Wise Solutions WISE FOR WINDOWS INSTALLER 6 User Manual

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Wise for Windows Installer, Version 6.0

Notice

Trademarks

This documentation and the accompanying software are copyrighted materials. Making unauthorized copies is prohibited by law. No part of the software or documentation may be reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval

system or translated into any human or computer language without prior written permission of Wise Solutions, Inc. Wise Solutions, Inc. asserts its “Moral Right” to be identified as the author of this work, in all jurisdictions which recognize the “Moral Right.”

Unless otherwise provided by written agreement with Wise Solutions, Inc., this publication, and the software sold with this publication, are provided “as is” without warranty of any kind either express or implied, including but not limited to the implied warranties of merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose. The entire risk arising out of the use or performance of this publication and software remains with you. In no event will Wise Solutions, Inc., or any of its suppliers, be liable for any lost profits, lost savings, direct, incidental or indirect damages or other economic or consequential damages, even if Wise Solutions, Inc., or its suppliers, have been advised of the possibility of such damages. Wise Solutions, Inc. reserves the right to modify this document at any time without obligation to notify anyone. In no event shall Wise Solutions, Inc.’s or its suppliers’ liability under this agreement exceed the sum of any amounts paid hereunder by the customer to Wise or the supplier.

Wise Solutions, Inc. owns a number of registered and unregistered Trademarks and Service Marks (the “Marks”). These Marks are extremely valuable to Wise Solutions, Inc. and shall not be used by you, or any other person, without Wise

Solutions, Inc.’s express written permission. The Marks include, but are not necessarily limited to the following: Application Isolation Wizard™; ApplicationWatch™; ConflictManager®; ExpressBuild™; Installation Development Life Cycle™; InstallBuilder®; InstallMaker®; InstallManager®; InstallTailor™; MSI Debugger™; MSI Script™; PackageManager™; Preflight Deployment™; SetupCapture®; SmartMonitor™; SmartPatch®; Software Distribution Made Easy™; Software Installations Made Easy®; Visual MSIDiff™; Virtual Capture™; WebDeploy™; Wise Installation System®; Wise Package Studio®; Wise Software Repository™; Wise Solutions®; WiseScript™; WiseScript Express™; WiseUpdate®; WiseUser®; and the Wise Solutions logo.

In addition to Wise Solutions, Inc.’s Marks, some Wise Products may include Trademarks or Service Marks owned by other corporations. These other Marks include, but are not necessarily limited to Microsoft® Windows® and Microsoft® Visual Studio® .NET, which are registered Trademarks of Microsoft Corporation.

You shall not use any of the Trademarks or Service Marks of Wise Solutions, Inc., Microsoft Corporation, or any other entity, without the express written permission of such Trademark or Service Mark owner.

Wise Solutions, Inc.

47911 Halyard Drive; Plymouth, Michigan 48170 USA Phone: 734-456-2100 • Fax: 734-456-2456 • [email protected] • www.wise.com

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Contents

1 Welcome . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Documentation Roadmap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15

Getting Help and Product Support . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Getting Updates Over the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

2 Basics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Product Editions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

About Visual Studio .NET Integration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Using Installation Expert . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

About the Product Home Page. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Using the Task List. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Where are Installation Resources Stored?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Using the Enterprise Edition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

Downloading Redistributable Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

About Page Views. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Customizing Page Views . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Using the Current Feature Drop-Down List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Using the Current Release Drop-Down List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

Filtering the Task List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Finding Table Errors From the Task List. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

Adding User-Defined Tasks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31

Sharing Installation Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

About the Share Point Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

How Source Files Are Indexed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Generating Package Contents Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Generating Shared Resource Reports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Downloading Redistributables From the Wise Web Site or Product CD. . . . . . . 39

Downloading Redistributables From Other Vendors’ Web Sites . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

3 Setting Up . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Setting Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Setting General Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43

Setting .NET Assembly Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Setting Advertising Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

Setting Digital Signature Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48

Setting ExpressBuild Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Setting Installation Expert Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

Setting Merge Module Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 52

Activating Suppressed Prompts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Setting Repository Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Setting Source Control Options . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Setting the Default Target Platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Setting Visual Studio Options. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Setting Wildcard Groups . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

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Creating and Editing Installation Templates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Component Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

About Component Rules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Selecting a Component Rule Set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64

