5.8 Deploying Your Smart Document Solution

There are a few requirements that must be met before an expansion pack can be installed. Most of these are related to security issues, particularly if your solution is intended to be distributed via the Internet. If you aren't the system administrator, you may need to find the person who is and enlist their services. This is not intended to be a thorough discussion of security and installation; the subject encompasses entire volumes. Refer to the Microsoft Smart Document SDK and MSDN for more detailed information.

5.8.1 Internal Deployment

The easiest way to distribute solutions is to run the "Disable XML Expansion Pack Manifest Security" utility included in the Smart Document SDK. This is easy, but not necessarily secure. It is intended to be used in a development environment only.

The best way to deploy and update a Smart Document solution is from a shared network location, a web server, or another location accessible by all users. If possible, attach the expansion pack to any templates or other documents that are part of the solution. That will eliminate the end user from having to attach the expansion pack manually.

When opening a Smart Document with an attached XML expansion pack that is located on a web server, Office checks to see if the server is located within an intranet zone or is listed as a trusted site. If either of those conditions is true, the expansion pack is retrieved and the standard security check is performed. If, however, neither of those two conditions is true, the expansion pack will not be retrieved.

5.8.2 External Deployment

The optimum approach for external distribution is to create an installer package that will place each of the files in the appropriate location and add the necessary entries to the registry. If it's a managed code solution, client computers must have the Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 and .NET Programmability Support installed. The optimum installation procedure is as follows:

Install Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 (available for download from Microsoft Windows Update).
Install Microsoft Office Professional Edition 2003 complete. This will automatically install the .NET Programmability Support option (the Primary Interop Assemblies or PIAs necessary to make managed code run with Word).

If Office 2003 is already in place, the following procedure will update the environment:

Install .NET Framework 1.1.
Select "Add or Remove Programs" from the Control Panel.
Locate Microsoft Office Professional Edition 2003 (or appropriate) and click Change.
Select "Add or remove features" and click Next.
Select "Choose advanced customization of applications" and click Next.
On the Advanced Customization panel, expand Microsoft Office Word by clicking on the plus sign (+).
The first option listed should be ".NET Programmability Support." Click on the down arrow icon to the left of the option name. If not already installed, select "Run from My Computer." and then click Update.

5.8.3 COM Versus Managed Code

In all cases, Office 2003 requires that Smart Document developers sign the XML expansion pack manifest file. Internal certificates can be created with the "Digital Certificate for VBA Projects" included with the Microsoft Office Tools kit. For managed code solutions, there are two additional requirements:

The Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 must be installed on the client computer.
The assembly .dll must have FULLTRUST permissions explicitly granted on the user's machine.

Refer to the Smart Document SDK and online resources for more information about managing security.

5.8.4 Template Files

If your Smart Document solution contains one or more template (.dot) files, they should be placed in the default template directory as specified in the File Locations tab in the Options menu. This will allow the end user to create new documents by selecting File New from the menu bar and then selecting the appropriate template. Attaching the expansion pack to the template will ensure that it is automatically enabled.