Is there a VB.NET compiler to download?

I downloaded Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Expres开发者_C百科s and I can produce programs using it, but I'm interested in using another editor.

I searched the web for the compiler and apparently it's called "vbc.exe", but I don't seem to find it in my machine.

I'm suspicious that it only comes with the non-Express version.

Is there a place to download it?

You may find several versions of vbc.exe on your system if you have .NET installed. Eg.

C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\vbc.exe

is the location for .NET 4 x64, while

C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v3.5\vbc.exe

is the instance for .NET 3.5 x86. (With all versions that updated the compilers – 1.0, 1.1, 2.0, 3.5 & 4.0 – on a 64bit system you would have ten files called vbc.exe).

These are installed with the .NET Framework redistributable (ie. what you need to run .NET programs). To develop with .NET without Visual Studio you'll need the .NET SDK: free from Microsoft.

If Microsoft Visual Basic 2010 Express can compile VB.NET code into IL code then the compiler is there.

Check %WINDIR%\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\vbc.exe

or similar locations if you are on a 32-bit machine.

It is indeed vbc.exe and it is under /Windows/Microsoft.NET/Framework/.

You can use a lot of other IDEs that are specifically set up to work with .NET. I think Dreamweaver is. Or you can use an editor that has some kind of scriptable actions.

If you need to download something, it is the .NET framework. Get whichever you can find at Microsoft downloads, but the latest (3.5 or 4) is best.