RE: InstallShield project in Visual Studio

We need to figure out whether this is a bug or unsupported configuration :)

Seriously, it may be that it is something Vault is doing wrong or
differently than VSS, or it may be that VSS has some access within Visual
Studio that allows it to work.

Unfortunately, I can't promise that we will be able to look at this right
away, though, since we are not currently set up to develop using
InstallShield.  We'll add it to the issues list.

Has anyone else on the list seen this problem, or have a handy work-around?

Thanks,
Dan
  -----Original Message-----
  From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]]On Behalf Of Kenneth Angell
  Sent: Monday, January 12, 2004 12:31 PM
  To: Dan Schreiber
  Cc: Vault List
  Subject: Re: [vault-list] InstallShield project in Visual Studio


  Dan,

  I tested this in VSS this morning and I was able to add an InstallShield
project to VSS through Visual Studio.  Once I got the project into VSS I
noticed some extreme quirkiness in the way checkout and check in worked.
Here is what I have been able to deduce about the way InstallShield handles
its source files:

  When you create an InstallShield project it creates a .isv file which is
the file that will be added to the source control.  The .isv file is used to
create a .ism file which is the binary file format for InstallShield.
InstallShield recreates this file every time you open your .isv file and
this is the file you edit when using InstallShield. When you issue a check
in command, this .ism file recreates the .isv file and a bunch of supporting
.itd files which also get checked in to the source control.

  Here is where the quirkiness comes in.  If you open the Solution without
having first used the Client to check out the .isv file the file is opened
"Read-Only" and consequently the .ism file is re-created as "Read-Only".
InstallShield allows you to edit a Read-only file but when you try to save
it (InstallShield does this automatically when checking in) you can only
Save-As and you are not allowed to Save-As the same file you opened.  Since
the .ism is used to re-create the .isv file that gets checked in, a new .ism
file creates a new .isv file during the Save-As.  If the project is reloaded
after checkout, then the .ism file is not created as read-only and the
Save-as problem is avoided.

  So you have to jump through some hoops but it does work.

  I think the problem with Vault may lie somewhere in the .itd files that
InstallShield manages.  The only file checked out by the IDE is the .isv
file.  But this file creates a bunch of .itd supporting files that recreate
you .ism InstallShield file.  The IDE checks in the .isv file but I think it
passes the buck to InstallShield to checkout the .itd files, re-generate
them from the .ism file, and then check them in during the process.  I don't
know if Vault can handle the hand-off but I figure if it can work on VSS it
ought to work in Vault.

  If it helps, I am using InstallShiled Developer 8 SP2.

  Ken Angell
  NET-Architect

  Dan Schreiber wrote:

    We don't use InstallShield here, so we have not seen the error.

    A few questions though:

    1. Can you add the solution outside the IDE (using Vault's standalone
client)?
    2. If you use VSS as the source control provider, do you get similiar
results?

    Dan Schreiber
      -----Original Message-----
      From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]]On Behalf Of Kenneth Angell
      Sent: Friday, January 09, 2004 8:40 PM
      To: Vault List
      Subject: [vault-list] InstallShield project in Visual Studio


      I am currently trying to add an InstallShield Developer project to a
solution under Vault Source control.  The addition fails when I try to check
the new project in (add it to Vault) with "Unspecified Error".  The same
happens if I create the project outside of Visual Studio and then try "Add
Existing Project".  Has anyone had problems with deployment projects in
using the IDE client or does anyone have any experience with using
InstallShield projects in Visual Studio and VSS?

      Ken Angell
      Application Architect
      NET-Architect