How to: Obtain an SLK for a Shell-Based Application

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Each isolated Shell-based application to be deployed must have a valid shell load key (SLK). The SLK is uniquely related to the application and cannot be used to load any other application. You can obtain SLKs on the Visual Studio Extensibility Developer Center Web site.

The portal lets you group SLKs and package load keys (PLKs) by product name. You can use this grouping as a convenience for managing your packages and shell-based applications, and it does not constrain how you create a Setup program for your application.

Note

Be careful when you enter the information that is required to obtain your SLK. Mismatched information is the primary reason for an invalid SLK. The strings you use to create the SLK must match the name-value pairs in the .pkgdef file of the Shell project.

If you are creating a new version of an existing Shell application, assign a new GUID to the ThisVersionDTECLSID value in the .pkgdef file of the application. Use this new GUID when you create the new SLK.

Note

An application based on the Integrated Shell does not require an SLK.

To obtain an SLK from the VSIP portal

  1. Go to the Visual Studio Extensibility Developer Center Web site.

  2. Sign in by using your Windows Live ID. If you are not yet registered to use the site, you can register from the sign-in page. If you do not have a Windows Live ID, you can obtain one during the registration process.

    After you sign in on the Visual Studio Industry Partner Portal, the Partner Home page is displayed.

  3. On the Partner Home page, under Quick Tasks, click Request a Shell Load Key (SLK).

  4. Read the instructions on the Shell Load Keys - Register New Shell Instance (SLK) page, and then fill in the requested fields. Be careful not to add any leading or trailing spaces. None of the fields are case sensitive.

    Field name

    Value

    Required

    Product Name

    On the drop-down list, select the product for which you require the SLK; or leave <No Assigned Product> selected if you do not want to associate this application with a registered product.

    Note

    To register a project, navigate to the Partner Home page, and under Quick Tasks, click Register a product. Then, follow the instructions on the Products page.

    No

    Company Name

    The default value is the company name in your profile; however, you can use any value.

    The company name must match the CompanyName value in the .pkgdef file of the application.

    Yes

    Shell Name

    Enter the name of your application. This must match the AppName value in the .pkgdef file of the application.

    Yes

    Shell Guid

    Enter the GUID for your application. This must match the ThisVersionDTECLSID value in the .pkgdef file of the application.

    Yes

    Shell Version

    Enter the version string for your application. This must match the ProductVersion value in the .pkgdef file of the application.

    Yes

    Description

    This field is for your use, and does not affect how the SLK is generated.

    No

    Click OK. The Shell Load Keys (SLK) - Registered Shell Instances page is displayed, and part of your new SLK is displayed in the table under the SLK column.

    In addition, the Web site sends the new SLK information to the e-mail address listed in your contact information on the Portal.

  5. To copy the SLK value from the Web site, in the list on the Shell Load Keys (SLK) - Registered Shell Instances page, click the name of the product in the row for the SLK you just created. The Shell Load Keys (SLK) - Shell Instance Details page is displayed.

    Review the information on this page to verify that you are viewing the SLK for the correct application.

    The shell load key is displayed in the table. Visual Studio will only open your application if the application contains the shell load key in the resource file of the application. For more information, see How to: Add an SLK to an Isolated Shell Project.

See Also

Tasks

How to: Add an SLK to an Isolated Shell Project

Concepts

Visual Studio Shell (Isolated Mode)

Change History

Date

History

Reason

July 2008

Revised to reflect changes in how SLKs are generated on the VSIP Portal Web site.

SP1 feature change.

January 2010

Updated links to point to Visual Studio Extensibility Developer Center.

Content bug fix.