adaptronic_label-printer/BUILD_EXECUTABLE.md

Build Windows Executable (.exe)

Quick Start

Option 1: One Command (Recommended)

build_windows.bat

Option 2: Python Script

python build_exe.py

Option 3: Direct PyInstaller

pyinstaller LabelPrinter.spec

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Requirements

• Windows 10/11
• Python 3.10 - 3.13 (Python 3.14+ may have compatibility issues)
• Dependencies installed (see below)

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Step-by-Step Build Process

1. Install Python Dependencies

If not already installed:

pip install -r requirements_windows.txt

Or install manually:

pip install python-barcode pillow reportlab kivy==2.2.1 pyinstaller==6.1.0 pywin32 wmi watchdog svglib cairosvg

2. Build the Executable

Run the build script:

build_windows.bat

This will:

• ✅ Install/upgrade dependencies
• ✅ Clean old build artifacts
• ✅ Create LabelPrinter.exe in dist/ folder
• ⏱️ Takes 5-15 minutes

3. Test the Executable

cd dist
LabelPrinter.exe

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What Gets Included

The executable is self-contained and includes:

• ✅ All Python code
• ✅ All dependencies (Kivy, ReportLab, svglib, cairosvg, etc.)
• ✅ Auto-generates conf/ folder on first run
• ✅ Auto-generates pdf_backup/ and logs/ folders

On first run, the app automatically creates:

LabelPrinter.exe location/
├── conf/
│   ├── app.conf                    (default settings)
│   ├── label_template.svg          (default template)
│   ├── label_template_ok.svg       (OK labels - green)
│   └── label_template_nok.svg      (NOK labels - red)
├── pdf_backup/                     (generated PDFs)
└── logs/                           (print logs)

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Output

After successful build:

📁 dist/
   └── LabelPrinter.exe  (Single file, ~80-120 MB)

File size: 80-120 MB (includes Python runtime + all libraries)

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Distribution

To Deploy on Other Windows Machines:

Simply copy LabelPrinter.exe to the target machine!

The executable is 100% self-contained:

• ✅ No Python installation needed
• ✅ No dependencies needed
• ✅ Auto-creates all required folders on first run
• ✅ Generates default templates automatically

First run will create:

[wherever you put LabelPrinter.exe]/
├── LabelPrinter.exe               ← Copy just this file!
├── conf/                          ← Auto-generated on first run
│   ├── app.conf
│   ├── label_template.svg
│   ├── label_template_ok.svg
│   └── label_template_nok.svg
├── pdf_backup/                    ← Auto-generated
└── logs/                          ← Auto-generated

To customize templates on target machine:

1. Run LabelPrinter.exe once (generates conf folder)
2. Edit SVG files in the conf/ folder
3. Restart the application

Requirements on target machine:

• ✅ Windows 10/11
• ✅ Thermal printer configured (35mm x 25mm paper size)
• ⚠️ No other software required!

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Troubleshooting

Build Fails - Missing Dependencies

pip install --upgrade pip setuptools wheel
pip install -r requirements_windows.txt

Build Fails - PyInstaller Error

pip install --upgrade pyinstaller==6.1.0

Executable Won't Start

• Check Windows Defender didn't quarantine it
• Run as Administrator once to register
• Check Event Viewer for errors

Executable is Huge (>150 MB)

This is normal! It includes:

• Python runtime (~40 MB)
• Kivy framework (~30 MB)
• ReportLab, PIL, etc. (~20 MB)
• Your code + data (~10 MB)

First Run is Slow

• First launch takes 10-30 seconds (Kivy initialization)
• Subsequent launches are faster (~2-5 seconds)
• This is normal behavior

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Advanced Options

Build with Console (for debugging)

Edit build_windows.bat and remove --windowed:

pyinstaller label_printer_gui.py ^
    --onefile ^
    --name=LabelPrinter ^
    ...

Add Custom Icon

pyinstaller label_printer_gui.py ^
    --onefile ^
    --windowed ^
    --icon=icon.ico ^
    ...

Reduce File Size

Not recommended, but possible:

pyinstaller label_printer_gui.py ^
    --onefile ^
    --windowed ^
    --strip ^
    --exclude-module=tkinter ^
    --exclude-module=matplotlib ^
    ...

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What's Built

Source Files Compiled:

• label_printer_gui.py (Main GUI)
• print_label.py (Printing logic)
• print_label_pdf.py (PDF generation)

Data Files Included:

• conf/app.conf (Settings)
• conf/label_template.svg (Default template)
• conf/label_template_ok.svg (OK labels - green)
• conf/label_template_nok.svg (NOK labels - red)
• conf/accepted.png (Checkmark image)

Output Folders:

• pdf_backup/ - Stores generated PDFs
• logs/ - Stores print logs

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Build Times

• First build: 10-15 minutes (PyInstaller analyzes all dependencies)
• Rebuild: 5-10 minutes (cached analysis)
• Clean build: 10-15 minutes (removed cache)

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File Structure After Build

📁 Project Root/
├── 📄 label_printer_gui.py
├── 📄 print_label.py
├── 📄 print_label_pdf.py
├── 📄 build_windows.bat        ← Run this
├── 📄 build_exe.py
├── 📄 LabelPrinter.spec
│
├── 📁 dist/
│   ├── 📄 LabelPrinter.exe     ← Your executable!
│   ├── 📁 conf/
│   ├── 📁 pdf_backup/
│   └── 📁 logs/
│
├── 📁 build/                    (temp files, can delete)
└── 📁 conf/
    ├── app.conf
    ├── label_template.svg
    ├── label_template_ok.svg
    └── label_template_nok.svg

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Clean Build

To remove all build artifacts:

rmdir /s /q build
rmdir /s /q dist
del *.spec

Then rebuild:

build_windows.bat

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Testing

After building, test with:

1. Run the executable:

   dist\LabelPrinter.exe
   

2. Configure monitoring:

   • File: C:\Users\Public\Documents\check.txt

3. Test print:

   • Add to check.txt: COM-001;ART-123;SN-001;0;1
   • Should print 1 OK label

4. Test template switching:

   • COM-002;ART-456;SN-002;1;1 → NOK label (red)

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Support

If build fails, check:

1. Python version (3.10-3.13 required)
2. All dependencies installed
3. Windows 10/11 (not Windows 7/8)
4. Disk space (need ~500MB for build)
5. Antivirus not blocking PyInstaller