Editing Modding Tutorials/Setting up a solution

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{{Credit|[[User:Alistaire|Alistaire]]}}<br/>

In this tutorial you will learn how to set up a solution, along with instructions on setting the output directory and files for more convenient building right into the Assemblies folder.

=Requirements=

* The manual option in this tutorial requires you to have [[Modding_Tutorials/Mod_folder_structure#The Source and Assemblies folders|set up a Source and Assemblies folder]] (the Visual Studio automatic option sets this up for you).
* You will want to have an IDE installed: [[Modding Tutorials/Recommended software#IDE's|Recommended IDE's]].<br/><br/>

=Setting up a solution=
Setting up can be different for different IDE's. Feel free to add '''''complete''''' instructions for your IDE of choice.

===Visual Studio Community 2017===
''NOTE: Visual Studio 2017 is a rather heavy application (2-3 GB for basic functionality) but has a bit more functionality. Only Install if your computer can handle it! The tutorial is similar for Visual Studio 2015.''


==== Option 1 (Manual Method):====
# Create a new class library project
## Once loaded, go to File -> New -> Project...
## Go to Templates -> Visual C# -> Class Library (Be sure to select the *.NET Framework* version, not *.NET Standard*) [[File:Capture.png|200px|thumb|right|Installing the .NET framework]]
## Enter your name and solution name in the lower pane.
## Choose a location, preferably:<br/><pre>(RimWorldInstallFolder)/Mods/(YourModName)/Source</pre>
## ''Optional'': Untick "Create directory for solution"
# In your project, set target framework and various other porperties
## In your Solution Explorer, right click your project -> Properties
## Once in your properties, select Application -> Set Target Framework to .NET Framework 3.5 (No client profile)
## ''Optional'': Change your Assembly and Namespace names to anything of your choice
## Go to Build -> Advanced... and set "Debugging information" to none
## Leave Advanced..., and set the Output Path to "..\..\Assemblies\" (The Assemblies folder in your mod folder)
# Add references to RimWorld code
## Expand your project. Then right click "References" -> Add Reference...
## Click Browse...
## Navigate towards <pre>RimWorld******/RimWorld******_Data/Managed</pre> and select files: <br/><pre>Assembly-CSharp.dll&#10;UnityEngine.dll</pre>
## Click "Add"
## Click "OK" to close the Reference Manager.
## Right click on both Assembly-CSharp.dll and UnityEngine.dll and set Copy Local to False (Properties pane).

====Option 2 (Automatic Method):====
This option uses the [https://ludeon.com/forums/index.php?topic=39038.0 Rimworld Mod Development Cookiecutter] tool.</br>
'''Note: despite being automatic and potentially taking away some of the tedium away, the environment it sets up is very particular and this tool is currently not recommended for newcomers.'''</br>
''As of Jan 2019, the cookiecutter is set up for Windows development.  Linux/Mac people can still use it, but they will have a few errors to clean up.''</br>
# Open Visual Studio
# Once loaded, go to File -> New -> From Cookiecutter...
# Search for ''rimworld''
# Double-click ''cookiecutter-rimworld-mod-development''
# Change the Template Options:
## ''Create To'' => ''Your/Rimworld/Mod/Directory''
## ''mod_name''
## ''namespace_name'' (don't change if unsure)
## ''author'' => ''your steam username''
## ''target_version'' => current RW version (can leave blank for most up-to-date)
## ''in_game_description'' (not required, can change later in About-Release.xml)
## ''url'' (can leave blank for link to your Steam Workshop profile)
# Click "Create and Open Folder"

===Sharpdevelop===
'''Caution:''' Sharpdevelop (or #develop) does NOT CURRENTLY allow for C# 6.0+ syntax without plugins and does NOT ALLOW for C# 7.0+ syntax at all. For your average project this does not matter, however some existing projects are already built entirely upon C# 6.0+ syntax which can not be compiled anymore in Sharpdevelop. Visual Studio does not have these issues and should be your go-to for compiling large projects such as Combat Extended.

