Building via NuGet

As an alternative to using the TypeScript SDK with MSBuild to compile TypeScript, you can also use the TypeScript NuGet package Microsoft.TypeScript.MSBuild. This allows you to install a particular version of TypeScript locally to your project.

Note

One common use case for the NuGet package is for compiling TypeScript using the .NET Core CLI. Unless you are willing to hand-edit your project file to import build targets from a TypeScript SDK installation, the NuGet package is the only way to enable TypeScript compilation using .NET Core CLI commands such as dotnet build and dotnet publish.

Caution

If you are using the NuGet package for MSBuild support for a given project, that project file must not itself import Microsoft.TypeScript.Default.props or Microsoft.TypeScript.targets. These will be imported by the NuGet package, so including them separately could cause unintended behavior. See Removing Default Imports for details on what to remove.

Installing major releases via NuGet (https://www.nuget.org)

• Right-Click -> Manage NuGet Packages

• Search for Microsoft.TypeScript.MSBuild

  

• Hit Install

• When install is complete, rebuild!

Installing nightly drops (https://www.myget.org)

1. Add a new Package Source

   • Go to Tools -> Options -> NuGet Package Manager -> Package Sources
   • Create a new Source:
   • Name: TypeScript Nightly

   • Source: https://www.myget.org/F/typescript-preview/

     

2. Use the new Package Source

   • On Project node Right-Click -> Manage NuGet Packages

   • Search for Microsoft.TypeScript.MSBuild

     

   • Hit Install

   • When install is complete, rebuild!

Removing default imports

• Right-Click -> Unload Project
• Right-Click -> Edit <project file name>

• Remove references to

  • Microsoft.TypeScript.Default.props

    The import should look something like:

    <Import
        Project="$(MSBuildExtensionsPath32)\Microsoft\VisualStudio\v$(VisualStudioVersion)\TypeScript\Microsoft.TypeScript.Default.props"
        Condition="Exists('$(MSBuildExtensionsPath32)\Microsoft\VisualStudio\v$(VisualStudioVersion)\TypeScript\Microsoft.TypeScript.Default.props')" />
    

  • Microsoft.TypeScript.targets

    The import should look something like:

    <Import
       Project="$(MSBuildExtensionsPath32)\Microsoft\VisualStudio\v$(VisualStudioVersion)\TypeScript\Microsoft.TypeScript.targets"
       Condition="Exists('$(MSBuildExtensionsPath32)\Microsoft\VisualStudio\v$(VisualStudioVersion)\TypeScript\Microsoft.TypeScript.targets')" />
    

Package structure details

Microsoft.TypeScript.MSBuild.nupkg contains two main folders:

• build folder

  Two files are located in this folder. Both are entry points - for the main TypeScript target file and props file respectively.

  1. Microsoft.TypeScript.MSBuild.targets

     This file sets variables that specify the run-time platform, such as a path to TypeScript.Tasks.dll, before importing Microsoft.TypeScript.targets from the tools folder.

  2. Microsoft.TypeScript.MSBuild.props

     This file imports Microsoft.TypeScript.Default.props from the tools folder and sets properties indicating that the build has been initiated through NuGet.

• tools folder

  Versions prior to 2.3 only contain a tsc folder. Microsoft.TypeScript.targets and TypeScript.Tasks.dll are located at the root level.

  In versions 2.3 and later, the root level contains Microsoft.TypeScript.targets and Microsoft.TypeScript.Default.props. See MSBuild Configuration for more details on these files.

  Additionally, the folder contains three subfolders:

  1. net45

     This folder contains TypeScript.Tasks.dll and other DLLs on which it depends. When building a project on a Windows platform, MSBuild uses the DLLs from this folder.

  2. netstandard1.3

     This folder contains another version of TypeScript.Tasks.dll, which is used when building projects on a non-Windows machine.

  3. tsc

     This folder contains tsc.exe and all dependency files required to execute the exe. On Windows, TypeScript.Tasks.dll uses the tsc.exe to build projects. On non-Windows, TypeScript.Tasks.dll uses Node.js to run tsc.js - implying that it is required for Node.js to be installed on these platforms.

     Note

     Since we use Node.js to run the compiler on non-Windows platforms, Node.js must be installed in this scenario.