Can I set the platform toolset from the command line when building with VS2010's msbuild?

Question

When I'm building a VS2010 with msbuild from the command line, can I change the platform toolset to v90 (ie Visual Studio 2008 toolchain) from the command line, without editing the vcxproj file?

I'm using the following command line in my build script currently:

mysystemf("msbuild %s.vcxproj /t:rebuild /p:configuration=release,platform=%s", prjname, platform);

Answer 1

Yes you can set PlatformToolset without change the vcxproj file.

If you open a vcxproj file, you'll see that there is a PlatformToolset property. For visual studio 2012, it is v110; For VS2010, it is v100; For VS2008, it is v90.

You could overwrite this property with /p:PlatformToolset=v110/v100/v90 to change the toolchain.

Note: Sometimes, msbuild failed with error Unsupported platformtoolset value , it is mostly because you have not specify the VisualStudioVersion .

Answer 2

The PlatformToolset is configured as part of a PropertyGroup for the configuration.

<PropertyGroup Condition="'$(Configuration)|$(Platform)'=='Debug|Win32'" Label="Configuration">
  <ConfigurationType>Application</ConfigurationType>
  <UseDebugLibraries>true</UseDebugLibraries>
  <CharacterSet>Unicode</CharacterSet>
  <PlatformToolset>v90</PlatformToolset>
</PropertyGroup>

If you want to change toolsets from the command line, you should add a configuration for each toolset (easily done using the IDE) and then call that configuration for the build.

msbuild %s.vcxproj /t:rebuild /p:configuration= VC90Release ,platform=%s

Answer 3

I found the answer in MSDN :

To rebuild your project with the Visual C++ 9.0 toolset, type either of the following commands:

msbuild myproject.vcxproj /p:PlatformToolset=v90 /t:rebuild

Answer 4

From here http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb397428

It says that adding /ToolsVersion:3.5 will build it as if it were a VS 2008 project