How to: Integrate Custom Tools into the Project Properties

You can add custom tool options to the Visual Studio Property Pages window by creating an XML file.

The Configuration Properties section of the Property Pages window displays setting groups known as rules. Every rule contains the settings for a tool or a group of features. For example, the Linker rule contains the settings for the linker tool. The settings in a rule can be subdivided into categories.

You can create a rule file that contains properties for your custom tool so that the properties are loaded when Visual Studio starts. For information about how to modify the file, see Platform Extensibility Part 2 on the Visual Studio Project Team blog.

The folder to place your rule file in depends on the locale and the version of Visual Studio in use. In a Visual Studio 2019 or later developer command prompt, the rules folder is %VSINSTALLDIR%MSBuild\Microsoft\VC\<version>\<locale>\, where the <version> value is v160 in Visual Studio 2019. The <locale> is an LCID, for example, 1033 for English. In Visual Studio 2017, the rules folder is %VSINSTALLDIR%Common7\IDE\VC\VCTargets\<locale>\. In a Visual Studio 2015 or earlier developer command prompt, the rules folder is %ProgramFiles(x86)%\MSBuild\Microsoft.Cpp\v4.0\<version>\<locale>\. You'll use a different path for each edition of Visual Studio that's installed, and for each language. For example, the default rules folder path for Visual Studio 2019 Community edition in English could be C:\Program Files (x86)\Microsoft Visual Studio\2019\Community\MSBuild\Microsoft\VC\v160\1033\.

To add or change project properties

1. In the XML editor, create an XML file.

2. Save the file in the default rules folder. Adjust the path for your language and Visual Studio edition. Every rule in the Property Pages window is represented by an XML file in this folder. Make sure that the file is uniquely named in the folder.

3. Copy the content of an existing rules file, such as rc.xml, close it without saving changes, and then paste the content in your new XML file. You can copy any XML schema file to use as a template. Choose one that's similar to your tool.

4. In the new XML file, modify the content according to your requirements. Make sure to change the Rule Name and Rule.DisplayName at the top of the file.

5. Save your changes and close the file.

6. The XML files in the rules folder are loaded when Visual Studio starts. To test the new file, restart Visual Studio.

7. In Solution Explorer, right-click a project and then choose Properties. In the Property Pages window, verify that there's a new node with the name of your rule.

See also

MSBuild on the command line - C++