Application Lifecycle Discussion Boards

In the end it was a mix of a to small sample for calculating the relative variance and some unnecessary processes (upgrade service for ex.)

Now with the bigger sample and the stopped processes the results are more consistent.

Thank you for your help.

Regards

Sascha

Hi, I'd like to know the best practise for this situation :

Once upon a time, there was a project (A), whose output is mixture of exe and dll files. One needs to create an installation package using the InstallShield and to have also the installation package in version control. The build should run on the build server.
As fas as I know there are two usable ways, how to setup this:

1. one solution S with project A and second InstallShield project. The input for the InstallShield project would be the primary output of the project A.
The build solution BS will include this solution S.
The dll files are not in source control, however there is a possibility to build them.

2. one solution S1 with the project A, that would have after build process - copy output to some destination. Second solution S2 with setup project that takes input from that destination, as a prebuild action it makes check-in of the dll files. The build solution BS will include this solution S2. The dll files are in the source control (preffered).
I don't know whether it is possible to set some prebuild action to InstallShield (LT version).

If you have some ideas how to solve things like this please share it. Maybe there is some really simple solution that I don't know. Thanks Smile | :)

tomas.ivan wrote:
there was a project (A), whose output is mixture of exe and dll files.

tomas.ivan wrote:
The dll files are not in source control, however there is a possibility to build
them.

Either those two statements are mutually exclusive or you think that the dlls need to be in source control after the build complete. For the second part the dlls need no more been in source control than the install executable is.

Ignoring that and looking at a high level view then...

A configuration management (CM) person is a person whose job or at least a principle role is to do builds. And only do builds (the role.)

And given the following two possibilities.

A - Two solutions. One used only be developers. Second that includes projects of first solutions in addition to install shield.

B - One solution. Includes common developer projects and InstallShield.

With a CM person/role then use A. If not then B. Might keep in mind that InstallShield licenses, specifically cost, might require at least a CM role (versus every developer managing InstallShield.)

I have just started using Mercurial, for a website project in this case.
It is all done on a local repo (backed up), not using BitBucket (or similar host).

===Preamble===
This is my first step into version control beyond keeping sepearte folders, one for production (essentially a static folder representing the current live state) and one for development (both feature updates and content). The prior approach was beginning to give me all kinds of headaches when I had an incomplete feature but needed to update the content, keeping the two folders in sync (for content only) was horrid.

I started by doing the features in a clone and content updates in the original. Then Pulling the Feature clone into the original clone (and managing conflicts was a pita but not really that bad), but have now switched to using named branches and it's working absolutely fine. I haven't tried bookmarks yet, simply haven't found a reason that has caused me to understand what they do differently to named branches).
============

===The Question===
The one thing I can't work out how to do is to move single changesets from one branch to another. Let's say I have a feature branch that has 5 changesets but is incomplete, then I need to make a bug fix to the live site. I make the bug fix in the default branch and want to push it into the feature branch but without merging - otherwise the merge would have an incomplete (broken) feature!
==============

===Extra Info===
For clarity I need to get the bug fix out to the live server and whilst I might do the work in a new branch, once done it would get merged back into the default, so once again I'd have two branches, default and the feature branch.

I think, from descriptions I have read (but haven't tried), that this kind of thing is pretty easy to do when you are using BitBucket (or similar host), you just pull the specific changeset (and its history) into your local clone. So I imagine it's also easy to do so between local clones (again I haven't tried it), but for lone nor money i can't work out how to do it within a single repo - i.e. between local branches.
===========

Any help gratefully received.

Thanks,
Mike

I haven't used mercurial as much as I've used SVN.... but in SVN, you can merge certain revision numbers instead of doing everything at once. That would get you exactly what you want, but I'm not sure how it's done in mercurial. In SVN, all you would have to do if figure out what changes you want based on looking at the log of your branch, write down the numbers of the revisions, then go to the trunk and do a manual merge, on that merge, you can specify to only merge the revision numbers you want.

