Apache .NET Ant Library

The Apache .NET Ant Library is an extension for Apache Ant that enables seamless integration of .NET development tasks into Ant build processes. It is designed to support cross-platform projects by allowing developers to build and test both Java and .NET components using a unified build system. It does not aim to replace native .NET build tools like NAnt or MSBuild but complements them for hybrid environments.

Features

• Specialized <exec> task for running .NET executables
• Platform-aware execution using Microsoft .NET on Windows and Mono on other systems
• Tasks for invoking NUnit, NAnt, MSBuild, and WiX toolkit
• Support for F# compiler and WiX tallow tool
• Embedded build file snippets for .NET tools

Capabilities

• Execute .NET applications directly from Ant scripts
• Run unit tests using NUnit
• Build .NET projects using NAnt and MSBuild
• Create MSI installers via WiX toolkit integration
• Combine Java and .NET build logic in a single Ant file
• Override default platform assumptions for custom configurations

Benefits

• Simplifies cross-platform development workflows
• Reduces the need for multiple build systems
• Enhances automation and consistency across Java and .NET components
• Enables reuse of Ant infrastructure for .NET projects
• Facilitates integration in CI/CD pipelines