Clearly I'm doing something very wrong... #1630

ZeeOgre · 2024-09-07T15:52:08Z

ZeeOgre
Sep 7, 2024

Good Morning All!

I've got a couple issues I'm trying to understand.

I've built a .NET 8.0 application. When I build it I rearrange output files into appropriate folders -- the build folder pretty much exactly represents where/how I want the app output into the user's target directory.

While I've manually set the assembly to .net 8.0, I'm getting the feeling we're not compatible.

Here's my project file:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">
  <PropertyGroup>
    <OutputType>Exe</OutputType>
    <TargetFramework>net8.0-windows</TargetFramework>
    <DebugType>embedded</DebugType>
    <RuntimeIdentifier>win-x86</RuntimeIdentifier>
    <Description>WiX WPF CustomUI Application</Description>
    <EnableDynamicLoading>true</EnableDynamicLoading>
    <RootNamespace>WixSharp</RootNamespace>
    <UseWPF>true</UseWPF>
    <RollForward>Major</RollForward>
    <UseWindowsForms>true</UseWindowsForms>
  </PropertyGroup>

  <ItemGroup>
    <None Remove="*.cmd" />
    <None Remove="CustomAction.config" />
    <None Remove="*.exe" />
    <None Remove="*.pdb" />
    <None Remove="*.wxs" />
    <None Remove="*.wixpdb" />
    <None Remove="*.msi" />
    <None Remove="readme.txt" />
    <None Remove="*.CA.dll" />
    <None Remove="*.cs.dll" />
    <None Remove="*.cmd.log" />
  </ItemGroup>

  <ItemGroup>
    <PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build" Version="17.11.4" />
    <PackageReference Include="Microsoft.Build.Locator" Version="1.7.8" />
    <PackageReference Include="WixSharp-wix4.WPF" Version="2.3.2" />
  </ItemGroup>

  <ItemGroup>
    <ProjectReference Include="..\App\App.csproj" />
  </ItemGroup>

  <Target Name="PostBuild" AfterTargets="PostBuildEvent">
    <Exec Command="cd .\&#xD;&#xA;set ide=true&#xD;&#xA;&quot;$(TargetPath)&quot;" />
  </Target>
</Project>

and my Program.cs:

using WixSharp;
using WixSharp.UI.WPF;
using IOFile = System.IO.File; // Alias for System.IO.File
using DevModManager.App;
using System.Reflection;

namespace ZO.DMM.Installer
{
    internal class Program
    {
        static void Main()
        {
            try
            {
                string projectFilePath = Path.Combine(AppContext.BaseDirectory, "App", "App.csproj");
                string configuration = "Release"; // or any other configuration you want to use

                string targetDir = ProjectPropertyReader.GetTargetDir(projectFilePath, configuration);
                string companyName = ProjectPropertyReader.GetCompanyName(projectFilePath, configuration);
                string productName = ProjectPropertyReader.GetProductName(projectFilePath, configuration);
                string version = ProjectPropertyReader.GetVersion(projectFilePath, configuration);

                var project = new ManagedProject(productName,
                              new Dir($@"%ProgramFiles%\{companyName}\{productName}",
                              new Files($@"{targetDir}\**\*"),
                              new ExeFileShortcut(productName, $@"%ProgramFiles%\{companyName}\{productName}\{productName}.exe",
                            @"%Desktop%"),
                              new ExeFileShortcut(productName, $@"%ProgramFiles%\{companyName}\{productName}\{productName}.exe",
                            @"%ProgramMenu%\{companyName}\{productName}"),
                              new WixSharp.File("Program.cs"))); // Use WixSharp.File explicitly

                project.GUID = new Guid("19226818-8450-45b3-bf43-f406c8497acd");
                project.UpgradeCode = new Guid("CF48CC11-94F6-40E4-95E3-9E018DE5C580");
                project.Version = new Version(version); // Set the version

