I'm doing a project at uni and would like to create zip files which name (just a build number) increments after each successful build.
What's the easiest way to do this? Is it a case of having to write a custom task? Or is there some built in functionality that will allow me to do this simply and easily?
I did have a look at the Zip task manual, but couldn't spot anything that might be useful.
Have you seen the BuildNumber task?
Run that task, and then name the zip file based on the property.
One easy alternative solution would be to include a timestamp into your file name:
myapp_20090326-1522.zip for the build made on 2009-03-26 at 15:22.
That's what many projects do. Also avoids problems if multiple people may create builds on their machines; you don't need to coordinate build numbers.
If you use a Hudson CI server to build your project, you can use the Hudson build number. Here's a quick example of getting the BUILD_NUMBER environment variable (which is injected by Hudson):
<property environment="env" description="System environment variables (including those set by Hudson)"/>
<!-- set the build number based on environment variable, otherwise blank -->
<condition property="buildNumber" value=".${env.BUILD_NUMBER}" else="">
<isset property="env.BUILD_NUMBER" />
</condition>
