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Working with XSLT in Visual Studio

In my C # client application, I use XSLT to convert XML to HTML.

I would like to be able to edit these files in place without recompiling the whole solution. I'm having trouble developing how to configure Visual Studio 2008 to resolve this.

The problem is that XSLT files must somehow be copied to the output directory. This is currently happening during the build process. (My XSLT files have the value "copy if newer".) The build process can take several minutes, which seems excessive for small changes to the HTML.

I could make changes to XSLT in the output directory, but the output directory is not under source control. I accidentally destroyed my quick changes several times by building my solution.

I would like to reduce the cycle time for debugging XSLT by keeping XSLT files under source control and preventing accidental overwriting.

Summary of answers: It seems that the most practical approach to solving this problem - given that Visual Studio does not have a pleasant way to do this out of the box - is to create a separate project containing content files. These files are copied to the output location when creating the project. That way, I don't need to compile the whole solution, just one project with all the static information like XSLT, CSS, images, etc.

Several people suggested using synchronization or batch copying tools, but for now it will work for me personally, setting it up for other team members will also be a lot of additional work.

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I do not quite understand your question, but you can instruct Visual Studio to copy the file from the solution to the output folder every time you build.

Let me try to understand your scenario:

  • You have XSLT files verified in the source code along with C # code. For example, if your project is in the MyProj folder, then the XSLT files are in MyProj / Templates
  • You want to be able to edit xslt files in the Templates folder and send these changes to the original control in the same way as with .cs or other files in your project.
  • You need a copy of your xslt files to the bin / Debug or bin / Release folder along with your executable file.

If so, add the XSLT files to your Visual Studio project. Then right-click on them, open "Properties" and set "Build Action" = "Content" and "Copy to Output Directory" = "Always". Whenever you create your project, the last copy of the XSLT files will be placed in the bin / Debug or bin / Release directory.

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One approach is to enable C # Preprocessor Directive to point my XSLT load to the solution directory in debug mode, but the output is when the release build is executed.

Something like:

string viewFolder = AppDomain.CurrentDomain.BaseDirectory; #if DEBUG // Move up from /bin/debug viewFolder = viewFolder + @"..\..\"; #endif

But that sounds like a hack.

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Apparently you are managing two issues in one project. The first problem is your business logic (instantiating an XSLT transform, invoking it to transform some XML content that outputs the HTML result ...). The second problem is the Transformation itself.

So why not create a separate project for your xslt sheets? The “build” of this project will consist of copying the sheets to the output folder. Changing xslt will not affect another project, therefore, it will reduce build time.

Separation of problems at the project level, that is :)

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You can edit the file directly in the output folder.

In another note, many people do not know that rich tools are built into VS to enable xslts debugging.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms255605(VS.80).aspx

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One solution that may work for you is to set up a connection to your Templates in the output folder. This will allow you to use XSLT directly without copying them to the output folder. A good idea is to provide (create) a connection as an assembly action.

Prerequisites:

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  • Create a batch file that will copy your xslt from its source controlled source to all of your bin directories (bin / debug bin / release or any others that you have defined)
  • Add the batch file as an External Tool , optionally assigning a keystroke (or chord) to execute the batch file
  • Edit, run the tool (I would assign a key to this press to make it easier), and then check your web page.
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Can I use a file synchronization program (for example, Microsoft SyncToy - a free application that synchronizes files and folders between locations) to copy files? This will allow you to avoid the “copy to assembly” step, because files are automatically copied after saving. In addition, if you edit them in the output directory, the changes can be copied back to the directory with a controlled source. Not that there is a better real-time synchronization program for this scenario, but it may be another matter.

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I have exactly the same problem. I bought a program called ViceVersa ( http://www.tgrmn.com/ ) in which I have synchronization profiles installed to synchronize my css, layout and xslt folders from my machine to my dev server as soon as any any changes. If I make any code changes, I will simply post as usual.

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I understand this is an older article, but I found a different solution mainly on the same issue.

Visual Studio allows you to "link" files.

Right-click the folder in which you want to find the link to the file.

Click

'Add'

'Existing item.'

(choose File)

Go to "Add" and select "Add as link"

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