ClickOnce is a deployment technology that allows developers to deploy applications easily via a web server, rather than via an installer. This allows for rapid, simple updates by re-publishing the application. The application can be configured so that when run from the client, it will automatically check and download available updates. To learn more about ClickOnce, read this overview.
Let’s step through the process of deploying the Linxter QuickStart application using ClickOnce.
- The first step is to register, build, and test the program as described in the QuickStart documentation.
- After you have done that, you only need to make one small modification to deploy the application with ClickOnce. Go to the project properties, and select the Publish tab. Click on the button labeled Application Files... In this dialog, change the Publish Status on the following three files to the values shown:
- LinxterSDKDB.db - Data File
- log4net.dll - Include
- System.Data.SQLite.dll - Include
- You can now publish the application with ClickOnce. To do so, select Publish from the Build menu, or use the Publish Now button at the bottom of the project properties Publish tab. The ClickOnce publish wizard will launch. Enter the address of the virtual directory you would like your application to be placed under in IIS (ex: http://localhost/LinxterQuickStart1). You can click Finish to accept the default ClickOnce deployment model, which allows the application to be run offline (with respect to the deployment server, you will have to be online to access Linxter) through a Start menu shortcut that is added when the application is installed on the client machine.
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After the application has been published, Visual Studio will launch the test deployment page that is generated in the browser so that you can test the ClickOnce deployment on the local machine.
To do so, just click the Install button on the web page. You will see a brief download progress dialog, followed by a security prompt. Click Install in that security prompt and the application will be ClickOnce installed on your machine. You can then direct other users to that same web page so they can install the application.
For more information on ClickOnce deployment, see this MSDN overview:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/clickonce
Or Smart Client Deployment with ClickOnce from Brian Noyes:
http://www.amazon.com/Smart-Client-Deployment-ClickOnce-Applications/dp/...