In order to be able to design your installer, it's important that you have a solid understanding of files, folders and paths.
Information on computers is stored in files. A file is a collection of computer-readable data that is treated as a single entity by the computer's operating system. In other words, a file is a bunch of data that a computer can store as one unit.
Files vary in size and can contain all sorts of data, from text, images and sounds, to database records and the machine language code that programs are made of.
Each file is identified by its filename and path. The filename is the name that was given to the file when it was created or saved. The path is a string of text that describes where the file is stored.
A file extension consists of a period (.) followed by one or more characters at the end
of a filename. Windows uses the file extension to determine what kind of information
is contained in a file. For example, in the filename myfile.txt, .txt is the file extension that identifies myfile.txt as a text file.
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When reading filenames out loud, the period in the extension is usually pronounced "dot." So myfile.txt would be pronounced "myfile dot text" or "myfile dot tee ex tee." |
Windows uses a hierarchical file system. This means that storage space is organized into folders and sub-folders, forming what is often referred to as a "directory tree." The base of the directory structure is known as the root folder, or just the "root" for short. Within this root folder there can be files and sub-folders, and within those sub-folders there can be other files and sub-folders as well.
Each folder acts like a container for all the files and folders that are "in" it. All the files and sub-folders in a folder can be copied, moved or deleted at once by copying, moving or deleting the folder that contains them.
Much like hanging folders in a filing cabinet, folders make it easier to organize and locate your files. If the files on a computer were all kept in one place, it would be very difficult to find a particular file. Folders allow related files to be grouped together so it's easier to find them.
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Folders are also often called directories. In Windows, the terms "folder" and "directory" both refer to the same thing. |
A drive is a form of fixed, networked or removable media used as a storage device. A "fixed" drive is one that isn't removable - which is to say that the storage media is built right into the drive, and isn't made to be removable like floppy disks and CD-ROMs are. A "networked" drive is a one that isn't connected locally, but is instead accessed remotely via a network. A "removable" drive stores information on removable media such as magnetic or optical disks, cartridges and tapes.
The term "drive" can also refer to the drive letter, which is the letter assigned to the drive during the computer boot process. A single letter of the alphabet is assigned to each drive as it is detected at startup. The letters "A" and "B" are reserved for floppy drives, and the rest of the letters (from C to Z) are assigned in order to the various hard drives, CD-ROM drives, and any other drives attached to the system.
For example, if your system has a single hard drive and a CD-ROM drive, your C: drive is your hard drive, and your D: drive is your CD-ROM. If your hard drive is split into two logical drives or "partitions," then C: and D: would refer to those partitions, and your CD-ROM drive would be E:.
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Drives are where files and folders are stored. |
The root folder is the "base" or "main" folder on any drive. The root folder is where all of the other folders on a drive are located. When you double-click on the C: drive in My Computer, you're opening the root folder of the C: drive. All the folders on the C: drive are located in the "root" of C:.
The root folder is always named "\" in Windows. For example, the path to the root of the D: drive is:
D:\
A path is a string of text that describes where a file or folder is stored in a hierarchical directory structure. There are three kinds of paths you can use in Setup Factory: full paths, relative paths and UNC paths.
Full Paths
Full or "absolute" paths provide "complete" directions to locate a file, starting from the root folder of a given drive. A full path begins with the drive letter and includes the name of each folder that would need to be opened, in turn, in order to access the desired folder or file. The folder names are separated by backslash characters (\). Full paths have the following general format:
<drive letter>:\<folder name>\<folder name>\<filename>
For example:
The path to the root folder on the C: drive is:
C:\
The path where Setup Factory 6.0 is installed on your system is probably:
C:\Program Files\Setup Factory 6.0
The path to Notepad.exe on your system is probably something like:
C:\Windows\Notepad.exe
Relative Paths
Relative paths provide "partial" directions to locate a file starting from another folder (often the current working directory). They look just like full paths, but they're missing the drive name and possibly some folder names too. The simplest relative paths consist of a single folder or filename. Relative paths have the following general format:
<folder name>\<folder name>\<filename>
For example:
The relative path to a Data folder in the current working directory would be:
Data
The relative path to the Setup Factory 6.0 application from the Program Files folder would be:
Setup Factory 6.0\SUF60Design.exe
The relative path to a readme file in a sub-folder named Docs would be:
Docs\readme.txt
The Universal Naming Convention (UNC) is a standard method of describing the location of files and other resources shared on a network. In Windows, UNC paths begin with two backslashes (\\), followed by the server name, which is the name assigned to the computer where the shared resources are located. The server name is followed by another backslash (\) and the share name, which is simply the name that was given to the volume or storage device when it was shared. This is then followed by the path to the desired file or folder on that shared volume.
UNC paths have the following general format:
\\<server name>\<share name>\<folder name>\<filename>
For example:
The UNC path to the Setup Factory 6.0 application on a C: drive which
is shared as "D2" on a computer named "R2" would be:
\\R2\D2\Program
Files\Setup Factory 6.0\SUF60Design.exe
The UNC path to a file named foo.txt in the temp folder of a drive
which is shared as "MAIN" on a computer named
"DOROTHY" would be:
\\DOROTHY\MAIN\temp\foo.txt