Who would be interested in helping with a plugin install utility?

[zehd]

'xcopy' deployment strategy?

i was thinking making a simple install package app, that you could specify what files/directories were updated/installed and the overwrite conditions (file version numbers or modified dates for .xmls/images). and basically just zip up all the files and include a install.xml or something inside that zip with the instructions (i think the mediaportal installer is something like this) with the extension .gbpvr or something.
but then what about upgrades? do you want the user to download the entire thing just for one modified file? hmmm. i suppose you could do a update package aswell, and check if the updates they need to download is greater than the full package and if it is download the full package, and if not download each update and apply it.

currently all i have is a NSIS installer...

I'm pretty sure we're on the same page.

The xcopy thing is a buzz word I picked up while sreaching the net. Apparantly an app, uses xml files instead of registry, so that a folder can be backed up or xcopied into place for install, upgrade etc...

Funny how, we used INI files, then told to use the registry, then told to use 'ini' files again...

[whurlston]

I did an install program for Mce2XmlTv that was basically an executable that extracted files from a zip and installed them where they needed to be. Only two files involved: Setup.exe and Setup.dat (the zip file). It could easily be modified to do more (like version checking, etc). I already included checks that extracted different dlls depending on the version of Windows (needed because MCE05 needed different references than VMC). It could also be made to have the packages saved inside Setup.exe as resources.

It should be included in the Mce2XmlTv source that's linked on the wiki.

[scb147]

I don't know if you're looking for a installer program itself, but I've used InstallJammer at work and it is pretty nice. Free too...

http://www.installjammer.com

[zehd]

Well here's how I see this updater thing...

As mentioned previously, I have a XML Schema I'm developing to list out the components that make up a package.

I see an update being one or two files of a package, so that not everything needs to be downloaded again. (of course a dev could roll out a whole package this way too)

So continuing with this idea, I see a online repository, with sub directories, containing the individual files from that package.

So when the updater reads an xml, that says that there are two new files of a package that can be downloaded and updated, the xml will also include the specific path to that file, download (maybe unzip) and then install locally...

I would be making the app ftp/http enabled so that it can handle some web directory management. It would be zip-enabled so that the individual files could be zipped and uploaded / downloaded and unzipped.

The actual collection of xml files can be hosted on whurlston's web space, though, the xml could point to a download location on others servers if bandwidth is an issue.

[mkenyon2]

A web service could read (using reflection) assembly version info, and compile a dataset that can be sent as xml.

When I did an update service... I did not zip the files, I could have the update send only the ones that were updated. That way if a common assembly that several plugins use was updated, it alone would be sent.

[reven]

So continuing with this idea, I see a online repository, with sub directories, containing the individual files from that package.

yeah i like that idea, that way when a author adds a update the user only downloads the modified files (presumably all zipped up) and not the unmodified files (all the images etc that dont tend to change very often during an update).
and the author doesnt have to worry about an update installer.

i would probably store the version number in the gbpvr config.xml (or a database) and if the version number is run a dbupdate when the user opens the plugin for the first time.