Using Component Rules to Align GUIDs in an Upgrade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Customizing Component Rules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66

Microsoft Best Practices Component Rule Set. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 68

One File Per Component Rule Set. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69

4 Working With Wise Installation Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71

Before You Create an Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 72

File Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 73

Project Files and Database Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74

Starting a New Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 75

Creating an Installation Within a Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76

Creating a Stand-alone Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 77

Creating a Device Driver Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

Options for New Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 79

Specifying the Target Platform in an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

What’s Different in a 64-Bit Installation?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 82

Entering Project Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Overview Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 84

Project Type Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Projects Page. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 85

Main Project Page. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 86

Project Outputs Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

How the Installation Integrates With the Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88

Scanning the Solution for New Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 89

Opening an Installation Package . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 90

Comparing Windows Installer Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 92

Saving an Installation as XML . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 93

Working With Installations in the Software Manager Database . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 94

Compiling, Testing, and Running An Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Compiling An Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95

Testing An Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

Running An Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96

5 Defining an Installation Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98

Project Summary Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 99

Product Details Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100

Adding Meta Data to the Software Manager Database. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 102

Incrementing the Version . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103

Setting the Default Installation Directory. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104

General Information Page. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105

Add/Remove Programs Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106

Features Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107

Strategies for Organizing Files Into Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 108

Adding a New Feature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

Configuring a Feature Using Its Drop-Down List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 110

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Configuring a Feature Using the Feature Details Dialog. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112

Using Conditions With Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Adding and Deleting Feature Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115

Managing Binary Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 117

Adding Binary Resources. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

Refreshing Binary Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 118

6 Assembling an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 120

Files or Web Files Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 121

Installation Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 122

Files or Web Files Page Icons. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Adding Files to an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 123

Adding Assembly Dependencies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 125

Adding Merge Modules Instead of Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 126

Adding Files From the Wise Software Repository . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Adding Contents of Directories to the Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

Adding Files From Outside the Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 129

Adding .NET Assemblies to the Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 130

Editing Settings for Automatic Updating . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 131

Removing a File From the Destination Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 132

Copying and Moving Files on the Destination Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Editing File Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134

How Self-Registration Information is Captured . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 142

Registry Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 144

Adding Registry Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 145

Removing Registry Entries From the Destination Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 146

Importing and Exporting Registry Entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Configuring General Registry Settings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 148

Setting Permissions for Registry Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Viewing Shared Registry Resources . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 150

Special Registry Keys . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 151

INI Files Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Creating and Editing .INI Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 152

Shortcuts Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Adding a Shortcut to an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154

Editing a Shortcut Configuration. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 155

Adding an Environment Variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157

Adding File Associations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

Determining Extension Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Adding Command Verbs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Selecting MIME Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 160

Services Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Adding a Service to the Destination Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161

Controlling Services on the Destination Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 162

Adding an ODBC Item . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 164

Setting ODBC Driver Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

Setting ODBC Translator Details. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 165

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7 Your Installation on the Destination Computer . . . . . . . . . . . . . 166

About System Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Setting a Requirement on the System Requirements Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . 167

Setting a Requirement by Creating a Launch Condition. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 168

Performing a System Search . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

Searching For Files or Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 170

Searching For Items in .INI Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 172

Searching For a Registry Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 174

Searching For a Previously-Installed Component . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Setting Features for Installation Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177

8 Organizing Your Installation Into Releases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 179

About Releases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Creating a New Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 180

Outputting a Multiple-Language Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 182

Customizing a Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Customizing Properties for a Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 183

Customizing Summary Items for a Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

Defining a Feature Set for a Release. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 184

Sharing Settings Between Releases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Example: Creating a Demo Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185

Setting Build Options for a Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 187

Adding Prerequisites to a Release . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 189

Editing the WiseScript that Creates the Installation .EXE. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191

Creating a Clean Build . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 193

Creating Web-Based Installations With WebDeploy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 195

The WebDeploy Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

Tips for Creating an Efficient WebDeploy Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197

Creating a WebDeploy Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 198

Uploading a WebDeploy Installation to the Web . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 199

Setting Up Media for Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Adding a Media Item. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 202

Adding a Media Destination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 204

Including Features and Components in Media Items . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Sharing Media Settings Between Releases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 206

Example: Spanning an Installation Across Media and Sharing Media Size

Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 207

9 Advanced Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 209

About Command Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210

Command Line Options For WFWI.EXE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 210

Adding a Digital Signature to Your Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 212

Creating an Installation for Microsoft SMS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 213

