CruiseControl.Net 101 - Projects

Last time, we installed CC.Net and created a blank project. This time, we'll have that project actually *do* something.

The first thing we need is something in source control to point to. I happen to have a SourceSafe database at c:\vss, so I'll use that. In SourceSafe (SS), I've created a new project, MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks. There aren't any files in there currently, but we'll get to that shortly. For now, let's add the following to ccnet.config, between the <project></project> tags:

        <sourcecontrol type="vss" autoGetSource="true">
            <ssdir>c:\vss</ssdir>
            <executable>C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual SourceSafe\ss.exe</executable>
            <project>$/MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks</project>
            <workingDirectory>MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks</workingDirectory>
        </sourcecontrol>

This tells CC.Net to monitor the project $/MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks and any sub-projects. If files are added or checked into the project, CC.Net will kick off a build. At this point, we should test the updated project.

Start Visual Studio 2005 (VS2005) and create a new C# Windows Class Library. Give it a name of MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks. Do not check the boxes to "Create directory for solution" or "Add to Source Control." The former is unnecessary, the later would ruin my cleverly devised plan. Once the project is generated, save the files and close VS2005. Nope, we're not actually writing code. We'll have to save that for another time.

Back in SS, drag the solution file into $/MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks. Open the CCTray app. You should see the Last Build Label increment (CC.Net looks for changes once a minute, so you might have to wait a few seconds.) The build still shows green - we haven't specified any tasks to perform. Open Windows Explorer and browse to your CC.Net install folder. Expand \server\Project 1\WorkingDirectory\MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks. You should see the .sln file, meaning it's at least pulling the source correctly.

To compile with MSBuild, there is one more piece we need. By default, msbuild sends text output to the console. CC.Net requires XML output from all of the build tasks. You'll need to download ThoughtWorks.CruiseControl.MSBuild.dll. Out of shear laziness, I place this file in the root of the c: drive.

With that out of the way, let's go back to ccnet.config. Add the following to the file:

        <tasks>
            <msbuild>
                <executable>c:\winnt\Microsoft.Net\Framework\v2.0.50727\msbuild.exe</executable>
                <projectFile>MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks\MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks.sln</projectFile>
                <buildArgs>/noconsolelogger </buildArgs>
                <logger>c:\ThoughtWorks.CruiseControl.MsBuild.dll</logger>
            </msbuild>
        </tasks>

Note: The <executable> tag is necessary if you're running on Windows2000. If you're on WinXP, it isn't required.

Save the config and go back to CCTray. Hmm... Nothing happened. That's of course by design - nothing's changed in SS. To test the config change we need to force a build. This can be done with the Force button in the Dashboard, or by right-clicking the project in CCTray and choosing Force Build.

After the build runs, the CCTray icon will be red. In the Dashboard, the Last Build Status shows "Failure." To look at the details, open Project 1 in the Dashboard. Select the most recent build. The Build Report for this build doesn't tell us much (we'll fix this shortly.) Click "View Build Log" from the menu on the left. This is the raw XML output from the build. If you look in the <msbuild> section, you should see a line that includes 'The project file "MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks.csproj" was not found.' Not surprising since we didn't add it to SS yet.

Before we fix this error, let's modify the report to show MSBuild output. In Windows Explorer, browse to \webdashboard in the install folder. Open dashboard.config. Locate the following:

    <buildPlugins>
        <buildReportBuildPlugin>
            <xslFileNames>
                <xslFile>xsl\header.xsl</xslFile>
                <xslFile>xsl\modifications.xsl</xslFile>
                <xslFile>xsl\compile.xsl</xslFile>

Beneath this, add the line:

                <xslFile>xsl\compile-msbuild.xsl</xslFile>

This will format msbuild output within the build report. Note that the ordering of the .xsl files determines the ordering in the report. Also, if there are items you aren't interested in, those lines can be removed from the config.

After you save the config, force another build and verify that you now have two additional sections in the Build Report - Errors and Warnings.

Now to fix the build error. Add the remaining files from the MSBuild.Chainsaw.Tasks project to SS. Having done that, we wait patiently while CC.Net kicks off another build. Assuming all the files were added, the build should complete successfully.

Sorry for the lengthy post. I could have stopped somewhere in the middle, but the one thing I can't stand is a broken build. My co-workers can attest to this.