Failing to make app portable, what do I do wrong?

Discuss anything related to JauntePE, the utlimate utility to help you tame non-portable applications. Share your experience about the apps that work with JauntePE, and the apps that don't.
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Netgirl
Posts: 12
Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:48 pm

Failing to make app portable, what do I do wrong?

#1 Post by Netgirl »

Hello,

I tried to make a application (Avidemux) portable using and the "The JauntePE 12-step Program" (http://www.portablefreeware.com/forums/ ... php?t=2182).

I took JauntePE013 and the installer of Avidemux and followed steps 1-7 (ignoring step 4 from line 2 on).

My Result: A default installed application on my hard disc (C:\Program Files\Avidemux) and an appdir on my USB stick with the installer of avidemux and the edited JauntePE_jauntePE.ini.

So this isn`t exactly what I would call portable, so maybe someon could help me, please :(

Thank you and best regards,
Netgirl

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Zach Thibeau
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Yeah

#2 Post by Zach Thibeau »

There are some bugs related to 0.13. Pm me your email and send you 0.16

Netgirl
Posts: 12
Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:48 pm

#3 Post by Netgirl »

Hello,

thanks to Thibeaz for the files and the JPEAutoWizardv2.0.3, but nevertheless I am afraid that I can`t make it without any tutorial. There are too many questions remaining: If I want to have a portable app (without launching it later on via JauntePE) how do I have to proceed? Does the JauntePE folder has to be on the USB stick? Has the installer or the already installed program to be on the USB stick? When asked from the wizzard for the apps exe, does that mean the installer or the program? I am afraid, that I have to learn a lot before having my first portable app :? Can anybody out there help me please?

Best regards,
Netgirl

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Kranor
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Location: uk

#4 Post by Kranor »

Hi netgirl,
First thing to do is to start with a program that we know can easily be made portable with JauntePE. I would suggest Blocknote as that can be sorted with the auto wizard.

First of all download the program from http://blocknote.net/

And if you don't already have it get universal extractor from the database.

Once you have them both unextract the blocknote .exe.

Give me a yell once you have extracted the folders

Netgirl
Posts: 12
Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:48 pm

#5 Post by Netgirl »

Hi Kranor,

thanks for your nice help offer. I loaded the installer down and extracted it with UE. The .exe file is in a folder called {app}.

Regards,
Netgirl

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Kranor
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Location: uk

#6 Post by Kranor »

Ok now move the extracted files to another location. On the usb drive is fine, we just have to make sure that the files are not in the root of C: or on your desktop.

Once you have done that we will now setup the JPE auto wizard.

1. It does not matter where the JauntePE program is located if you are creating stand alone programs. If however you wish to use JauntePE as a launcher then it will need to be on the usb drive as well. Most people prefer to create standalone programs so place the jauntePE folder and the JPE autowizard folder on the desktop.

2. Copy the following files from the JauntePE folder and paste them into the JPE autowizard folder :- JauntePE.exe, madcHook.dll and Jauntepe.dll.

3. Run JPE AutoWizard v2.0.3.exe. Now for most people and programs the defaults in the wizard are OK the only one that you may wish to change is the setting for Icon type (personally I set this to use the application icon as I have so many portable programs that it would get confusing if I used the usb icon).

4. once you have made any changes to the wizard browse to the application that you wish to make portable.Remember that you are navigating to the location that you moved the unextracted files to.

5. Once you have selected the applications .exe file, click on process and then sit back and wait.

6. Eventually (and it will take a different amount of time for each progam depending upon complexity) the wizard will say finished and ask if you wish to go to the portable application folder, say yes, and you will be taken to the folder. Run the portable application ie. blocknote_portable.exe
this will then run blocknote and populate the required registry settings and build the required filesystem.

Congrats you have just made your first portable program!
Remember that to use it portable you must always launch it with by running blocknote_portable.exe.

Once you have tried to build a couple of portable programs that we have already tested then have a go with a different program on your own.
remember that the auto wizard will only portablise around 50% of the software you try as the others will require program specific .ini files to be created, and that is where the fun begins. :lol: To get an idea of what goes on look at the thread for making MSreader portable.