Creating a .NET Installation When You Have the .NET Framework . . . . . . . . . . . 214

Creating a .NET Installation Without the .NET Framework. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 215

About Web Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Features That Support Web Installations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 217

Creating a Web Site . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 219

Creating a Virtual Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 220

Creating a New Web Folder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221

Page 7

Setting Installation Options for a Web Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 222

Setting Details for Web Sites, Virtual Directories, and Web Folders. . . . . . . . 224

Configuring a Microsoft SQL Server During Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 226

Tips on Using the SQL Server Scripts Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Setting SQL Connection Strings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 227

Specifying SQL Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 228

Specifying Replacements in SQL Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 229

Importing .NET Framework Security Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 230

MTS/COM+ Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

Adding an MTS or COM+ Application. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 232

10 Mobile Devices. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 234

Mobile Devices Page Compared to Mobile Device Package Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . 235

About the Mobile Devices Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 236

About Mobile Device Package Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 237

Pocket PC and Smartphone Installations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238

How a Pocket PC or Smartphone Installation Works . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 238

Processor and Platform Support for Pocket PC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Creating a Pocket PC or Smartphone Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

Compiling a Pocket PC or Smartphone Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 240

Setting Application Information for a Mobile Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241

Setting Platform Support for a Mobile Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 242

Setting Platform Information for a Mobile Device. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 244

Setting Files for a Mobile Device . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 245

Editing Details for Mobile Device Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 246

Setting Registry for a Mobile Device. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 248

Setting Shortcuts for a Mobile Device. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 250

Setting Desktop Computer Details for a Mobile Device Installation. . . . . . . . . . . 251

Palm OS Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 252

11 Translating an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 254

About the Languages Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 255

Creating a Translated .MSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 256

Creating a Language Transform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 257

Sharing Language Settings Between Releases . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 258

Removing a Language from an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259

Defining and Translating Into Additional Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

About the New Language Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 260

Defining a New Language and Exporting All Text for Translation . . . . . . . . . 261

Importing All Text Strings After Translation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 262

Importing All Text Strings With the New Language Wizard . . . . . . . . . . . . . 263

Translating Text Strings You’ve Added or Changed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Translating Text Strings by Exporting to a File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 265

Translating Text Directly Without Exporting It . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 267

Resizing Dialog Controls After Translation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 270

About the Language Menu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

Changing the Default Language . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 271

About the Default Release Language. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 273

About the Language Strings Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274

Page 8

Keeping Track of Changed Text Strings. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 274

What Pre-Translated Languages Are Available? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 276

Language IDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 277

12 Distributing an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 279

Package Distribution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Copying an Installation to the Share Point Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 280

Copying an Installation to a Network Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

Copying an Installation to an FTP Server. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 282

Performing an Administrative Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 283

Copying an Installation to Removable Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 284

WiseUpdate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 286

The WiseUpdate Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 287

Using WiseUpdate in an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 288

Options for Running WiseUpdate Client . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 293

WiseUpdate Tips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 294

Troubleshooting WiseUpdate . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 295

13 Upgrading Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 296

Preparing for Software Updates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

Archive the Shipping Version of the .MSI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

Determine the Form of the Update . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 297

Determine the Product Code and Product Version. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298

Check the Installation With UpgradeSync . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 298

UpgradeSync. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300

Using UpgradeSync . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 300

Patches . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 302

About Patch Sequencing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303

Creating a Patch File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 304

Upgrades . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311

Creating an Upgrade. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 311

14 Working With Source Paths. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 314

Using Source Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 315

Adding an Installation to Source Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 316

Adding Files to an Installation in Source Control. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 317

Checking Files Into Source Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318

Checking Files Out from Source Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 318

Getting Latest Version of Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319

Removing Files from Source Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319

Undoing the Check Out of Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 319

Showing History of the Installation File . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320

Showing the Differences Between Installation Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 320

Comparing the Current Installation to the Latest in Source Control. . . . . . . . 321

About Path Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Turning Path Variable Substitution On and Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 322

Creating a User-Defined Path Variable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Creating a Path Variable Based on an Environment Variable . . . . . . . . . . . . 323

Creating a Path Variable Based on a Registry Value . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 324

Changing Source Paths in an Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

Page 9

Changing Source Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 325

Converting to Relative Source File Paths . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 326

Converting to UNC-Based Source File Paths. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 327

Changing the Source Directory Dynamically During Compile . . . . . . . . . . . . 327

