Hi there I'm a developer looking at introducing ClickOnce deployment for an internal .NET Winforms application that will be distributed via the corporate network.
Currently the product roll out and updates are handled by Group Policy however I would like to control the updates via ClickOnce deployment now.
What I would like to know is, how should I initially roll out the package to make sure that all users have got it. Can I use a combination of Group Policy (the roll out) and then rely on the ClickOnce deployment model for any further updates?
Best Answer
I haven't heard of anyone successfully using Group Policy to deploy a ClickOnce application. ClickOnce, while providing ease of updates, is not very flexible in terms of installation mechanisms. So, as far as I know, the answer is no.
Joel Coehoorn suggests a possible hybrid approach in this Stack Overflow post: https://stackoverflow.com/questions/1841435/is-it-possible-to-automate-a-clickonce-deployment. Basically, build a traditional MSI install package that installs a shortcut to the ClickOnce installer.