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This article introduces the latest release information for Visual Studio 2017. Click the button to download the latest version.
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Release History
- October 5, 2017Visual Studio 2017 15.4 release
- Visual Studio 2017 15.3 released on August 14, 2017
- Visual Studio 2017 (Version 15.2)
- Visual Studio 2017 (Version 15.1)
- Visual Studio 2017 (Version 15.0)
Learn more about how we launched and how to identify different releases in the Visual Studio 2017 Release Rhythm documentation.
Known issues
See known problems section.
Release date: October 5, 2017 – Visual Studio 2017 version 15.4.0
Abstract: New features in this release
- A new installer launch banner notifies you of a successful installation. We’ve added a new warning message that appears at the end of the installation, including a link to the developer community for additional help.
- Now you can install the Windows Fall Creators Update SDK directly. You can experience improved performance and design projects using Fluent.
- We improved XAML. You can now edit or delete XAML resources and add ControlTemplates.
- We added.NET Standard 2.0 support to the Windows Fall Creators Update.
- .NET Core 2.0 is included by default in Web development and.NET Core workloads.
- Windows application packaging projectNew project templates are available to help package all Windows projects into
.appxIn the container. - You can deploy, test, and debug your app directly on iOS and Android devices with Xamarin Live.
- Linux is now available from the CMake project. Use the existing CMake base code as a solution without having to convert it into a VS project.
- We’ve improved Unity support in Visual Studio Tools and added a “set instruction pointer” feature in the new run.
- The Android SDK is now installed in a dedicated location.
Major issues that have been fixed in this release
We listened attentively to the needs of the developer community. The table below lists the top 10 highest-voted issues fixed in this release.
- Here is the link.
- Here is the link.
Details: New features in this release
Visual Studio to improve
Setup and installation programs
- We added a launch banner to the installer to indicate that Visual Studio was successfully installed (Figure 1).
- Setup now uses automatic agent detection for download.
- If a non-critical component (one that does not directly affect the Visual Studio IDE) fails, setup will now display a warning instead of a failure. The changes make it clearer that Visual Studio is still working, even if there are issues that need to be resolved and corrected.
- Creating an offline layout uses shorter paths, allowing administrators to host an offline installation in a deeper hierarchy of network folders.
- When a single package fails to install or there is a download problem (Figure 2), we display a message at the end of the installation. This message contains links to the developer community for more help in resolving issues that may affect a full installation of Visual Studio on your computer.
- Fixed a bug that appeared after updating Visual Studio where the installer set the wrong installation date/time in adding or removing programs.
The editor
- We fixed a screen reader issue where the Freedom Scientific JAWS screen reader could not use IntelliSense in the Visual Studio editor.
- We added the Popular Productivity Power Tools navigation “Hold Ctrl and click Go to Definition” to our core Visual Studio products.
- For languages that support it (C#, VB, Python, and more in future versions), hold down the Ctrl key and click on a symbol in the Visual Studio editor, then go to its definition.
- If you want to retain the Ctrl and Click operation, you can choose Tools > Options > Text Editor > General > Make The mouse Click Executable to Define to control the main usage of the function. You can select other modification keys or disable the function as required.
scalability
- Fixed a bug where installed extensions did not display update notifications in Visual Studio and did not update automatically.
Lightweight solution loading
- Fixed a bug that caused the build to fail when opening the solution with lightweight solution loading enabled.
Tools for general Windows platform development
Visual Studio 2017 version 15.4 includes a major update to the tools for development on the universal Windows platform. Check out the new features below!
Windows Fall Creators Update support
Visual Studio 2017 release 15.4 provides first-rate support for developers using the Windows Fall Creators Update SDK preview. You can now install the latest Windows Fall Creators Update SDK preview directly through the Common Windows Platform development workload when you install Visual Studio.
The XAML designer has been updated for the UWP project with the Windows Fall Creators Update SDK
We have significantly updated the XAML designer for the UWP project with the Windows Fall Creators Update SDK, prioritizing improved performance, reliability, and adding the ability to present Fluent design projects. See the Visual Studio XAML Designer Update blog post for more details.
