How to code a patcher program?

Hey all, apparantly this is my first post here…

Been messing around in the challenges in my spare time while working on a game mod (for Battlezone II, if anybody knows what that is).

Anyway, I would like to figure out how to code an asset patcher (dont really care which programming language, just as long as Im able to get my mind around it),

If you dont know what I am talking about, I'm trying to figure out how to create an exe that, when clicked on, will check for a file and its contents (for version ID), then prompt the user to check the net for a more recent patch (from a website/ftp that allows things like this). If the user clicks yes, I would like it to display the current version and the version(s) available to download. Then be able to either A.) Download the patch to the desktop for manual extraction; B.) Extract the files to the proper directory; or C.) Have the thing ask the user which to do.

Can someone tell me a few things:

1. What tools and programming language would be best to use to get this patcher working?
2. Are there any tutorials on this subject (yeah, I searched google)?
3. Are there any premade patcher codes to work from?
4. What kind of website/ftp server would I need to get this working.

I also do not want this thing to open up security holes, as that would be bad :rolleye:. Is there any way to make it at least mostly secure from that sorta stuff?

Thank you all in advance for your help!

Do you have any prior programming experience?

Hmm, I think this could be done in almost any language.

GML, C++, Visual Basic, Java… Just go for the language you know best ;)

@jbjoker: A little, but not much…

@UberOn: The only problem is, the only real coding knowledge I have is for the web portion of this (fluent in HTML, getting better in Javascript, and some CGI and PHP experience).

Which was kinda why I asked for the example code, I learn better from seeing something implemented to figure out what it does (and that explains why I hate those giant tech-manuals)

if you hit me up on msn i can help explain what you need to do

I's say Visual Studio (2008) is your best choice. Easy to learn and fits your needs perfectly.

Install the program and just give it a go. Don't forget to install the latest .NET framework too, you'll need it.

For further help rely on google and MSDN library, it'll help you.

What kind of mod are you making with no programming experience? I would take the time first to start with a language. Once you know one… the others will come much easier. Spyware is right. VB is easy to work with and there is a ton of info on it all over the place. The msdn forum is awesome. You will get responses and sample code in very short amounts of time. I still get responses to threads that are over 9 months old. I can even give you some info on VB. Just hit me up if you need some help.

I also have a good bit of experience with VB and VB.Net so, if you need to PM me with any questions, that's fine.

Wow, thank you for all the quick responces, normally it takes about a day and a half to get one responce (other forums).

@Richo: I'll do that.

@Spy: Yeah, I've been looking into VB, may use that.

@Inzel: The mod is mainly Asset tweaking, with files called ODFs (Object Definition Files) that use a list of hardcoded parameters to define what it does and how it looks (I've been told its similar to VB, but not sure). The makers of Battlezone II (Pandemic/Activision) never released the source code, so we modders have to work with what we've got. It still has a very active modding community (bzuniverse.com and bz2md.com), and one of the Pandi developers is allowed to code and release game patches (Im trying to code a mod patcher, dont get confused). I dont think that my knowledge there would help with this patcher.

(Also, side note, I do mess around with a port for the old Doom games (I and II) called GZDoom, which allows a version of Actionscript to be used to interact with the level which seems to be similar to C++ or something)

@Zephyr: Will do, thanks!

Again, thank you all for your help so far, hopefully I can figure out how to do this before I head off to college :p