I know this really only directly applies to SVN but you may be able to think of a way to do it based on how it's done on SVN.

I'm currently looking for a codename for an operating system. I started with Pole OS, but I'm not sure if it's nice, and easy to remember. Also I came up with another codename, Prodane, but I'm not sure whether I should use it, as Prodane is not an actual word in any language. So, do you have any ideas? Please let me know. Also, If you can thing of a logo, you'd be very helpful.

It's probably a better idea to write and test it first. Names often suggest themselves during the development of projects based on experience and feedback from beta testers. Alternatively you could name it after your cat.

Programming is work, it isn't finger painting. Luc Pattyn

I have already developed the biggest part of the project, and it is named Pole OS, but I don't understand, how could the beta testers and the feedback help me reach a codename? And anyway, I've heard that some projects are initially developed without a name (like iOS). Any idea how is that? I mean, what do they show the user when they start up?

The project site is:
http://sites.google.com/site/fxpoleos/

Thanks for your help! Smile | :)

iPick12 wrote:
I've heard that some projects are initially developed without a name (like iOS).

True, or just given a temporary name. Some I have heard in my professional life: Rowanoaks, Fullstream, Greenbay ...

iPick12 wrote:
I mean, what do they show the user when they start up?

Anything they like, why does it matter?

Just display something like:

Pole OS Copyright iPick12
version 0.1.3.27 (Beta)

Programming is work, it isn't finger painting. Luc Pattyn

Thanks

Warsaw?

"If you think it's expensive to hire a professional to do the job, wait until you hire an amateur." Red Adair.
nils illegitimus carborundum

me, me, me

"Copy of ReactOS"?

Bastard Programmer from Hell Suspicious | :suss:

if you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]

DoorOs ?

Regards

Sascha

Hi everyone. This is my first post on "The Code Project" forums.

I'm a bit confused regarding font licensing issues. Let's imagine I've built a WinForms control and wish to sell it commercially. Technically the component doesn't package or distribute any fonts with it but would use the system fonts (or whatever the user has installed and specifies in the "Font" property).

Logically I would imagine that there would be no font licensing issues since I'm not using a set font or distributing any fonts... but I'm just not sure. Can anyone here advise or let me know where to get advice?

Thanks.
CJ.

Don't worry about the fonts since you're not packaging it with your control. Just go ahead.

Even if the font does not exist in the target device, windows will substitute it with a font that closely resembles the requested font.

Thanks Shameel. I was hoping that would be the case.
I've now set it to use whatever the user has set as their system default, as the initial font.

tragamonedas

Remove this crappy add!

I have a product for which I build an MSI with VS setup solution.

Every time I want to deploy my changes the the customer I have to remote desktop to 4 machines, upload my new installer, uninstall the previous version and install the new version (run the MSI).

It's a bit tedious (particularly on 4 machines).

Is there a way I could automate the process (remote login / upload / uninstall / install) ins ome way (with PowerShell for example)?

A train station is where the train stops. A bus station is where the bus stops. On my desk, I have a work station....
_________________________________________________________
My programs never have bugs, they just develop random features.

I've been using Thraex Software for creating install set for over 5 years now..
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try the demo I really like the easy at how this product works and it
49 us for standard or 89 for pro ( I use pro for the auto updater and dialog editor)

You covered some good points here, I think a meaningful response is very important for comments.
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Plumbing West palm beach
Roofing West Palm Beach
Roofing Fort Lauderdale

I'm hoping I have the correct forum here for a start. Big Grin | :-D

I'm upgrading the Continuous Integration server and build process for our C# codebase.
The code is component based, with over 150 components, with lots of interdependencies.
We're currently building under CruiseControl, calling some NAnt scripts to build "everything" several times a day.
The NAnt scripts end up calling MSBuild on the solution files for each component.

I have written some NAnt tasks to iterate through the components parsing solution and CS project files to get output assemblies and their references, so that I can order the component builds based on dependencies. This code has also been 'reused' to produce a component catalog, which details the version of the assemblies/compoents used by each of our products. So this needs to be maintained.

