How to create a custom prerequisite VB.NET 2005

  • Thread starter Thread starter ilaygur
  • Start date Start date
I

ilaygur

Hello everyone
To make a long story short, I have a COM dll refrenced in my vb.net
app. I am using the ClickOnce publishing to deploy my app (best way for
internet updates).
This specific com dll (I have others refrenced with no problem), does
not work with its interop created. If i do not REGSVR32 manually on the
installed machine, my app will give me an error and will not run. I
tried setting the property of the DLL to ISOLATED = TRUE, but that gave
me a menifest error on my deployment.
After reading and searching for possible answers, i understood this
specific DLL just cannot be interoped and needs to be registered the
"old style".
Now my problem was, using ClickOnce, i cannot find a way to tranfer my
original dll with deplayment. I though registering it by code with a
FIRSTRUN switch or something similiar. I added the dll file to my
project, and tried settings its properties to contant, or datafile, or
resource file. no luck, after deployment on a new machine i search for
the dll and it cannot be found anywhere.
So i said to myself, lets create a custom prerequisite that i can add
to my app on publish (similar to the DOTNET 2 framework preq..).
So here is my question, how do i create a custom preq in general, and
more specific a prerequisite that all it does is REGSVR32 a dll file?
Thank you in advance for replies..
Eli
 
I do not have a step by step or URL, but look at how Microsoft bootstraps
the .NET Framework and you will have most of the info you need.

You will, however, have to fold up the DLL into an MSI for install. Another
option is to create a script that fires if your "launcher" (app that
initially downloads, assuming you are making auto updates here). The script
fires if the DLL is not present on the machine. Either way, you discover and
then fire something.

If I find the particular info, I will post.

--
Gregory A. Beamer

*************************************************
Think Outside the Box!
*************************************************
 
Hi Gregory and thank you for your quick reply.
I am using CLICKONCE to manage my internet updates.
I have no idea how to create a script that will be launched by
ClickOnce deployment, as it is all "automated".
I know packing the dll into a seprate MSI will include another tag in
the ADD/REMOVE, but that is the only way i can see it happening now.
If only I knew how to create a bootstrapper, i will try looking into
the NET bootstrap to find out.
 
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