We have a big and complex application composed by at least 700 DLL. The number is growing month after month. The code is not well structured because every DLL is a stand alone solutions. As you can imagine, when have some problem when we have to test a new feature on a DLL because we do not know exactly where it is used.
I am thinking to write a program that scan the file system, open the solution XML file and create a graph that contain all the references.
Is it a good idea?
Do you have some other solutions?
4
I’d first try to consolidate those dlls. Do you have a class per dll or something?!
Combine related functionality currently contained within lots of dlls into a single dll, then you can start to get a grasp on your dependency chain. 700 is just too many to manage well.
1
Do you have some other solutions?
In short: Combine your code under one solution and define project dependencies their.
Having so many dlls is troublesome for maintenance and further development. If you have the source code, I would suggest de-compile this dlls to their own small projects and combine them under one solution. It would be much clear and easier to manage dependencies from their on.
However, all that re-organizational work would cost you time of a developer who understands the system very well.