15 Merge Modules and Transforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 329

About Merge Modules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 330

Available Tabs and Pages in Merge Modules. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 331

Creating a Merge Module As a New Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 334

Creating a Merge Module Within a Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 336

Creating a Merge Module From Existing Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 337

Creating a Configurable Merge Module . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 338

About the Merge Modules Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 344

About Transforms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348

Creating a Transform Based on an Existing .MSI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 348

Setting Transform Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349

Applying a Transform to an Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 350

Multiple Instance Installations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 351

16 Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 354

ApplicationWatch . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 355

Convert InstallShield Professional . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 356

Convert SMS Installer or WiseScript Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 358

Import Visual Studio Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 360

Importing an Installation From a Visual Studio Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 361

Importing an Installation From a Visual Basic Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 362

MSI to WSI Conversion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365

Converting an .MSI to a .WSI File. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 365

Specifying Merge Module Source Directories . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 366

Specifying File Source Directories. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 367

Package Validation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 370

Validating a Package. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 370

Customizing Validation Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 372

Predefined Validation Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 378

17 Setup Editor. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 380

About Setup Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 381

Product Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

Specifying Summary Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383

Features Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 385

Assigning a Component to a Feature. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 386

Modules Icon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387

Advertising Icon. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 387

Creating a Folder in Setup Editor . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388

Creating Duplicate File Entries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 388

Components Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 390

Component Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391

Adding and Editing a Component . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 391

Moving Items Between Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394

About the Key Path. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 394

Page 10

Isolating a .DLL With an .EXE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395

Adding Published Components . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395

Tables Tab. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 397

Creating a New Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 398

Creating a New Row in a Table. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399

Editing Existing Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 399

Searching for Table Data. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400

Finding Validation Errors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 400

Editing Binary Data in the Icon Table . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 401

About Wise Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 402

18 Using Conditions and Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 405

Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406

Where Can You Use Conditions?. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 406

Condition Guidelines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 407

Examples of Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 408

WiseFixConditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409

Creating Conditions With Condition Builder . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 409

Properties. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414

How Do You Use Properties? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 414

Creating a New Property . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 415

Build Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 416

INI File Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 420

Runtime Properties . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 422

19 Working With Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 424

About Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425

About the Wizard Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425

Using the Dialogs Page. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 428

Changing the Theme of Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

Adding and Editing Dialog Themes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 429

Importing Text into License and Readme Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 430

About the Dialogs Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Adding Controls to Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 431

Editing Dialog Details . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 433

Creating a New Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 434

About Dialog Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435

Types of Dialog Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 435

Editing Dialog Controls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 436

Organizing and Aligning Controls on Dialogs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 442

About Billboards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444

Adding Billboards to a Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 444

Obtaining Logon Information From a Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447

Adding the Logon Information Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 447

About the SQL Connection Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449

Adding the SQL Connection Dialog to an Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449

Editing Additional SQL Connection Dialogs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 450

Adding the Custom Property Dialog . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 452

Page 11

20 OLE Automation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 453

About OLE Automation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 454

About Macro Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 455

Creating, Editing, and Running a Macro. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 455

Events That Can Trigger a Macro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457

About the Macro Editor Window. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 458

OLE Automation Function Reference. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460

AddComPlusApp . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460

AddComPlusApp2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 460

AddComponent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461

AddComponentToFeature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 461

AddFeature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 462

AddFile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 462

AddFileEx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 463

AddMergeModule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464

AddRegistryValue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 464

AddRegistryValueEx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465

AddShortcut . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465

AddShortcutEx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 466

AddVirtualDirectory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 467

AddWildcard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 468

Compile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469

CreatePatch. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469

DeleteFeature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 469

EnableExceptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470

EnableRelease . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470

GenerateGuid . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470

GetComponentDirectory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470

GetLastError . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 470

GetProperty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471

New . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471

NewEx . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471

Open . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 471

QueryDisplayValidation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472

QueryFixValidation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472

RunScriptMacro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472

Save . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 472

SetComponentGuid. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473

SetComponentKeyPath . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473

SetFileSelfRegister . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 473

SetMediaOption . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474

SetProperty . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 474

SetRestartIIS. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475

SetSilent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475

UseScriptFile . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 475

OLE Automation Object Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 476

WColumn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 476

WColumnDef . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477

WColumnDefs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477

WColumns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477

WFWI.Document . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477

Page 12

WRow . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 477

WRows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 478

WTable . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479

WTables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 479

Visual Basic Functions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 480

21 Debugger for Windows Installer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 481

About the Debugger. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482

The Debugger Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 482

Running the Debugger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484

Setting and Clearing Debugger Breakpoints. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 484

