Following on from a comment I made on WiX users about building the WiX code
(see below) I thought I would expand on it here.
The problem I see with building and therefore contributing is that the code is
structured as a single unit and to build any one part you have to have built
the whole thing. For example, I have created my own BA and the first thing I
had to do was recreate all the project files so that they referenced my
installed WiX libraries and headers and not the ones that had been built - this
is not a trivial task as the code was structured to reference everything
locally and also the project files have been customised and reference common
WiX project elements.
I can see why it was done this way to make it easier to build the whole WIX
source but if you want to build a single part of it it is not very easy and I
think this is why it is hard for people to contribute.
To make things easier I would like to suggest that all the WiX extensions
should be configured as standard alone projects that reference the libraries
and headers from the installed copy of WiX via the WIX environment variable,
done like this I think that it should also work for the full build by
overriding the environment variable.
The code should also live together in the same folder so you can open one
solution that contains everything you need. The BalExtension is quite good in
that all the source is in the same folder but many others e.g. the IIsExtension
has the code spread around to you have to look in the "ext" folder and
"ca\serverca" to find the code.
Discuss...
Neil
Neil Sleightholm
X2 Systems Limited
n...@x2systems.com<mailto:n...@x2systems.com>
1. Neil, that's great feedback and would be a great thing to discuss on
wix-devs to see what could be done concretely to make it easier.
2. I'm very happy people are helping each other out. That's awesome.
However, I personally find the responses here a bit disappointing and a little
frustrating. The WiX toolset only supports "by default" whatever we add to it.
I understand putting in an immediate solution to support an immediate need if
taking a new drop of the WiX toolset is impossible.
However, if no one ever goes back and adds the support to the WiX toolset, it
will never be there. That's not how we will be successful long term.
If it's too hard to get started in the WiX toolset or unclear how to add
something, I'm happy to discuss that (wix-devs is the right place). But waiting
for someone else to do something that you already know how to do (a number of
you obviously understand IIS7 much better than I do <smile/>), IMHO, isn't very
cool.
I expect getting started in the WiX toolset codebase is a bit daunting and (on
wix-devs) I'm happy to help with that. I just hope those of you that know the
answers (and are doing a great job sharing them) help codify the solution into
the WiX toolset "by default" for the next guy or gal.
Happy Friday. <smile/>
On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 9:48 AM, Neil Sleightholm
<n...@x2systems.com<mailto:n...@x2systems.com>>wrote:
> Actually I think it is easier to start again; this is off topic but
> I'd thought I share it...
>
> The problem I find with the WiX source is that it not easy to pull out
> one or two projects and build them, the code is structured to
> reference everything that is built rather than the libraries that are
> installed. I see why it is like this for building the whole of WiX but
> to use the code to develop an extension it makes it harder.
>
> Neil
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