I've built a Winforms Application, and I want to publish it. I'd like to have a link on a website https://sites.google.com/site/satsavvyboardgame/home where I can have the user download the application and have it install on their computer. So far, I haven't found any way to wrap everything up in one package, or successfully publish to the web. What are the specifications for the URL to publish to the web?
Is there any way to package everything into one item (the site won't allow me to upload/download folders), so that the user could download one item, then run that or something in it?
Is there another way to do this that I haven't seen?
I'm using C# Visual Studio 2010 Express, and my application has the code and a couple of XML files that I need to run. All are part of the project, and run fine when I install from a file using the CD publish settings.
I've never published an application before, so any help would be much appreciated. Thanks!
You have 2 general options:
use "ClickOnce" which will enable automatic updates each time the user click to install and have several other benefits such as less problems with priviliges.
Use "Windows-Installer", which allows you more control of how to do and what to do during the installtion phase. However, shamefully, Package & Deployment project types do not exist anymore in vs2012. there are several 3rd party packages you can work with to create your setup-project.
The ClickOnce is preferable if what the user download is a just a simple standalone game application for example.. the MSI is for the more "rich" applications that should make extensive usage in the machine registry and etc..
The table in this link will give you the data you need to make a decision:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/142dbbz4(v=vs.80).aspx
Related
So the current situation is, a client will download an .msi bundle generated from wix, perform the install and enter some specific configuration details afterwards into the application (a windows service/console).
I was looking to streamline this process so all the client has to do is run the installer (no configuration needed), so I was wondering if anyone had any experience with a similar situation.
This is how i image the workflow would run.
User logs into multi-tenant web application => User clicks a download button => Web server collects tenant information => Web server passes configuration into wix (as a build parameter?) => msi is generated with the configuration embeded => User downloads the generated .msi and the world keeps spinning.
Now there are a few things i am unsure of, so here are my questions.
How would you go about running the wix installer from the web application? It's written in C# so would it just launch a cmd window and run msbuild?
If 1. is possible, how would it look/function in Visual Studio. I'm assuming the installer project/installer asset project would both need to be in the build output of the web application, is it possible to copy the raw files into the output? <= is that even a good practice?
It just doesn't seem practical to me, so if anyone has any suggestions on how this can be accomplished, either how I described above or any other methods then I am open to ideas!
Just to clarify, the main goal is to "generate a windows installer at runtime with a tenant configuration embedded"
You can do it from C# for sure. Take a look at the Wix extensions for CakeBuild for example: https://github.com/cake-build/cake/tree/33b83fdbc24a7d3d1bafc4cd7c7df0a204162e3b/src/Cake.Common/Tools/WiX
As to packaging 'content' files up with your web application you can do that too, the wix project files are no different than any other asset as far as the website is concerned.
Also, to run processes from a dot net application there's a bunch of work to do around redirecting and logging the output, you may wish to look into some of the process handling packages on Nuget that can do this for you.
Performance may be an issue for you, plus ways to secure the downloadable MSI in case you only want one user to get it. You may also need to look into code signing if you aren't already. Other than that it should be fairly straightforward.
I have eCommerce ASP.net Project, This project have 20 important dlls and more java script files when i want to update website for my clients i have to give them dlls and js files and ask them to replace new files with old files and many many troubles.
But I want to create system like web service to update each client automatically like antivirus Update !
Is That even possible !
How about ClickOnce?
It's a microsoft tool that allows you to update the client automatically. When the client opens the application, it asks the server if there are any updates - If there are, it downloads them and updates. If not - nothing special happens and the app just start regulary.
A Web Deploy Package works quite nicely.
Create Package:
right click Publish and choose Web Deploy Package. This creates a .zip deploy package, which you can then easily import into IIS.
Deploy to IIS 7:
right click your site -> Deploy -> Import Application -> Navigate to the .zip deployment package, that's it. Here's a detailed walkthrough
I have a C# Windows Forms project that I created.