                // Custom set of UI WPF dialogs
                project.ManagedUI = new ManagedUI();

                project.ManagedUI.InstallDialogs.Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.WelcomeDialog>()
                                                .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.LicenceDialog>()
                                                .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.FeaturesDialog>()
                                                .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.CheckFilesDialog>() // Add custom dialog here
                                                .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.InstallDirDialog>()
                                                .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.ConfirmInstallDirDialog>()
                                                .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.ProgressDialog>()
                                                .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.ExitDialog>();

                project.ManagedUI.ModifyDialogs.Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.MaintenanceTypeDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.FeaturesDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.ProgressDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.Installer.ExitDialog>();

                project.AfterInstall += (SetupEventArgs e) => Project_AfterInstall(e, companyName, productName);

                project.BuildMsi();
            }
            catch (Exception ex)
            {
                LogException(ex);
                throw;
            }
        }

        private static void Project_AfterInstall(SetupEventArgs e, string companyName, string productName)
        {
            string localAppDataPath = Path.Combine(Environment.GetFolderPath(Environment.SpecialFolder.LocalApplicationData), companyName, productName);
            Directory.CreateDirectory(localAppDataPath);

            string sourceConfigPath = Path.Combine(e.InstallDir, "config", "config.yaml");
            string sourceDbPath = Path.Combine(e.InstallDir, "data", "DevModManager.db");

            string destConfigPath = Path.Combine(localAppDataPath, "config.yaml");
            string destDbPath = Path.Combine(localAppDataPath, "devmodmanager.db");

            // Check and copy config file
            if (CheckFilesDialog.UserConfirmedReplace || !IOFile.Exists(destConfigPath))
            {
                IOFile.Copy(sourceConfigPath, destConfigPath, true);
            }

            // Check and copy database file
            if (CheckFilesDialog.UserConfirmedReplace || !IOFile.Exists(destDbPath))
            {
                IOFile.Copy(sourceDbPath, destDbPath, true);
            }
        }

        private static void LogException(Exception ex)
        {
            Console.WriteLine($"An error occurred: {ex.Message}");
            Console.WriteLine(ex.StackTrace);
            if (ex.InnerException != null)
            {
                Console.WriteLine("Inner Exception:");
                LogException(ex.InnerException);
            }
        }
    }
}

I've built a helper class to read the info from the main App.cs so i can build them together.

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using Microsoft.Build.Evaluation;
using Microsoft.Build.Locator;

namespace ZO.DMM.Installer
{
    public static class ProjectPropertyReader
    {
        static ProjectPropertyReader()
        {
            MSBuildLocator.RegisterDefaults();
        }

        public static string GetProperty(string projectFilePath, string configuration, string propertyName)
        {
            var projectCollection = new ProjectCollection();
            var globalProperties = new Dictionary<string, string>
                {
                    { "Configuration", configuration },
                    { "Platform", "AnyCPU" }
                };

            var project = new Project(projectFilePath, globalProperties, null, projectCollection);
            return project.GetPropertyValue(propertyName);
        }

        public static string GetTargetDir(string projectFilePath, string configuration)
        {
            return GetProperty(projectFilePath, configuration, "TargetDir");
        }

        public static string GetCompanyName(string projectFilePath, string configuration)
        {
            return GetProperty(projectFilePath, configuration, "Authors");
        }

        public static string GetProductName(string projectFilePath, string configuration)
        {
            return GetProperty(projectFilePath, configuration, "AssemblyName");
        }

        public static string GetVersion(string projectFilePath, string configuration)
        {
            return GetProperty(projectFilePath, configuration, "Version");
        }
    }
}

They all ~~kinda~~ work.

\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86 gets created, but instead of following by debug folder structure, it is the messy garbage that was before my cleanup stage (created a lib folder and a locale folder to hold all the extraneous dlls and language elements)

I see the new installer exe/dll alongside my program files here, but i'm still getting errors in output:

