Beginner Clarifications for Standalone Application

[chavenor]

Goal:

• Make a full-installer including the base app, which when it ran the first time, would install the latest version.
• The standalone agent-app would be used to monitor files, upload them, restart os services (outside of agent) and run commands on the node computers connecting back via Phonix channels.
• I want to leverage channels for real-time monitoring.
• I’m stuck in windows. 7 and 10 +
• Run at startup automatically.
• All the above setup and installed with a single MSI or another type of installer.

Questions and concerns.
If I adequately compile everything and run it via bat file at startup – can I still fetch a newer version to be installed over the top of the existing one?

I want a full installer without having the end user do a lot of steps to install everything?

I read I would have to create a new build for each version of OS – does that mean Win 7 and Win 10 or is it to every specific build like Win 7 build 13888 and Win 7 build 199383 etc …

Should I stay away from Elixir-Phoenix and try to write it in Erlang? I see a lot of windows issues surrounding stand-alone applications, or is the file structure and project structure worth it? Or can this be avoided by putting everything into one standalone app?

Which is the best approach above – archive, escript, other? None of them seemed comprehensive, and new install MSI would need to be created. Any tutorial on the first part and second part would be much appreciated.

All help is greatly appreciated. – Thanks again!

Casey

[OvermindDL1]

@chavenor

Make a full-installer including the base app, which when it ran the first time, would install the latest version.

You’d wrap up a release in such an installer.

@chavenor

The standalone agent-app would be used to monitor files, upload them, restart os services (outside of agent) and run commands on the node computers connecting back via Phonix channels.

A normal release as a windows service sounds fine.

@chavenor

• I’m stuck in windows. 7 and 10 +
• Run at startup automatically.

Yep, a windows service release.

@chavenor

If I adequately compile everything and run it via bat file at startup – can I still fetch a newer version to be installed over the top of the existing one?

As long as the OTP version remains the same you can hot upgrade without it going down.

@chavenor

I want a full installer without having the end user do a lot of steps to install everything?

Just wrap it up in an installer that runs the release service installation call.

@chavenor

I read I would have to create a new build for each version of OS – does that mean Win 7 and Win 10 or is it to every specific build like Win 7 build 13888 and Win 7 build 199383 etc …

By OS that means windows is windows, so just a windows release is fine for all windows at and above that version.

@chavenor

Should I stay away from Elixir-Phoenix and try to write it in Erlang? I see a lot of windows issues surrounding stand-alone applications, or is the file structure and project structure worth it? Or can this be avoided by putting everything into one standalone app?

Elixir/phoenix are built on OTP, once compiled it’s all just beam files. Unsure what windows issues are around stand-alone apps, I always used windows services.

@chavenor

Which is the best approach above – archive, escript, other? None of them seemed comprehensive, and new install MSI would need to be created. Any tutorial on the first part and second part would be much appreciated.

Windows service.

[chavenor]

Windows service release == http://erlang.org/doc/man/erlsrv.html