Self-Extracting Zip: Specify Extraction Path With .exe File

Question

I'm working on a deployment plan for a C# Winforms application and would like to use a self-extracting .zip file to distribute all of the required files. Here is the file structure of the SFX:

Setup.exe
app.exe
app2.exe
readme.txt
manual.pdf

After the user runs the SFX, I want Setup.exe to take control and copy app.exe, app2.exe, readme.txt, and manual.pdf to location x. The path they are copied to will depend on choices the user makes from the UI of Setup.exe, system properties, etc.

How would I go about writing Setup.exe in C#?

Answer 1

Personally, I had very good experiences with using NSIS as a setup tool. It's a bit more than a SFX but really good to use, rather flexible and free-of-charge.

So I recommend that you do not write your own SFX in C# (aka "re-inventing the wheel") but rather use something existing that is real-world-proofen.

There are, of course, a lot of other installers available.

Answer 2

I agree, don't waste your time writing an installer when there are already ones available. If you did chose to write one on your own for whatever reason, I would encourage you to stay away from any languages that require dependencies (e.g. C# requires the .Net Runtime). I would suggest using C or C++ and turning on static linking using the /MT flag so that your installer is dependent on as little as possible.

Some of the installation software I've used (in order of preference):

• Nullsoft Scriptable Install System (NSIS) - This is a free scripted installer which has a large user base including Firefox, DOSBox, 7-Zip, Winamp, and even Dropbox.

• Inno Setup - This one is free, and the project files are setup more like an INI file. Overall, very easy to work with, but not as feature rich as NSIS. There is a visual editor called ISTool which makes it even easier to work with.

• Visual Studio Installer / Microsoft Windows Installer - It comes with Visual Studio, and it works well enough. It creates a MSI setup package.

See the list of installation software article on Wikipedia for other options.