How to share a dll in a network directory not the same as the application directory

Question

I'll admit up front that I'm still learning good methods of deployment and that I don't have a size 12 brain to accomplish the following task. Now with that being said... We have around 8 exe's that exist on a network drive that reference a dll that is in the same share/folder. We'd like to have a common network share in a different location that would contain this dll and any future dll's that we create so we'd have only one place to make changes (presuming the apps do not need to be recompiled). I've not found a satisfactory answer for why a dll should not be shared on a network so I'm wondering what the best practice would be for doing this. If this is something that is acceptable and routinely done then what steps are necessary to accomplish this? Thanks in advance for any help you can give.

Answer 1

If this shared DLL has any chance of being updated during a future release, what you have now, a local copy stored against each application, is far better.

You say your stated objective is to be able to make one change to the DLL and have all apps update. I've heard the positive side of this case made before.

"We get to roll out improvements to all our apps"

Which, seen from a half-empty glass is :-

"We get to introduce common bugs to all our apps".

Even at eight projects, imagine what your launches will be like.

"Er, hello QA. Can you test this one new app? (plus the seven others that we've done nothing to but might be broken as a result)".

Libraries should only be shared if they are mature and unlikely to change. Sorry to be so up-front about it, but I've faced a zealot who absolutely believed as you do. It was only when our bottom-line (predictably) nose-dived that my concerns were listened to. Dragons ahead. Be warned!