2.0 .Net VB app

Hi all,

I am currently getting ready to pilot a non-critical fix to an application I have in production on a few PC's (approx. 8) and I have a question. This application is within the company only.

How do I gracefully reinstall the package, without disrupting users? What I mean is, should I just schedule the reinstall during non-business hours, or should I just place code in my script to kill the current .exe if it's running? I was thinking of doing a bit of both; installing during a non-business time, and killing the app if it's running. I would send the users an e-mail the day before the install so they could save their work.

It is worthy to note that while my app is installed on PC's and technically "works", I am still waiting on mainframe pieces to be completed before the app will actually have any real benefit to the users. Therefore, there is a very good chance no one will be using it, no matter when I install. I just want to get some "best practice" pointers from more experienced developers.

One way would be to use Remote Desktop and log into each system and install your package.

Another way could be to use a Group Policy Object or some startup script to make sure its updated and if not install the update.

Thanks for your pointers Rob.

However, my hands are pretty tied when it comes to doing an installation. There is actually a prog (company created) we use to roll out apps. With that said, there is no way they would let me use remote desktop and install my package on each PC. There is an entirely seperate team (the ones that created the packaging software) that installs each package, and they are the ONLY team authorized to install packages onto users PCs. All we can do as developers is write the install script, which tells them which files to install, which ones to remove, etc., etc.

Trust me, getting an app installed is quite a task around here.