FinalBuilder - Leverage the Software Delivery / Automated Build Process in .NET
News Feed: David Hayden ( ASP.NET Developer ), Filed: Must Have .NET Developer Tools
I am officially a build junkie. Over the past month I have been addicted to perfecting the build process using NAnt and FinalBuilder, and the result has been increased confidence of the quality of my applications and faster delivery of the latest builds so I can get continuous and immediate feedback on the most recent changes.
The confidence a build process gives you is empowering. You are easily able to replicate the application environment. Run unit tests to make sure nothing is broken. Verify code coverage to make sure the unit tests actually mean something :) Re-build databases and run integration tests to make sure the functionality works in the real world. Build the latest documentation using Sandcastle. Zip, copy and upload files to an FTP Server. Send Email or IM messages to make sure other team members and the customer are aware of updates. Etc...
Now being a part of the build process is nothing new to me, but actually being responsible for the build process is new to me and I love it. I love the automation. I love how quickly I can check-in new code and have the build process get me a fresh, working copy of everything in seconds. Yes, seconds.
As soon as I felt the power of the build process, I also started using FinalBuilder. Although I am sure NAnt can do everything, FinalBuilder makes it easy - really easy. Last time I mentioned how FinalBuilder made automating documentation with Sandcastle a snap, here is a visual of how easy it is to zip up files and FTP them to a remote server.
My real builds are more sophisticated than the partial example above, of course, but you can see how easy it is to get this level of automation and the power it brings to your .NET development build process. If you aren't doing this for everything :), you are missing out!
Source: David Hayden ( ASP.NET Developer )
Filed: Must Have .NET Developer Tools