Settings.settings File Keeps Getting Reset

Question

When debugging my project in Visual Studio 2008, my Settings.settings file keeps getting reset between builds. Is there a way to prevent this from happening?

Thanks.

Answer 1

Okay, I found out the answer I was really looking for. Basically, you need to call LocalFileSettingsProvider.Upgrade. However, since I will be deploying using ClickOnce, it will do it for you automatically.

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Q: Okay, but how do I know when to call Upgrade?

A: Good question. In Clickonce, when you install a new version of your application, ApplicationSettingsBase will detect it and automatically upgrade settings for you at the point settings are loaded. In non-Clickonce cases, there is no automatic upgrade - you have to call Upgrade yourself. Here is one idea for determining when to call Upgrade:

Have a boolean setting called CallUpgrade and give it a default value of true. When your app starts up, you can do something like:

if (Properties.Settings.Value.CallUpgrade)
{
    Properties.Settings.Value.Upgrade();
    Properties.Settings.Value.CallUpgrade = false;
}

This will ensure that Upgrade() is called only the first time the application runs after a new version is deployed.

REF: http://blogs.msdn.com/rprabhu/articles/433979.aspx

Answer 2

I believe Settings.settings files are saved based on the current version number, basically as a "feature" where settings are not saved between differing versions of the same program on a machine. Assuming you're incrementing the version number automatically when compiling (1.0.* in AssemblyInfo.cs), you'll be resetting your settings everytime you compile a new version.

To correct this, the best course would be to serialize your own settings file to the Application Data directory.