manifest name.

Satellite_AlgorithmId

The ID of the AL.exe hashing algorithm to use when satellite assemblies are created.

Satellite_BaseAddress

The base address to use when culture-specific satellite assemblies are built by using the CreateSatelliteAssemblies target.

Satellite_CompanyName

The company name to pass into AL.exe during satellite assembly generation.

Satellite_Configuration

The configuration name to pass into AL.exe during satellite assembly generation.

Satellite_Description

The description text to pass into AL.exe during satellite assembly generation.

Satellite_EvidenceFile

Embeds the specified file in the satellite assembly that has the resource name "Security.Evidence."

Satellite_FileVersion

Specifies a string for the File Version field in the satellite assembly.

Satellite_Flags

Specifies a value for the Flags field in the satellite assembly.

Satellite_GenerateFullPaths

Causes the build task to use absolute paths for any files reported in an error message.

Satellite_LinkResource

Links the specified resource files to a satellite assembly.

Satellite_MainEntryPoint

Specifies the fully-qualified name (that is, class.method) of the method to use as an entry point when a module is converted to an executable file during satellite assembly generation.

Satellite_ProductName

Specifies a string for the Product field in the satellite assembly.

Satellite_ProductVersion

Specifies a string for the ProductVersion field in the satellite assembly.

Satellite_TargetType

Specifies the file format of the satellite assembly output file as "library," "exe," or "win." The default value is "library."

Satellite_Title

Specifies a string for the Title field in the satellite assembly.

Satellite_Trademark

Specifies a string for the Trademark field in the satellite assembly.

Satellite_Version

Specifies the version information for the satellite assembly.

Satellite_Win32Icon

Inserts an .ico icon file in the satellite assembly.

Satellite_Win32Resource

Inserts a Win32 resource (.res file) into the satellite assembly.

SubsystemVersion

Specifies the minimum version of the subsystem that the generated executable file can use. This property is equivalent to the /subsystemversion compiler switch. For information about the default value of this property, see /subsystemversion (Visual Basic) or /subsystemversion (C# Compiler Options).

TargetCompactFramework

The version of the .NET Compact Framework that is required to run the application that you are building. Specifying this lets you reference certain framework assemblies that you may not be able to reference otherwise.

TargetFrameworkVersion

The version of the .NET Framework that is required to run the application that you are building. Specifying this lets you reference certain framework assemblies that you may not be able to reference otherwise.

TreatWarningsAsErrors

A boolean parameter that, if true, causes all warnings to be treated as errors. This parameter is equivalent to the /nowarn compiler switch.

UseHostCompilerIfAvailable

A boolean parameter that, if true, causes the build task to use the in-process compiler object, if it is available. This parameter is used only by Visual Studio.

Utf8Output

A boolean parameter that, if true, logs compiler output by using UTF-8 encoding. This parameter is equivalent to the /utf8Output compiler switch.

VbcToolPath

An optional path that indicates another location for vbc.exe when the current version of vbc.exe is overridden.

VbcVerbosity

Specifies the verbosity of the Visual Basic compiler’s output. Valid values are "Quiet," "Normal" (the default value), or "Verbose."

VisualStudioVersion

Specifies the version of Visual Studio under which this project should be considered to be running. If this property isn't specified, MSBuild sets it to a reasonable default value.

This property is used in several project types to specify the set of targets that are used for the build. If ToolsVersion is set to 4.0 or higher for a project, VisualStudioVersion is used to specify which sub-toolset to use. For more information, see MSBuild Toolset (ToolsVersion).

WarningsAsErrors

Specifies a list of warnings to treat as errors. This parameter is equivalent to the /warnaserror compiler switch.

WarningsNotAsErrors

Specifies a list of warnings that are not treated as errors. This parameter is equivalent to the /warnaserror compiler switch.

Win32Manifest

The name of the manifest file that should be embedded in the final assembly. This parameter is equivalent to the /win32Manifest compiler switch.

Win32Resource

The file name of the Win32 resource to be embedded in the final assembly. This parameter is equivalent to the /win32resource compiler switch.

See Also

Reference

Common MSBuild Project Items