I’m trying to edit some xml in Powershell. Here’s what I’m doing: $path =

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Asked: May 22, 20262026-05-22T12:22:26+00:00 2026-05-22T12:22:26+00:00

I’m trying to edit some xml in Powershell. Here’s what I’m doing: $path =

0

I’m trying to edit some xml in Powershell. Here’s what I’m doing:

$path = 'C:\Projects\NuGetTestPackage\NuGetTestPackage'
$projName = 'NuGetTestPackage1.csproj'
cd $path
$file = gi $projName
$pattern = 'TextTemplatingFileGenerator'
$xml = [xml](gc $file)
$node = [xml] $xml.Project.ItemGroup.None.Generator | 
    Where { $_.Project.ItemGroup.None.Generator -eq $pattern } |
    Foreach {$_.Project.ItemGroup.None.Generator = ''}
$xml.Save($file.Fullname)

Here’s the XML:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<Project ToolsVersion="4.0" DefaultTargets="Build" xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003">
  <PropertyGroup>
    <Configuration Condition=" '$(Configuration)' == '' ">Debug</Configuration>
    <Platform Condition=" '$(Platform)' == '' ">AnyCPU</Platform>
    <ProductVersion>
    </ProductVersion>
    <SchemaVersion>2.0</SchemaVersion>
    <ProjectGuid>{E750ACF1-17B5-4D83-8FC8-5A4488193099}</ProjectGuid>
    <ProjectTypeGuids>{E53F8FEA-EAE0-44A6-8774-FFD645390401};{349c5851-65df-11da-9384-00065b846f21};{fae04ec0-301f-11d3-bf4b-00c04f79efbc}</ProjectTypeGuids>
    <OutputType>Library</OutputType>
    <AppDesignerFolder>Properties</AppDesignerFolder>
    <RootNamespace>NuGetTestPackage</RootNamespace>
    <AssemblyName>NuGetTestPackage</AssemblyName>
    <TargetFrameworkVersion>v4.0</TargetFrameworkVersion>
    <MvcBuildViews>false</MvcBuildViews>
    <UseIISExpress>false</UseIISExpress>
  </PropertyGroup>
  <PropertyGroup Condition=" '$(Configuration)|$(Platform)' == 'Debug|AnyCPU' ">
    <DebugSymbols>true</DebugSymbols>
    <DebugType>full</DebugType>
    <Optimize>false</Optimize>
    <OutputPath>bin\</OutputPath>
    <DefineConstants>DEBUG;TRACE</DefineConstants>
    <ErrorReport>prompt</ErrorReport>
    <WarningLevel>4</WarningLevel>
  </PropertyGroup>
  <PropertyGroup Condition=" '$(Configuration)|$(Platform)' == 'Release|AnyCPU' ">
    <DebugType>pdbonly</DebugType>
    <Optimize>true</Optimize>
    <OutputPath>bin\</OutputPath>
    <DefineConstants>TRACE</DefineConstants>
    <ErrorReport>prompt</ErrorReport>
    <WarningLevel>4</WarningLevel>
  </PropertyGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <Reference Include="EntityFramework, Version=4.1.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b77a5c561934e089, processorArchitecture=MSIL">
      <Private>True</Private>
      <HintPath>..\packages\EntityFramework.4.1.10331.0\lib\EntityFramework.dll</HintPath>
    </Reference>
    <Reference Include="System.Data.Entity" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.Mvc, Version=3.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35, processorArchitecture=MSIL" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.WebPages, Version=1.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35, processorArchitecture=MSIL" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.Helpers, Version=1.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=31bf3856ad364e35, processorArchitecture=MSIL" />
    <Reference Include="Microsoft.CSharp" />
    <Reference Include="System" />
    <Reference Include="System.Data" />
    <Reference Include="System.Drawing" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.DynamicData" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.Entity" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.ApplicationServices" />
    <Reference Include="System.ComponentModel.DataAnnotations" />
    <Reference Include="System.Core" />
    <Reference Include="System.Data.DataSetExtensions" />
    <Reference Include="System.Xml.Linq" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.Extensions" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.Abstractions" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.Routing" />
    <Reference Include="System.Xml" />
    <Reference Include="System.Configuration" />
    <Reference Include="System.Web.Services" />
    <Reference Include="System.EnterpriseServices" />
  </ItemGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <Compile Include="Application\ApplicationConfigurationSettings.cs" />
    <Compile Include="Global.asax.cs">
      <DependentUpon>Global.asax</DependentUpon>
    </Compile>
    <Compile Include="Properties\AssemblyInfo.cs" />
  </ItemGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_flat_0_aaaaaa_40x100.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_flat_75_ffffff_40x100.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_glass_55_fbf9ee_1x400.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_glass_65_ffffff_1x400.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_glass_75_dadada_1x400.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_glass_75_e6e6e6_1x400.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_glass_95_fef1ec_1x400.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-bg_highlight-soft_75_cccccc_1x100.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-icons_222222_256x240.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-icons_2e83ff_256x240.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-icons_454545_256x240.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-icons_888888_256x240.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\images\ui-icons_cd0a0a_256x240.png" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.accordion.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.all.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.autocomplete.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.base.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.button.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.core.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.datepicker.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.dialog.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.progressbar.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.resizable.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.selectable.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.slider.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.tabs.css" />
    <Content Include="Content\themes\base\jquery.ui.theme.css" />
    <Content Include="Global.asax" />
    <Content Include="Content\Site.css" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery-1.5.1-vsdoc.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery-1.5.1.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery-1.5.1.min.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery-ui-1.8.11.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery-ui-1.8.11.min.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery.validate-vsdoc.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery.validate.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery.validate.min.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\modernizr-1.7.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\modernizr-1.7.min.js" />
    <Content Include="T4\WebConfigSettingGeneratorScript.txt">
      <AutoGen>True</AutoGen>
      <DesignTime>True</DesignTime>
      <DependentUpon>WebConfigSettingGeneratorScript.tt</DependentUpon>
    </Content>
    <Content Include="T4\WebConfigSettingGeneratorScript1.txt" />
    <Content Include="Web.config" />
    <Content Include="Web.Debug.config">
      <DependentUpon>Web.config</DependentUpon>
    </Content>
    <Content Include="Web.Release.config">
      <DependentUpon>Web.config</DependentUpon>
    </Content>
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery.unobtrusive-ajax.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery.unobtrusive-ajax.min.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery.validate.unobtrusive.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\jquery.validate.unobtrusive.min.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\MicrosoftAjax.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\MicrosoftAjax.debug.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\MicrosoftMvcAjax.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\MicrosoftMvcAjax.debug.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\MicrosoftMvcValidation.js" />
    <Content Include="Scripts\MicrosoftMvcValidation.debug.js" />
    <Content Include="Views\Web.config" />
    <Content Include="Views\_ViewStart.cshtml" />
    <Content Include="Views\Shared\Error.cshtml" />
    <Content Include="Views\Shared\_Layout.cshtml" />
  </ItemGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <Folder Include="Controllers\" />
    <Folder Include="Models\" />
  </ItemGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <Content Include="packages.config" />
  </ItemGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddController\Controller.tt" />
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddController\ControllerWithContext.tt" />
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddView\CSHTML\Create.tt" />
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddView\CSHTML\Delete.tt" />
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddView\CSHTML\Details.tt" />
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddView\CSHTML\Edit.tt" />
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddView\CSHTML\Empty.tt" />
    <None Include="CodeTemplates\AddView\CSHTML\List.tt" />
    <None Include="T4\Generators\WebConfigGenerator.tt" />
    <None Include="T4\Templates\WebConfigTemplate.tt" />
    <None Include="T4\WebConfigSettingGeneratorScript.tt">
      <Generator>TextTemplatingFileGenerator</Generator>
      <LastGenOutput>WebConfigSettingGeneratorScript.txt</LastGenOutput>
    </None>
    <None Include="T4\WebConfigSettingGeneratorScript.tt.log">
      <DependentUpon>WebConfigSettingGeneratorScript.tt</DependentUpon>
    </None>
  </ItemGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <Service Include="{508349B6-6B84-4DF5-91F0-309BEEBAD82D}" />
  </ItemGroup>
  <Import Project="$(MSBuildBinPath)\Microsoft.CSharp.targets" />
  <Import Project="$(MSBuildExtensionsPath32)\Microsoft\VisualStudio\v10.0\WebApplications\Microsoft.WebApplication.targets" />
  <!-- To modify your build process, add your task inside one of the targets below and uncomment it. 
   Other similar extension points exist, see Microsoft.Common.targets.
  <Target Name="BeforeBuild">
  </Target>
  <Target Name="AfterBuild">
  </Target> -->
  <Target Name="MvcBuildViews" AfterTargets="AfterBuild" Condition="'$(MvcBuildViews)'=='true'">
    <AspNetCompiler VirtualPath="temp" PhysicalPath="$(WebProjectOutputDir)" />
  </Target>
  <ProjectExtensions>
    <VisualStudio>
      <FlavorProperties GUID="{349c5851-65df-11da-9384-00065b846f21}">
        <WebProjectProperties>
          <UseIIS>False</UseIIS>
          <AutoAssignPort>True</AutoAssignPort>
          <DevelopmentServerPort>55059</DevelopmentServerPort>
          <DevelopmentServerVPath>/</DevelopmentServerVPath>
          <IISUrl>
          </IISUrl>
          <NTLMAuthentication>False</NTLMAuthentication>
          <UseCustomServer>False</UseCustomServer>
          <CustomServerUrl>
          </CustomServerUrl>
          <SaveServerSettingsInUserFile>False</SaveServerSettingsInUserFile>
        </WebProjectProperties>
      </FlavorProperties>
    </VisualStudio>
  </ProjectExtensions>
</Project>

