##[error]Could not find version number data in the following environment variable: BUILD_BUILDNUMBER

Question

I am using below yaml to generate my NuGet pkg. I want to have a unique id with a date for my package. but I keep getting an error saying ould not find version number data in the following environment variable: BUILD_BUILDNUMBER

##[error]Could not find version number data in the following environment variable: BUILD_BUILDNUMBER. The value of the variable should contain a substring with or are positive integers.

I have tried to use name: $(Build.DefinitionName)-$(date:yyyyMMdd)$(rev:.r) # need this for byBuildNumber verisonScheme nuget pack.

Also tried to set BUILD_BUILDNUMBER as a variable in the yaml file.

# ASP.NET Core
# Build and test ASP.NET Core projects targeting .NET Core.
# Add steps that run tests, create a NuGet package, deploy, and more:
# https://learn.microsoft.com/azure/devops/pipelines/languages/dotnet-core

name: $(Build.DefinitionName)-$(date:yyyyMMdd)$(rev:.r) # need this for byBuildNumber verisonScheme nuget pack
# the build will trigger on any changes to the master branch
trigger:
- master

# the build will run on a Microsoft hosted agent, using the lastest Windows VM Image
pool:
  vmImage: 'windows-latest'

# these variables are available throughout the build file
# just the build configuration is defined, in this case we are building Release packages
variables:
  buildConfiguration: 'Release'


#The build has 3 seperate tasks run under 1 step
steps:
# The first task is the dotnet command build, pointing to our csproj file
- task: DotNetCoreCLI@2
  displayName: 'dotnet build'
  inputs:
    command: 'build'
    arguments: '--configuration $(buildConfiguration)'
    projects: 'src/Repository.sln'

# The second task is dotnet pack command again pointing to the csproj file
# The nobuild means the project will not be compiled before running pack, because its already built in above step
- task: DotNetCoreCLI@2
  displayName: "dotnet pack"
  inputs:
    command: 'pack'
    arguments: '--configuration $(buildConfiguration)'
    packagesToPack: 'src/Common.Core/Common.Core.csproj'
    nobuild: true
    includeSymbols: true
    versioningScheme: 'byBuildNumber'


# The last task is a nuget command, nuget push
# This will push any .nupkg files to the 'Nuget' artifact feed
# allowPackageConflicts allows us to build the same version and not throw an error when trying to push
# instead it just ingores the latest package unless the version changes
- task: NuGetCommand@2
  displayName: 'nuget push'
  inputs:
    command: 'push'
    feedsToUse: 'select'
    packagesToPush: '$(Build.ArtifactStagingDirectory)/**/*.nupkg;!$(Build.ArtifactStagingDirectory)/**/*.symbols.nupkg'
    nuGetFeedType: 'internal'
    publishVstsFeed: 'MyNuget'
    allowPackageConflicts: true

I would expect it generates nuget with right version number without failing on nuget pack step.

Answer 1

When you choose the NuGet package version will be like the build number you can't give this value $(Build.DefinitionName)-$(date:yyyyMMdd)$(rev:.r) to the build number.

It should be in this format:

$(BuildDefinitionName)_$(Year:yyyy).$(Month).$(DayOfMonth)$(Rev:.r).

You can see this info in the classic editor:

More info you can find in the docs:

For byPrereleaseNumber, the version will be set to whatever you choose for major, minor, and patch, plus the date and time in the format yyyymmdd-hhmmss.

For byEnvVar, the version will be set as whatever environment variable, e.g. MyVersion (no $, just the environment variable name), you provide. Make sure the environment variable is set to a proper SemVer e.g. 1.2.3 or 1.2.3-beta1.

For byBuildNumber, the version will be set to the build number, ensure that your build number is a proper SemVer e.g. 1.0.$(Rev:r). If you select byBuildNumber, the task will extract a dotted version, 1.2.3.4 and use only that, dropping any label. To use the build number as is, you should use byEnvVar as described above, and set the environment variable to BUILD_BUILDNUMBER.