It's no secret that the current Windows GeoServer installer and executable is a
bit rough around the edges. It works, but it isn't as slick as it could be.
For one thing, GeoServer isn't installed as a service, and the fact that the
command prompt pops up and stays there is definitely sub-optimal. :)
GeoServer works with the Java Service Wrapper (albeit with a little bit of
tweaking) so it's very possible to use the BIN version of GeoServer, add in
some wrapper config, and a perfectly good service we have.
So, with all this in mind, I'd like to solicit opinions about what people like
and dislike in the Windows GeoServer experience, both with the installer and
with running GeoServer. (Just the EXE I'm curious about here; I know some
people use the BIN and WAR in Windows.)
I'm also designing a new flowchart for the installer. Here's what I have so
far: (After making this list, I found that this is pretty much
screen-by-screen identical to what Tomcat does for its installation process
which is auspicious.)
-----
1. Splash screen
2. Welcome screen
3. Find %JAVA_HOME%
3a. If found, display window
3b. If not found, prompt for location, set in environment variable, add
%JAVA_HOME%\bin to path.
4. License screen
5. Components screen - Two check boxes: [GeoServer (mandatory), data directory
(optional)]
6. Program file destination screen
7. Find %GEOSERVER_DATA_DIR%
7a. If found, display window with dropdown [use this, change this]
7a1. If [change this] go to Select Data Dir, otherwise skip
7b. If not found, go to Select Data Dir
8. Select Data Dir - Type in a location (with validation?)
9. Install as service screen [automatic, manual]
10. Start Menu screen
11. Ready to install screen
12. Install stuff
13. Finished screen
-----
Things to note:
(3b) adds %JAVA_HOME%\bin to the path. This is what we want to do, right?
(5) makes installing the built-in data dir optional. What do you think of
this?
(9) I would think the default should be automatic, right?
I'm not 100% sure that everything here is possible, but NSIS seems pretty
elastic, so I'm hopeful.
Feedback is practically begged for.
Thanks,
Mike Pumphrey
OpenGeo - http://opengeo.org
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