Evaluating Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485

Working With Temporary Tables and Columns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485

Searching For Text in Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 485

22 Using MSI Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 486

The MSI Script Window . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 487

About MSI Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488

About Installation Modes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 488

About Installation Sequences. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 490

Finding Text in MSI Script . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 491

Editing Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 492

Types of Actions in MSI Script Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 492

About the Standard and Custom Tabs. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 492

Adding and Editing Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493

Commenting Out Script Lines . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 493

Calling WiseScripts with Custom Actions. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 494

WiseScript Editing Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 494

Examples of WiseScripts You Run From an .MSI. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 495

Guidelines for Using Custom Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 499

Guidelines for Custom Action Location . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 499

Guidelines for Custom Action Conditions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 500

Guidelines for Nested Installation Custom Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 501

Guidelines for Calling VBScripts and JScripts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502

Guidelines for Calling .DLLs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 502

Launching a Custom Action from a Dialog. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 504

Custom Actions That Are Added Automatically . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 505

Troubleshooting Custom Actions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 506

23 Custom Action Reference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 507

Call Custom DLL From Destination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 507

Call Custom DLL From Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 508

Call Custom DLL From Installed Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 509

Configuring .DLL Parameter Settings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 510

Call DLL From Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 510

Call DLL From Installed Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 511

Call JScript From Embedded Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512

Call JScript From Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 512

Call JScript From Installed Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 513

Call JScript From Property . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 514

Page 13

Call VBScript From Embedded Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 514

Call VBScript From Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 515

Call VBScript From Installed Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516

Call VBScript From Property. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 516

Display Message. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 517

Download File From Internet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518

End Statement. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 518

Execute Program From Destination. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 519

Execute Program From Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 519

Execute Program From Installed Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520

Execute Program From Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 520

If Statement . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521

Install MSI From Destination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 521

Install MSI From Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 522

Install MSI From Relative Path . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 523

Launch Web Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 524

Open Document From Installed Files. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 524

Pause Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525

Post Data to HTTP Server . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 525

Remark . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 526

Run WiseScript From Destination . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 526

Run WiseScript From Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 527

Run WiseScript From Installed Files . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 528

Set Directory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 529

Set Feature State . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530

Set Property . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 530

Terminate Installation. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 531

Using the Custom Action Location Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 532

Using the Custom Action Location Tab for Merge Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 533

Using the Custom Action Properties Tab . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 534

24 Windows Installer and .NET Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 537

About Microsoft Windows Installer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 538

Frequently Asked Questions About Microsoft Windows Installer . . . . . . . . . . 538

Working With Components and Features . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 540

About GUIDs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 540

About Microsoft .NET Technology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 541

Frequently Asked Questions About Microsoft .NET . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 541

Requirements for Creating a .NET Installation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 543

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 545

Page 14

Chapter 1

Welcome

Wise for Windows Installer is an installation development system for creating and editing Windows® Installer (.MSI) installation packages. It is a complete and userfriendly front end for generating Windows Installer database files, which are executed by the Windows Installer engine. With Wise for Windows Installer, you can create installations that are compliant with Microsoft’s Windows 2000 logo program. Use Wise for Windows Installer to edit and refine installations that you’ve converted from other formats, and use it to import development projects.

Through its Visual Studio integrated editor, Wise for Windows Installer offers a complete, seamless integration of the entire installation authoring environment directly into the Microsoft® Visual Studio® .NET development environment. This tight integration allows for automatic synchronization of your development project with your installation, saving you time and significantly improving the quality of your installations.

Microsoft® Windows® Installer is a Microsoft technology that provides a standard installation engine that can be used for the installation of any 32-bit or 64-bit Windows software product. It resides on the destination computer and performs the installation of applications. Windows Installer technology provides developers with features not currently available in traditional installation-building products.

Topics include:

! Documentation Roadmap.

! Getting Help and Product Support.

! How to Check Online Help.

! Getting Updates Over the Web.

Page 15

Documentation Roadmap

The Wise for Windows Installer documentation assumes that you are proficient in the use of the Windows operating system. If you need help using the operating system, consult its user documentation.

Use the following sources of information to learn the product.

