The project file has been moved renamed or is not on your computer

Question

I get this error when I try to load a VS 2008 project from TFS source control:

The project file has been moved, renamed or is not on your computer

Answer 1

Easiest option worked out for me is:

1. Right click the project & Remove the "not loaded" or "unavailable" project
2. Right click the solution & Add "Existing Project"

Answer 2

I ran into this issue and was able to resolve it by obtaining the .rptproj files from a co-worker and copying them into my local directory. The project was then able to re-load.

Answer 3

Try opening the .csproj or .vbproj instead of the .sln. What has probably happened is the .sln (solution) file has a absolute file reference (instead of a relative path) to the compoenent project(s). You may need to re-create the .sln, or hand-edit it.

Answer 4

I just ran into this issue using VS 2013 after renaming a project. Stanley's answer guided me to the solution:

Close VS - delete .suo file - start VS again.

Answer 5

What typically helps to fix it is deleting the Solution User Options aka "SUO".

VS up to 2013

In the older VS it is stored as a "hidden" SolutionName.suo in the same folder as the main .sln file.

VS2015 or later

In VS2015 the same data was moved to a "hidden" .vs folder under the same folder as the main .sln file.

Answer 6

Delete the .suo file in a special way.

1. Don't have the solution open when you delete the hidden .suo file.
2. Restart VisualStudio.
3. Open solution and Add project without error message.