I have a windows application written in VB.net which communicates with a custom piece of hardware via USB.

I have created a Setup and Deployment project for the application itself, but a plug and play USB device driver needs to be installed with it. (I have the sys and inf files but currently I’m having the user go through the Windows New Hardware Wizard).

Is there any documentation or tutorials on how to perform this within my Setup project?

Is it advisable to use a commercial installation package (Install Shield, etc.) for this?

I'm not sure where to get started, soany help or suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Ron

Hi Ron13,

Based on my understanding, what you want to do is to install the USB driver along with your application using a MSI package, right? If so, you can install the driver using a custom action in the setup project, but this is not recommended because the Device Manager doesn’t allow the device to be stopped, started, or removed without rebooting the system. Rebooting during installation causes significant problems for system manufacturers who preinstall drivers and applications in a factory environment and for system administrators who perform script-based installations of software over corporate networks; it is also inconvenient for end-users who install the device. For more information please check:

· http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/driver/install/default.mspx

Hope this helps.
Best regards.
Rong-Chun Zhang

Hi,

found this already? http://www.volynkin.com/vsdriver.htm

Cheers,

Mario M.

Yes, thank you I did see this. I'm not much of a C++ programmer however, and I didn't know if there was an "easier" way.

Ron

Hi Ron13,

Based on my understanding, what you want to do is to install the USB driver along with your application using a MSI package, right? If so, you can install the driver using a custom action in the setup project, but this is not recommended because the Device Manager doesn’t allow the device to be stopped, started, or removed without rebooting the system. Rebooting during installation causes significant problems for system manufacturers who preinstall drivers and applications in a factory environment and for system administrators who perform script-based installations of software over corporate networks; it is also inconvenient for end-users who install the device. For more information please check:

· http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/driver/install/default.mspx

Hope this helps.
Best regards.
Rong-Chun Zhang

Thanks for the reply. Having the user re-boot during installation shouldn't be a problem as I don't expect a network install, etc. I'm looking for the quickest route available. Sounds like a custom action might do the trick. Does this require the MS driver install framework?

Ron