Build started at 10:21 AM...
1>------ Build started: Project: ZO.DMM.Installer, Configuration: Debug Any CPU ------
1>M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\ZO.DMM.Installer.csproj : warning NU1701: Package 'WixSharp-wix4.WPF 2.3.2' was restored using '.NETFramework,Version=v4.6.1, .NETFramework,Version=v4.6.2, .NETFramework,Version=v4.7, .NETFramework,Version=v4.7.1, .NETFramework,Version=v4.7.2, .NETFramework,Version=v4.8, .NETFramework,Version=v4.8.1' instead of the project target framework 'net8.0-windows7.0'. This package may not be fully compatible with your project.
1>M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\ZO.DMM.Installer.csproj : warning NU1701: Package 'WixSharp_wix4.bin 2.3.2' was restored using '.NETFramework,Version=v4.6.1, .NETFramework,Version=v4.6.2, .NETFramework,Version=v4.7, .NETFramework,Version=v4.7.1, .NETFramework,Version=v4.7.2, .NETFramework,Version=v4.8, .NETFramework,Version=v4.8.1' instead of the project target framework 'net8.0-windows7.0'. This package may not be fully compatible with your project.
1>ZO.DMM.Installer -> M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\ZO.DMM.Installer.dll
1>
1>Unhandled Exception: System.IO.FileNotFoundException: Could not load file or assembly 'System.Runtime, Version=8.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b03f5f7f11d50a3a' or one of its dependencies. The system cannot find the file specified.
1>M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\ZO.DMM.Installer.csproj(40,5): error MSB3073: The command "cd .\
1>M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\ZO.DMM.Installer.csproj(40,5): error MSB3073: set ide=true
1>M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\ZO.DMM.Installer.csproj(40,5): error MSB3073: "M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\ZO.DMM.Installer.dll"" exited with code -532462766.
1>Done building project "ZO.DMM.Installer.csproj" -- FAILED.
========== Build: 0 succeeded, 1 failed, 1 up-to-date, 0 skipped ==========
========== Build completed at 10:21 AM and took 03.099 seconds ==========

Do I need to be building a different template? Is there something in the build process I can do here, similar to what I do in my source project, where I do directory cleanup before we build the msi?

Thanks in advance!!

ZeeOgre · 2024-09-07T16:09:15Z

ZeeOgre
Sep 7, 2024
Author

here's the error output from the new executable:

