Install ClickOnce without running

Question

When you install a ClickOnce application, the program runs after the install. Is it possible to install without running?

I know I can use a setup and deployment project and create an installer, but I'd prefer to use ClickOnce.

Answer 1

I guess you could fake it. Introduce an "IsInstalled" boolean property, defaulted to false. Then in Program.cs, change your Main() method to look like this:

[STAThread]
static void Main()
{
    Application.EnableVisualStyles();
    Application.SetCompatibleTextRenderingDefault(false);

    if (!Properties.Settings.Default.IsInstalled)
    {
        Properties.Settings.Default.IsInstalled = true;
        Properties.Settings.Default.Save();

        MessageBox.Show("Install Complete");
        return;
    }

    Application.Run(new Form1());
}

So now when the app is first installed, it checks that property and simply displays a message to the user and then quits.

If you wanted to get tricky then you could look at parsing the Activation URI for the deployment and have a URI parameter which specifies whether the program should run when it's first installed or just close silently.

Answer 2

To disable the automatic start after install, you simply disable the URL activation as discussed in the MSDN article How to: Disable URL Activation of ClickOnce Applications (using the tool MageUI.exe).

To disable URL activation for your application

• Select the Deployment Options tab.

• Clear the Automatically run application after installing check box.

• Save and sign the manifest.

Answer 3

You can do this by editing the application manifest in Mage. There is a checkbox to stop the application running after installation.

If you are not comfortable editing a manifest manually or with Mage then you can use the built-in deployment class to check whether this is the first time the application has run.

using System.Deployment.Application

[STAThread]
static void Main()
{
    Application.EnableVisualStyles();
    Application.SetCompatibleTextRenderingDefault(false);

    if (ApplicationDeployment.CurrentDeployment.IsFirstRun)
    {
        MessageBox.Show("Install Complete");
        return;
    }

    Application.Run(new Form1());
}