Nuget pack always using Release folder - nuget

I'm trying to create a nuget package for a specific build configuration. Let's use Debug as an example. I run the command:
nuget pack path_to_my.nuspec -Properties "Configuration=Debug;"-Verbosity Detailed
It throws me the following error:
Attempting to build package from 'path_to_my.nuspec'.
System.IO.FileNotFoundException: File not found: 'bin\Release\mydll.dll'.
As you can see, it tries to get the dll from bin\Release, and not bin\Debug.
Is it possible to tell nuget to use a different Configuration than Release, or use another path?

It would be necessary to check your nuspec file just in case you have hardcoded the Release path to bin\Release\mydll.dll, which is seems it's the case.
A valid nuspec file would have references to the dll without specifying the environment. Use wildcard to allow for any environment. For example:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<package xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/packaging/2010/07/nuspec.xsd">
<metadata>
<id>MyProject</id>
<authors>iberodev</authors>
<version>1.0.0</version>
<projectUrl>https://www.diegodrivendesign.com/</projectUrl>
<requireLicenseAcceptance>false</requireLicenseAcceptance>
<description>Sample</description>
</metadata>
<files>
<file src="bin\*\netstandard2.0/ProjectOne.dll" target="lib\netstandard2.0" />
<file src="bin\*\netstandard2.0/ProjectOne.pdb" target="lib\netstandard2.0" />
<file src="bin\*\netstandard2.0/ProjectTwo.pdb" target="lib\netstandard2.0" />
<file src="bin\*\netstandard2.0/ProjectTwo.pdb" target="lib\netstandard2.0" />
</files>
</package>
then you run the nuget pack command to reference your nuspec. Make sure you have compiled the code for the proper environment so that the dll that the nuspec references are available (e.g: dotnet build --configuration Debug)
nuget pack ./*NuGet/*.nuspec -Version 1.0.0 -OutputDirectory foo -Prop Configuration=Debug -Verbosity detailed

Related

Custom NuGet package not installing in wix project

I generate a NuGet that is is just a number of redist files that I want to use in one of my projects. If I install it in a C# or C++ projects, it works. But when I try to install it in a wixproj project and I get the following message:
Could not install package 'package-1.0.0'. You are trying to install this package into a project that targets 'Unsupported,Version=v0.0', but the package does not contain any assembly references or content files that are compatible with that framework. For more information, contact the package author.
I generate the package through a TeamCity task (using NuGet 5.6.0). When trying to generate the package with a NuGet CLI 5.8.1, I get the following warning:
*WARNING: NU5128: Some target frameworks declared in the dependencies group of the nuspec and the lib/ref folder do not have exact matches in the other location. Consult the list of actions below:
Add a dependency group for native0.0 to the nuspec*
Looked at https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/nuget/reference/errors-and-warnings/nu5128, one of the solutions was trying a dependencies group targetFramework, (I used "native0.0") with no success. My nuspec is as follows:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<package>
<metadata>
<id>package</id>
<version>1.0.0</version>
<authors>package</authors>
<owners>owner</owners>
<requireLicenseAcceptance>false</requireLicenseAcceptance>
<description>my package</description>
<copyright>© 2021 company, Inc</copyright>
<tags>native</tags>
</metadata>
<files>
<file src="downloads\Folder\win32.vs2017\file1.lib" target="lib\native\lib\win32.vs2017\" />
<file src="downloads\Folder\win32.vs2017\file1-debug.lib" target="lib\native\lib\win32.vs2017\" />
<file src="downloads\Folder\Include\**" target="lib\native\include\" />
<file src="build\package.props" target="build\native" />
</files>
</package>
And my props file
<Project>
<PropertyGroup>
<MyVersion>1.0.0</MyVersion>
</PropertyGroup>
</Project>
I can install other NuGet packages into wixprojects, so how I configure mine to work? Thanks.
OK I found it, the issue lies at the line
<file src="build\package.props" target="build\native" />
changing target to "build\" allows the NuGet to be loaded to any project type, included WixProj. Note that the NU5128 warning still exists though, but not an issue for me.

