Unable to use Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator with non-Debug configuration

[veleek]

Description

We're unable to use the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator package properly because dotnet is unable to find it properly unless you're using Debug as the configuration.

We have a large solution that contains some older .NET Framework stuff and some newer .NET Standard/.NET 6+ stuff. We build the solution using msbuild.exe and we use the configurations Test (NOT Debug) and Release. Additionally, we have a Directory.Build.props/targets that redirects all build output from bigthing/source/<Project>/[bin|obj]/... and to a common output location like bigthing/temp/Build/[bin|obj]/<Configuration>/<Project>.

When building with msbuild we pass /p:Configuration=Test (or Release), but when the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator build targets run, it eventually runs the command dotnet Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator <snip extra args...> (notably, this command does NOT include a configuration). dotnet.exe attempts to resolve the path to the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator tool by looking in for project.assets.json, but it ends up using Debug instead of Test as the configuration so it fails to find the file and fails to find the tool.

Reproduction Steps

1. Create a Directory.Build.props/targets that redirects your build output
2. Create a project and reference Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator
3. Build the project using a non Debug configuration

Expected behavior

dotnet Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator will run successfully.

Actual behavior

dotnet will be unable to find Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator because it can't load the correct project.assets.json and will fail.

Regression?

No response

Known Workarounds

No response

Configuration

Targeting .NET 6.0
Building using .NET 8.0
The rest of the details here are mostly irellevant.

Other information

Minimal project file that can repro behavior:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">

  <PropertyGroup>
    <OutputType>Exe</OutputType>
    <TargetFramework>net6.0</TargetFramework>
    <ImplicitUsings>enable</ImplicitUsings>
    <Nullable>enable</Nullable>
  </PropertyGroup>

  <ItemGroup>
    <PackageReference Include="Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator" Version="8.0.0" />
  </ItemGroup>

</Project>

Also required is a Directory.Build.props/targts but I don't have that fully isolated yet.

Tagging subscribers to this area: @dotnet/area-infrastructure-libraries
See info in area-owners.md if you want to be subscribed.

Issue Details

---

Description

We're unable to use the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator package properly because dotnet is unable to find it properly unless you're using Debug as the configuration.

We have a large solution that contains some older .NET Framework stuff and some newer .NET Standard/.NET 6+ stuff. We build the solution using msbuild.exe and we use the configurations Test (NOT Debug) and Release. Additionally, we have a Directory.Build.props/targets that redirects all build output from bigthing/source/<Project>/[bin|obj]/... and to a common output location like bigthing/temp/Build/[bin|obj]/<Configuration>/<Project>.

When building with msbuild we pass /p:Configuration=Test (or Release), but when the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator build targets run, it eventually runs the command dotnet Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator <snip extra args...> (notably, this command does NOT include a configuration). dotnet.exe attempts to resolve the path to the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator tool by looking in for project.assets.json, but it ends up using Debug instead of Test as the configuration so it fails to find the file and fails to find the tool.

Reproduction Steps

1. Create a Directory.Build.props/targets that redirects your build output
2. Create a project and reference Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator
3. Build the project using a non Debug configuration

Expected behavior

dotnet Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator will run successfully.

Actual behavior

dotnet will be unable to find Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator because it can't load the correct project.assets.json and will fail.

Regression?

No response

Known Workarounds

No response

Configuration

Targeting .NET 6.0
Building using .NET 8.0
The rest of the details here are mostly irellevant.

Other information

Minimal project file that can repro behavior:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">

  <PropertyGroup>
    <OutputType>Exe</OutputType>
    <TargetFramework>net6.0</TargetFramework>
    <ImplicitUsings>enable</ImplicitUsings>
    <Nullable>enable</Nullable>
  </PropertyGroup>

  <ItemGroup>
    <PackageReference Include="Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator" Version="8.0.0" />
  </ItemGroup>

</Project>

Also required is a Directory.Build.props/targts but I don't have that fully isolated yet.

Author:	veleek
Assignees:	-
Labels:	area-Infrastructure-libraries
Milestone:	-

[veleek]

Something interesting that I'm digging into. When you DO NOT override the output locations project.assets.json gets put into <ProjectFolder>/obj/project.assets.json (not Configuration in path), but the overrides that we have end up putting it into BlahBuildOutput/obj/<Configuration>/<Project>.

So with our setup, you need to know the proper build <Configuration> value to find the project.assets.json, but without it, an long as you can find the obj for the project, then you can find it.

[veleek]

project.assets.json is written to <BaseItermediateOutputPath>/project.assets.json.

Usually <BaseIntermediateOutputPath> doesn't have a configuration in it and <IntermediateOutputPath> is equivalent to <BaseIntermediateOutputPath>/<Configuration>, but our build seems to be overriding both of these values to the same location.

You could probably argue that that's invalid (and I think I'm totally okay with that being the answer), but is there anyway to workaround the fact that dotnet use the wrong configuration when looking for a tool path?

Tagging subscribers to this area: @dotnet/area-system-xml
See info in area-owners.md if you want to be subscribed.

Issue Details

---

Description

We're unable to use the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator package properly because dotnet is unable to find it properly unless you're using Debug as the configuration.

We have a large solution that contains some older .NET Framework stuff and some newer .NET Standard/.NET 6+ stuff. We build the solution using msbuild.exe and we use the configurations Test (NOT Debug) and Release. Additionally, we have a Directory.Build.props/targets that redirects all build output from bigthing/source/<Project>/[bin|obj]/... and to a common output location like bigthing/temp/Build/[bin|obj]/<Configuration>/<Project>.

When building with msbuild we pass /p:Configuration=Test (or Release), but when the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator build targets run, it eventually runs the command dotnet Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator <snip extra args...> (notably, this command does NOT include a configuration). dotnet.exe attempts to resolve the path to the Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator tool by looking in for project.assets.json, but it ends up using Debug instead of Test as the configuration so it fails to find the file and fails to find the tool.

Reproduction Steps

1. Create a Directory.Build.props/targets that redirects your build output
2. Create a project and reference Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator
3. Build the project using a non Debug configuration

Expected behavior

dotnet Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator will run successfully.

Actual behavior

dotnet will be unable to find Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator because it can't load the correct project.assets.json and will fail.

Regression?

No response

Known Workarounds

No response

Configuration

Targeting .NET 6.0
Building using .NET 8.0
The rest of the details here are mostly irellevant.

Other information

Minimal project file that can repro behavior:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">

  <PropertyGroup>
    <OutputType>Exe</OutputType>
    <TargetFramework>net6.0</TargetFramework>
    <ImplicitUsings>enable</ImplicitUsings>
    <Nullable>enable</Nullable>
  </PropertyGroup>

  <ItemGroup>
    <PackageReference Include="Microsoft.XmlSerializer.Generator" Version="8.0.0" />
  </ItemGroup>

</Project>

Also required is a Directory.Build.props/targts but I don't have that fully isolated yet.

Author:	veleek
Assignees:	-
Labels:	area-System.Xml, untriaged, needs-area-label
Milestone:	-