I have created a windows service using C# in Visual Studio 2010. I did a lot of research about automating the installation process. Got lots of advice but none did work for me. The windows service i have created has lots of dependencies and i would like client to have no UI interaction during the installation. I have created a setup project for this which includes all my dependencies within the installer.
Process involved:
Create a build for windows service
Push the setup file (.msi) to remote location
Call the .msi and install the service silently without user interaction.
What i did so far:
Created a powershell script to push files to remote location
Execute powershell script and install the service
Please keep in mind that powershell script
sc create "servicename" binpath="somepath"
is used for installing service from a project directory not for installing .msi file created using Setup Project these are two vast different things. If you don't understand this don't answer please.
Possible solutions:
Use (http://www.msbuildextensionpack.com/help/4.0.5.0/html/258a18b7-2cf7-330b-e6fe-8bc45db381b9.htm) msbuild extension pack.
Use buildarguments to call msbuild extension pack to install windows service.
Use (http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/x8zx72cd.aspx) Exec Task
Use WIX(Windows Installer Xml)
Now my question is. How can i push windows service installer to remote location? And how can create custom build arguments and use either msbuild extension pack or Exec Task and install the service?
I know this sounds stupid and irritating question for someone who hasn't installed the service using (.MSI) created by the Setup Project. But its my requirements which i am trying to solve since weeks in the enterprise environment.
I would do the bulk of the work from the powershell script.
Use the msbuild Exec task like you mentioned to add it to your build process. Here's a pretty good article on using the exec task to run your powershell script.
Since you are using VS 2010, a setup and deployment project is pretty easy. Add one to your solution, and add the output of your service project to it. Here's an article on adding the setup project for a windows service.
Use your powershell scripts to copy the installer .msi to the remote server. You can simply use copy-item [source] [destination] if you have access to the file share.
Stop the service on the remote machine. You can use (get-service -ComputerName [destination] -Name [service-name]).Stop() (from this question)
Install the service silently using psexec psexec \\remotecomputer "[msi-destination-path]" /qn Here's the rest of the command line options for the .msi.
Start the service using (get-service -ComputerName [destination] -Name [service-name]).Start()
I'd also add a bunch of parameters to the powershell script for destination server, service name, etc. It will make maintaining this part of your build process much easier. Your build agent will most likely have to be an administrator on the destination machine as well.
Lastly, make sure to put your powershell build script in source control!
Edit (June 2014)
VS 2013 has installer projects again! (Sorry, VS 2012)
Also, if found this awesome answer about how to install a Windows Service without using a setup project.
Related
I have a .Net 5 console application that I am trying to run as a Windows service. I have followed all of the articles online on how to do this and have it completed successfully (ie: using BackgroundService). The question is, I want to have an MSI installer to deploy this and all of the articles I have read about creating a service in .Net 5 instruct me to install the service manually using a command prompt or power shell and issuing the "sc" command.
Back before .Net 5, I could use the built in Visual Studio Installer extension and simply create an MSI that would deploy and install my service. I can't seem to make that work for .Net 5.
Is it still possible to use the built in Installer extension to deploy and install my .Net 5 BackgroundService?
Thanks!
Installing Services: There are many ways to install services, you should use an MSI package and the built-in mechanisms there to install and start the service and stop and update it during upgrades.
Various ways to install services (with links to samples on how to install services using MSI).
Learning WiX: Please see the WiX section here - the links should get you started. Direct link to the main WiX link list.
Links:
Windows Services Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Installation package created with WIX Toolset does not remove program folder + files on uninstallation
How to install a system service without permission errors
Asking similar question because no one answered previous question asked
I have a solution with a class library project, a WPF project (start up project) and a Windows Service project. I would like to create one installer so that when the user installs the application then both WPF (UI) and Windows service gets installed.
Most of the resources I found online only talk about one or another but not both. For example this:.
I checked some question on stackoverflow but either they are not answered by any one or vague answers like this question or this one.
Any suggestion how to achieve this?
I'm not an expert on various installer solutions, but yes, this can be done. I know because my project does it.
We've historically used InstallShield, but we are actively moving to InstallAware for reasons unrelated to this discussion. Frankly, I suspect any installer solution (e.g., InstallShield, InstallAware, Wix, etc.) could be used to do this providing that it has the means to execute a batch script as part of the install process (more on this in a moment). In fact, while we are building our new installer using InstallAware, we are temporarily delivering our WPF-based application and Windows Service using a WinZip self-extracting executable. The WinZip self-extractor puts the WPF application in the C:\Program Files\<application>\<version> folder, puts the Windows Service in the C:\Program Files\<application>\Common folder, and then installs and starts the Windows Service.
The trick to all of this, of course, is getting the Windows Service installed. Initially, we used the InstallUtil.exe utility to do this, but we had to err on the side of caution and deliver it with our installer because we couldn't verify whether or not we could depend on the utility being available on the target system. At some point along the way, I read this answer by #Marc Gravell. This provided the springboard to my answer here, which provides detailed instructions for having your Windows Service install itself from the command line without the need for InstallUtil.exe.
