How to copy files to output directory from a referenced NuGet package in .NET Core csproj?

Question

I'm trying to use PhantomJS NuGet package in .NET core csproj application. But I think it is not possible using new PackageReference syntax for NuGet.

When I reference the PhantomJS package like this:

<PackageReference Include="PhantomJS" Version="2.1.1">
  <IncludeAssets>all</IncludeAssets>
</PackageReference>

It does not do anything when I run dotnet build.

I'd expect it to copy the files inside PhantomJS package to the output directory (or anywhere in the project) so I could use the binary file provided by the PhantomJS package.

Is there another way to copy the contents of PhantomJS NuGet package to the output directory with MSBuild?

Answer 1

I think you want to use:

<CopyLocalLockFileAssemblies>true</CopyLocalLockFileAssemblies>

in the main <PropertyGroup>, which causes all dependencies to be copied to the output folder. This means every single dependency gets copied though so this can be quite a mess in some situations.

If you then want to exclude specific assemblies or packages:

<ItemGroup>
    <-- won't copy to output folder -->
    <PackageReference Include="MahApps.Metro" version="1.6.5">
      <IncludeAssets>compile</IncludeAssets>
    </PackageReference>
    <PackageReference Include="Dragablz" version="0.0.3.203">
      <IncludeAssets>compile</IncludeAssets>
    </PackageReference>
    ... 

    <-- normal will copy to output folder -->
    <PackageReference Include="xmlrpcnet" version="3.0.0.266" />
    <PackageReference Include="YamlDotNet" version="6.0.0" />
</ItemGroup>


<ItemGroup>
    <!-- keep assembly reference from copying to output -->
    <Reference Include="$(SolutionDir)MarkdownMonster\bin\$(Configuration)\$(TargetFramework)\MarkdownMonster.exe">
      <Private>false</Private>
    </Reference> 
</ItemGroup>

compile in this context means they are available for compilation, but aren't copied to the output folder.