# Create a new class library project in your [[Modding Tutorials/Recommended software#IDE.27s|IDE of choice]];
## Go to File -> New -> Solution;
## Go to C# or .NET -> Library or Class Library (NOT portable);
## Enter a project name (solution name automatically updated);
## Choose a location, preferably:<br/><pre>(RimWorldInstallFolder)/Mods/(YourModName)/Source</pre>
## ''Optional'': Untick "Create a directory for solution"/"Create a project within the solution directory",
# In your project, add references to Assembly-CSharp.dll and UnityEngine.dll:
## In your IDE project file browser, right-click the "References" folder and "Add reference";
## Choose the ".NET Assembly Browser" tab and "Browse...";
## Navigate towards <pre>RimWorld******/RimWorld******_Data/Managed</pre> and select files: <br/><pre>Assembly-CSharp.dll&#10;UnityEngine.dll</pre>
## Click "Open" then "OK";
## In the References folder, right-click Assembly-CSharp -> Properties and change "Local copy" to False. Do the same for UnityEngine,
# In your project properties, change the target framework to .NET 3.5:
## In your IDE project file browser, right-click "(YourSolutionName)";
## Choose Properties;
## Go to the "Compiling" tab, "Output", "Target framework", "Change" and choose ".NET Framework 3.5",
# In your project properties, change the build events so only a single file is built:
## Go to the "Compiling" tab, "Output", "Debug info" and choose "No debug information";
## Right-click your .cs files -> Properties and change "Copy to output" (If you haven't resized the properties bar, this will be truncated to "Copy to out") to Never,
# In your project properties, fix the output location to put the DLL in the Assemblies folder:
## Go to the "Compiling" tab, "Output", "Output path" and change the output path to "..\..\Assemblies\".<br/><br/>

===Xamarin/MonoDevelop===
The setup is similar as the one above. A few special points to address:
# Mono 4.X isn't backward compatible so you may need to install an older 3.X version of Mono in order to compile against .NET3.5 dlls.
# Make sure you uncheck "Use MSBuild build engine (recommended for this project type)" under project > options > build > general   (You might find this by right-clicking on your project - not solution - name and selecting options)
# Changing the framework to 3.5 can be found (for Linux anyway) in the same place.

More detailed installation instructions for Linux can be found [https://blog.rubenwardy.com/2016/07/21/rimworld-setup-monodevelop/ here] and [https://spdskatr.github.io/RWModdingResources/mono-arch here].

===Rider (good for Mac)===
JetBrains Rider is a great cross-platform C# IDE, but it isn't cheap. It's $140 for the first year, including perpetual access to that version (access to future updates gets cheaper, but it's still over $100/year). However, the Early Access versions are a bit unstable but free. They also offer free student licenses.

# Open Rider and click New Solution in the welcome dialog.
## Click Class Library under .NET on the left. The option may a second to show up.
## Under Solution Name (and Project Name), enter the name of your mod.
## Set the Solution Directory to [your mod folder]/Source.
## Optionally check "put solution and project in the same directory." This is probably a good idea.
## Change Framework to .Net Framework 3.5.
## Click Create.
# In the left side bar, expand your solution, right click your project (mod name with "C#" icon) and click Properties.
## In the Properties window, select Configurations > Debug on the left and uncheck Debug Symbols.
## For both configurations, change the Output Path to ../../Assemblies.
## Click OK.
# Expand your project, right click References and click Add Reference.
## Click Add From.
## Browse to the folder with the RimWorld DLLs (Mac: /Users/[username]/Library/Application Support/Steam/steamapps/common/RimWorld/RimWorldMac.app/Contents/Resources/Data/Managed).
## Select both Assembly-CSharp.dll and UnityEngine.dll and click OK.
## Expand Assemblies under References. For both of the assemblies that you just added:
### Right click the assembly and click Properties.
### Uncheck "Copy Local" (you may need to scroll down) and click OK.

You're done! Note that Rider has a built-in decompiler—to view the source of a RimWorld class or method, just right-click its name and click Go To > Definition.

=Common issues=
* Can't find the option to target .NET Framework 3.5? Due to its age, it may require additional installation steps. In Visual Studio, Tools => Get Tools and features => Individual Components => Select ''.NET Framework 3.5 development tools'' (or google installation instructions). Also make sure your project is a ''Class Library (.NET '''Framework''')''. Not .NET Core or .NET Standard. 

=See also=
* [[Modding Tutorials/Writing custom code|Writing custom code]] continues on setting up your solution.<br/>

[[Category:Modding tutorials]]