copy linked files in visual studio to a location

Question

I have a project set up in my visual studio solution that contains a number of linked files. These are content files.

When I build the project I would like to copy the linked files to another location. Is this possible and how can I achieve it?

Answer 1

For anybody stumbling on this page like myself, further to 5arx' post, I implemented an MSBuild target that copies all linked content files to their "virtual" locations (the directory where you placed the link in Visual Studio): http://mattperdeck.com/post/Copying-linked-content-files-at-each-build-using-MSBuild.aspx

Answer 2

I have had to rely on a different technique. For years, I have been using @user1147862's solution for years, but with Visual Studio 2022 / .NET 6, it doesn't work at all. Visual Studio no longer appears to "see" any content files added as links and the Copy essentially does nothing.

So here is what I do now. In my case, I have a bunch of JS files that I include into multiple projects under wwwroot/common/js. I add the following to my CSPROJ file...

<ItemGroup>
  <!-- Adds the files as links in the Solution Explorer.
       When you double-click, it opens the original file. -->
  <Content Include="..\..\Common\**\*.js">
    <Link>wwwroot\Common\%(RecursiveDir)%(FileName)%(Extension)</Link>
  </Content>

   <!-- Picked up by the Copy below.  Using "Content"
        with "Link" adds external files as links.  But a custom
        name is needed for use with Copy. -->
  <CommonJs Include="..\..\Common\**\*.js" />

  <!-- Tells Visual Studio to ignore any actual files at this location.
       I found that if I didn't do this, Visual Studio sees the copied
       file instead of the linked file.  This tells Visual Studio to
       ignore the copied file so that when I double-click it in
       Solution Explorer, it opens the original copy. -->
  <Content Remove="wwwroot\Common\**" />
</ItemGroup>

<Target Name="CopyCommonJs" BeforeTargets="Build">
  <Copy SourceFiles="@(CommonJs)"
        DestinationFiles="wwwroot\Common\%(RecursiveDir)%(Filename)%(Extension)"
        SkipUnchangedFiles="true"
        OverwriteReadOnlyFiles="true" />
</Target>

The whole approach works and I understand all the parts now, but I prefer the old way and wish it still worked. If someone finds something more elegant, please let me know.