Netgirl
Posts: 12
Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:48 pm

#7 Post by Netgirl »

Hi Kranor,

thank you very much for your very good step-by-step instruction. I have done as being told and here are the (particulary funny) results:

The blocknote_portable.exe is working fine on my laptop and on my virtual testing environment, but not on my productive system (XP SP2). On the last mentioned machine the cursor is changing for a moment (showing the clock) and returns to the normal cursor again and nothing else happens. Trying it with the task manager open one can see that blocknote.exe and blocknote_portable.exe are showing up for a moment and then disappear again. Funnily enough the blocknote.exe itself is working on double-click. I also tried to switch off the firewall, but that doesn`t make any difference.

Do you have any idea what is wrong there? This is what the .ini-file says:
[Registry]
Use=1
Data=.\Registry\%appname%_registry.reg

[Filesystem]
Use=1
Data=.\Filesystem

[RegistryExclude]
1=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\DirectInput
2=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\BitBucket
3=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\ComDlg32
4=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Discardable
5=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\FileExts
6=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MountPoints
7=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\MountPoints2
8=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders
9=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Streams
10=HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\ShellNoRoam
11=HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Direct3D
12=HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\DirectDraw
13=HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\DirectInput
14=HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\BitBucket
15=HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders
16=HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Internet Settings
17=HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet
;1=*

[RegistryInclude]

[RegistryIgnore]

[FilesystemExclude]
;1=*

[FilesystemInclude]
1=26
2=28
3=35
;4=44
;5=43
;6=42
;7=38
[FilesystemIgnore]

[ModuleExclude]
;1=*

[ModuleInclude]
1=BlockNote.exe
Some further questions after that how-to-tutorial:
Does one allways have to unpack the installer in order to get the "beef" or does it also work after an ordinary installation on the usb stick? Is there a list of known applications who refuse to being changed into a portable app?

Best regards and have a nice sunday,
Netgirl

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Kranor
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#8 Post by Kranor »

Don't worry you didn't do anything wrong. I originally used an earlier version of blocknote. Now that i have tried the same setup with version 1.8 i find the same problems you have. So it looks like the updates have broken blocknotes portability for now ( i Guess when i get around to it i might have a fresh attempt and tweak the .ini file.

as to extracting versus installing the software. I find that a portable program is always better if made form an unextracted rather than installed program. For me it just seems to pick up more of the registry and file system setup. But really for me it means that i do not have all the leftovers on my system that installing a program creates.

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Zach Thibeau
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Thanks

#9 Post by Zach Thibeau »

Thanks Kranor, I was working on a Small Doc for this and still going to about this which will be uploaded shortly (as soon as I can get free time from Work)

Netgirl
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Joined: Fri Feb 15, 2008 12:48 pm

#10 Post by Netgirl »

Hi guys,

meanwhile I am trying to make other apps portable - yippieh! One installer refused to be extracted with Universal Extractor (it was an inno setup type). Is there another extractor you can recommend? And which applications are already known als unsuitable?

Thanks and best regards,
Netgirl

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Zach Thibeau
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Hmm

#11 Post by Zach Thibeau »

When in doubt use Jauntpe :)

redllar
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#12 Post by redllar »

Kranor wrote:Now that i have tried the same setup with version 1.8 i find the same problems you have. So it looks like the updates have broken blocknotes portability for now ( i Guess when i get around to it i might have a fresh attempt and tweak the .ini file.
I think it's a bug in JPE. Although the BlockNotes 1.8 installer does create a path to the BlockNotes exe in the registry. So if the app uses that during startup, that could be why it just went away.

The new BlockNotes does startup w/o problems with JPE 0.3.0 at least (tested on 2K SP4 and XP Pro SP2).

redllar
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#13 Post by redllar »

Avidemux also works here w/o problems using JPE 030. It doesn't use the registry so I suspect it will work fine with other JPE versions as well. GTK does use app data and Avidemux does create a user profile subdirectory though.

Here's the file system settings I used to make it portable. I set up the portable desktop (1=16) for portable video file and filters use, portable app data (2=26) for GTK and Avidemux use, and portable program files (3=38) since I ran the installer through JPE. The 4=%40%\avidemux line is so Avidemux can get to its portable user profile data:

[FilesystemExclude]
1=*

[FilesystemInclude]
1=16
2=26
3=38
4=%40%\avidemux

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Zach Thibeau
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:O

#14 Post by Zach Thibeau »

:O when was 0.3 released O_o

redllar
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#15 Post by redllar »

thibeaz wrote::O when was 0.3 released O_o
It's the one I'm working on.

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