Embedding .DLL files into a single .EXE file

This method is unusual and rarely people do it, but it still works for me when I want to hide one or two external library binaries/assemblies like .DLL files into my single .EXE application file. I use .NET C# and Visual Studio as the IDE. Let’s say I want to compile a simple application called a Mini Browser and these are external .DLL files used in my project:-

• DevExpress.BonusSkins.v13.2.dll
• DevExpress.Data.v13.2.dll
• DevExpress.Sparkline.v13.2.Core.dll
• DevExpress.Utils.v13.2.dll
• DevExpress.XtraEditors.v13.2.dll

To get started, I put them all in a folder called lib and include it in my project as shown in the picture below:

This is one of my old project where I use C# WinForms to create a pretty simple Mini Browser application. Now, we need to change Build Action of each file’s Properties to Embedded Resource as shown in the picture below:

Next, add all of them to References since we’re going to use them in our project as shown in the picture below:

Then, we need to make sure all of our external DLL files also included in Properties\Resources.resx file as shown in the picture below:

If nothing’s there, click on downward arrow at the right side of Add Resource and select Add Existing File…, navigate to lib folder in our project, change file extension to All File (*.*) then select all of the files.

Once we are done with this files setup, go to our main application constructor code, for example in my case is Form1() from Form1.cs file as shown in the picture below:

Now, we can add this anonymous function code inside the constructor code and put it before InitializeComponent(); and then resolve any required namespace:

// using System.Reflection;
AppDomain.CurrentDomain.AssemblyResolve += (sender, args) =>
{
	string resourceName = new AssemblyName(args.Name).Name + ".dll";
    string resource = Array.Find(this.GetType().Assembly.GetManifestResourceNames(), element => element.EndsWith(resourceName));

    using (var stream = Assembly.GetExecutingAssembly().GetManifestResourceStream(resource))
    {
		Byte[] assemblyData = new Byte[stream.Length];
        stream.Read(assemblyData, 0, assemblyData.Length);
        return Assembly.Load(assemblyData);
	}
};

And compile it! We should now have our single .EXE application file without any external assembly (.DLL) files. Please note that, embedding these .DLL files into our main application file (.EXE) will result in increasing of our .EXE file size as this sums up everything.