When i click "Publish" it deploys this click-once application that is only for a single user. If I run the install on my admin account, then there is a shortcut in my AppData that i can click on to run my program. If I try copying that shortcut to C:\users\Public what happens is that another click-once application gets placed on the users' desktop. That user then has to run the install and is annoying cause If i have an update, each user has to uninstall and reinstall the new application. Is there any way to configure VS 2015 to publish in a way that creates an "regular" install for all users?
RobinDotNet addressed that in a blog post a while back:
Doing an all-users install is counter to the design goals of ClickOnce deployment, so I think it’s going to be something everyone has to live with, at least for now. Using XCopy or a setup & deployment package and rolling your own incremental update methodology would be the way to go if you absolutely have to have an All Users installation
https://robindotnet.wordpress.com/2009/09/07/installing-a-clickonce-application-for-all-users/
There are more alternative deployment methods listed in this SO answer that might work for you.
You can not do this using ClickOnce. You may want to install Windows Installer XML to create regular MSI installers. It nowadays integrates with Visual Studio.
As others have pointed out CO is per user. There is no install for all users on the machine option.
However I feel you are either misinformed or badly misconfigured something regarding the implications when it comes to upgrades. Click Once upgrades don't require the user to uninstall, download, and install a new version. That wouldn't exactly be click ONCE.
You can configure your ClickOnce app to automatically detect, fetch, and apply upgrades as you make them available. This can be done either in code so you can control it programmatically or by configuration (i.e. check for updates every time the application starts).
So yes each user would need to install the application once but that would be the end of their involvement.
I have developed WPF application using VS 2013.
How do I install this application and run in some other PC without Visual Studio, using just only framework?
A good way to distribute WPF applications, is ClickOnce
You can place your application on a server, users can click on the link to install it. If you like, you can provide settings to automatically check for updates.
The application can be made to run in an offline mode, and will make an entry under the Start button as well as in Control Panel to allow uninstall.
It will run in an Isolated Storage sandbox, so this may not be appropriate for all applications, or may require some minor code changes. But, I have had many programs that just worked when turned into ClickOnce deployments.
NOTE: You may want to invest in a code signing cert to remove any warnings the end user will see. Or adjust Code Access Security of the destination machines if they are within your control.
The right answer ready depends on a few factors;
Where are your users (anywhere, corp. network)
How often do you want to update the application, should it be automatic
Will you deploy a database
As it stands this link provides some options
Deploying a WPF Application (WPF)
If you update the questions with more detail, perhaps we can provide more specific suggestions.
The easiest way - ClickOnce. To use it: Project -> Property -> Publish. Another popular option - InnoSetup (http://www.jrsoftware.org/isinfo.php).
I'm planning on creating some sort of "media-manager".
Add your bluray/dvd collection and it downloads metadata and lists your collection in a nice way and so on.
It's supposed to run on a NAS/Homeserver running Windows 8 and i want to access it via a webinterface.
ASP.NET using Web-Api seems like a good way to go.
However, it would be great to deploy the website as an executable.
For example: A friend want's to use the application too. I give him an installer and afterwards, he just needs to doubleclick the .exe and a webserver (IIS Express?) and the website boot up automatically.
Is this possible? (and if, how?)
Thanks
Well, of course you could write an installer that installs a webserver (like casini) and then install the Website to this Server and all is installed locally but I don't recommend that. That installer Need more work then the Website.
You are better of with Hosting you Website in a public place like Windows azure and implement your Website in a way that a user can logon and sees it's DVDs. Another users sees other DVDs. Or give him Access to your homeserver with dyndns.
Yes you can add a "Web Setup" project in your asp project to build a msi package and custom what do you want step by step .
This will generate a "installWebSite.msi" file at the end. Just double click it and follow the website installation
You can see a good presentation here ->
http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2007/06/15/tip-trick-creating-packaged-asp-net-setup-programs-with-vs-2005.aspx