Need advice On SetUp Disks So User Can Run Exe On Server.

[drosenkranz]

I'd like to create a set of installation disks so users can run my application. I have VFP6 with SP4 and mdac 2.5 updates. My EXE and the data files will reside on the server. Since our user's desktops are all locked down, all I'm going to do is install a shortcut in C:\Windows\Start Menu\Programs to allow users to launch the EXE.

I'm assuming the wizard will create the setup disks with all of the .dlls and related VFP files necessary for installation to the user's c:\Windows\System directory so their PC can run a VFP Exe.

1) Will I need to install VFP Runtime for the users or is the EXE sufficient?

I have another section in this agency distributing their Apps built with SP2 and older mdac versions.

2) Is VFP's setup disks capable of comparing version numbers or dates when copying a file to a user's PC or does it just overwrite files of the same name? In other words, could a VFP SP2 installation overwrite my SP4 installation's newer .dll's and cause problems?

Any basic installation (distribution) advice, tips or tricks would be greatly appreciated. The early bird may get the occasional worm...
but the 2nd mouse always gets the cheese.

 

[dgrewe]

>> My EXE and the data files will reside on the server<<
Boy I'll bet your network people love you to death.
Suggestion. DO NOT RUN THE EXE FROM THE SERVER. INSTALL IT ON THE LOCAL HARD DRIVE

The newer versions of the runtime module will run the older code. David W. Grewe
Dave@internationalbid.com
ICQ VFP ActiveList #46145644

 

[RajaYasin]

Install the Exe On The Local Hard Drive, Give The User A Drive Mapping To Your Server Drive,

The Install Setup Wizard allows you to include any OLE/ActiveX objects that you have In you application and it will register them for you also. Provided that you have included them.


lemme know if you need anymore help.

RajaYasin.

Yasinm@bupa.com

 

[drosenkranz]

Hi degrewe,

It's was my maniacal network administrator's idea who decided to have me move all my VB apps off the local hard drives and put them onto her server. I'm just getting started with VFP again after an 8 year hiatus. Thanks for the tip.

Hi RajaYasin,

Thanks for the offer.

Either of you...

Do I need to install VFP Runtime when I install the project? The early bird may get the occasional worm...
but the 2nd mouse always gets the cheese.

 

[foxdev]

The runtime should be automatically installed when the EXE is installed, unless you uncheck the &quot;Install Runtime Files&quot; checkbox in the Setup Disk Wizard.

The &quot;EXE on local hard drive&quot; may not be much of an issue if the EXE is small, but if it is large you'll really want it on the local machine to boost performance.

An idea: have the main EXE just a &quot;stub&quot;, a sort of small main program that resides on the server. This EXE, after startup and some initialization, would pass control over to the second, large EXE via a standard VFP DO command. But - and this is the neat part - have the stub EXE check for the most recent version of the second, large EXE on the user's local hard disk; if it is not there, copy it over (this eliminates having to propogate changes to lots of machines manually). In any event, the second large EXE that is invoked resides locally, so your DO command would be something like: DO C:\EXE\MYPROG.EXE.
Robert Bradley

http://www.foxdev.com/

http://www.agrainofhope.org

 

[drosenkranz]

Hello FoxDev,

Could you answer TWO questions for me...

1) When you say check for the most recent version, how (and what) would I check- the version on the large EXE on the server against the version of the large EXE on the user's local hard disk? Could I get a code segment on what file attributes I'm comparing?

2) If I have another developer using SP2 and say 2.1 mdac and I'm using SP4 and mdac 2.5, will the installation disks overwrite any critical files if an App developed with SP2 is installed AFTER an App installed from the SP4 development station. In other words, does the VFP installation disk check version numbers before it copies its .dll's to the target machine's C:\Windows\System directory?

Thanks a lot. The early bird may get the occasional worm...
but the 2nd mouse always gets the cheese.

 

[foxdev]

1) Yes, you'd check the version (or existence) of the large EXE on the user's local disk. When I say &quot;version&quot;, you could either check the file date using FDATE() or you could check the EXEs actual version by using AGETFILEVERSION().

2) I believe the installer is supposed to do version checking on all system files (DLLs and the like). It never hurts to have a backup.
Robert Bradley

http://www.foxdev.com/

http://www.agrainofhope.org

 

[JDurbin]

You might find the article Deployment: Installation Preparation in the Nov 2000 issue of FoxTalk available at Micro$oft online helpful.
What's the 3rd mouse left with? <s> John Durbin
john@johndurbin.com
MCP Visual FoxPro
ICQ VFP ActiveList #73897253