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Editorial Team
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Asked: 2026-05-13T07:46:23+00:00

I’m writing a windows forms application to be sold to small to mid-size corporations

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I’m writing a windows forms application to be sold to small to mid-size corporations and be used by users on a LAN.

To make it easier for network administrators, I’m thinking of using .Net 3.5 SP1 and have the app running from a network share. This way, client installation is minimal (I know they must have .Net 3.5 SP1 installed).

Admin will install the app in a server, running a windows installer and then email the users the path to the network path so they can start using the app. The alternative is to have the admin install the app in hundreds of PCs, which I try to avoid. Every time I update the app , admin has only to re-install it in a single server.

Also, the app will have a SQL Express database attached to it to store its data or it can be configured to access external SQL servers (same LAN).

I want to get your opinion if you used such deployment, what the pitfalls are and what should I be aware of.

I’m a bit concerned on .Net 3.5 SP1 penetration but I’m using LINQ to SQL all over so I don’t think I have any other choice.

Thanks in advance.

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1 Answer

  1. Editorial Team

    Not a great idea. Most places are either small enough where running an installer on each workstation is fine (and standard practice), or they already have the ability to perform automated installs.

    Your best bet is to stick with a standard MSI package and let the customer decide how to deploy it using existing tools meant to deal with MSIs.

    You could throw in some auto-updating logic, or use Click Once deployment, but they all have issues.

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