Creating a Shell Instance
To create a Visual Studio 2008 Shell instance, you must install Visual Studio 2008 and the Visual Studio 2008 SDK. By using these two products, you can develop and test a Shell instance.
The following table summarizes the purposes of the key software components for developing a Shell instance.
Name |
Description |
|---|---|
Visual Studio 2008 SDK |
The SDK you must have to develop and test package-based extensions of Visual Studio. You can use the SDK to create packages that target Visual Studio, Visual Studio Shell (integrated mode), and Visual Studio Shell (isolated mode). You can also use the SDK to create your own instance of the Visual Studio Shell (isolated mode). Visual Studio 2008 Standard or higher is a prerequisite for the SDK. |
Visual Studio 2008 Shell (isolated mode) Redistributable |
The redistributable that you include in your Setup program when you build a tools environment on the isolated Shell. The isolated Shell redistributable package is about 130 MB. It includes .NET Framework 3.5 and the components of the Visual Studio Shell. To redistribute your isolated Shell, you must obtain a Shell Load Key (SLK) from Microsoft. An SLK is a unique identifier for your application that helps prevent conflicts with other Visual Studio-based applications. |
Visual Studio 2008 Shell (integrated mode) Redistributable |
The redistributable that you include in your Setup program when you build a tools environment on the integrated Shell. The integrated Shell redistributable package is about 180 MB. It includes .NET Framework 3.5 and the components of the Visual Studio Shell. |
See Also
Tasks
Walkthrough: A Basic Isolated Shell Application
Concepts
Visual Studio Shell-Based Applications
Change History
Date |
History |
Reason |
|---|---|---|
July 2008 |
Updated file sizes for service pack 1. |
Content bug fix. |