Excluding the library being built from nuget package in .NET Standard

Bear with me - this is an unusual scenario.
I have 4 projects in my solution. The top most project references the 3 other projects. None of the 3 other projects reference each other. So the architecture is like this:
Now, when I build project A I want it to produce a nuget package containing projects B, C and D but not project A. As this is in .NET standard I can configure the packages tab of project A to produce a nuget package automatically when it builds by checking the 'Generate NuGet package on build option.' Then, I can get it to include B, C and D by making the following changes to A's csproj file:
<ItemGroup>
<ProjectReference Include="..\B.csproj">
<PrivateAssets>all</PrivateAssets>
</ProjectReference>
<ProjectReference Include="..\C.csproj">
<PrivateAssets>all</PrivateAssets>
</ProjectReference>
<ProjectReference Include="..\D.csproj">
<PrivateAssets>all</PrivateAssets>
</ProjectReference>
</ItemGroup>
<PropertyGroup>
<TargetsForTfmSpecificBuildOutput>$(TargetsForTfmSpecificBuildOutput);CopyProjectReferencesToPackage</TargetsForTfmSpecificBuildOutput>
<Version>1.0.0-beta</Version>
<PackageId>A</PackageId>
<Company></Company>
<Product>A</Product>
<Description></Description>
<Authors></Authors>
<GeneratePackageOnBuild>true</GeneratePackageOnBuild>
</PropertyGroup>
<Target Name="CopyProjectReferencesToPackage" DependsOnTargets="ResolveReferences">
<ItemGroup>
<BuildOutputInPackage Include="#(ReferenceCopyLocalPaths->WithMetadataValue('ReferenceSourceTarget', 'ProjectReference')->WithMetadataValue('PrivateAssets', 'all'))" />
</ItemGroup>
</Target>
Ideally I would like to add a line to remove A.dll from the nuget package. Is this possible? A is a wrapper project which consuming code will never need to use. It is not possible for B, C and D to reference each other.
UPDATE
This is how I solved it (thanks #tom redfern)
I created a nuspec file manually:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<package xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/packaging/2013/05/nuspec.xsd">
<metadata>
<id>A</id>
<version>1.0.0-beta</version>
<authors>Foo</authors>
<owners>Bar</owners>
<requireLicenseAcceptance>false</requireLicenseAcceptance>
<description>A package</description>
<dependencies>
<group targetFramework=".NETStandard2.0">
</group>
</dependencies>
</metadata>
<files>
<file src="bin\Release\netstandard2.0\B.dll" target="lib\netstandard2.0\B.dll" />
<file src="bin\Release\netstandard2.0\C.dll" target="lib\netstandard2.0\C.dll" />
<file src="bin\Release\netstandard2.0\D.dll" target="lib\netstandard2.0\D.dll" />
</files>
</package>
Then in my .csproj file for A I put the following to automatically pack it after a build:
<Target Name="__PackNuGetPackage" AfterTargets="Build">
<Exec Command="$(NugetPackage)nuget.exe pack "A.nuspec"" />
</Target>
Using patented(1) elite(2) debugging skills, we can figure out if it's possible without manually creating and maintaining a nuspec file.
First, let's start with NuGet's docs on creating a package with the dotnet CLI. It says "msbuild -t:pack is functionality equivalent to dotnet pack". So, first hint, it's just running MSBuild targets.
So, run dotnet msbuild my.csproj -pp:pp.txt. This "pre-processes" (evaluates all MSBuild import statements and writes the result into a single file) the csproj (just a standard MSBuild file). We then search for the pack target, and scroll up until we find the filename of the file that was imported. We see it's NuGet.Build.Tasks.Pack.targets, and since NuGet is open source on GitHub, I can point you to the source.
Searching NuGet.Build.Tasks.Pack.targets for Condition, to see what extensibility options the NuGet team has provided, I see <IncludeBuildOutput Condition="'$(IncludeBuildOutput)'==''">true</IncludeBuildOutput>. So, settings <IncludeBuildOutput Condition="'$(IncludeBuildOutput)'==''">false</IncludeBuildOutput> in your csproj, might work.
(1) not patented
(2) standard, but since people don't modify MSBuild files anywhere near as often as C#, the skills and tools aren't as well known
You can achieve this by using a nuspec file. Use nuspec when you need absolute control over the nuget pack process. A simple nuspec file:
<package >
<metadata>
<id>MyPackage</id>
<version>1.0</version>
<authors>Something</authors>
<owners>Something</owners>
<description>Somthing</description>
<copyright></copyright>
<dependencies>
<!-- any nuget package dependencies -->
<dependency id="AnotherPackage" version="2019.2.4.1" />
</dependencies>
</metadata>
<files>
<!-- this is where you can have complete control over which assemblies get added to your package. You can add them individually pr using wildcards. -->
<file src="..\obj\**\*.dll" target="lib" />
</files>
</package>
When you have created your .nuspec file, add it into your solution, and then make your "Nuget Pack" build step read the nuspec file rather than the project file.

