Ice Builder for Visual Studio is a Visual Studio extension that configures Slice MSBuild tasks for your C++ and C# projects directly within the Visual Studio IDE. It serves as a front-end for the Slice MSBuild tasks; all build-time processing is performed by these MSBuild tasks.
Ice Builder for Visual Studio is compatible with Visual Studio 2022 and 2026, and requires Ice 3.7 or 3.8 for C++ or C#.
- Installation
- Feedback
- Overview
- C++ Projects
- C# Projects
- Building Ice Builder for Visual Studio from Source
The latest version of Ice Builder for Visual Studio is published in the Visual Studio Marketplace and can be installed directly through Visual Studio’s Extensions → Manage Extensions dialog.
We encourage you to rate and review Ice Builder for Visual Studio on the Visual Studio Marketplace. Your feedback helps us improve the extension.
You can also report issues here on GitHub, and ask questions on Ice Builder for Visual Studio's Q & A page.
Ice Builder for Visual Studio configures Slice compilation for your C++ and C# projects inside the Visual Studio IDE. The available options depend on your project’s target language and the version of Ice you are using.
You can configure the Ice Builder global options on the Tools > Options > Project and Solutions > More Settings > Ice Builder.
You can configure the Ice Builder global options on the Tools > Options > Project and Solutions > Ice Builder.
If the Compile Slice files immediately after save box is checked, Ice Builder compiles a Slice file when you save it, otherwise it compiles Slice files only during project builds.
Add the required NuGet packages to your C++ project
After the required NuGet packages are installed, the Ice Builder for Visual Studio extension provides a dedicated Options page for configuring Slice compilation for your C++ project.
Ice 3.8 (C++) Options Page:
Ice 3.7 (C++) Options Page:
These options map to the item metadata of the SliceCompile type:
| Property | Corresponding SliceCompile Item Metadata |
|---|---|
| Output Directory | OutputDir |
| Header Output Directory | HeaderOutputDir |
| Include Directories | IncludeDirectories |
| Base Directory For Generated #include | BaseDirectoryForGeneratedInclude |
| Generated Header Extension | HeaderExt |
| Generated Source Extension | SourceExt |
| Additional Options | AdditionalOptions |
The C++ Mapping option applies only to Ice 3.7 and maps to the IceCppMapping project property, which allows you to
select between the C++11 and C++98 mappings. The corresponding values are cpp11 and cpp98.
| Property | Corresponding Project Property |
|---|---|
| C++ Mapping | IceCppMapping |
The Ice Builder for Visual Studio extension creates a Slice file filter in the Solution Explorer. We recommend adding
your Slice (.ice) files to this filter for convenience, but you may place Slice files in any filter within your project.
The extension also provides a Slice item template that you can use to add new Slice files to your project.
You can also add existing Slice files using the Add > Existing Item... context menu command.
The extension automatically sets the Item Type property of added Slice files to SliceCompile, which enables Slice
compilation for those files.
The extension adds a CLCompile item for each generated C++ source file and a CLInclude item for each generated C++
header file, ensuring the C++ code generated from the Slice definitions is compiled along your project C++ sources.
These generated files are placed in the output directories specified in the Slice compilation options.
The generated items are added when you first build the project—or, if the Compile Slice files immediately after save option is enabled, when you save the Slice file.
By default, generated files are placed in $(IntDir), the intermediate directory for the current build configuration and
platform.
To configure the Slice compilation options for a specific Slice file, right-click the file in Solution Explorer and select Properties. The Slice Compile property page will appear in the Properties window.
The per-file options override the global project options configured in the Ice Builder options page described above.
Add the required NuGet packages to your C# project
For .NET Framework projects you must reload the project before the Ice Builder options become available and allow you to change the Slice compilation settings.
.NET SDK-style project options:
.NET Framework project options:
These options are the same for all configurations and platforms and map to item metadata of the SliceCompile type:
| Property | Corresponding SliceCompile Item Metadata |
|---|---|
| Output Directory | OutputDir |
| Include Directories | IncludeDirectories |
| Additional Options | AdditionalOptions |
You can add new Slice files to your C# project using the Add > New Item...
Or add existing Slice files using the Add > Existing Item... context menu command.
The Ice Builder for Visual Studio 7.x release is compatible with Ice Builder for Visual Studio 6.x and 5.x, If your project was created with Ice Builder for Visual Studio 6.x or 5.x, it will continue to work without any modifications.
If you are upgrading from Ice Builder for Visual Studio 4.x or earlier, you will need to first use the Ice Builder for Visual Studio 6.x extension to update your projects. See Upgrading your Projects from Ice Builder 4.x for more information.
- Visual Studio 2026
- Open the
IceBuilder.slnsolution file in Visual Studio 2026. - Build the
IceBuilderproject.
After the build completes, the generated VSIX package will be located in:
IceBuilder\bin\Debug\IceBuilder.vsix, orIceBuilder\bin\Release\IceBuilder.vsix