Compile on Build / Compile on Save problems with TS 1.8 in Visual Studio 2015

[johnnyreilly]

Since I installed TS 1.8 I've started noticing that the compile step is not being executed in Visual Studio either on save or upon build when there are existing *.js files in place.

So if I'm working on viewModel.ts then I need to delete viewModel.js and trigger a Visual Studio build in order that a new viewModel.js is created.

My tsconfig.json looks like this:

{
  "compileOnSave": false,
  "compilerOptions": {
    "inlineSourceMap": true,
    "inlineSources": true,
    "noEmitOnError": true,
    "noImplicitAny": true,
    "preserveConstEnums": true,
    "removeComments": false,
    "sourceMap": false,
    "target": "es5"
  },
  "filesGlob": [
    "**/*.ts"
  ],
  "files": [
    // lots of files here - excluded for brevity
  ],
  "atom": {
    "rewriteTsconfig": true
  }
}

I wondered if it might be related to presence of the compileOnSave flag in tsconfig.json (which I believe is supported as of TS 1.8?). However setting it to true and removing it entirely made no discernible differerence to behaviour. (I tried closing and reopening the project in between changes in case there were caching issues but no change.)

So compileOnSave seems entirely broken (i.e. it never compiles on save) and compile on build only works if the existing js files are deleted.

[mhegazy]

the compileOnSave property support is not in a released version yet, @paulvanbrenk checked it in today :). it should be available for the 1.8.2.

Can you check your tools\options\Text Editor\TypeScript\Project\Compile on Save, do you have "Automatically compile TypeScript files that are not part of a project" checked? my guess is no, and that is why it is not working. with #2326, you should be able to turn it on using compileOnSave property in tsconfig.json.

[johnnyreilly]

Yup that solved it. Thanks @mhegazy.I'll look out for compileOnSave lighting up in when 1.8.2 ships.

[johnnyreilly]

@mhegazy - I'm guessing with the VS 2015 TypeScript 1.8 beta plugin I shouldn't expect compileOnSave to be working? I've noticed whilst using Visual Studio that saving is still generating the js files still (even though the flag is set in tsconfig.json).

I wanted to ask about building as well but I'll break that out into a separte issue.

[paulvanbrenk]

@johnnyreilly Indeed, the compileOnSave option needs new Visual Studio bits.

[johnnyreilly]

Thanks @paulvanbrenk.

[mythz]

Is tsconfig.json and compileOnSave expected to work on VS 2013? I've installed the latest v1.8.2 of TypeScript for VS2013 and it's missing the "TypeScript JSON Configuration File" new item template for tsconfig.json, adding it manually doesn't disable the TypeScript property page on project properties and none of the configuration on tsconfig.json seems to be overriding either?

[mhegazy]

@mythz, tsconfig.json is not supported for Visual Studio 2013. only Visual Studio 2015.

[codler]

Seems compileOnSave are not executing same path as VS project root, because out is generating on different path when i do build respective save

[mhegazy]

@codler can you share your project?