Integrating the Project Editor with Microsoft Visual Studio

You do not need to install Microsoft Visual Studio to customize the MYOB Advanced UI or to develop a simple changes of business logic, because the platform includes the Customization Tools, which are designed for these purposes and available in your web browser. However you can use Visual Studio to develop the customization code.

If you plan to use Visual Studio on the server that hosts the website of MYOB Advanced 2022 R2, the environment where you install and use MYOB Advanced should meet particular requirements, which are described in System Requirements for MYOB Advanced 2022 R2.

To use Visual Studio while customizing MYOB Advanced, you can select one of the following approaches:
  • Create an Extension Library, develop the customization code in Visual Studio, compile the DLL binary file within the Bin folder of the website, and add this custom file to the customization project
  • Develop and debug the customization code of a customization project on the fly by using Visual Studio

This part of the guide describes the second approach, because the first one is obvious and does not require any integration between the Customization Project Editor and Visual Studio.

To use the second approach, you should perform the following steps each time you want to use Visual Studio to develop and debug the customization code on the fly:
  1. In the Data Class, create extensions for existing data access classes if required, as described in To Create a DAC Extension.
  2. In the Code Editor, for business logic controllers, create new classes or class extensions that contain required code templates, as described in To Create a Custom Graph and To Start the Customization of a Graph.
  3. Publish the customization project to obtain the corresponding C# files within the App_RuntimeCode website folder. (See Performing the Publication Process for details.).
  4. By using Visual Studio, develop, modify, and debug the customization code in these files on the fly. (See To Debug the Customization Code for details.)
  5. In the Customization Project Editor, update the code in the customization project, as described in To Synchronize Code Changes with the Customization Project.