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Q257773: INFO: Support for Third-Party Installers

Article: Q257773
Product(s): Microsoft Visual Basic for Windows
Version(s): 4.0,5.0,6.0
Operating System(s): 
Keyword(s): kb3rdparty kbwizard kbAppSetup kbDeployment kbVBp kbVBp400 kbVBp500 kbVBp600 kbGrpDSVB
Last Modified: 18-FEB-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 following installation tools are supported by Microsoft for the distribution
of Visual Basic applications:

- Package and Deployment Wizard (PDW) - Visual Basic 6.0 only

- Visual Basic Application Setup Wizard - Visual Basic 4.0 and 5.0 only

- Windows/Visual Studio Installer - Visual Basic 6.0 only

Support for other installation programs is provided by the vendor of the product.
However, some information must be provided to an installer program in order to
ensure a successful installation regardless of the tool that is used. The
installer needs to know which files need to be distributed, and that only those
files are distributed. The purpose of this article is to explain the recommended
method of gathering this information.

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

When packaging an application for distribution, there are five main
considerations:

1. What files are required by the application?
2. Do these files require any other files?
3. Where should each individual file be installed?
4. Which of these files need to registered?
5. Do any of these files require special handling, such as reboot after install
  or run to install?

Because the PDW and the Setup Wizard are designed specifically to aid the
distribution of Visual Basic applications, they are the best tools to use to
answer these questions, even if you do not intend to use them as your final
installer.

At startup, the PDW/Setup Wizard asks which type of package you want to create.
There are two options, a Dependency List and a Standard Setup Package. Either
one can be used for this purpose, and each has its advantages and
disadvantages.

When you select Dependency List, the wizard creates a dependency file
(ProjectName.dep) that lists the files that are needed by your application,
along with additional information about each specific file. This includes the
destination folder, the type of COM registration needed, and a list of
dependencies. The advantage of this method is that the dependency file is all
that is created: the setup script, .cab files, and so forth are not created.

When you select Standard Setup Package, the wizard creates a complete setup
package. The disadvantage of this option is that you create files that you might
never use. The advantage is that the setup instructions for the program are also
created. This set of instructions, contained in the file Setup.lst, is a
complete chronicle of the steps you need to follow when you install the
application. This list provides information that is above and beyond what is
available in the dependency file. Perhaps the most important information is
about which files require a system reboot. The method you use is a matter of
preference, although with a complex application containing many components, it
is good practice to generate both the dependency list and the standard setup
package.

The Setup Wizard and PDW rely heavily on dependency files. Microsoft ships
dependency files for all of the Visual Basic controls and components. For
example, Msdatgrd.dep is the dependency file for Msdatgrd.ocx, the Microsoft
DataGrid control. There should be a dependency file (Filename.dep) for each of
the files you include in your installation package. If so, the PDW picks up the
information in these files and includes it in the dependency file and/or the
Setup.lst for your application.

If one of the components that you need to distribute does not have a .dep file,
you can use the Dependency Walker (Depends) utility from the Platform SDK to
gather the necessary information. Depends provides you with two main pieces of
information:

1. A list of the files that your file needs in order to function properly.
2. An answer to the question of whether the file in question is a COM component
  that requires registration.

Depends.exe also lists all of the functions that are exported by the component.
Look in the Function window to determine if one of the RegisterServer functions
is listed. If it is, then this is a file that needs to be registered. For more
information on Depends, consult the Depends Help File and the "Useful Tools for
Package and Deployment Issues" in the "References" section of this article.
Depends.exe is shipped with Visual Basic 6.0, and it is located on your CD in
the folder:

  \Common\Tools\VB\Unsupprt\Depend

Once you have gathered this information, you can proceed with building your
installation package.

One additional troubleshooting step is worth trying. If you have problems
installing the application with another tool, try packaging and installing the
application with the PDW/Setup Wizard. If the application runs successfully, it
provides a starting point for working with the vendor of your distribution tool.

REFERENCES
==========

You can download the Platform Software Development Kit (SDK) from the following
Microsoft Web site:

  http://msdn.microsoft.com/downloads/default.asp?URL=/code/topic.asp?URL=/msdn-files/028/000/123/topic.xml

For additional information about the structure of Setup.lst and Dependency files,
click the article numbers below to view the articles in the Microsoft Knowledge
Base:

  Q178354 INFO: How Setup Wizard and PDW Uses Dependency Files

  Q189743 INFO: Description of Setup.lst Sections

  Q198038 INFO: Useful Tools for Package and Deployment Issues

Additional query words:

======================================================================
Keywords          : kb3rdparty kbwizard kbAppSetup kbDeployment kbVBp kbVBp400 kbVBp500 kbVBp600 kbGrpDSVB kbDSupport 
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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