Hello all,
Recently we did some extensive work on fixing the auto-update functionality for Appium Desktop.
These efforts were very successful on Mac, the recent Windows builds, however, have left a lot to be desired (PathTooLongException, check updates exception). The reason is because we had switched over from NSIS to Squirrel as our build tool because squirrel supports auto-updating with our updating server.
What I decided to do is instead of choosing between the two, we’re going to start building both Squirrel and NSIS. With the latest release, 1.5.0 you’ll see a new installer called Appium.Web.Setup.1.5.0.exe
This is what is called an NSIS-Web installer. What it does is it checks your environment (Windows OS version, 32 v. 64 bit, etc…) and then downloads the appropriate installer.
This new installer has the following benefits:
- Installs faster (I think)
- Adds shortcut to desktop
- Can choose per-machine vs. per-user installation (good for managed environments, administrative installation, etc…)
The only downside is no more auto-updates (which is actually a benefit for managed environments).
If anyone wants to give it a try and provide some feedback, I’d be happy to hear back!
Regards,
Dan
