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Patching Installs

Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2019 9:23 am
by Sheri_Steeves
Hello,

This is our first foray into building patches, previously we have always gone the uninstall/re-install path when upgrading minor versions.

We would like to offer the ability to our users to patch via an offline executable and/or get web updates. Right now I'm just investigating how to build patches and the patching process.

I have two main builds - 12.0.000 and 12.0.001, and a patch built from 12.0.001 referencing 12.0.000.

My biggest issue is that applying the patch against the base 12.0.000 build doesn't update the version number in the Apps (or Program and Features) panel. This number is often how our user's know what version they have installed so our Support team can troubleshoot accordingly.

Is building patches the correct approach? I want to offer my users the ability to upgrade to a new minor release without having to uninstall everything, and to only update the changed files and add/remove the new/old ones.

Is there a another way to do this?

Re: Patching Installs

Posted: Tue Aug 06, 2019 10:19 am
by pfennig
Others might have made different experiences, but after trying it a couple of times we gave up going the patching road.
For us it wasn't worth the hassle. At the one side the patches turned out to be larger than the normal setup, at the other, the uninstall process is part of the setup and thus no big deal. Our customers are happy, the way it works.

Re: Patching Installs

Posted: Mon Jan 27, 2020 12:32 pm
by FrancescoT
The following topics cover useful information on about how to avoid common errors with patch projects..
The second link also includes a Full Functional and ready to use "patch sample project".

https://www.installaware.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=9656
https://www.installaware.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=8697