Is it possible to deploy and debug PocketPC applications in the SDK emulators without using ActiveSync?

Question

Im currently working on a PPC application that I would like to test in the PPC emulator "USA Windows mobile 5.0 PC R2 Emulator" without using Active Sync. Somewhere in my back head I think I have been able to just do that: But when I start a debug session with Visual Studio, it can not deploy the application to the emulator. All I get in the build log is:

9>------ Deploy started: Project: DLL1, Configuration: Debug Salsa ARMv4 Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC SDK (ARMV4I) ------
9>There are no more files.
9>
10>------ Skipped Deploy: Project: DLL2, Configuration: Debug Salsa ARMv4 Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC SDK (ARMV4I) ------
10>Project not selected to build for this solution configuration 
11>------ Deploy started: Project: DLL3, Configuration: Debug Salsa ARMv4 Windows Mobile 5.0 Pocket PC SDK (ARMV4I) ------
11>There are no more files.
11>

========== Build: 0 succeeded, 0 failed, 7 up-to-date, 5 skipped ==========
========== Deploy: 3 succeeded, 2 failed, 7 skipped ==========

If I cradle it (Using Device Emulator manager) and let the device sync through ActiveSync, then Visual Studio can deploy and debug. But I would like to debug some connectivity issues without being connected thorugh ActiveSync. How can I do that?

Answer 1

From your build log, you are targetting the ARMv4 processor. You need to target Win32 (WCE emulator) in order to use and debug through the emulator.

Answer 2

It should work without ActiveSync by default. The only problem I can think of is that you have set the emulator transport to "TCP Connect Transport" which would require a ActiveSync connection.

In Tools / Options / Devices, select the "USA Windows mobile 5.0 PC R2 Emulator" and select Properties. Make sure the Transport is set to "DMA Transport".

Hope that helps.

Answer 3

To be honest I'd think it wouldn't be possible to test a "wireless" application while you're wired. Same goes for if you're debugging through the wireless connection. The process of debugging will have an affect on your coms. First the HH's are typically smarter then we'd like them to be. While wired they use that path to the net. (be like water)

Suppose the connection is strengthened by your IDE so you can debug.. Well then you're not really testing accurately. Suppose on the other hand that your connection's band width is affected by debugging. Well again it's not accurate.

I'd add a log to your applications coms'..

Typically I have a log file that's generated when the coms starts and gets closed when the coms is done. This log file doesn't need much logic and actually turns out to be something I leave in the app when I'm ready to release. Nothing like having a client send you the log file when something goes bad. The overhead is quite low because it's always starting over.

Answer 4

The actual problem was that I had different target devices when I built the project and tried to deploy it. At the end VS would deploy one file to an ActiveSync device, one to the emulator and so forth. It was not suprisngly that it didnt work. If I changed the target device for the current project, it would not change it for the other projects...

So if you have problems deploying using Visual Studio and having multiple projects in a solution, make sure that they all go the same target device.