Creating Installers

Overview

Create professional installers for your Wails application on all platforms.

Platform Installers

NSIS Installer

bash

# Install NSIS
# Download from: https://nsis.sourceforge.io/

# Create installer script (installer.nsi)
makensis installer.nsi

installer.nsi:

nsis

!define APPNAME "MyApp"
!define VERSION "1.0.0"

Name "${APPNAME}"
OutFile "MyApp-Setup.exe"
InstallDir "$PROGRAMFILES\${APPNAME}"

Section "Install"
    SetOutPath "$INSTDIR"
    File "build\bin\myapp.exe"
    CreateShortcut "$DESKTOP\${APPNAME}.lnk" "$INSTDIR\myapp.exe"
SectionEnd

WiX Toolset

Alternative for MSI installers.

DMG Creation

bash

# Create DMG
hdiutil create -volname "MyApp" -srcfolder bin/MyApp.app -ov -format UDZO MyApp.dmg

Code Signing

bash

# Sign application
codesign --deep --force --verify --verbose --sign "Developer ID" MyApp.app

# Notarize
xcrun notarytool submit MyApp.dmg --apple-id "email" --password "app-password"

App Store

Use Xcode for App Store distribution.

DEB Package

bash

# Create package structure
mkdir -p myapp_1.0.0/DEBIAN
mkdir -p myapp_1.0.0/usr/bin

# Copy binary
cp bin/myapp myapp_1.0.0/usr/bin/

# Create control file
cat > myapp_1.0.0/DEBIAN/control << EOF
Package: myapp
Version: 1.0.0
Architecture: amd64
Maintainer: Your Name
Description: My Application
EOF

# Build package
dpkg-deb --build myapp_1.0.0

RPM Package

Use rpmbuild for RPM-based distributions.

AppImage

bash

# Use appimagetool
appimagetool myapp.AppDir

Automated Packaging

Using GoReleaser

yaml

# .goreleaser.yml
project_name: myapp

builds:
  - binary: myapp
    goos:
      - windows
      - darwin
      - linux
    goarch:
      - amd64
      - arm64

archives:
  - format: zip
    name_template: "{{ .ProjectName }}_{{ .Version }}_{{ .Os }}_{{ .Arch }}"

nfpms:
  - formats:
      - deb
      - rpm
    vendor: Your Company
    homepage: https://example.com
    description: My Application

Best Practices

✅ Do

Code sign on all platforms
Include version information
Create uninstallers
Test installation process
Provide clear documentation

❌ Don’t

Don’t skip code signing
Don’t forget file associations
Don’t hardcode paths
Don’t skip testing

Next Steps

In-App Updater - Add self-updates to your app
Cross-Platform Building - Build for multiple platforms

Accessibility

Edit this documentation

Creating Installers

Overview

Platform Installers

NSIS Installer

WiX Toolset

DMG Creation

Code Signing

App Store

DEB Package

RPM Package

AppImage

Automated Packaging

Using GoReleaser

Best Practices

✅ Do

❌ Don’t

Next Steps