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Q193270: INFO: Troubleshooting VB Application Installation Issues

Article: Q193270
Product(s): Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows
Version(s): 4.0,5.0,6.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kbwizard kbAppSetup kbVBp kbVBp400 kbVBp500 kbVBp600 kbOSWin95 kbOSWin98 kbGrpDSVB kbOS
Last Modified: 28-JAN-2001

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The information in this article applies to:

- Microsoft Visual Basic Professional Edition for Windows, versions 4.0, 5.0, 6.0 
- Microsoft Visual Basic Enterprise Edition for Windows, versions 4.0, 5.0, 6.0 
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SUMMARY
=======

The information included in this article provides some insight into preventing
errors resulting from installing a Microsoft Visual Basic program using the
Application Setup Wizard (ASW) and/or the Package and Deployment Wizard (PDW).
The information in this article is divided into different areas that need to be
considered before deploying an application: Environment, Operating System,
Installed Applications of the Development Machine, and Third-Party Controls.

NOTE: This article does not cover specific issues on using the ASW/PDW to create
Internet Component Download distribution sets. Although the information may be
helpful in the creation of such distribution sets, this article is intended for
standard application deployment.

MORE INFORMATION
================

NOTE: The Application Setup Wizard (ASW) and Package and Deployment Wizard (PDW)
are referred to as ASW/PDW throughout this article.

Environment
-----------

When developing an application, the development machine needs to stay free of any
external applications or Internet downloaded components that are not
specifically necessary for the development of the application. For example, beta
software should not be used because it is possible that beta components may be
included when you create the application distribution set.

Another area that can affect the development environment is the browsing of the
Internet on the development machine. Depending on the security level of your
browser software, some sites can download new components and install them. This
may not affect the development of the application, but, when creating the
application distribution set, may cause unknown file versions and/or
non-redistributable files to be included with your application. The preferred
method of avoiding this problem is to not use your development machine for
browsing the Internet. If this is not possible, consult your Internet browser's
documentation for instructions on how to avoid downloading components or how to
successfully uninstall components after they have been installed.

Please refer to the "Application Distribution Set Methodology" section later in
this article before using the ASW/PDW to build the application distribution
set.

Operating System
----------------

If possible, develop the application on the same operating system the target
machine will use. This will ensure that operating specific versions of the
supporting files are similar in the development and target environment. Also,
service packs often fix many known problems with the operating systems and, with
some operating systems, a certain Service Pack release is required to install a
Visual Basic application. The latest Service Packs can be found at the following
location:

  http://support.microsoft.com/support/downloads/default.asp

Applications Installed on Development Machine
---------------------------------------------

Applications installed on the development machine may affect the ASW/PDW in many
ways. For instance, the presence of Microsoft Office 97 may have newer versions
of some files and have additional controls that did not ship with Visual Basic.
Once again, it is best to keep the development machine as clean as possible so
as not to introduce any component that can alter the Visual Basic environment.

For the most part, having multiple versions of Visual Basic on the same machine
does not alter the development environment. With regards to application
deployment, however, having multiple versions can cause the application to not
install correctly due to newer versions of components and the inability of the
installation application to correctly determine dependency information and/or
register these components. To ensure a good distribution of the application, the
development machine should have only the necessary version of Visual Basic
installed.

Again, please refer to the "Application Distribution Set Methodology" section of
this article before using the ASW/PDW to build the application distribution
set.

Third-party Controls
--------------------

Third-party controls are controls that do not ship with Visual Basic and are
supplied by a third-party vendor. These controls can be incompatible with other
pieces of the application or even the operating system itself. If you suspect a
third-party control may be causing a problem with your distribution set, you
should create a test setup using the Setup Wizard for a very simple application
(the Calc.vbp sample project that comes with Visual Basic is a good sample
application). Create a distribution set using the Setup Wizard for a sample
application such as Calc.vbp. If this setup is successful, begin eliminating the
third-party controls from the original setup one by one and re-test. This helps
you decide if a control is causing the problem. If you identify a control that
is causing the problem, contact the vendor for additional information regarding
the control.

Application Distribution Set Methodology
----------------------------------------

The information below lists the ideal way to create a setup routine for your
Visual Basic application. It is meant to be used as a guideline for setting up a
clean environment for creating trouble-free application distribution sets and is
not intended to be used as a step-by-step example:

- Use a clean development machine that has as little as possible installed. A
  clean installation of the Windows operating system plus Visual Basic and
  AntiVirus software would be the ideal environment.

- In an ideal environment, the development machine should have the same version
  of Windows (95/98/Me, NT, or 2000) as the target machines. This may not be
  possible due to differences on the target machines. Use the operating system
  that is the most common among your target machines.

- Install the latest Service Pack updates for both the operating system and for
  Visual Basic to ensure you are using the most up-to-date files available.

- Using AntiVirus software, check the machine for all known viruses. This
  ensures that you will not be distributing a virus to your target users.

- Test the application using the Visual Basic IDE, ensuring all components of
  the application work as designed.

- Run the ASW/PDW on your project to create the necessary distribution files.

- Test the application on the development machine by installing the application
  and ensuring all components of the application work as intended.

- Again, use AntiVirus software to check the machine.

- Test the installation on a target machine. Testing on more than one target
  machine can also help identify issues before the application is deployed to
  clients.

  This should lead to a resolution of most issues dealing with the installation
  of a custom application using the ASW/PDW. If the above information does not
  lead to a resolution, please check the Microsoft Knowledge Base for any known
  issues or contact Microsoft Technical Support for help resolving the issue.
  The Microsoft Knowledge base can be accessed directly from the Internet using
  the following URL:

  http://msdn.microsoft.com/support

REFERENCES
==========

For additional information, click the article numbers below to view the articles
in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

  Q161344 INFO: Visual Basic 4.0 and Visual Basic 5.0 Compatibility

  Q174135 PRB: Setup Cannot Continue...System Files Are Out of Date

  Q178354 INFO: How Setup Wizard and PDW Uses Dependency Files

  Q180071 FILE: MSVBVM50.EXE Installs Visual Basic 5.0 Run-Time Files

  Q187282 INFO: List of Visual Basic Run-Time Files Installed by Product

  Q191692 PRB: SHDOCVW.DLL Not Included in PDW Setup Package

  Q190978 PRB: Missing Dependency Information Dialog in PDW

  Q192461 FILE: VBRUN60.EXE Installs Visual Basic 6.0 Run-Time Files

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : kbwizard kbAppSetup kbVBp kbVBp400 kbVBp500 kbVBp600 kbOSWin95 kbOSWin98 kbGrpDSVB kbOSWinME 
Technology        : kbVBSearch kbAudDeveloper kbZNotKeyword6 kbZNotKeyword2 kbVB500Search kbVB600Search kbVBA500 kbVBA600 kbVB500 kbVB600 kbVB400Search kbVB400
Version           : :4.0,5.0,6.0
Issue type        : kbinfo

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