Distributing COM Add-ins
If you are planning to distribute your COM add-in to other users, you must install all the necessary files on each user's system and register the add-in. How you do this depends on the environment in which you are developing the add-in.
In This Section
- Distributing COM Add-ins Created with Office Developer
If you are developing in Microsoft® Office XP Developer, the easiest way to distribute a COM add-in is to create a setup program for the add-in. - Distributing COM Add-ins Created with Visual Basic 6.0
If you are developing in Microsoft® Visual Basic® 6.0, the easiest way to distribute a COM add-in is to include the add-in designer in the Add-in project and then create a setup program for the add-in.
Related Sections
- Building COM Add-ins for Office Applications
By building COM add-ins, you can extend the functionality of your Microsoft® Office-based applications without adding complexity for the user. - Working with Add-in Designers
Create and register your COM add-in with an add-in designer. - Specifying Load Behavior
Load (connect) the add-in, and make it available to the user; or unload (disconnect) the add-in, so it cannot be run. - Writing Code in the Add-in Designer
Begin writing code in the designer's class module when you have specified general information for a COM add-in in the add-in designer. - Hooking a COM Add-in Up to a Command Bar Control
Integrate your COM add-in (if it has a user interface) with the host application in some way, so the user can interact with it. - Debugging a COM Add-in
Load and use the COM add-in from within a Microsoft® Office XP application to test and debug it. - Making the DLL
Turn your COM add-in into a DLL when you have finished debugging it. - COM Add-ins and Security
Specify security settings for Microsoft® Office XP applications in the Office XP Security dialog box.