PS M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86> .\ZO.DMM.Installer.exe
An error occurred: The project file could not be loaded. Could not find a part of the path 'M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\App\App.csproj'.  M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\App\App.csproj
   at Microsoft.Build.Shared.ProjectFileErrorUtilities.VerifyThrowInvalidProjectFile(Boolean condition, String errorSubCategoryResourceName, BuildEventFileInfo projectFile, Exception innerException, String resourceName, Object[] args)
   at Microsoft.Build.Shared.ProjectFileErrorUtilities.ThrowInvalidProjectFile(BuildEventFileInfo projectFile, Exception innerException, String resourceName, Object[] args)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.LoadDocument(String fullPath, Boolean preserveFormatting, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement..ctor(String path, ProjectRootElementCacheBase projectRootElementCache, Boolean preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.CreateProjectFromPath(String projectFile, ProjectRootElementCacheBase projectRootElementCache, Boolean preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.<>c.<OpenProjectOrSolution>b__209_0(String path, ProjectRootElementCacheBase cache)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.ProjectRootElementCache.GetOrLoad(String projectFile, OpenProjectRootElement loadProjectRootElement, Boolean isExplicitlyLoaded, Nullable`1 preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.ProjectRootElementCache.Get(String projectFile, OpenProjectRootElement loadProjectRootElement, Boolean isExplicitlyLoaded, Nullable`1 preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.OpenProjectOrSolution(String fullPath, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, ProjectRootElementCacheBase projectRootElementCache, Boolean isExplicitlyLoaded)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project.ProjectImpl..ctor(Project owner, String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, String subToolsetVersion, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings, EvaluationContext evaluationContext)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, String subToolsetVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings, EvaluationContext evaluationContext, IDirectoryCacheFactory directoryCacheFactory, Boolean interactive)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, String subToolsetVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection)
   at ZO.DMM.Installer.ProjectPropertyReader.GetProperty(String projectFilePath, String configuration, String propertyName) in M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\Dialogs\ProjectPropertyReader.cs:line 24
   at ZO.DMM.Installer.ProjectPropertyReader.GetTargetDir(String projectFilePath, String configuration) in M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\Dialogs\ProjectPropertyReader.cs:line 30
   at ZO.DMM.Installer.Program.Main() in M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\Program.cs:line 21
Inner Exception:
An error occurred: Could not find a part of the path 'M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\App\App.csproj'.
   at Microsoft.Win32.SafeHandles.SafeFileHandle.CreateFile(String fullPath, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options)
   at Microsoft.Win32.SafeHandles.SafeFileHandle.Open(String fullPath, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options, Int64 preallocationSize, Nullable`1 unixCreateMode)
   at System.IO.Strategies.OSFileStreamStrategy..ctor(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options, Int64 preallocationSize, Nullable`1 unixCreateMode)
   at System.IO.Strategies.FileStreamHelpers.ChooseStrategyCore(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options, Int64 preallocationSize, Nullable`1 unixCreateMode)
   at System.IO.FileStream..ctor(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share)
   at Microsoft.Build.Internal.XmlReaderExtension..ctor(String file, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
   at Microsoft.Build.Internal.XmlReaderExtension.Create(String filePath, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.LoadDocument(String fullPath, Boolean preserveFormatting, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
Unhandled exception. Microsoft.Build.Exceptions.InvalidProjectFileException: The project file could not be loaded. Could not find a part of the path 'M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\App\App.csproj'.  M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\App\App.csproj
 ---> System.IO.DirectoryNotFoundException: Could not find a part of the path 'M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86\App\App.csproj'.
   at Microsoft.Win32.SafeHandles.SafeFileHandle.CreateFile(String fullPath, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options)
   at Microsoft.Win32.SafeHandles.SafeFileHandle.Open(String fullPath, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options, Int64 preallocationSize, Nullable`1 unixCreateMode)
   at System.IO.Strategies.OSFileStreamStrategy..ctor(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options, Int64 preallocationSize, Nullable`1 unixCreateMode)
   at System.IO.Strategies.FileStreamHelpers.ChooseStrategyCore(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share, FileOptions options, Int64 preallocationSize, Nullable`1 unixCreateMode)
   at System.IO.FileStream..ctor(String path, FileMode mode, FileAccess access, FileShare share)
   at Microsoft.Build.Internal.XmlReaderExtension..ctor(String file, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
   at Microsoft.Build.Internal.XmlReaderExtension.Create(String filePath, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.LoadDocument(String fullPath, Boolean preserveFormatting, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
   --- End of inner exception stack trace ---
   at Microsoft.Build.Shared.ProjectFileErrorUtilities.VerifyThrowInvalidProjectFile(Boolean condition, String errorSubCategoryResourceName, BuildEventFileInfo projectFile, Exception innerException, String resourceName, Object[] args)
   at Microsoft.Build.Shared.ProjectFileErrorUtilities.ThrowInvalidProjectFile(BuildEventFileInfo projectFile, Exception innerException, String resourceName, Object[] args)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.LoadDocument(String fullPath, Boolean preserveFormatting, Boolean loadAsReadOnly)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement..ctor(String path, ProjectRootElementCacheBase projectRootElementCache, Boolean preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.CreateProjectFromPath(String projectFile, ProjectRootElementCacheBase projectRootElementCache, Boolean preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.<>c.<OpenProjectOrSolution>b__209_0(String path, ProjectRootElementCacheBase cache)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.ProjectRootElementCache.GetOrLoad(String projectFile, OpenProjectRootElement loadProjectRootElement, Boolean isExplicitlyLoaded, Nullable`1 preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.ProjectRootElementCache.Get(String projectFile, OpenProjectRootElement loadProjectRootElement, Boolean isExplicitlyLoaded, Nullable`1 preserveFormatting)
   at Microsoft.Build.Construction.ProjectRootElement.OpenProjectOrSolution(String fullPath, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, ProjectRootElementCacheBase projectRootElementCache, Boolean isExplicitlyLoaded)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project.ProjectImpl..ctor(Project owner, String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, String subToolsetVersion, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings, EvaluationContext evaluationContext)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, String subToolsetVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings, EvaluationContext evaluationContext, IDirectoryCacheFactory directoryCacheFactory, Boolean interactive)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, String subToolsetVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection, ProjectLoadSettings loadSettings)
   at Microsoft.Build.Evaluation.Project..ctor(String projectFile, IDictionary`2 globalProperties, String toolsVersion, ProjectCollection projectCollection)
   at ZO.DMM.Installer.ProjectPropertyReader.GetProperty(String projectFilePath, String configuration, String propertyName) in M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\Dialogs\ProjectPropertyReader.cs:line 24
   at ZO.DMM.Installer.ProjectPropertyReader.GetTargetDir(String projectFilePath, String configuration) in M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\Dialogs\ProjectPropertyReader.cs:line 30
   at ZO.DMM.Installer.Program.Main() in M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\Program.cs:line 21
PS M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.Installer\bin\Debug\net8.0-windows\win-x86>

0 replies

oleg-shilo · 2024-09-08T07:28:37Z

oleg-shilo
Sep 8, 2024
Maintainer

Correct. MSI/WiX cannot work with .NET Core assemblies (e.g. .NET 8.0) so you need to use .NET Framework as a target.

