dotnet cake and CakeExecuteScript tries to run Cake.exe

[mattleibow]

I am switching to using a .NET local tool, and when I try invoke the CakeExecuteScript alias, it fails:

Cake: Process returned an error (exit code 255).

When I do a verbose run, I see it is trying to use .NET Framework on Linux:

Could not resolve path for tool "mono" using these directories: /usr/local/sbin,/usr/local/bin,/usr/sbin,/usr/bin,/sbin,/bin
/work/tools/Cake/Cake.exe is a .NET Framework executable, you might need to install Mono for it to execute successfully.
Executing: /work/tools/Cake/Cake.exe "/work/native/linux/build.cake" --target="Default" --configuration="Release" --buildarch="x64" --variant="alpine"
An error occurred when executing task 'externals-linux'.
Error: System.AggregateException: One or more errors occurred. (Cake: Process returned an error (exit code 255).)
 ---> Cake.Core.CakeException: Cake: Process returned an error (exit code 255).

Is this a supported scenario?

What is the correct/better way?

[nils-a]

@mattleibow CakeExecuteScript tries to find a runner for Cake files, then uses this runner.
It searches for Cake.exe, cake and cake.dll in that order.
In your case it seems it finds the "old" cake.exe under /work/tools/cake/cake.exe.

Is it possible that your tools folder contains a version of the Cake runner for .NET Framework (probably from a time from "before" your switch to the .NET tool)?

[mattleibow]

I think that was the issue. If I am running as a .net global tool, none of those exist.

I'll check again to see, but if I have no mono or no tools directory, the only way to run is with 'dotnet cake'

[nils-a]

yes, and running dotnet cake is a good choice. But you need to make sure that non-windows systems that have no mono installed don't have the Cake runner for .NET Framework (i.e. cake.exe) available. (For example, don't place ./tools/Cake under version control.)