I realize that the pseudo-ClickOnce publish feature cannot deploy an Outlook app because it can't set CAS or create the necessary registry entries.

So what can it do, with regard to Outlook addins?

I envisioned an msi-deployed Outlook addin, with an embedded application manifest that points to a deploy point. The idea is that you run setup once to install your addin, using the "add file" functionality of the setup project to include the application manifest from a previously-published deployment package. The setup program sets CAS and modifies the registry to point to the app manifest. Since the app manifest was actually created with the publish functionality, it actually points to a valid deployment manifest.

Later, when you make any sort of upgrade to your application, you simply publish the new version. The application manifest gets out of sync with the deployment manifest, and -- voila! The loader downloads the current version, and thanks to careful engineering the CAS is still valid for the newly downloaded files.

In practice, however, my addin won't load if I include the application manifest from the deploy point. It will only load if I keep the default application manifest installed by setup. The two manifests are nearly identical, except for the installfrom & codebase stuff which points to a (supposedly) successfully published image of the app.

What's the deal? Am I on a wild goose chase? Can this be done?

I notice that virtually all of the MSDN content on Outlook deployments refers to the setup deployment option. Even the limited references to the publish deployment option don't actually explain how to get the published content onto a workstation.

Does publish actually work for Outlook? I'm beginning to think it's one of those features that sounds great on paper, but which doesn't actually work in the wild. Somebody -- anybody -- please tell me I'm wrong.

Rick

Hello,

I am sorry that you did not get a response sooner. You are correct that publishing Outlook add-ins is of limited use in some scenarios, because it does not create the required registry keys, set the appropriate security policy, or copy the application manifest onto the end user's computer. However, I tested copying the published application manifest to the end user computer (rather than the one that is generated in the \bin directory when you build the solution), and this worked fine for me.