Installer won't overwrite existing app

Question

I have a Visual Studio 2010 solution with 8 projects. It also has a Setup project which I build to create the installation.

It works fine when it's the first installation on a client PC. However, I then modify my project, and build a new Setup, and pass it onto clients. When this happens, the client has to first, manually, uninstall the last installation, and then run the setup.

If they run the setup, without uninstallaing, it seems it doesn't overwrite existing files (exe as well as the dlls). Usually it's just the exe that gets modified. However, it doesn't overwrite it. The version on the client machine seems to stay the same.

Is there a way to force it to overwrite?

Note that when I modify my main application project, I go to the properties of the project, assembly information, and increase the Assembly Version as well as the File Version.

Answer 1

The visual studio installer is not the most user friendly compared to commercial products or even WiX if you are after a good level of control over you installation.

When you have a Visual Studio Setup project you have several properties that are involved in the Upgrade process

1) The Upgrade Code - this is the link between installers of the same ilk and you shouldn't change this code needlessly

2) The Version number - strangely only the 1st 3 numbers (major.minor.build) are used for comparison (this is a common mistake that a lot of developers make)

3) The Product Code - As soon as you change the version number VS will prompt you to change this number - do it - if you automate the number change remember to do this as well

4) DetectNewerInstalledVersion - set to True

5) RemovePreviousVersions - set to True

Personally I'd look at using WiX for such a small installation i.e. if you can do it in Visual Studio then the WiX version

My installer for OpenCover looks like this

<Wix xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/wix/2006/wi" >

<Product Id="*" Name="OpenCover" Language="1033" Version="!(bind.FileVersion.OPENCOVER_FRAMEWORK_DLL)" 
        Manufacturer="OpenCover @ GitHub" UpgradeCode="2250c3f1-d9ba-44d8-b4db-25f91fe92dc6">

    <Package InstallerVersion="200" Compressed="yes" />

    <Upgrade Id="2250c3f1-d9ba-44d8-b4db-25f91fe92dc6">
        <UpgradeVersion OnlyDetect="no" Property="PREVIOUSFOUND" Minimum="1.0.0.0" IncludeMinimum="yes"
                        Maximum="!(bind.FileVersion.OPENCOVER_FRAMEWORK_DLL)" IncludeMaximum="no" />

        <UpgradeVersion OnlyDetect="yes" Property="NEWERFOUND" Minimum="!(bind.FileVersion.OPENCOVER_FRAMEWORK_DLL)"
                        IncludeMinimum="yes" />
    </Upgrade>

    <Media Id="1" Cabinet="media1.cab" EmbedCab="yes" />

...

</Wix>

I hope you find the above useful