C# exclude complete form / usercontrol by using compiler constants

Question

I'd like to exclude / include a complete form in my project. But when I add the needed #if CONST and #endif the compiler complains about resources that may get wrong names.

warning MSB3042: A namespace or class definition was found within a conditional compilation directive in the file "Form1.cs". This may lead to an incorrect choice for the manifest resource name for resource "Form1.resx".

What does this mean?

And how do I fix it?

Answer 1

• Explanation: A normal Form (created from a Template) consists of 2 .cs files and a .resx file. By eliminating the Form1 class you 'orphan' the resources.

• Workarounds:

  1. Make a simpler Form without resource file.
  2. use a #else tag to create empty stubs for the Form1 class
  3. Forget about the idea and only eliminate the (few) points where the rest of the program uses the Form.

I favor 3, what benefits do you expect from removing the Form?

Answer 2

If you did not set images and you don't use the resx for translations (i.e. your form is not localizable) try to remove your Form1.resx.