The idea is to clear the value of the Generator node. I can’t seem to get this code to work. Am I accessing the xml properties incorrectly? It seems like I get a value back in the for each, but I’m having trouble accessing it correctly.

Ok, thanks @Keith Hill. Here’s the answer:

$path = 'C:\Projects\NuGetTestPackage\NuGetTestPackage'
$ns = @{msb = 'http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003'}
cd $path
$results = 0
$projName = 'NuGetTestPackage1.csproj'
$file = gi $projName
$xml = [xml](gc $projName)
$xml | Select-Xml "//msb:Generator" -Namespace $ns | 
       Foreach { 
            $_.Node.set_InnerText('')
            $results = 1
       }
if($results -eq 1){
    $xml.Save($file.FullName)
}

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1 Answer

Editorial Team · Answer 1 · 2026-05-22T12:22:26+00:00

This is happening because you have more than one “ItemGroup” element and more than one “None” element. At that point, ItemGroup is a collection and doesn’t have a “.None” property. You’d be better off using XPath IMO e.g.:

$ns = @{msb = 'http://schemas.microsoft.com/developer/msbuild/2003'}
$pattern = 'TextTemplatingFileGenerator'
$xml = [xml](gc C:\temp\test.csproj)
$xml | Select-Xml "//msb:Generator[text() = $pattern]" -Namespace $ns | 
       Foreach {$_.Node.set_InnerText('')}
$xml.Save('C:\temp\test.csproj')

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I’m trying to edit some xml in Powershell. Here’s what I’m doing: $path =

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