What is the best location for a “read me” file on the target machine when deploying an ASP.NET application using an .MSI package?

Question

For an ASP.NET web application that is packaged and sold to customers for deployment, what would be the best location for a "read me" file with notes about setup and configuration on the target system?

Requirements:

• The file should not be accessible by users of the web application, only the person doing setup and configuration.
• The file should be consumable by the MSI installer program, so that it can be displayed as part of the setup wizard UI.
• The solution should be simple and very low cost. (I don't want an elaborate solution for just a simple text file.)

Some thoughts I have are to copy the file to *App_Data* or to bin as those are protected folders by default, and then pull the file in from one of those locations in the setup program.

Answer 1

The readme should be a separate file that sits beside the MSI on the media you distribute the web app on. This is a standard practice dating from generations ago the dark ages. If you distribute as a download from the web then have a link for the MSI, and a link for the readme.

You could also include the same file into the MSI, but arguably that is the wrong place for it as the user has yet to reach the configuration stage, and unless they print it they won't be able to refer to it later in the MSI process (if you have any configuration steps in the MSI).
Having the instructions available via the web app is also arguably wrong, as the user may have to do some initial configuration in order to reach the page telling them how to configure the app....

So ship the instructions separately to the MSI, and make sure they look okay and are easily readable when printed out. Remember these pointers:

• Instructions are not always read
• Instructions are not always read at the time of installation
• Instructions are not always read by the same person that does the installation
• Instructions are not always read from the screen
• Instructions are not always read correctly, even when they are simple
• Instructions are not always read _{(I know that is a duplicate of the first point...)}

Don't forget to clearly distinguish between pre-install and post-install configuration instructions (even if they are in the same document) - you want to minimize the risk of the end user getting it wrong (which some of them will do no matter how hard you try).

Answer 2

Build the important message into your application. Do it like Apache where it says "this is a new installation of...." and don't allow that screen to go away until they go in and do all the things that you consider important.

This isn't a problem for your installer to solve.