Dynamics Community Forum Thread Details

SL 2011 and SDK - how to setup my development laptop

I want to setup my windows 7 pro laptop with VS 2010 to develop screens for my Dynamics SL 2011. I read somewhere that I must install VS 2010 followed by the FULL Dynamics SL installation on my laptop and not just the client setup. Can you verify what is required to be installed on my laptop? I really don't want to install FULL Dynamics SL on my laptop if I already got a test server with the FULL install on it. Also is there any guidelines on how to structure my file layouts for my new Visual Studio projects for my custom screens?

Its buried in the install notes somewhere that you do need a full install on any workstation which will do SDK work.

As far as I know that is true - but I haven't tried it with just a client install.

VS 2008 will work with SL 2011 - that's what I use.

I believe there are some issues with VS 2010 (possibly only with 64 bit? Not sure.)

But VS 2008 works - as far as I know the standard SL screens are compiled in VS 2008.

It is a requirement for VS to be installed before SL.

This is because the SL install modifies the VS installation - it adds a project template and a bundle of controls.

<< Also is there any guidelines on how to structure my

<< file layouts for my new Visual Studio projects for my

<< custom screens?

Are you taliking about directory structures etc?

My feeling is that you have one directory per VS Project.

It contains files specific to that project.

An SDK project also contains a bundle of SL files - there's a Solomon.VBTools.vb which is in all SDK projects, as well as "dh files".

You definitely want to have just one "central copy" of those files that your project "links" to.

You don't want each project to have its own copy - that leads to a nightmare when the standard files change (ie in the next version)

All the SL files are in the vt\vb directory. But I don't like using them from there, because if SL ever change the path they install to, you will have projects with Links that point to the wrong place.

So I like to copy that directoryy structure to somewhere in my own directories.

Then when a new version comes along, I can copy in the new SL files abd my projects all Link to the right place.

I also try to Link files with relative paths - that way if my directory structure moves somewhere else, it all still works.

But all that is just my persobal prefernce.

Hope those comments help.

Barry

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