How do I specify a custom code analysis ruleset for multiple projects in a solution using Visual Studio 2019?

Question

I've got a custom code analysis ruleset that I want to apply to all configurations of multiple projects in my solution but can't see how I can do it.

To be clear, I'm looking for a way (if any) of doing this in a single step rather then editing the properties of each project from the IDE.

I found this guidance so far: https://learn.microsoft.com/en-us/visualstudio/code-quality/how-to-configure-code-analysis-for-a-managed-code-project?view=vs-2019#specify-rule-sets-for-multiple-projects-in-a-solution

But it doesn't seem to be correct. In Visual Studio 2019, if I go to Analyze > Configure Code Analysis > For Solution I get a blank property page with the message:

NOTE: This property page has been deprecated and will be removed in a future product release.

Is there another way I can do this? I have lots of projects :(

Thanks.

Answer 1

I've had no answers about if there's a way to do this in Visual Studio so I've had to resort to altering .csproj files directly in a batch fashion.

This script I found by John Robbins is excellent: https://www.wintellect.com/batch-updating-changing-visual-studio-projects-with-powershell/

After installation, my usage was like this in case anyone is interested:

dir -recurse *.csproj | Set-ProjectProperties -OverrideDefaultProperties -CustomConfigurationProperties @{ "CodeAnalysisRuleSet" = ".\SystemStandard.ruleset" }

dir -recurse *.csproj | Set-ProjectProperties -OverrideDefaultProperties -CustomConfigurationProperties @{ "RunCodeAnalysis" = "false" }

dir -recurse *.csproj | Set-ProjectProperties -OverrideDefaultProperties -CustomConfigurationProperties @{ "TreatWarningsAsErrors" = "true" } 

Answer 2

To specify a rule set for a project, use the CodeAnalysisRuleSet MSBuild property.

To do that, there are several ways you can customize your build

Answer 3

If I understand the question correctly, this can be done quite easily by following the steps outlined in this blog post.

The Directory.Build.props approach

The guide is written with StyleCop in mind but the same step should work with any analyzer.

1. Create a file named Directory.Build.props (use this exact casing) along with your .sln file, i.e. at the top-level of your project. Its content should be something like this:

<Project>
  <PropertyGroup>
    <!-- This part specifies the ruleset file name. Change to something
         more appropriate if not using StyleCop. -->
    <CodeAnalysisRuleSet>$(SolutionDir)StyleCop.ruleset</CodeAnalysisRuleSet>
  </PropertyGroup>
  <!-- This part adds StyleCop as a reference in all projects + makes the 
       top-level stylecop.json file be used by all projects. Skip this
       altogether if you are not spefically using StyleCop. -->
  <ItemGroup>    
    <PackageReference Include=”StyleCop.Analyzers” Version=”1.1.1-rc.108" PrivateAssets=”all” />
    <AdditionalFiles Include=”$(SolutionDir)stylecop.json” Link=”stylecop.json” />
  </ItemGroup>
</Project>

2. Create a StyleCop.ruleset file with your analyzer configuration.

That's it. The next time you run dotnet build or build your project in Visual Studio (you might have to close/reopen the solution if you have it open), these rules should apply.

---

For reference, here is the Directory.Build.props file in a project of mine: https://github.com/perlun/perlang/blob/master/Directory.Build.props