How to: Specify where Visual Studio copies the files
Applies to: 
Visual Studio 
Visual Studio for Mac
Note
This article applies to Visual Studio 2017. If you're looking for the latest Visual Studio documentation, see Visual Studio documentation. We recommend upgrading to the latest version of Visual Studio. Download it here
When you publish an application by using ClickOnce, the Publish Location property specifies the location where the application files and manifest are put. This can be a file path or the path to an FTP server.
You can specify the Publish Location property on the Publish page of the Project Designer, or by using the Publish Wizard. For more information, see How to: Publish a ClickOnce Application using the Publish Wizard.
Note
When you install more than one version of an application by using ClickOnce, the installation moves earlier versions of the application into a folder named Archive, in the publish location that you specify. Archiving earlier versions in this manner keeps the installation directory clear of folders from the earlier version.
To specify a publishing location
With a project selected in Solution Explorer, on the Project menu, click Properties.
Click the Publish tab.
In the Publish Location field, enter the publishing location by using one of the following formats:
To publish to a file share or disk path, enter the path by using either a UNC path (\\Server\ApplicationName) or a file path (C:\Deploy\ApplicationName).
To publish to an FTP server, enter the path using the format ftp://ftp.microsoft.com/<ApplicationName>.
Note that text must be present in the Publishing Location box in order for the Browse (...) button to work.