Recent Windows and Visual Studio updates may install newer versions of Microsoft MSBuild that are not compatible with Ranorex Studio 12.7.1 and later.

After updating MSBuild, you may experience issues when loading projects or building Ranorex Studio solutions. This compatibility issue is caused by changes introduced in recent Microsoft MSBuild releases.

Supported MSBuild Versions

The following MSBuild versions are compatible with Ranorex Studio:

MSBuild 17 versions released after 17.14.35 and MSBuild 18 versions released after 18.3.3 are affected by this compatibility issue.

Workarounds

Use one of the following workarounds until compatibility with newer MSBuild versions is restored.

Option 1: Roll Back to a Compatible MSBuild 17 Version

This is the recommended workaround.

1. Uninstall the currently installed MSBuild 17 version.
2. Install MSBuild 17.14.35, released on June 16, 2026.

Option 2: Use MSBuild 16

You can configure Ranorex Studio to use MSBuild 16 instead.

1. Install MSBuild 16, included with Visual Studio 2019.

2. Open the following configuration files:

   C:\Program Files (x86)\Ranorex\Studio\Bin\RanorexStudio.exe.config
   C:\Program Files (x86)\Ranorex\Studio\Bin\x64\RanorexStudio.exe.config

3. In both files, locate the MSBuildVersion setting and change its value to 16:

   <add key="MSBuildVersion" value="16" />

Ranorex is working to restore compatibility with the latest Microsoft MSBuild releases. This article will be updated when additional information or a permanent resolution becomes available.