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I've never done this before, because I've never needed to until now, but I need to build my windows forms application to a standalone executable. I'm aware of both Build and Publish options within Visual Studio however none do what I need. Build doesn't allow you to move the executable it makes, and Publish makes a setup to install on the computer.

My goal is for the application to open without installation.

In the /bin/Debug/ directory made by the Build option, I have an executable, four dlls required, two .pdb file, and few other standard files (.manifest, .config, etc.). I was hoping to get any requirements built inside the executable.

How do I do this? All my searching has taken me to bunch of tutorials on how to make applications from scratch and how to use the csc.exe console command.

Spedwards
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    What do you mean by "Build doesn't allow you to move the executable it makes"? After you've built the application you should be able to copy the contents of the Debug/Release folder and run the executable (almost) anywhere. – bwegs Mar 31 '16 at 12:59
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    I'm hesitant to cast a close vote, since the C# tag means my vote alone will close this one. But there is an older question here asking the same thing: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/126611/net-windows-application-can-it-be-compressed-into-a-single-exe It's possible there are newer answers, though. – David Mar 31 '16 at 12:59
  • @bwegs I'm sure if I moved all the files there together it will work, but I only want to move the executable. I tried moving it to another harddrive but it didn't even open. – Spedwards Mar 31 '16 at 13:00
  • @David I was obviously searching for the wrong stuff. I was searching for about an hour today and countless times in the past and never considered a merge would be involved so I didn't try searching for that. – Spedwards Mar 31 '16 at 13:02
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    Possible duplicate of [Embedding DLLs in a compiled executable](http://stackoverflow.com/questions/189549/embedding-dlls-in-a-compiled-executable) – Raidri Mar 31 '16 at 13:41

2 Answers2

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What you want is to embed the .DLLs in the .exe file so you can move it freely and only need the .exe , you just didn't search for the right thing, here is what you are looking for :

It is possible to merge .NET executables with libraries. There are multiple tools available to get the job done:

ILMerge is a utility that can be used to merge multiple .NET assemblies into a single assembly.

Mono mkbundle, packages an exe and all assemblies with libmono into a single binary package.

IL-Repack is a FLOSS alterantive to ILMerge, with some additional features.

See : Embedding DLLs in a compiled executable

this is indeed a duplicate but i don't have the reputation to mark it as so.

Community
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iamanoob
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  • While this link may answer the question, it is better to include the essential parts of the answer here and provide the link for reference. Link-only answers can become invalid if the linked page changes. - [From Review](/review/low-quality-posts/11844172) – drneel Mar 31 '16 at 13:18
  • @drneel well i did answer by saying what he wants to do and by saying it IS a duplicate just written in different words ( which is why he couldn't find the existing post ) , I don't see my post as being Low Quality since i can't comment and wanted to answer him since i knew what he was looking for, even if it is a duplicate. – iamanoob Mar 31 '16 at 13:21
  • You can flag posts as duplicate at 15 rep; http://stackoverflow.com/help/privileges . Use the flag option under the question and it will prompt you for a reason and if you choose duplicate it will as you for a link. It will then add that as a comment to the question. – drneel Mar 31 '16 at 13:27
  • @drneel the duplicate option is not there for me ( i tried before answering and tried again right now, the only options i have are : Spam, Rude or Abusive , Very low quality, in need of moderators. But thanks, i will rewrite the answers and give the link to the duplicated question now. – iamanoob Mar 31 '16 at 13:29
  • Duplicate is a 50 rep thing; unfortunately your answer will likely be deleted. It is a tough spot to be in at a low rep level. – drneel Mar 31 '16 at 13:32
  • This seems to be mostly a copy of the linked answer. – Patrick Hofman Mar 31 '16 at 15:09
  • @PatrickHofman it's a duplicated question and i wrote the answer from the ref link incase the ref link changes. – iamanoob Mar 31 '16 at 15:58
  • It doesn't change since it is on-site. – Patrick Hofman Mar 31 '16 at 16:06
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    @PatrickHofman I've been reproached that i needed to answer the Question even if it was duplicated since i can't make a duplication flag, looks like you can't please everyone. – iamanoob Mar 31 '16 at 16:21
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You can merge the separate assemblies to make it one single executable.

There is a tool called ILMerge that is capable of doing that for you. Another method is described in this post, which also works for WPF.

Patrick Hofman
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