To run the application you developed with Visual Studio on other systems, it is not enough to just compile it. The project needs to be packaged in an exportable way. In this article, we explain in detail the process of creating a setup file (MSI/EXE) for Windows Forms, WPF, or Console projects.

Which Project Types Does It Apply To?

.NET Framework and .NET Core/5/6/7 projects
Windows Forms (WinForms)
WPF Applications
Console Applications

1. Quick Packaging with the Publish Feature

With the "Publish" feature that comes with Visual Studio 2019/2022, you can easily:

Create an EXE file
Create a Setup file (installer)
Perform a ClickOnce installation.

➤ Steps:

Right-click on the project → Publish
Create a new profile: "Folder"
Specify the file location
Select "Target Runtime": win-x64 or win-x86
Select "Deployment Mode": Self-contained (works with all dependencies)
Click the "Publish" button

The resulting EXE file can be run, and all dependencies are located in the publish folder.

2. Creating a Setup (MSI/EXE) Package (Advanced Installer or WiX)

Method 1: Microsoft Visual Studio Installer Projects Extension

Download the "Installer Projects" extension from the Visual Studio Marketplace
Right-click on your solution > Add > New Project > Setup Project
Add the main project output (bin/Release/*.exe) under "Application Folder"
Right-click > "Build"
Setup.exe and Setup.msi files are created

Method 2: WiX Toolset (Professional Approach)

Install WiX Toolset (https://wixtoolset.org/)
Install the WiX Extension plugin for Visual Studio
Create a new WiX Project
Define file paths, GUIDs, versions, etc. with XML configuration
Build → .MSI is created

WiX sample configuration:

3. Easy Distribution with the ClickOnce Method

Offers an easy update system
The user installs via web or file path

➤ Setup:

Right-click on the project → Properties > Publish tab
Check "ClickOnce"
Publish path: \network\path, ftp://, http://, file://
Check dependencies in the "Application Files" section
Click "Publish Now"

Installation can be done with the resulting setup.exe file. Provides application update support.

Extra: Using Obfuscation to Protect Code

Dotfuscator (Comes with Community Edition Visual Studio)
ConfuserEx (Open source)

Code protection makes it difficult to reverse engineer your packaged application with tools like .NET Reflector.

✅ Conclusion

By converting your Visual Studio projects to .EXE or .MSI files, you provide both a professional look and easy installation. While tools like WiX are preferred for advanced installation needs, Publish and ClickOnce methods are quite effective for quick solutions.