Install app made in Visual Studio on client machine

Question

I created my first Windows Forms application and will install it on the client’s machine. How should I proceed? Just the .exe and the database?

Answer 1

In general not.

First, you need to have the . NET Framework, in the version you required in your application, installed on the machine. If not, it needs to be shipped together and install before.

It is common to have other dependencies besides the .exe. Usually other files are needed too.

When you speak the database is talking about the software or your database? If it is the software, yes, unless you can guarantee that it is installed. If it is the base, it depends on how you insert it into the system.

But we’re talking client-side, right? Isn’t the database server-side? If it is, it should be a separate installation. If the application is truly client-server, you can put the database to work together with the server software, if the client accesses the database directly then it may not even be the case to have an installer. Maybe it’s just the case of a normal application that loads the data into the database server. As it is, it can be up to a script simple, does not need to be an executable.

So it is possible just copy the files and everything works. This is called XCOPY Installing.

In some cases you need to make some extra settings.

That’s why it’s common to use an installer to do this. Visual Studio provides a simple one that solves most cases. In newer versions of VS you will want to install a extension with installation project.

There is a huge amount of more complete installers, most paid.

The installer has the advantage that it can take care of installing or updating the . NET Framework.

Note that it is possible to do it without an installer, but usually there is some manual work required and copy everything correctly.

There is also the possibility of Click Once which is a . NET technology where the person clicks on the package and everything starts working, without an official installation. It is not easy to make it work properly and it is not usually what the person wants. Nor is there updated documentation. There are cases for it, but it is rare.

Some create their own installer.

Another thing you need to analyze is the update. It’s even more complicated, and few make it right.

Note that for . NET Core or just . NET starting in version 5 none of this is valid, it is all different, but it is not the focus of the question.