Loading modules in Prism from xap without reference

Question

I'm using Prism 4 with Unity. I have a main project, and a module. The module is created as Silverlight Applications, so it builds a separate xap file.

I load the modules in the Bootstrapper's ConfigureModuleCatalog, just like the documentation states.

var moduleType = typeof (MyModule);
this.ModuleCatalog.AddModule(
    new ModuleInfo
    {
       ModuleName = moduleType.Name,
       ModuleType = moduleType.AssemblyQualifiedName,
       InitializationMode = InitializationMode.WhenAvailable,
    });

Everything works fine, but I notice that my main xap file also contains the dlls associated with my module. So, I set Copy Local = False on the module reference, and it builds correctly with the module dlls only in their own xap file.

But now my app won't run because I can't get the type information for MyModule. I get a FileNotFoundException.

I found that I can drop the reference entirely if I manually enter the ModuleName and ModuleType, and also set Ref = "MyModule.xap" on the ModuleInfo. This works fine, but here's the problem: I build frequently and use dynamic verion numbers. So the AssemblyQualifiedName changes too easily. Without the reference, there's no way to get it dynamically. If I drop the version number from the AssemblyQualifiedName, it doesn't work.

Surely there's some other way to get the module to load from its own xap file without it ending up also in the main xap?

Matt Johnson-Pint Matt Johnson-Pint · Accepted Answer · 2011-04-22T13:12:02

Nevermind...

After researching further, it seems my mistake is in using wildcard versioning in the assembly version. It is suggested on many sites to use the wildcard in the assembly FILE version only, and use fixed version numbers on the assembly version. Then I can just drop the reference and refer to the module by its strong name with fixed version number.

I was so locked in to prism on this one. I didn't figure it out until I thought about assembly location in general. The post that solved it for me actual was about resolving sharepoint parts. Just goes to show sometimes you have to think outside the box.

Update

Looks like you can't use the wildcard in the file version... grr... I found an add-in that will work though http://autobuildversion.codeplex.com/

Anyone got a better idea?

Loading modules in Prism from xap without reference

1 Answers