A simple hint - use VS templates for WixSharp. They will give you the project that is already properly prepared for the WixSharp build.

0 replies

ZeeOgre · 2024-09-08T18:59:23Z

ZeeOgre
Sep 8, 2024
Author

If I want to "automagically" populate the "MyProduct","My Company","My Company" values is my little helper app the best way to do that? or is there an exposure of the "main project" that I'm missing?

6 replies

oleg-shilo Sep 9, 2024
Maintainer

Are $(SolutionDir) etc... exposed inside the Program.cs?

No, your msi build script (program.cs) is an application that is running outside of the MSBuild hosting environment (even though it's started by it).

Though the current dir is always set to the project dir. So you can always calculate the solution dir if required.

do you have suggestions around automating the product code guide?

Nothing specific, except that after you generated your GUID for the first time. You should never change it.

ZeeOgre Sep 9, 2024
Author

Nothing specific, except that after you generated your GUID for the first time. You should never change it.

I had thought that the guid should change on every version, and only the upgrade code should remain the same - to allow for "in place" upgrades without forcing an uninstall/reinstall.

ZeeOgre Sep 9, 2024
Author

reading the description again, I may have misunderstood project.SourceBaseDir.
This is not just adding the "source folder" for the application I want to install and getting everything recursively added right?

I still have to explicitly add all the files in my solution? or am I misunderstanding again?

smaudet Sep 9, 2024

"I still have to explicitly add all the files in my solution? or am I misunderstanding again?"

More or less, yes. WixSharp doesn't magically build an installer for you from your project. You still need to bundle up all the dependencies, tell wix where to look for them...

If you have a simple project, i.e. you can run your solution from the location it built to (e.g. bin/Release), you can specify that folder and wixsharp eases the process of dumping that folder into %installocation% (I made that var up for illustration purposes), wherever the user defines that.

It also lets you put arbitrary sets of files anywhere on the computer, do arbitrary things before/after setup, run/install any arbitrary number of programs (most of this is provided by wix/msi).

The only constraint is whatever c# can do (and some stuff with loading libraries at install time vs building the install).

ZeeOgre Sep 9, 2024
Author

well i keep getting closer and closer:

I'm "abusing" some build mechanics to set an environment variable while performing the build task with the $(Output) and $(Configuration) values.

I've exposed some of the internal values through the project dependency import.

I'm setting the msifile name in the csproj based on which $(Configuration) we're running:

Here's my latest try:

using System;
using System.IO;
using System.Linq;
using Microsoft.Build.Locator;
using Microsoft.Build.Evaluation;
using WixSharp;
using WixSharp.UI.WPF;
using ZO.DMM.AppNF;

namespace ZO.DMM.WixSharp
{
    internal class Program
    {
        static void Main()
        {
            // Retrieve the configuration and output path from environment variables
            string configuration = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("AppNFConfiguration") ?? "Release";
            string outputPath = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("AppNFOutputPath") ?? Path.Combine(@"MyReal\Path\To\The\Files\as\a fallback", configuration);

            // Verify the output path exists
            if (!Directory.Exists(outputPath))
            {
                Console.WriteLine($"Output path '{outputPath}' does not exist.");
                return;
            }

            // Retrieve the MSI file name from environment variables
            string msiFileName = Environment.GetEnvironmentVariable("MsiFileName") ?? $"DevModManager_{configuration}.msi";

            // Create the WixSharp project
            var wixProject = new ManagedProject("ZO.DMM.AppNF",
                              new Dir($@"%ProgramFiles%\{AppNF.App.CompanyName}\{AppNF.App.ProductName}",
                                  new Files(Path.Combine(outputPath, "**\\*.*"))))
            {
                GUID = new Guid("the guid we say should never change, which we see is aliased to the UpgradeCode"),
                OutFileName = msiFileName
            };

            // Custom set of UI WPF dialogs
            wixProject.ManagedUI = new ManagedUI();

            wixProject.ManagedUI.InstallDialogs.Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.WelcomeDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.LicenceDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.FeaturesDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.InstallDirDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.ConfirmInstallDirDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.ProgressDialog>()
                                               .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.ExitDialog>();

            wixProject.ManagedUI.ModifyDialogs.Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.MaintenanceTypeDialog>()
                                              .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.FeaturesDialog>()
                                              .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.ProgressDialog>()
                                              .Add<ZO.DMM.WixSharp.ExitDialog>();

            // Build the MSI
            wixProject.BuildMsi();
        }
    }
}

I built this using the Wix4 WPF Template

I've got two custom windows -- one is an InstallDirDialog with the browse button removed, that appends the project name as a the final element of the directory (leaving so they can take it off)

And a second simple yes/no that's conditioned on the presence of files in the %localappdir% folder, and offering to let them keep them or not -- both for install and uninstall.

