ini files

[Kaspar]

Hello,

   What is the purpose and/or need for the ini file? I have created numerous Labview executable files that are program I want the lab techs to use for the various tests that they perform. I have placed them on a shared drive with read and execute permissions so that thye can get to the exe files. What I have discovered is that when the exe file starts, it also creates (which means write permission) to the same dir as the executable. So this explains why I cannot have a shortcut placed on the desktop that points to the exe on the shared drive. So, the questions are....

1.) Why does a labview exe require/create a ini file?

2.) Can I delete/remove the need fo a ini file.

3.) If a exe has to have/create a ini file can I tell the exe to create the ini file in the temp dir of drive c?

Regards,

Kaspar

[smercurio_fc]

Running executables from a server is rarely a good idea. The engineers around here do it quite frequently and it annoys me. A lot. Executables should have an installer, or they should be run from the local drive, not a server. In terms of your questions:

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1.) Why does a labview exe require/create a ini file?

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The ini file is used to specify run-time settings for the application. As noted in this KB article, these settings are updated once the app closes. More information can be found in this other KB article.

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2.) Can I delete/remove the need fo a ini file.

3.) If a exe has to have/create a ini file can I tell the exe to create the ini file in the temp dir of drive c?

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Not as far as I know. This is part of the Run-Time Engine's operation

[TCPlomp]

3.) If a exe has to have/create a ini file can I tell the exe to create the ini file in the temp dir of drive c?

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Not as far as I know. This is part of the Run-Time Engine's operation

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I think you can by using a different start call (see the LabVIEW wiki) you can have a per-person ini setting.

You can delete the ini file upon closing.

But I agree with smercurio, you should preferably distribute your exe with an installer.

Ton

[Kaspar]

Hello,

  I understand the pros and cons of the options that are being proposed. I write code in a large lab that has 26 lab techs that does tests of a geographically large area. So if I do the installer from the shared driver I will have to assume that everytime I create a new version that the techs, will always install the latest and greatest version of the program. This is why I would prefer to have the techs

run the executable from a shortcut on the desktop.

Regards,

Kaspar

[Kaspar]

Hello,

   I have a workaound for this situation.   The shared drive is really a view from Rational Clearcase, and talking to my co-workers Labview exe file are Clearcase do not work well together. So I have decided to use the login script from the account the techs use to copy the exe files to the hard drive of the computer and have the desktop shortcuts run the exe from the local drive. So at least everytime the techs logon they will always get the latest version of the code.

Regards,

Kaspar

[smercurio_fc]

That's one way to do it, and it's sure to work. If you want to consider an alternative it's pretty easy to code up a simple VI that your executable runs when it starts up and checks the directory on the server to see if there's a newer version. If not, a warning dialog is displayed. An app I wrote here works that way. In addition, I have a string indicator displayed in big red letters on the front panel to tell the user that the version being run is not the latest version.

After all, sometimes you don't always want to run the latest version. Cough, cough, Vista, cough, cough. 

[Kaspar]

Hello,

 I a using my workaround as a temporary measure. Whenever I try to run the exe from a ClearCase Dynamic view I get a dialog box that contains the following text.....

"This application has failed to start because the application configuration is incorrect. Reinstalling the application may fix this problem"

  So, what is wrong with the application configuration? I have looked at the option if the exe builder and did not find anything that was obvious about how to change the configuration.

Regards,

Kaspar

[smercurio_fc]

I have no idea what a ClearCase "Dynamic View" is, so I don't know if that has anything to do with it. That error message is typically caused by applications compiled with VisualStudio 2005, so my guess is that it's not the LabVIEW app. Perhaps the problem is that your Visual C++ Redistributable Package has gotten corrupt? That's just a guess, mind you.