Visual Studio: Create a VS.NET Add-in

This sample shows some how to create a VS.NET Add-In using Visual Studio .NET. It also demonstrates how to check whether or not an add-in in currently installed and available. 

Featured Highlights:

This how-to demonstrates many of the important features of Visual Studio .NET Add-Ins. In particular, it covers:

Requirements:

Running the Sample:

To run the sample:

  1. Doubleclick the How-To Create A VS.NET Add-in.sln file. 
  2. Run the HowTo_ExampleAddInSetup.msi installation file, or run the ReCreateCommands.reg registry file.
  3. Run the application and examine the frmMain code to learn how to iterate through the Add-ins collection. 
  4. Start the Add-in by using Tools -> Add-in Manager and selecting the check-box next to "How To Example Add-in".
  5. Examine the code in the sample to understand how the code works. 

Notes:

To best understand the process of creating a VS.NET Add-in, use the Wizard provided by Visual Studio .NET. The wizard generates the majority of the code necessary. Then, simply hook up to the events you want to react to.

Additional Projects in this Sample

HowTo_ExampleAddIn - This project contains the code that defines the Add-in.

VbNetHowTo_ExampleAddInSetup - This project contains the setup project that creates the MSI file to deploy the applicatoin.

See Also:

Creating Add-ins and Wizards, Automation and Extensibility Reference, IDTExtensibility2 Interface