Please note that the XAML designer experience will not change unless the UWP application is being produced for the Windows Fall Creators Update preview.
XAML “edits and continues” to improve
You can now “edit and continue” to edit or delete XAML resources using XAML. In addition, ControlTemplates can be added. To use these new features, make sure you are working with the Windows Fall Creators Update SDK and running applications that use the latest Windows Fall Creators Update.
.NET Standard 2.0 support
The Windows Fall Creators Update provides.NET Standard 2.0 support for UWP development. To use the new API with.NET Standard 2.0, you need to set the minimum release target for your application as the Windows Fall Creators Update SDK Preview. You can then reference.net Standard 2.0 NuGet packages, class libraries, and apis directly from UWP applications.
Web development tools
- In this release,.NET Core 2.0 is available during installation and is included by default in Web development and.NET Core workloads.
- Razor Page scaffolding is now supported in this release.
- You can now publish to container registries such as the Azure Container registry and Docker Center.
- Azure Functions tools are now included in the Azure workload
- When publishing Azure Web jobs, you can now use cron expressions as trigger Web job publishing.
Windows application packaging project
Visual Studio 2017 version 15.4 provides a new project template that helps package all Windows projects into an.appx container for modern application distribution or submission to the Windows App Store.
To start using the Windows application packaging project, go to file > new > project, and then select the new Windows application packaging project template under Visual C# > Windows common node (figure 3).
In a new project, you can add a reference to an existing Windows project (such as WPF, WinForms, or MFC) by right-clicking the Applications node in Solution Explorer and selecting Add Reference. This will be followed by many of the existing UWP tools you are familiar with, such as packaging, list editing, and stored associations.
Visual Studio Tools for Xamarin
Xamarin Live enables developers to continuously deploy, test, and debug applications directly on iOS and Android devices (Figure 4). When you download Xamarin Live Player (available on the App Store or Google Play), you can pair your device with Visual Studio, revolutionizing the way you generate mobile apps. This feature is now included in Visual Studio and can be enabled by going to Tools > Options > Xamarin > Others > Enable Xamarin Live Player.
Please visit the Visual Studio Tools for Xamarin release notes for a complete list of changes in Visual Studio 2017 15.4 release.
Linux c + + improved
Linux is now available from the CMake project. This allows you to work with existing base code that uses CMake as a build solution without having to convert it to a VS project. If the base code is cross-platform, it can be used for Both Windows and Linux from Visual Studio. For more information, see the Visual C++ blog post for Linux development with CMake.
Visual Studio Tools for Unity improved
- We’ve improved support for experimental.NET 4.6 options in Unity 2017.1.
- Added support for the “set instruction pointer” function in the new run.
- In Unity 2017.2 we provided support for user-defined assemblies (assembly.json).
- We have made a comprehensive improvement to expression evaluation during debugging.
Visual Studio tools for Apache Cordova
The Android SDK is now installed in a dedicated location under % programData %. This way, users can manage their shared SDK installation elsewhere without affecting the VS-TACO scheme.
blog
Take advantage of the insights and advice provided on the Developer Tools blog site.
The Developer Tools blog provides users with the latest information on all the new releases, as well as access to in-depth articles on a wide range of features. For an in-depth introduction to the.NET world, check out the DotNet blog. Detailed expertise can be found in each language area team blog (C#, VB, C++, F#, etc.).
Known issues
View all existing known problems and available fixes in Visual Studio 2017 15.4 release.
We always listen to our users’ feedback. To find the latest issues, record new issues, and vote for existing issues, visit the Developer community site.
Visual Studio 2017 15.3 release Notes
Visual Studio 2017 (version 15.2) Release notes
Visual Studio 2017 (version 15.1) Release notes
Visual Studio 2017 (version 15.0) Release notes
Visual Studio 2017 (version 15.0) Release notes
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