OnError element (MSBuild)

Article
03/13/2017

Causes one or more targets to execute, if the ContinueOnError attribute is false for a failed task.

Syntax

<OnError ExecuteTargets="TargetName"
    Condition="'String A'=='String B'" />

Attributes and elements

The following sections describe attributes, child elements, and parent elements.

Attributes

Attribute	Description
`Condition`	Optional attribute. Condition to be evaluated. For more information, see Conditions.
`ExecuteTargets`	Required attribute. The targets to execute if a task fails. Separate multiple targets with semicolons. Multiple targets are executed in the order specified.

Child elements

None.

Parent elements

Element	Description
Target	Container element for MSBuild tasks.

Remarks

MSBuild executes the OnError element if one of the Target element's tasks fails with the ContinueOnError attribute set to ErrorAndStop (or false). When the task fails, the targets specified in the ExecuteTargets attribute is executed. If there is more than one OnError element in the target, the OnError elements are executed sequentially when the task fails.

For information about the ContinueOnError attribute, see Task element (MSBuild). For information about targets, see Targets.

Example

The following code executes the TaskOne and TaskTwo tasks. If TaskOne fails, MSBuild evaluates the OnError element and executes the OtherTarget target.

<Target Name="ThisTarget">
    <TaskOne ContinueOnError="ErrorAndStop">
    </TaskOne>
    <TaskTwo>
    </TaskTwo>
    <OnError ExecuteTargets="OtherTarget" />
</Target>

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