Set EXE language in C# WPF

Amol Bhavsar 0

I am working in C# WPF and want to change EXE Language which appears in EXE Properties-Details Page- Language. Originally the "Language" is "Language Neutral". Even though I am changing the "Assembly Neutral Language" from project properties, the EXE properties from explore are not showing the changes language from Visual Studio 2022.

However C++ have an option to use .RC file but I need option which will work in C#.Net.

Please let us know way to achieve this.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions.

Hui Liu-MSFT 38,256 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2024-04-05T09:02:22.49+00:00

Hi,@AmolBhavsar. Welcome to Microsoft Q&A.

Do you want to set settings such as Build localized applications or Use ClickOnce with localized applications? If I misunderstood, could you be more specific about your question? Can you show a minimal, reproducible example without private information so I can reproduce the issue? What are the steps to reproduce the current problem?
Amol Bhavsar 0 Reputation points

2024-04-05T11:09:14.92+00:00

Thanks for the reply.

The following are the steps to reproduce the issue.

Start the Visual Studio with C# WPF desktop project.

Just compile and check the EXE properties - Details page.

The Details page will show as following with Language = Language Neutral

Now reach to project properties from Visual Studio and set the "Assembly Neutral Language" to any one from dropdown (e.g. en-US).

Compile the program and check the same properties page from solution explore. However the language option remains unchanged.

My requirement is to set the Language option to one which is selected from Visual Studio.

There is a way to do it just by opening the EXE in Visual Studio and changing Version - Language however this is a manual way and not programmatic way. As and when exe is rebuild, the setting again gets removed.

I hope above will help you.

Thanks again for the reply
Hui Liu-MSFT 38,256 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2024-04-09T09:10:16.9466667+00:00

Hi,@AmolBhavsar. Why would you want to do that? By default, when you create a new WPF project in Visual Studio, the Neutral Language is set to the language specified during project creation (usually English).
As far as I know, the .RC (Resource) file is used to define and manage resources for Windows applications in C++. These resources can include icons, cursors, dialog boxes, menu items, strings, and other types of data that are used by the application.
.RC files support the localization of resources by allowing developers to provide different versions of resources for different languages or regions. This enables the application to display text, graphics, and other content in the user's preferred language.
Could you share with me the steps on how to do this in a c++ .rc file?
Amol Bhavsar 0 Reputation points

2024-04-11T15:51:31.7766667+00:00

This is the requirement of my application that as specified in the image above, the language I want to be as "English" but not the "Language Neutral". I am not sure about the steps in C++ but knows that in C++ this can be achieved. In C# - WPF, I want the Language to be set.

.RC file is used in C++ and not in C# - WPF. So I want way to set the language as per my convivence. Just by setting ASSEMBLT NEUTRAL LANGUAGE from project properties, it is not working. Since there is a way in C++, I am thinking there must be some way in C#-WPF.

Please let me know any concerns still you have.

Thanks for your attention.
Hui Liu-MSFT 38,256 Reputation points Microsoft Vendor

2024-04-12T09:49:43.41+00:00

Hi,Amol Bhavsar. I'm looking for differences between the two languages/projects and testing in Visual Studio, I'll come back if there are any updates. Please wait patiently.

1 answer

gekka 6,671 MVP

"Assembly Neutral Language" in project property is a setting for NeutralResourcesLanguageAttribute.
20240407_1

The correct setting to display in the file properties is "Win32 Resources - Resource file" in project property.
20240407_2

You should create like following RC file, and add task for generate RES file in your project file.

1 VERSIONINFO
 FILEVERSION 1,0,0,1
 PRODUCTVERSION 1,0,0,2
 FILEFLAGSMASK 0x3fL
#ifdef _DEBUG
 FILEFLAGS 0x1L
#else
 FILEFLAGS 0x0L
#endif
 FILEOS 0x40004L
 FILETYPE 0x1L
 FILESUBTYPE 0x0L
BEGIN
    BLOCK "StringFileInfo"
    BEGIN
        BLOCK "040904b0"
        BEGIN
            VALUE "CompanyName", "TODO: English CompanyName"
            VALUE "FileDescription", "TODO: English Description"
            VALUE "FileVersion", "1.0.0.3"
            VALUE "InternalName", "TODO:  English InternalName"
            VALUE "LegalCopyright", "Copyright (C) 2024 English Copyright"
            VALUE "OriginalFilename", "TODO:"
            VALUE "ProductName", "TODO:"
            VALUE "ProductVersion", "1.0.0.4"
        END
    END
    BLOCK "VarFileInfo"
    BEGIN
	VALUE "Translation", 0x409, 1200 //English,UTF-16LE
    END
END

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

	<PropertyGroup>
		<OutputType>WinExe</OutputType>
		<TargetFramework>net8.0-windows</TargetFramework>
		<Version>1.0.0</Version>
		<UseWPF>true</UseWPF>
	
		<!--<NeutralLanguage>en-US</NeutralLanguage>-->
	</PropertyGroup>

	<ItemGroup>
		<None Include="test.rc" /> <!-- create rc file in project folder-->
	</ItemGroup>
	<Target Name="generate_win32resource" AfterTargets="ResGen">
		<Message Text="Generate Win32 Resourcefile" />
		<Exec Command="&quot;C:\Program Files (x86)\Windows Kits\10\bin\10.0.22621.0\x86\rc.exe&quot; /v /nologo /l411 test.rc" WorkingDirectory="$(ProjectDir)" />
	</Target>
	<PropertyGroup>
		<!--<GenerateAssemblyInfo>false</GenerateAssemblyInfo>-->
		<Win32Resource>test.res</Win32Resource>
	</PropertyGroup>
</Project>

NOTE: The path to rc.exe must be changed to match the version of C++ installed your environment.

Amol Bhavsar 0 Reputation points

2024-04-08T10:51:42.7933333+00:00

Hi

Thanks for your input.

I tried in the way you are saying however I am not really sure how to use .rc in C# environment. Also I am not sure how to add .res file in C# project.

As you are saying that "add task for generate RES file in your project file", this also I am not sure for adding the Task.

Here in C# , I can only use .RESX file and .RC file is used in C++. I added the changes in CSPROJ file but nothing happened. Can you let us know the exact steps those are applicable for C# environment or any sample which I can refer.

Thanks