ReplacableToken_ when using web.config transform?

Question

I have a web.config with 2 transforms - for debug and release.

web.config:

<connectionStrings>
    <clear />
    <add name="StrName" connectionString="data source=.\sqlexpress;User Id=sa;Password=pass;Database=SocialBot;"
                providerName="System.Data.SqlClient" />
</connectionStrings>

I just copied the example given and replaced the name with StrName. I end up with :

<add name="StrName" connectionString="$(ReplacableToken_SocialBotConnectionString-Web.config Connection String_0)"
                providerName="System.Data.SqlClient" />

What the hell is ReplacableToken_ ?

I have another project and it works with no problem there.

Answer 1

If, like me, you're running up against this problem while trying to automate your build process using msbuild from the command line. Specifically, the parameter you need to set is:

/p:AutoParameterizationWebConfigConnectionStrings=False

This is most likely what VS is doing on your behalf when you publish to the filesystem

Answer 2

If you want to build with Visual Studio 2010, add the following line to your configuration PropertyGroup in your .csproj:

<AutoParameterizationWebConfigConnectionStrings>False</AutoParameterizationWebConfigConnectionStrings>

More details here: How to get rid of "$(ReplacableToken...)" in web.config completely