I did the following steps to create a Windows Setup project:
Create a Windows Forms Application using Visual Studio
Install "Microsoft Visual Studio Installer Projects plugin"
Add a "Setup Project" to the solution
In the "Application Folder", add project output
(Steps 5 and 6 are optional)
By right clicking the Setup project and opening "Properties", select "Prerequisites"
Select "Download prerequisites from the same location as my application"
Build the solution.
After all these steps, I see many files (Setup.exe, Setup.msi, NETFX472 folder) in the Release folder. But I only want one simple self-contained setup file. So, users can run the setup file and install the application easily.
How can I make a simple and self-contained Setup file for my project?
I know it's possible, but I am looking for an easier and more efficient way to do it.
I know I can create another Windows Forms app called Setup which copies the project outputs to user's Program Files directory and copy the output files one-by-one. But I don't think that solution is elegant.
EDIT:
After more tries, I learned that Setup.exe is for installing dependencies (only .NET Framework 4.7.2 for my case) and then running Setup.msi. So, without Setup.msi file, Setup.exe is nothing and vice-versa.
Also, I want my program should work 100% offline (including setup). So, installer should include offline .NET Framework 4.7.2 installer.
What I don't want here is Setup.exe to only install dependencies. It should also install my program. So, it should do also whatever Setup.msi file does. Second thing I don't want is dependency installer as separate file (offline .NET Framework 4.7.2 installer in this case). It should also be embedded into Setup.exe.
Related
This is my first time trying to make a deployable program. After creating a nice little WPF XAML app that runs (i.e. I can run the executable in the bin folder), I am trying to wrap it in a setup program.
After following multiple directions online for both WiX and "Microsoft Visual Studio Installer Projects". Both make installer packages, but they are only targeting the dll file from the WPF XAML output when I as for the "Primary Output". It seems this is stemming from the build of the WPF project.
How do I adjust the primary output of the build process so it is included in the setup program?
Screenshot of build output specifying the dll as the output file:
To add more details:
This could be one wpf(.net core) application instead of one wpf(.net framework). See the Output window in Elton's screenshot we can find the output is xx.dll instead of xx.exe.
If we create a Installer project in this solution, right-click the Installer project=>Add=>Project Output=>Primary output to contain the WPF's output in installer project, only the xx.dll is considered as wpf's output, but not xx.exe.
So after building the Installer project in VS, double-click the setup.exe(installer project's output), the wpf.exe is not well installed.
On top of Lance answer. You can add the publish items to your outputs near your main Primary Output.
1- Right-click on project and select Add => Project Output.
2- Choose your target project and select Publish Items from the list with your configuration.
3- Now you have another Output in your Application Folder.
Done. with every Batch Build you have your publish directory copied to application folder.
My Visual Studio 2019 WPF app is setting a dll as the output when it
should be an exe.
I'm sure you're using a WPF(.net core) project cause yesterday I happened to reproduce same situation in my machine. As for the cause of the issue, if you're interested in it, you may get some help from this issue. For .net core 2.2 and earlier, if we build a console(.net core) project, we'll get a xx.dll as output by default(Use dotnet xx.dll to run that).
But for .net core 3.0, I found this situation changes. Now if we build a Console(.net core) or WPF(.net core), apart from the xx.dll, we'll also get an xx.exe now. And I checked the Updated date of Installer Project and the Release date of WPF(.net core), the latest update of the Installer project is much earlier than the release of WPF(.net core), I guess maybe this is the cause? I'm not certainly sure how Installer Project recognize the output of one WPF project, but I suggest you can post this issue in DC forum , if it gets enough votes, the team will consider a fix.
Here're my workarounds which may help:
1.Use Add=>File instead of Add=>Primary Output:
Build the WPF project in release mode, navigate to the output path and copy that path. Then right-click Installer project=>Add=>Files to enter that path. Choose all files in output folder and click open:
Right-click the assembly file and choose Find in Editor:
Right-click the xx.exe=>Create a shortcut. Then move the shortcut to User's Desktop folder and set the AlwaysCreate property to be true.
After that, build the installer project and install that xx.msi or setup.exe in my machine, I'll get a shortcut in desktop, double-click it will run the wpf(core) application.
2.See this blog, we can use command like dotnet publish -r xxx -p:PublishSingleFile=true to get a single-file executable which is self-extracting and contains all dependencies (including native) that are required to run your app. In this situation, you don't need a Installer project to deploy your project. The single executable is enough. Hint from Lex Li in this issue.
Hope it helps :-)
I have a solution in Visual Studio 2010, with seven projects. I have added a Installshield LE Setup project and when I add my main projects Primary-Output and then add a shortcut for the Primary-Output on the desktop, in the Installshield assistant.
Now when I install my application it creates a shortcut on the desktop, as expected. But when I run my application; it has a built-in logging class that generates a few log files. Now when I click the shortcut on the desktop to run the application, it creates my log files on the desktop, as well as where they are supposed to be created, which is the applications directory.
