How to Set the Default Application Directory

[Adam]

How to Set the Default Application Directory

In Setup Factory 7.0 the application directory is the directory where all of your files will be installed by default. The application directory is generally controlled by the built-in variable %AppFolder%. So setting the value of %AppFolder% sets the application directory.

By default this variable is set in two different locations:

Project -> Session Variables
The Select Install Folder screen

The Session Variables tab sets the default value of %AppFolder%. This is the value that %AppFolder% will contain for the duration of the installation unless it is overwritten by an action or screen. The value set by the Session Variables tab is considered the default value for the application directory because it is always set during design-time, and it is the first value that is assigned to %AppFolder%. Therefore if an installation had no screens or actions the application directory set on the Session Variables tab would remain constant throughout the installation and it would be the path were the files would be installed to.

By default the Select Install Folder screen also sets the application directory by setting the value of %AppFolder%. Which means that the Select Install Folder screen overwrites the default application directory that was set on the Session Variables tab.

The Select Install Folder screen also has a Default install folder field that controls the initial value that will be displayed in the Install Folder field during runtime. This value has no relation to the application directory set on the Session Variables tab or the current value of %AppFolder%.

So if you find that the application directory you set on the General Design dialog is not being displayed by default on the Select Install Folder screen during runtime, it is because you have not set the Default install folder on the Settings tab of the Screen Properties dialog of the Select Install Folder screen during design-time.

Another fact to keep in mind is that, by default, when the Next button is pressed on the Select Install Folder screen during runtime, the current path found in the Install Folder field will be used to set %AppFolder%, and therefore the application directory.

Note: %AppFolder% is simply a variable and can be set many different ways in Setup Factory, the Session Variables tab is the default method, and the Select Install Folder screen the most common way to overwrite this value.

For more information please see the following topics in the Setup Factory Help file:

Program Reference | Screen Types | Select Install Folder
Program Reference | Project Settings | Session Variables
Program Reference | Variables | Session Variables