How to: Convert a Visual Studio .NET Project to Visual Studio 2005
This topic describes how to convert a Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2002 or 2003 project to Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 using the Visual Studio Conversion Wizard. The wizard makes many of the changes to your Web site so that it can be compiled as an ASP.NET version 2.0 Web site. The wizard is included in Visual Web Developer 2005, Visual Web Developer 2005 Express Edition, Visual Studio 2005, and Visual Studio 2005 Team System.
Running the Conversion Wizard
Opening a project created in a previous version of Visual Studio .NET will automatically invoke the conversion wizard. After the conversion process is completed, the changes made cannot be reversed. The wizard will prompt you to save a backup copy of your project before conversion begins. It is also a good practice to make a backup copy of the original project before starting the conversion wizard.
The .NET Framework allows you to install multiple versions of the common language runtime on the same computer. Installing the .NET Framework version 2.0 will not disrupt any existing applications that are running on previous versions of the .NET Framework. For more information, see ASP.NET Side-by-Side Overview. Similarly, Visual Studio 2005 can run side-by-side with previous versions. This means that you can convert applications as needed. This also works for solutions that are composed of several applications. In this scenario, each application can be converted independently.
The following procedure is for Visual Web Developer 2005. The steps for opening Visual Studio .NET projects in other Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 products might vary.
To convert a Visual Studio .NET Project
Open Visual Web Developer 2005.
On the File menu, click Open Web Site.
This dialog box allows you to open an existing Web site on the local computer, whether Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) is installed or not. Select the appropriate tab for your situation. The choices are File System, Local IIS, FTP Site, and Remote Site.
Note
Opening a Web-based project using the File System tab will cause IIS metadata information to be lost. Open Web-based projects using the Local IIS tab.
Navigate to the folder or virtual directory of the Visual Studio .NET project to be converted.
Click Open.
The Visual Studio Conversion Wizard starts. The starting page of the wizard provides information that you should read before continuing.
Click Next.
The second page of the wizard appears. On this page, you can choose whether to create a backup copy of your solution or project. If you have not already created a backup of your project or solution before starting the conversion, it is recommended you do so at this point.
Click Next.
The third page of the wizard appears. This page provides a summary of what the wizard will do. At this point you can still click Cancel to stop the conversion.
Click Finish to start the conversion process.
The conversion process begins. If the wizard encounters a project that contains a custom configuration, you will be prompted to select a configuration to convert. If the Select a Configuration to Upgrade dialog box appears, select a configuration and click OK to continue.
After the conversion process is complete, the fourth page of the wizard appears with a summary of the conversion process.
Make sure the Show the conversion log when the wizard is closed check box is selected.
This will open the conversion log as an active document in Visual Studio when the conversion process is completed.
Click Close to exit the Visual Studio Conversion Wizard.
The wizard closes and the Conversion Report opens.
Verify the status of the conversion process by reviewing the Conversion Report.
For help interpreting the report, see Migration Conversion Report Format. A log of what steps the wizard took can also be found in the root folder of your Web site in the ConversionReport.txt file.
See Also
Concepts
Web Project Conversion from Visual Studio .NET
Troubleshooting Conversion to Visual Web Developer
Migration Conversion Report Format
Walkthrough: Converting a Web Site Project to a Web Application Project in Visual Studio