I'm considering several CI servers for the upgrade:
UrbanBuild and OpenMake meister both claim to have dependency management handling for component based systems, but I need to actually talk to someone from each of these companies to get a price out of them.
TeamCity appears to have plugins/extensions for NAnt and AccuRev (I'm not really considering changing SCM if I can avoid it), but I haven't seen any mention of dependency management.
Team Foundation Server doesn't appear to support AccuRev or NAnt from what I can find, so I've kinda ruled it out at this stage.

If I do go for TeamCity, then I've had a brief look at NuGet and OpenWrap for dependency management, however OpenWrap appears to bypass msbuild, which probably rules out most of my NAnt scripts also, and they both appear to focus on 3rd Party dependency management.

So is anyone aware of a tool which will analyse inter-component dependencies in my code, and output some form of data that I could use to:
1. schedule the component builds from the bottom up, from the middle up or from the top down and
2. from which I could produce my component catalog and
3. could support plugin dependencies which don't use assembly references in the project files?

Does anyone know if either UrbanBuild or OpenMake Meister support this?
The sites for both of these products talk a good talk but don't flesh out the details to the extent I would like.

I've been googling this stuff on and off for a couple of weeks and I'm sure there has to be something out there that does what I'm looking for, but it doesn't seem to be making itself known to me.

Pete

I am sure this must have gone round before but, how many environments do you have / think is necessary?

We have quite a collection of inter-related systems here, in-house developed, off the shelf, heavily customised, and using a number of different languages and databases.

Some only exist in live, some have dev / test and live, most of our stuff has dev, test and live. The new daddy system that is yet to go live and needs to interface with most of the others has been setup with dev, test, train and live.

Just had the bloke in charge of this project come to see me quite panicky because he has realised that he doesn't know how to use these environments properly or what they are going to talk to with respect to the other systems. Training starts at the end of this month whilst I am on holiday Big Grin | :-D

.

I think it would be best if we had at least a nod at the same number of environments for each system as they all have to work together.

So, bearing in mind that all the systems we write or support are for our own group of companies, what environments would you recommend?

I think 3 is a minimum, I cannot decide if the 4th is necessary or not.

Previously I worked with dev, 8 test / train / whatever, and live. Which worked well, but then we only had the one system to support then. I have also worked with 5 environments, although I can't now remember what they all were, dev, test, qa, prod, I am sure there was one other.

Every man can tell how many goats or sheep he possesses, but not how many friends.

ChrisElston wrote:
how many environments do you have / think is necessary?

As many as needed to solve the business needs of the company.

ChrisElston wrote:
I think 3 is a minimum, I cannot decide if the 4th is necessary or not.

For me "dev" would mean what is on my box and nowhere else. This of course would be necessary.
"prod" is where the business makes money. So it is necessary.

Anything else is optional.

A "test" one is only reasonable if it is in fact used. And used consistently. This can often require dedicated QA.

You didn't mention "build" which is something I prefer. It is doable in "dev" but I prefer that everything is blown away first and that is problematic on "dev".

As for "train" that presumably would be a mirror of "prod" with less control and need for stability. Some businesses would require it. It can be available in house and/or externally. It would require a business driver rather than a development process driver.

You can also have "integration test", "system test" and "user acceptance test".

In a previous life, we had one system (as in "app", but it was mainframes not PCs). Three copies - dev, test, prod. (Oh, and test was hot standby for prod. Testers knew that their system could disappear at the drop of a hat if prod hardware chucked a wobbly.)
All worked fine until a second system was brought in (which of course had to interface with the first one). After a while, it became obvious that we needed another test copy of each system. Basically, to test a change for system A (which is going in as an isolated change, not a big-bang upgrade), you need a clone of system B prod. This is different from B test, where the B testers are playing with new stuff which will go into B prod down the track. We wound up combining that integration testing function with user training, which wasn't ideal but did save the odd megabuck's worth of big iron.

Just my two bob.

Peter

Software rusts. Simon Stephenson, ca 1994.