Pattern instance projects typically contain references to regular projects. Therefore, when you select a pattern instance project for deletion you must decide whether to delete all of the referenced projects from the file system.
Pattern authors can configure projects in a pattern authoring project so that they are not overwritten when a pattern instance is regenerated. Projects that have been configured in this way are not deleted when a pattern instance is deleted. For more information, see Configuring a project used in a user-defined pattern.
Use the following steps to delete a pattern instance project that has project references: