>>>Not sure where to post this question, so I am posting in both SQL Server and .NET forums.
>>>
>>>I have done a lot of searching to find best practices and recommendations for creating an install CD or DVD for a new Visual Basic 2008 application with a SQL Server 2008 Express back end. This is a single user, single desktop application. The database will always be installed on the desktop (not intended for a server).
>>>
>>>The one problem is that our customers are going to be remote. We cannot drive over to their office to solve an installation error. They most likely will have internet, but some may not (and those that do may not have high speed internet).
>>>
>>>I have always had great respect for opinions here, and wondered what people have found works best for them when faced with creating a robust installation routine (with required prerequisites getting installed, database user configured, application files installed, shortcut created and database with some default data created).
>>
>>Not really answering your question but, given that this is a 'single user, single desktop application' are you sure that SQL CE would not be sufficient. Much easier to install this embedded version........
>
>We have been thinking about that. Of course, we started this project thinking "It's 2009! I bet the latest tools have come a long way to make building and deploying an application pretty straight forward!" Not so much. I am stunned how complicated every aspect of this project has been. Makes me wonder if Microsoft ever uses their own programs. If we could have done this in Visual FoxPro, we would have been done a couple months ago!
>
>Without realizing what a challenge it would be to deploy this thing, we used some views in our database - which we will have to drop if we go to SQL CE. But we may have to do that if we have a hope in hell of creating a seamless user installation experience!!

Hi,
We looked at this a year or so ago. Ultimately we will need to deploy 1000+ single user/standalone versions of the software but also have some clients who will require multi-user scenarios (therefore probably SQL Express) and some who will want the data accessed from existing full blown SQL server installations.

Fortunately the latter two categories of users are large enough (income wise) to warrant on-site installation so I'm not too concerned with providing a complete installation package in those cases.

We tested installing CE as part of the app using Click Once - see the 'Private File-based Deployment' section here:
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa983326(VS.80).aspx and all seemed pretty straightforward.

We also tested using Click Once with installs of SQL Express, including options to download these from the MS website without problems - but only in 'best case' situations - i.e clean operating system, no previous SQL installations etc. Obviously the likelihood of hitting problems in the real world is somewhat higher (to put it mildly)

Currently we're developing against SQL Express but keeping SPROCs to a minimum so that, where they are used, they can be replaced in the .NET data layer for a CE specific version without too much extra code.

IAE Click Once is worth exploring ( the various options to upate an app online were also particularly interesting)
HTH,
Viv