Is there a need to convert a Visual Studio Express solution to a Visual Studio Professional solution?

Question

I've been using Visual Studio Express for a good while now, but after comparing it with Visual Studio Professional, I've decided to 'upgrade' to Visual Studio Professional, which is easy since I can just grab it for free from DreamSpark (I have a student account there).

I know that solutions that were developed in VS Express can be opened and worked on in VS Professional, but is it better, or even possible, to convert my solutions so that they show up as VS Professional solutions? Or, will they automatically be converted once I start using Professional-only features as I continue to develop my applications?

Answer 1

As you note, Visual Studio Professional will open Visual Studio Express projects without modification. The reverse is not always true. But I think you misunderstand something - there is no conversion involved. There is no difference between a professional solution and an express solution. They use the same format (msbuild).