MSBuild Task

MSBuild Task automatically updates the localization files as code evolves.

Download Lexical.Localization.Tool.exe and add it into the C# project folder.

Open .csproj file. This option is visible for .NET Core and Standard projects. For framework projects, edit with text editor.

Add the following into the <Project> node.

  <!-- Select property depending on MSBuild environment -->
  <PropertyGroup>
    <LocalizationToolAssembly Condition=" '$(MSBuildRuntimeType)' == 'Core'">Lexical.Localization.Tool.dll</LocalizationToolAssembly>
    <LocalizationToolAssembly Condition=" '$(MSBuildRuntimeType)' != 'Core'">Lexical.Localization.Tool.exe</LocalizationToolAssembly>
  </PropertyGroup>
  <!-- Import tool -->
  <UsingTask AssemblyFile="$(ProjectDir)$(LocalizationToolAssembly)" TaskName="LocalizationToolTask" />
  <!-- Run tool -->
  <Target Name="LocalizationToolTask" AfterTargets="Build">
    <ItemGroup>
      <!-- Scan the current target .dll or .exe -->
      <ScanFile Include="$(TargetPath)" />

      <!-- Include file -->
      <InputFile Include="some_localization.ini" />
    </ItemGroup>
    <Delete Files="localization.log" />
    <LocalizationToolTask InlineScans="@(ScanFile)" Inputs="@(InputFile)" Outputs="localization.ini" Verbose="True" IncludePartial="True" LogFiles="localization.log" />
  </Target>

Rebuild the project, and the msbuild should have now rewritten the localization.ini file.
The configuration can be modified to output to other formats, to split into culture specific files and to group categories differently. See Outputs parameter.

LocalizationToolTask Parameters:

Parameter	Description	Example Value
Configs	Config files to include.	scanjob.json
LogFiles	Files to append log messages.	log.txt
ErrorFiles	Files to append error messages.	log.txt
Verbose	Whether use verbose log messages.	True/False
Inputs	Localization files to input.	**.dll/**.resources **.xml
InlineScans	Files to scan for inline strings.	**.dll
IncludePartial	Whether inline scan should add partially recognized keys.	True/False
Excludes	Files to exclude. Affects "Includes" and "InlineScans" properties.	**.zip/**
Outputs	Files to write localization files to.	localization{-culture}.xml localization{-culture}.xml,{anysection_0.}{anysection_1.}{key_0}{.key_1}
KeyExtend	Extend all keys to all cultures.	True/False
Cultures	List of cultures to include	en-UK,de-DE
CulturesExclude	List of cultures to exclude	fi-FI