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Microsoft .NET developers can use Thinstall to link the needed
portions of the .NET Framework into a single EXE that runs without any
installation. Programs can even run directly from CDROM.
System
Requirements
Microsoft Windows 98 with Internet Explorer 5.01 or
higher
Microsoft Windows 98 Second Edition with Internet Explorer 5.01 or
higher
Microsoft Windows Millennium Edition with Internet Explorer 5.01 or
higher
Microsoft Windows NT? 4 Service Pack 3 (or greater) with Internet
Explorer 5.01 or higher
Microsoft Windows 2000 (Guest or Admin Account) with
Internet Explorer 5.01 or higher
Microsoft Windows XP Home (Guest or Admin
Account)
Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Guest or Admin
Account)
Microsoft
Windows Server 2003 (Guest or Admin account)
Advantages
No
separate .NET Framework installation required
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Most
computers today do not have the .NET Framework installed. How many customers
will you lose because an additional 22MB must be downloaded and installed?
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No
system registry changes (works on locked-down machines)
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Many
corporate and educational machines do not allow the user to install new software
that makes system registry changes. Normally, the .NET Framework cannot be
installed without making these changes. How many customers will you lose because
the .NET Framework cannot be installed?
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No
system32 DLLs need be installed
Install your program by copying a single
file
Uninstall your program by deleting a single file
Programs
can be run directly from CDROM
Application sizes are typically 4-8MB
(download size and install size are the same)
Supply your own
machine.config file to prevent "access denied" exceptions when your application
runs from a network drive.
Your application will not use any files from
other versions of .NET Framework that may have been installed - so there can
never be a conflict or program error due to the Framework version.
Programs are protected from Intel and IL disassembly, debugger attachments, process memory dumps, and other
hacking methods.
Program data files are protected from outside access
and tampering (such as XML, JPG, etc files).
License conditions can be easily added to your to
your program such as 30-day trials, machine-locking, and more.
Disadvantages
An
external patching program (such as RTPatch) should be used for program updates
to limit the download size of incremental updates.
Program startup speed
can slow from 1 second to 2-20 seconds, depending on which compression options
are used. Thinstall's Splash Screen
Feature can be used to display a loading bitmap while your program is being
loaded.
This form of .NET Framework redistribution is not yet officially
blessed by microsoft.
How to
create a packaged EXE:
1. Download and run the free trial version of Thinstall: http://thinstall.com/downloads (version
2.200 or higher)
2. When you get to the new project wizard, enter the
directory where your EXE resides:
3. Thinstall will ask
if you want to link the .NET Framework, answer yes
4. Click on
the "Build!" button on the upper right portion of the Thinstall GUI:
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