So I export my project as a desktop build on Windows as an auto installer file. When I execute the auto installer when it is done, the auto installer runs but then stays frozen half way through for hours without anything happening.
This does not happen when I do the same thing with the sample platformer project that comes with Gdevelop. The auto installer runs fine with it. Also two days ago I could build and run the auto installer without any problem for my own project. After that I did only minor changes to my project.
I use Windows 11 and Gdevelop 5.0.128.
Is this a bug? Is there a size limit to auto installer builds? What do I need to do to find a solution?
Hard to say, is it an update to a game you already installed? Perhaps there’s a conflict with existing files.
Try uninstalling first.
Also, make sure that when you preview the game in GDevelop, there are no errors in the Console (ctrl+shift+i).
Also, avoid special characters in the filenames…although this shouldn’t be a problem.
Yes it’s related to the fact that the game was already installed.
I was able to recreate the problem with another sample game that comes with Gdevelop.
First, I can install and uninstall games as often as I can.
But what I did is I installed the game, and then I simply I deleted the created game folder (which was installed in C:/Users/~username~/AppData/Local/Programs). I thought that was sufficient to uninstall a game. However after I do that I cannot re-install the game.
The Uninstall icon was in that folder, so now I cannot uninstall the games I had already installed anymore.
Where are the other files located that I need to delete to fully delete all files related to an installed game, since I cannot uninstall the games the official way?
If you have another exported project with the same name, then the installer won’t work.
If this is the case, then uninstall your game before downloading the new version.
I can’t remember what specific parameter counts as the “name” I’m referring to, but I think it’s the package name in Properties
It seems like you are using Windows 11, and the steps to uninstall a GDevelop program may differ from Windows 10, which is the operating system I am using, so the steps below may not apply to you, but I don’t know for sure since I have never used Windows 11.
How to uninstall :
Step 1: Go to Control Panel.
Step 2: Hover over the Programs section and click on the text “Uninstall a program” that should be under the the “Programs” title.
Step 3: Find your game in the list which should now be visible. Make sure you don’t accidentally click on GDevelop since you game seems to have the same icon as the engine.
Step 4: Right click on your game and a menu should appear with the option to uninstall.
Step 5: Click on the Uninstall option in the menu.
Edit: Made it easier to read this post and made things more clearer.
Another edit: It seems like I should’ve paid more attention to the other posts, since the information I gave you isn’t helpful.
I know how to uninstall a program, but I thought the auto-installer was just an auto dezipper (similar to e.g. packages created with NSIS). All other game engines I used just created folders for the game build, to remove them you just delete the folder. And they didn’t have uninstall executables, same for when you build html builds in Gdevelop.
Wouldn’t it be useful for auto installers not to freeze, even if you just deleted the folder by accident and cannot retrieve it anymore? It shouldn’t normally freeze like that right?
So when I use BleachBit, how do I tell the program which files to delete? How will it know which files are associated to the old game files? The program is made to simply clean up unused files, so how will it know?
Thank you for the detailed description.
At least I learned something.
It was worth a shot trying, but I cannot uninstall the game from the control panel, because I deleted the uninstall executable with the game folder.
So when I follow your procedure and try to uninstall the game from the control panel, I receive the error message that the Uninstall file doesn’t exist anymore.
You cannot delete the folder by accident, AppData is a hidden folder.
You’re not asking on the right forum, I just offered a couple of names, I have no idea if either will work.
The easiest would be to rename your project so that Windows installs it in a different path, as kHam hinted.
Then either forget about the old version, or maybe you can copy-paste the folder to the old path, and try the uninstall utility.
You can access the game folder by opening the file location of the dektop shortcut so it might still happen that you delete it, but ok.
I already tried renaming the project, but the auto installer still froze after exporting and running the installer.
I changed the name in Game Properties → game name.
Where else can I change the name or was that where you suggest to change the name?
So I figured out how to re-export the game. There is nothing wrong with it, cf your first reply, but I need to change the “Package name (for Androir and IOS)” in the game preferences. It’s that name that is referenced in the auto installer. (But I have to leave the beginning of that name “com.example…” and only change the second part, so that the new name fits the name format)
Do you know where I can find more information about the auto installer or someone who knows how it works?
I didn’t find the old game file even in the Windows Registry, so now I cannot delete the remaining files of the old game anymore…
I solved the problem by installing the game on a different user account and with the old name I used for the old installation (you could also install it on a virtual machine). Then I copy and pasted and used the newly created Uninstall file to uninstall it on the user where I had first installed it.
Got the idea from someone from the electron packaging community.
