Best type of Visual Studio project for a simple collection of files?

Question

I've got a collection of HTML documentation that I'd like to add to my solution in Visual Studio. It's just a collection of files -- there are no build steps.

What's the best way to add this to my solution? In the past I've used a C# class library project and disabled it in Build Configuration, but this felt wrong.

A "Makefile project" doesn't work, because it doesn't support nested folders.

I don't really want to use Solution Folders, because they're not real filesystem folders. This makes them harder to work with. Solution Folders are great when your solution has a large number of projects in it, but I don't think they're great for managing more than a couple of loose files.

How do others do this?

score 2 · Answer 1 · answered Jan 25 '09 at 13:31

2

You can put them in solution folder

Right click on solution and select Add->Add existing item - it will create solution folder automatically. You can add solution folder manually via Add->New solution folder

answered Jan 25 '09 at 13:31

aku

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Solution folders aren't real filesystem folders, though. I've clarified my question. – Roger Lipscombe Jan 25 '09 at 13:51

score 0 · Answer 2 · answered Jan 25 '09 at 13:32

I would recommend simply adding them directly under the solution (or rather under a Documentation folder under the solution). The context menu for the solution title in Solution Explorer gives options to create solution folders and add references to solution files.

score 0 · Answer 3 · answered Jan 25 '09 at 14:23

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Given that you don't want to use solution folders, I see absolutely no point of including them in your solution then. Any method you could use would be rather contrived. It is quite common simply to have a Documentation folder in the root directory of your solution that is not referenced in any way by the solution/project files. (If you like, you can then mirror the directory structure of Documentation using Solution Files.)

answered Jan 25 '09 at 14:23

Noldorin

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http://stackoverflow.com/questions/267200/visual-studio-solutions-folder-as-real-folders . Solution folders are pure virtual folders, they have nothing to do with the file system. If OP wants do organize his documentation in folders and have them available in the solution he cannot use Solution Folders because everything will be placed at the solution root. – Oskar Emil Jan 11 '14 at 16:42

score 0 · Answer 4 · answered Jan 25 '09 at 14:32

I always put a .Documentation folder in each project that I am making the documentation for. It's not as elegant as having a single location for the solution, but it also makes it so that as I use different projects in different solutions and have the documents follow their projects. At compile time I have the build system put all the documentation together in one folder.

Best type of Visual Studio project for a simple collection of files?

4 Answers4