Friday, September 10, 2004
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Formerly named "WebDeploy," Matt Hawley's Unleash It is a free VS.NET 2003 add-in and stand-alone utility that makes deploying ASP.NET projects a breeze.  You can choose to deploy files to a folder, use FTP, or create a Zip file.  I've only used the Zip file option so far, so I can't comment on the FTP or folder deployment.  Unleash It uses file masks and excluded folder masks, giving you great control over what files get deployed.  The latest version allows you to create multiple "profiles," giving you the ability to deploy a project to multiple locations at once.  Unleash It also supports pre-deployment and post-deployment commands, letting you run a script, batch file or executable prior to and after deployment.

The UI is very clean and professional.  However, it took me a while to figure out how to configure a profile using the stand-alone interface.  You must go to Files -> Profiles -> Profile Configuration..., and then choose the profile to edit.  In VS.NET 2003, you only have to go to Tools -> Unleash It -> Configure Unleash It.

Once your deployment profile is set, using the add-in could not be any easier.  From within VS.NET, you simply right-click on your Web project and choose Deploy Project.  You have the option to change the destination (directory, FTP, Zip) and the file masks to use.  Next, click Deploy and you're done.

There's some room to improve, but I give it 4.5 stars.  Definitely a keeper.

Friday, September 10, 2004 7:08:00 AM (Central Standard Time, UTC-06:00)  #    Disclaimer  |  Comments [2]  | 
Monday, September 13, 2004 6:45:00 AM (Central Standard Time, UTC-06:00)
:) Also new in Unleash It 2.0 is the quick edit for the active profile. Just click the check icon next to the profile combo box and you can quickly edit your active profile. However, for more advanced features, yes, you need to go the other route, except that you can use the people toolbar item prior to the combobox
Friday, September 10, 2004 11:45:00 PM (Central Standard Time, UTC-06:00)
Great find! I have been using this other app to do some of the same: http://www.atozedsoftware.com/finalbuilder/



"VS.NET 2003 add-in" AND "free" was enough info for me as final builder costs more than free... The ftp folder deployment seems to work great so far.
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