Quick Start Guide
If you haven't read the Welcome page yet, please do so first.
1. Click the New Project button to start the wizard that creates a new application manifest file.
Or:
1. Select an application manifest file for an existing .exe file with the Browse button.
2. Click the grid header and from the dialog select manifest fragment file(s) corresponding to the COM components used by the selected manifest file's program. (Or drag & drop files from Windows Explorer onto the grid.) A fragment file has the same name as the ocx/dll file but with a .txt extenstion.
3. Click the Build! button to merge the selected manifest fragment files with the application manifest file.
4. Click the Copy COM Components button to copy the components (*.ocx/*.dll files) to the application folder.
What does the COM Manifest Studio program do?
The program works by combining small manifest fragment files - one per COM component - and includes them to an application's manifest file that is used by a program (.exe file). This combination happens when you click the "Build!" button. If there are conflicting TypeLib declarations from similar COM components you will be notified and you need to select which TypeLib's to be used.
The manifest file creation process works by reading the top part of the current application's manifest file and write the lines back to a new file, it will then overwrite all current COM component information in the manifest file and add dependency information from the manifest fragment files you have selected. Important: A backup copy of the manifest file will be created - with todays date and current time - just in case something should go wrong.
The second part of the puzzle - for the technique to work - is that the COM components used by the application needs to reside in the application folder. The Side-By-Side Manifest Studio program helps you achieve it when you press the "Copy COM Components" button. Before you do - you need to arrange so that the COM components exists in the "Common COM Library folder" of this workspace unless they are CodeJock controls that you have purchased and installed on the machine, in case the program will copy them from their installed location to the application folder. Those COM components must of course also be present in the programs folder when deploying your application.