Web-Update class in WinForms application

Question

I have build an C# Winforms application which will need regular updates and patches in the future. To ease the update process for the users of my app I'd like to build an web-update class that looks for an update on my site.

What would be the most secure and reliable way to implement such a class, considering:

• The site is build in PHP / Joomla
• I haven't the foggiest idea how to program in PHP
• All webserver directories are read-only by default (and only writeable by an FTP account I own)

The first and so far only idea that comes up to me is to create a file on my webserver that'll never be renamed, and in it I'll define the location of the latest version and number of it. The app will then be able to download the update from that path using the WebClient class.

However, if there's anyone with a better update-class idea that doesn't require an asp.net webserver nor webservices (already tried and failed on that one), I'll be grateful.

Edit:

I've tried the ClickOnce solution suggested by Gabriel McAdams, but on application startup I experience a "ClickOnce launch utility has stopped working" crash. So I'm again looking for a solution to update an application. For the moment, the answer of Kristian Damian is the most suitable.

Answer 1

I would look into ClickOnce Deployment.

Here is some of the text from that page:

ClickOnce deployment allows you to publish Windows-based applications to a Web server or network file share for simplified installation. Visual Studio provides full support for publishing and updating applications deployed with ClickOnce.

Answer 2

Maybe this cant help you:

http://themech.net/2008/05/adding-check-for-update-option-in-csharp/

Answer 3

I developed a Windows application in C# that does updates automatically over the Internet. After much grief, mainly because at that time I had very little experinece with Web development, I purchased a product that made it easy to update the application. If it is OK with StackOverFlow and you are interested, I can give you the URL.