What are all these *.FileListAbsolute.txt files for?

Question

What are the *.FileListAbsolute.txt files for that Visual Studio generates? They keep cluttering up my searches. Such as when I search for *.csproj for adding projects to a .sln.

Does Visual Studio use them? Is there any way to make it not generate them?

I STFW'd but it's filled with results of people listing directories that happen to have these files in them.

Answer 1

The FileListAbsolute.txt file contains the list of files built in the current build and in prior builds, and is used during a Clean and Rebuild to figure out which files to delete.

The file is necessary because in certain situations, such as a project that has been renamed, you want the Build system to be able to delete the older name.