Windows CE 5.0 - Excluding Applications from the Build Process

I'm working on building a Windows CE 5.0 demo over the next couple of days, I've configured my base O/S image using the New Platform Wizard, and have added an application, all of this before building the operating system.

When I build the O/S I get some build errors which are related to the application - so I want to make sure the O/S builds ok, then I can figure out what's up with the application (probably missing some libs or something - but that's another issue).

Did you know that you can exclude projects from the build process, or from the final O/S image ? The option isn't obvious within the Platform Builder UI, it would be useful to have this option on the project menu, or on the popup menu when you right click on a project. The good news is that the option exists, and here's why this is useful.

Oh, I'd better tell you where to find the option! - go to Platform | Settings - and then click the Image Settings tab on the Platform Settings Dialog.

Here's why this is useful...

  1. I can build my O/S image, prove that that builds ok, and then include the application into the build process, build the application and work on resolving it's build errors
  2. If I exclude the application from the O/S image I can code the application, build the application, and start from Target | Run Programs without needing to rebuild the o/s image

- Mike