So as a set of instructions...
Update your Windows Service based on the details here.
Create a .bat file with the following commands:
cd <PathToWindowsServiceInstallationFolder>
<YourWindowsService>.exe -install
Build the installer for your WPF Service and Windows Service. Note that this should focus on deploying the files to their correct locations. You'll need to include the .bat file as part of the installer. If your installer solution allows you to copy files to a temporary folder that gets deleted at the end of the installation process, copy the .bat file to that location since you won't need it after the installer is finished.
Finally, execute the .bat file from your installer during installation. This will install the Windows Service.
It's really not that complicated all things considered.
The one thing to be aware of is that your users should plan on running the installer as an administrator. Since installing the Windows Service updates the registry, users without administrative privileges might run into problems when trying to install your product.
HTH
I know you can publish a Service Fabric application written in C# using Visual Studio, and I have read this article on using TFS or VSTS to set up continuous integration DevOps builds of a Service Fabric application.
How can I just do this all manually using PowerShell? I know I can do the following using PowerShell from this article on deployment:
Use Visual Studio to package the project.
Transfer the package to a remote server.
Use the PowerShell script examples in the article to deploy the package while I am in the context of the remote server.
Instead, here are two bits I can't seem to figure out which would assist me in doing this from PowerShell:
Using PowerShell, how can I package my Service Fabric project the same way you can when you are in the context of Visual Studio?
Using PowerShell, how can I remotely deploy my Service Fabric project the same way you can when you are in the context of Visual Studio?
To generate the package through the command line, you can call the "Package" target on the sfproj file.
See my answer on create a deployment package for Service Fabric that includes all artifacts necessary to run the designed workflows at runtime
Then follow the instructions from https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/documentation/articles/service-fabric-deploy-remove-applications/ as blackSphere suggested.
If you haven't seen this link, take a look at Deploy and Remove Packages using Powershell article.
Suppose you have a folder named MyApplicationType that contains the necessary application manifest, service manifests, and code/config/data packages. The Copy-ServiceFabricApplicationPackage command uploads the package to the cluster Image Store
That takes a directory and uploads it. Then you have to tell it to take that image and use it in the application.
The Register-ServiceFabricApplicationType command returns only after the system has successfully copied the application package. How long this takes depends on the contents of the application package. If needed, the -TimeoutSec parameter can be used to supply a longer timeout.
After you register it you can create the application:
You can instantiate an application by using any application type version that has been registered successfully through the New-ServiceFabricApplication command
Scenario
I have a server, that has NO Visual Studio Installed. It literally has a normal command prompt and nothing installed yet. We don't want to install anything (except the .Net framework which we have already done). We just want to install a bunch of C# Windows Services that we have written.
So far
I have been installing and running the windows service on my local machine using a "setup and deploy" project that I built into the application, which I could then use to install the service locally.
Question
How can I install the service on the server?
I imagine it can be done from the command prompt only, but what else do I need? - If anything? and where do I put the files that I want to install BEFORE I install them?
I imagine I will have to compile the application on my local machine in Visual Studio, then copy it over to the server, and then run an install utility to install it on the server?
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
according to this thread you need to run
C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\InstallUtil.exe C:\MyService.exe
(replace c:\windows with your windows path)
Your server has a sc.exe (service control) command which allows you to install, uninstall, start, stop and configure services - no Visual Studio bits needed.
Run sc.exe -? at a command prompt to get a listing of all available options
I add code similar to the one in this article to my services:
http://www.codeproject.com/KB/dotnet/WinSvcSelfInstaller.aspx
Then I can install/uninstall them just by typing ServiceName -i or ServiceName -u at the command prompt. Makes it easier if it'll be installed by people who don't know .Net.
Is it possible to deploy a Windows Service using ClickOnce? If so, how do you achieve this?
Currently we have to use a Deployment project, and the installation process could be simplified greatly by using ClickOnce.
AFAIK you can't really use ClickOnce end-to-end to deploy a service; there are issues with both the file locations (ClickOnce installs into a user's profile) and installation (ClickOnce is largely side-effect free).
You can, however, write a service as an exe that can self-install/uninstall from the services list, like so; basically, you write it as as a console exe and handle some command line args, using AssemblyInstaller to [un]install from the current assembly. Another advantage is that the same approach can be used to help debugging, since you can run it from the command line.
I guess NO according to Choosing Between ClickOnce and Windows Installer
Instead of ClickOnce, I like to use the approach using Inno Setup, like in here https://stackoverflow.com/a/1450051/396200
You have more control over what and how will be copied and executed.
As Marc Gravell said in his answer, I create a exe that self install my service, and then use Inno Setup to pack and deploy it. After Inno setup installed, it automatically run the exe and then my exe install my service.