MainBoss Advanced, Version 3.4.0:
Installing ClickOnce Deployment for the First Time

Before attempting ClickOnce deployment, make sure you have read the appropriate sections of the MainBoss Installation and Administration Guide.

ClickOnce is simple to use but complicated to set up.
It requires an IT department with a high degree of technical sophistication.

Microsoft provides a good deal of information about ClickOnce at http://msdn.microsoft.com/library/wh45kb66.aspx.

Note that this web page is for people who are installing ClickOnce for the first time. If you have an existing ClickOnce installation, click here for instructions.

Setting Up ClickOnce for the First Time

To set up ClickOnce deployment, follow these steps:

  1. Create a virtual directory on your organization's web site to contain all the files that MainBoss needs for ClickOnce deployment. We will call this the MainBoss ClickOnce directory. (If you have installed a previous version of ClickOnce, you can use the same directory after you've moved out all the old contents.)
  2. Click here to obtain a ZIP file named Install.ClickOnce.3.4.0.16.zip containing the files you need for ClickOnce deployment.
  3. Extract the contents of the ZIP file into the MainBoss ClickOnce directory (i.e. the virtual directory created in Step 2 above).
  4. In the MainBoss ClickOnce directory, create a web page with a link to the file mainboss.application. Users should click on the mainboss.application link whenever they want to start MainBoss.

The files extracted in Step 4 above include a file named default.htm which you can modify to create the needed web page. Alternatively, you can write your own web page from scratch.

Prerequisite Software

In order to run MainBoss Advanced using ClickOnce, the following software must be installed on the user's system:

If a user attempts to run MainBoss through the ClickOnce web page without having the appropriate prerequisites, MainBoss will display the message "System update required".

There are two ways to ensure that user systems have the prerequisite software. You could simply install the software by hand on any system where someone will be running MainBoss. However, this can only be done by someone with Windows Administrator privileges. Alternatively, you could use Windows Server Manager to activage Windows Server Update Services. To do so, start Windows Server Manager on your Windows Server system and use "Add Role" to add the role "Windows Server Update Services".

Once you add this role, you can update other Windows systems on the network using the normal Windows Update software (provided you have Windows Administrator privileges on the network server computer). In particular, you can add the prerequisite packages (listed above) to any computer you choose.

Browser: In order to use ClickOnce, users must connect to your ClickOnce web page using Internet Explorer, or else they must download an appropriate plug-in (e.g. for Firefox or for Google Chrome).

Caveats about ClickOnce

If several people use ClickOnce to run MainBoss on the same computer, the MainBoss software will be installed once for each such user. For example, if three people use the same computer at different times and all of them run MainBoss, the MainBoss software will be installed separately for each person.

People who invoke MainBoss through ClickOnce will not be able to specify command line arguments to the MainBoss software. They will also not be able to run the MBUtility program.