I will still need to do some work in adding those conditionals and shortcuts, but at the moment, I'm just trying to get this to work.

Here's my new error set:

Severity	Code	Description	Project	File	Line	Suppression State	Details
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\WelcomeDialog.g.cs	43		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\ProgressDialog.g.cs	44		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\MaintenanceTypeDialog.g.cs	43		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\LicenseAgreementDialog.g.cs	43		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\InstallDirDialog.g.cs	43		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\FeaturesDialog.g.cs	44		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\ExitDialog.g.cs	43		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\ConfirmInstallDirDialog.g.cs	43		
Error (active)	CS0234	The type or namespace name 'UI' does not exist in the namespace 'ZO.DMM.WixSharp' (are you missing an assembly reference?)	ZO.DMM.WixSharp	M:\ZO_Repos\ZO.Applications\ZO.DevModManager\ZO.DMM.WixSharp\obj\Debug\net481\win-x86\Dialogs\CheckFilesDialog.g.cs	44

I'm bangin my head again

ZeeOgre · 2024-09-09T20:49:06Z

ZeeOgre
Sep 9, 2024
Author

Here's my dependency list

All the build stuff is superfluous now I think.. but.. yeah..

3 replies

smaudet Sep 9, 2024

I'm "abusing" some build mechanics to set an environment variable while performing the build task with the ( O u t p u t ) a n d (Configuration) values.

Yeah, there are various out of band methods to do it - I implemented a msbuild task (@oleg-shilo originally did that but ran into issues with vs templates and upgrading so that got pulled - not a concern since I don't intend to upgrade, I'm on some older .netframework stuff).

Hope you figure out the WPF stuff. I'm also banging my head on it atm, stuff seems to "randomly" keep on breaking, currently trying to backport fixes onto old wpf ui debuggers to try to figure out what's wrong, but at some point I might just say "screw it" and chuck the WPF based UI. I think @oleg-shilo said its only beta anyways...

ZeeOgre Sep 9, 2024
Author

I will for sure if I have to... was just pretty clean :)

I've got a minute I guess... I'll go rebuild it as forms and see how it does

oleg-shilo Sep 10, 2024
Maintainer

I had thought that the guid should change on every version, and only the upgrade code should remain the same - to allow for "in place" upgrades without forcing an uninstall/reinstall.

Project.GUID is a seed guide that identifies your product. You should assign it and never change it.
At runtime, it is used to deterministically generate ProductId and UpgradeCode.
If you increment your product version then during the build WixSharp will emit the same UpgradeCode (as it should) and it will increment the ProductId (since you incremented the version). Thus you do not need to do anything about this during CI.

oleg-shilo · 2024-09-10T09:18:20Z

oleg-shilo
Sep 10, 2024
Maintainer

Hope you figure out the WPF stuff. I'm also banging my head on it atm, stuff seems to "randomly" keep on breaking,

Yeah, despite all my hopes I cannot say WPF is flawless. Don't get me wrong, it's not beta, it's done as it's supposed to be done, to the level of the production code strength. But the overall outcome is not at the same level.

The problem is that at runtime because WPF dialog is hosted in WinForms some "strange and wonderful" stuff is happening. I think it was you @smaudet who reported it. And we could not find any work around it.

Thus if you tested WPF and it works fine then there is a good chance it will always be fine. But if you see some artifacts then it's unlikely you can solve them.

From this perspective, WinForms is a safer choice.

0 replies

oleg-shilo · 2024-09-10T09:23:25Z

oleg-shilo
Sep 10, 2024
Maintainer

I want to install and getting everything recursively added right?

While it is possible, it's not what project.SourceBaseDir does. It's a root dir for the cases when you specify a file with a relative path.

The answer @smaudet gave you is exactly on the point:
#1630 (reply in thread)

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Clearly I'm doing something very wrong... #1630

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Clearly I'm doing something very wrong... #1630

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