How to pack an x86 / x64 specific C++/CLI DLL with Nuget?

I have a C++/CLI DLL that interfaces a third party native DLL. I want to pack this as Nuget.
I followed this official MS guide, this blog post and read through this other question.
So here is what I did:
First, I created the proper nuspec file:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<package >
<metadata>
<id>CPlusPlusNativeIFace</id>
<version>1.0.4</version>
<title>CPlusPlusNativeIFace</title>
<authors>Jens Rabe</authors>
<owners>Who owns that</owners>
<requireLicenseAcceptance>false</requireLicenseAcceptance>
<description>A DLL that makes a native third-party DLL available to .net</description>
<releaseNotes>foo</releaseNotes>
<copyright>errm...</copyright>
<tags>foo bar</tags>
</metadata>
<files>
<file src="..\Release\**" target="runtimes/win-x86/lib/net461" />
<file src="..\x64\Release\**" target="runtimes/win-x64/lib/net461" />
<file src="DummyAny\**" target="ref\net461" />
</files>
</package>
Then I compiled the DLL for Release x86 and Release X64. Then I created the DummyAny folder, copied the contents of the x86 one in, and used the corflags utility like in Links 2 and 3 to strip the 32 bit flag.
When I now nuget pack and nuget add, and try to reference that package in another project, I always get:
Could not install package 'CPlusPlusNativeIFace 1.0.4'. You are trying to install this package into a project that targets '.NETFramework,Version=v4.6.1', but the package does not contain any assembly references or content files that are compatible with that framework. For more information, contact the package author.
I double checked that the files are right:
I have the x86 stuff in runtimes/win-x86/lib/net461
I have the x64 stuff in runtimes/win-x64/lib/net461
I have a ref/net461 folder with the manipulated dll in
But I still can't load the package.
I also tried putting the CPU specific DLLs into runtimes/win-x86/native and runtimes/win-x64/native to no avail.
What else am I missing? Does that not work for C++/CLI projects built against .net Framework?
Turned out that the official MS documentation was not usable here.
This question was/is listed as "related" here and the accepted answer there made it work for me. I used the example project on Github as a reference.
So here is how I got it to work:
Opened the project properties, went to Configuration Properties / General, selected All Configurations and All Platforms, and as Output Directory, I specified: $(ProjectDir)bin\$(Platform)\$(Configuration)\
Rebuilt the project for x86 and x64 in Release mode
Adapted the Nuspec to be like this:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<package >
<metadata>
<id>CPlusPlusNativeIFace</id>
<version>1.0.5</version>
<title>Third Party Proxy</title>
<authors>Jens Rabe</authors>
<owners>foo</owners>
<requireLicenseAcceptance>false</requireLicenseAcceptance>
<description>bar</description>
<releaseNotes>Further experimenting with nuget</releaseNotes>
<copyright>baz moo</copyright>
<tags>quux bletch</tags>
</metadata>
<files>
<file src="bin\Win32\Release\**" target="build\x86" />
<file src="bin\x64\Release\**" target="build\x64" />
<file src="bin\Win32\Release\**" target="lib\net461" />
<file src="CPlusPlusNativeIFace.props" target="build\net461" />
</files>
</package>
Added a CPlusPlusNativeIFace.props which contains the following:
<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Project ToolsVersion="4.0" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
<ItemGroup>
<Reference Include="CPlusPlusNativeIFace" Condition="'$(Platform)' == 'x86'">
<HintPath>$(MSBuildThisFileDirectory)..\x86\CPlusPlusNativeIFace.dll</HintPath>
</Reference>
<Reference Include="CPlusPlusNativeIFace" Condition="'$(Platform)' == 'x64'">
<HintPath>$(MSBuildThisFileDirectory)..\x64\CPlusPlusNativeIFace.dll</HintPath>
</Reference>
</ItemGroup>
</Project>
Now I can do nuget pack CPlusPlusNativeIFace.nuspec and I get a Nuget package that installs correctly.

