Access DevCon Vienna 2026 — GBLauncher Demo

Companion repository for the Access DevCon Vienna 2026 presentation on deploying and updating Microsoft Access applications using GBLauncher. No web server required.

This repository does not accept pull requests. It is a distribution channel for GBLauncher demo files.

Prerequisites

• Microsoft Access (any version — 32-bit or 64-bit)
• Windows 10 or later

Features

• SHA-256 integrity verification — every download is hash-checked against the version sidecar before caching, protecting against corrupted or tampered files
• Automatic Trusted Location registration — the local cache folder is registered as an Access Trusted Location in the registry, so users are never prompted to enable content
• No admin privileges required — all data is stored under %LOCALAPPDATA%\GBLauncher\ and only HKCU registry keys are touched; no HKLM writes, no elevation prompts
• Auto-detects Microsoft Access — finds the correct msaccess.exe via the registry, works with both full Access and Access Runtime, any version (32-bit or 64-bit)
• Smart caching — only downloads when a new version is available; cached versions launch instantly without network calls
• RDS / Terminal Server compatible — the front-end is cached in each user's local profile (%LOCALAPPDATA%), so multiple users on the same server each get their own copy
• Single executable, no installer — just drop GBLauncher.exe in a folder and run it; nothing to install. You do need to configure command line arguments so the launcher knows where to check for updates (see Local Network Deployment below)
• Offline fallback — if the network is unavailable, the launcher opens the last cached version instead of failing
• Multiple deployment methods — serve files from a local folder, a network share (UNC path), Dropbox, or any HTTP URL

Quick Start (Dropbox)

1. Download this repository as a ZIP: click the green Code button above, then Download ZIP
2. Unblock the ZIP: right-click the downloaded file → Properties → check Unblock → OK
3. Extract the ZIP to any folder
4. Double-click install-gblauncher-demo.bat

The launcher will install itself, download the GBLauncher Demo app from Dropbox, create a desktop shortcut with a custom icon, and open the app in Microsoft Access. A form will display the current version number (e.g., v1.0.0).

5. Close Access and double-click install-folder-watcher.bat

This installs a second app, Folder Watcher, with its own desktop shortcut and icon. You now have two independent apps on your desktop.

During the Presentation

1. Close Microsoft Access
2. Wait for the presenter to publish a new version of GBLauncher Demo
3. Click the GBLauncher Demo desktop shortcut
4. The launcher detects the new version, downloads it, and opens it — the form now shows the updated version
5. Click the Folder Watcher desktop shortcut — it still shows the original version, proving apps update independently

This demonstrates the full install and update cycle: the presenter publishes a new version to Dropbox with a single command, and every attendee gets the update automatically on their next launch — without touching Folder Watcher.

Local Network Deployment

GBLauncher also supports file-based deployment over local or network drives — no cloud service needed.

Publishing a version

Publish an Access file to a shared folder:

GBLauncher.exe --publish-local --app myapp --file "C:\path\to\MyApp.accdb" --version 1.0.0 --output "\\server\share\deploy"

This creates two files in the output folder:

• MyApp.accdb — a copy of the application
• myapp.version — a JSON sidecar with version, SHA-256 hash, and filename

Launching from a network share

Point the client launcher at the sidecar file:

GBLauncher.exe --app myapp --source "\\server\share\deploy\myapp.version"

The launcher reads the sidecar, copies the .accdb, verifies the SHA-256 hash, caches it locally to %LOCALAPPDATA%\GBLauncher\cache\, and opens it in Access. On subsequent runs, it only downloads if a new version is available.

Troubleshooting

"Open File - Security Warning" dialog

If Windows shows a security warning when you double-click the batch file, you extracted the ZIP without unblocking it first. To fix: right-click the original ZIP → Properties → check Unblock → OK, then re-extract. Alternatively, click Run to proceed.

Windows SmartScreen warning

All GBLauncher executables are EV code-signed, so SmartScreen should not block them. If you still see a warning, it may be because the file was downloaded inside a ZIP that was not unblocked before extraction (see above).

Antivirus blocking the executable

Some antivirus software may flag unfamiliar executables. If GBLauncher.exe is quarantined, add an exception for the folder where you extracted the ZIP.

"Microsoft Access is not installed"

The demo requires any edition of Microsoft Access. If you don't have Access installed, you can still follow along during the presentation.

What's in This Repository

File	Description
install-gblauncher-demo.bat	Installs the GBLauncher Demo app — creates a desktop shortcut and launches it
install-folder-watcher.bat	Installs the Folder Watcher app — creates a desktop shortcut and launches it
GBLauncher.exe	The launcher client — installs, downloads, verifies, caches, and opens Access apps
GBLauncher.twinproj	Full twinBASIC source code for the launcher (open in twinBASIC IDE)
CHANGELOG.md	Version history in Keep a Changelog format
LICENSE	MIT license

The FolderWatcher twinBASIC source is available at github.com/NoLongerSet/tb-folder-watcher.

Versioned downloads are also available on the Releases page.

License

MIT — see the LICENSE file for details.