Why does installshield do this, because it's my understanding that it should only link to the .exe in the applications install folder, not think that it's launching the application from it's install folder.
I have gotten this to work by manually adding my output files to the setup project, but this is not ideal, as I would love to be able to configure this and then when I need to build a new installer, just build project and it's done.
If anybody can recommend a better installer that fits my needs, that would be great.
Installer Requirements
shortcut on desktop for application
shortcut on desktop for a url shortcut
shortcut in startup folder for application
eula
Something that is simple to get a setup project created, as I have a deadline and was only given 1 day to build and package a release build for a client.
Sounds like your app is creating log files wherever it's launched from, which isn't really Installshield's fault. You should really be writing to somewhere like the LocalApplicationData folder: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/system.environment.specialfolder.aspx
I have completed my program and would like to send that program in its compiled state to other pc's.
I understand that in the Debug folder there is the programName.exe file, which when I open it on the PC I created it with - it opens.
But if I send that .exe file to other pc's, it crashes or simply doesnt run!
Is there a way for others to see and use my program without installing visual studio?
I have asked this question before on another programming website with not much help, this is the link that they showed me, which i then followed:
http://www.dreamincode.net/forums/topic/58021-deploying-a-c%23-application-visual-studio-setup-project/#-application-visual-studio-setup-project/
The installer installs the program, but there is no files with it to open!
Other machines won't need to have Visual Studio installed - but they will need the appropriate version of .NET, depending on what you built against. If you target the "client" profile, the .NET distribution is fairly small.
You could build a setup project which kicks off the .NET framework installation if necessary, but it's likely to be quite a lot of work - in many cases it's probably simpler just to tell people what they need to install first, particularly if this is for personal use or friends/family.
There are most likely other DLLs that your project is dependent on that do not get copied over when only transporting that .exe file. You COULD just copy those over as well.
However, the best practice is to add a new Project under Setup for a Installer. It should detect those dependencies. Then the other users will just have to run the setup.exe that gets created (but you have to include the other folders and files that get generated). Open up the File System Editor tab of the Installer project. Then inside the Application Folder, I right click on "Primary output from [Main Project] (Active)", then select "Create Shortcut to ..." and drop the Shortcut into the Program Files and User Desktop folders on the left.
For something simple, the other DLLs should be fine.
Create the MSI Installer project for your application.
Copy your project output as input of MSI Installer.
.Exe is depends on .msi file, so when you click the .exe must verify the msi file existed in same directory.
Verify the .Net framework and Installation 3.0 before run the .exe or .Msi file.
The easiest approach would be:
1: Right click on your Solution Explorer and add a new project. The new project would be a Setup project, which would be under Other Projects -> Setup and Deployment -> Visual Studio installer and then choose Setup Project from the right side.
2: Add all your bin folder files to Application folder and then build your solution.
3: It will create a file with .msi extension. You can distribute that to anyone you want and they wouldn't need any VS.
I have made a setup and deployment project in C#, Now i have another windows update exe which i want to run and install successfully before it installs my project. I've packaged the exe with my project. How may i run that exe before?
You want to add a Custom Action to the Setup Project that runs the executable. This WalkThrough will take you through getting htat working.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/d9k65z2d(VS.80).aspx
Any other package that should be installed before your own MSI file must be installed by the setup bootstrapper (i.e. the setup.exe file). In order to do so, you should right-click on your setup project, select properties and then pre-requisites. The dialog will list you the components which can be installed by the bootstrapper.
Now, if the component you want to install is in this list, you are done. Otherwise you have to dig deeper into the mechanism of the bootstrapper. Every item in the list has an associated package description stored under
C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 8\SDK\v2.0\BootStrapper\Packages
for VS 2005 or
C:\Program Files\Microsoft SDKs\Windows\v6.0A\Bootstrapper\Packages
for VS 2008. This package definition basically contains instructions on what to install, how to obtain the component (download url) and how to check whether an installation is necessary.
For custom components you can create your own package definition. If you don't want to do it manually, you can use the Bootstrapper Manifest Generator.
EDIT: If you don't want to go the rather complex but powerful way using the boostrapper you might want to have a look at IExpress. This is a free tool included with MS Windows that allows you to create a self-extracting installation package consisting of multiple components and executing a custom script. IExpress has a graphical UI, but also have a look at the created .sed file for further options.
I've seen popping up around the web recently .application files, for .NET installations. (Application manifests, per the extension details).
How exactly does one create these .application files in Visual Studio, and how do they differ from a standard windows setup? Please enlighten me.
I'm a C# developer, but never used a .application installer before.
How exactly does one create these .application files in Visual Studio?
.application file is automatically created when you do a click-once deployment.
For click-once deployment, you can
Right click on the project you want to release and choose publish menu item.
-- or --
Right click on the project, select properties, go to publish tab to publish.
how do they differ from a standard windows setup?
You would create a standard windows setup program by creating a setup project in your solution. And also they differ in a way that, for click-once, end-user does not have to install the program on their local machine.
You can learn more about differences between them from MSDN
Choosing Between ClickOnce and Windows Installer