MSBuild on CI Server can't find AL.exe

Question

I'm having a problem on my TeamCity CI build server where during compilation I get the following error:

C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v4.0.30319\Microsoft.Common.targets(2342, 9): error MSB3086: Task could not find "AL.exe" using the SdkToolsPath "" or the registry key "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v7.0A". Make sure the SdkToolsPath is set and the tool exists in the correct processor specific location under the SdkToolsPath and that the Microsoft Windows SDK is installed

I've found similar reports from a year ago when people were upgrading to .NET 3.5, for example this one. In that case, installing the latest SDK solved the issue, however I have already installed the latest SDK (Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4) on my build server. The MSBuild tools are all there on the server, in a folder called

C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v4.0.30319

and AL.exe exists in

C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v7.1\Bin\NETFX 4.0 Tools

However the registry key mentioned in the error message does not exist. So, it seems like there is something wrong with the installation/configuration of MSBuild. This error only happens for projects that have embedded resources, which require AL.exe.

Answer 1

As you have install the latest SDK (I'm assuming that's v7.1)

1. Go to "Microsoft Windows SDK v7.1" from the Start menu
2. Select "Windows SDK 7.1 Command Prompt" and enter

3. cd Setup

4. WindowsSdkVer -version:v7.1

This will tell msbuild to use that version of the tools without needing to do any scary registry editing.