NuGet package not copying files and transform files as expected

I am trying to understand how NuGet packages work so that I can package some of my repeatedly used source for future projects.
I am working with a simple class library (.Net Foundation) and using the CLI to make the nuspec file and then packing from the CLI I get a nuget package that installs the Class Library DLL perfectly.
But now I want to add a transform to the App.Config that includes a connection string and I want to copy a simple readme type file to the destination project.
Using the following nuspec file the readme does not install to the readme folder as expected (doesn't install at all) and I can't get any of the app.config.transforms to work at all.
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<package xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/packaging/2010/07/nuspec.xsd">
<metadata>
<id>$id$</id>
<version>$version$</version>
<title>$title$</title>
<authors>$author$</authors>
<owners>$author$</owners>
<requireLicenseAcceptance>false</requireLicenseAcceptance>
<description>$description$</description>
<releaseNotes>Stuff</releaseNotes>
<copyright>Copyright 2019</copyright>
<tags>123 1234</tags>
</metadata>
<files>
<file src="app.config.transform" target="content\app.config.transform" />
<file src="Model\State1.cs" target="content\State1.cs"/>
<file src="new.txt" target="content\new.txt"/>
</files>
</package>
Where should I put the transform files? It seems that they should be in a content folder in my source project but that isn't working. When I pack the nuget package I get an error about the files not being inside the content folder even though they clearly are.
With the above nuspec file I get an error:
Access to the path 'C:\Users\ UserName \.nuget\packages\MyDLLProject.lookups\1.1.7041.17482\content' is denied.
Why is that?

Add install.ps1 on Class Library (.NET Standard) Project

I have migrate my .NET Framework project to a .NET Standard project.
In the .NET Framework project i have a .nuspec file with additional file config and create the nuget package with "NuGet.exe pack"
<files>
<file src="Install.ps1" target="tools\Install.ps1" />
</files
In the .NET Standard project i have not longer a nuspec file and switch to "msbuild -t:Pack" to create the nuget package. I have try to set the install.ps1 to (BuildAction = Content) but then i see a warning in the log "Issue: PowerShell file out side tools folder." And in the nupkg file the directory is "content\tools\Install.ps1" i need "tools\Install.ps1".
To get file into a different path in the package you can use the <PackagePath> element in the <Content> element like this:
<ItemGroup>
<Content Include="install.ps1">
<PackagePath>tools\</PackagePath>
</Content>
</ItemGroup>
(providing the install.ps1 is in the root of your project, otherwise you'll have to adjust the Include attribute value)
For more information check out the docs about the pack MsBuild Target here:
https://github.com/NuGet/Home/wiki/Adding-nuget-pack-as-a-msbuild-target
I have try to set the install.ps1 to (BuildAction = Content) but then i see a warning in the log "Issue: PowerShell file out side tools folder." And in the nupkg file the directory is "content\tools\Install.ps1" i need "tools\Install.ps1"
When you use msbuild -t:Pack to create the nuget package, msbuild/VS expects the files to be in content folder. But if you still want to the install.ps1 file in the tools directory, you can still use the .nuspec file and nuget.exe to pack the package.
The detail steps to pack package:
Create the .nuspec as below settings:
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<package >
<metadata>
<id>TestInstall.ps1</id>
<version>1.0.0</version>
<authors>Test</authors>
<owners>Test</owners>
<requireLicenseAcceptance>false</requireLicenseAcceptance>
<description>Package description</description>
<releaseNotes>Summary of changes made in this release of the package.</releaseNotes>
<copyright>Copyright 2017</copyright>
<tags>Tag1 Tag2</tags>
</metadata>
<files>
<file src="Install.ps1" target="tools" />
<file src="bin\Debug\netstandard1.4\TestInstall.ps1.dll" target="lib\netstandard1.4" />
</files>
</package>
Then use the command line: nuget.exe pack xxx.nuspec to pack the package, you will get the package with Install.ps1 in the tools directory: