LV8 Installer vs application (exe) file locations

[GS]

How do I get the LV8 installer to put the files in the same place as the application builder? The app builder lets you specify which folders to place the file in whereas the installer seems much more limited. If I include the exe listed under the "Build Specifications" on the Source Files page of the installer it puts all the files in one directory.

There seems to be no way to get installer to create the same file structure as the app builder. What am I missing?

George

[Andy F.]

George,

The creation of file structures in the executable and installer build specifications are handled very differently.  In the executable build specification you define the support files (which can include file structures), and then determine which directories these are placed in and their folders.  The installer build specification allows you to build a file structure using the destination View, which is access when Source Files is selected in the build specification.  These two methods of file structure creation are different to account for installation on computers with very different file structures than the development computer which is what the executable is useful for.  It would be difficult to install the support files to the same directory as the executable is placed since the user can configure the location or the program during installation.  Slightly different file I/O approaches are needed for installer and executable support files.   Please repost with any questions!

Hope this helps!

Andy F. 

[GS]

Thanks for trying, but I'm not quite unconfused yet. What confuses me is in the "Source Files" view under "Build Specifications". There you have the Executable files all lumped together. Even though in the build script for the executable some of those files are directed to different places. See the enclosed doc that shows the "Tescom.ini" file lumped in with the other files, but also under the Windows dir. There's no way to tell the installer that I don't want all those files lumped together in one place, I want them divided up in different directories. I know you can tell the installer to install certain files in certain places, however, there will be another copy of those files in whatever directory the main executable is located. Do you see my point? Unless maybe I'm missing another way to tell the installer where to put the just the exe file without having to move that whole lump of files.

George

[Andy F.]

Ahhhhh.  I see what you mean now.  Sorry for the misunderstanding.  I think that I can reuse some of what I said previously though.   If there are support files defined for the Application Build Specification, it will just group them in one folder (with the dir structure that you have defined in either the project, or in the support files locations, when it is included in the Installation Build Specification, as shown by your attachment. 

The short answer is that if you plan on building an installer, you would not necessarily need to include the support files in the Application build, unless you wanted to use the grouping that you pointed out previously.  The desired support file directory structure can be created once in the Installer Build Specification if you wanted to put the files in different locations.  If you include them in both places you will indeed have two copies. 

If you wanted to have support files in different directories, you could create and build an Application Build Specification without the support files, then create a Installer Build Specification using the built executable which does include the support files and directory structure, when this is built and installed you should have everything in the right place.

Does this better answer your question?

Andy F.

[GS]

>>If you wanted to have support files in different directories, you could create and build an Application Build Specification without the support files, then create a Installer Build Specification using the built executable which does include the support files and directory structure<<

That's what I was hoping to avoid. I'd have keep switching Application Build Specs then - one build if I want to build an app and test it out on my PC without having to run the installer first and one build for use with the Installer. I'm not sure if the Project Explorer will let me create two different Application Build Specs (haven't tried it yet), but it still seems like a major step backward. I'd rather be able define my installer like I could in 7.1.

George

[Jayson_R]

George, you can most definitely have more than one application build spec in your project. You can have as many as you want, as long as the names are different in the project.

While inconvenient, multiple build specifications may be the way to go. One to test out your EXE, and one to feed to the installer.

I've taken note of your concerns about application builder in 8.0 and will see if I can do anything to make it better in 8.1.

Message Edited by Jayson R on 11-10-2005 12:17 PM

[GS]

Thanks Jayson. Your attention to the problem is much appreciated.

George