Online Help

The online help contains detailed technical information and step-by-step instructions for performing common tasks. For details on using help, see Check Online Help on page 16.

Reference Manual

All the material in the online help is also available in .PDF-format reference manuals. Reference manual .PDFs are provided for Wise for Windows Installer and WiseScript Express. The Enterprise Edition also includes a Software Manager reference manual. To access the .PDF reference manuals, select Help menu > Reference Manual from within each product. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help > Reference Manual.)

Getting Started Guide

The printed Getting Started Guide contains system requirements, installation instructions, and a tutorial. To access a .PDF version of the Getting Started Guide, select Help menu > Getting Started. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help > Getting Started.)

Documentation Roadmap

Windows Installer SDK Help

You can get technical details about Windows Installer from its own help system, which is written by Microsoft for a developer audience. In Wise for Windows Installer, select Help menu > Windows Installer SDK Help. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help > Windows Installer SDK Help. Windows Installer SDK help topics are also available within the Visual Studio .NET help collection.)

Release Notes

A release notes document, in .HTM format, covers new features, enhancements, bug fixes, and known issues for the current version of this product. It also contains links to release notes for other versions. Access the release notes in the following ways:

! Browse the product CD.

! Select Help menu > Release Notes. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help >

Release Notes.)

! If you are a registered user, visit http://support.wise.com to enter the Support

Center, and then click the Downloads link.

Page 16

Getting Help and Product Support

Wise Solutions offers many resources to help you use our products. You can search the product help or reference manual .PDF for answers, or you can use one of the many support resources available to you as a registered Wise Solutions customer.

Check Online Help

You can access help in the following ways:

! To display context-sensitive help for the active page or dialog, press F1.

! To select a help topic from a table of contents, index, or search, select Help menu >

Help Topics. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help > Help Topics.)

Select other commands from the Help menu to view the Windows Installer SDK Help, to view the .PDF-format reference manual or getting started guide, to view Wise Solutions resources on the Web, or to check for upgrades.

If you need help and cannot find the answer in the documentation, explore our technical support options below.

Use the Wise Solutions Technical Support Center

Registered Wise Solutions customers can use the Technical Support Center, located at

www.wise.com/support.asp, to submit online support requests, register products,

manage customer information, download updates, or search the Knowledgebase. The Knowledgebase contains how-to procedures, answers to common support questions, and workarounds.

Getting Help and Product Support

Visit Our Newsgroups

Visit Wise Solutions Newsgroups at www.altiris.com/support/forum/default.asp. Newsgroup postings by your peers contain answers, tips, analysis, and other comments. Contribute your own expertise to help others.

Subscribe to TechInfo

TechInfo is a free e-mail newsletter that contains technical tips, product updates, and other important technical information. To subscribe or to read back issues, visit

www.wise.com/techinfo.asp.

Ask Our Support Team

If you can’t find an answer in our online resources, you can obtain support by phone or online at www.wise.com/support.asp. Wise Solutions offers flexible payment options to meet your support needs. For additional details about our support services, visit

www.wise.com/supportoptions.asp or call 1-734-456-2600.

Before you contact technical support, obtain the following:

! Serial number and product version, which you can find by selecting Help menu >

About.

! Operating system version and service pack version if applicable.

! A description of what you do before the problem occurs.

! The text of any error messages that appear.

! Your name, company name, and how to contact you.

! Contract number or payment information, if applicable.

Page 17

Getting Help and Product Support

Take Advantage of our Consulting and Training Services

When you have a challenging repackaging or installation problem, turn to Wise Solutions. Our consultants can help with script writing, repackaging, installation development, and other solutions that are fully customizable to fit your project and budget. Visit www.wise.com/consulting.asp for details.

To upgrade your installation and packaging skills, consider Wise Solutions training. Our certified instructors draw from practical experience to provide relevant course content. Visit www.wise.com/training.asp for course descriptions and schedules.

Contact Wise Solutions Sales

Contact Wise Solutions’ Sales department to purchase additional products, upgrades,

support services, or consulting and training services.

U.S.: 1-800-554-8565

Europe/Netherlands: +31 70 392 72 20

Other International: 734-456-2100 (in U.S.)

Web Site: www.wise.com/ordercentermain.asp

Page 18

Getting Updates Over the Web

You can get the latest version of Wise for Windows Installer using your active Internet connection. Minor point releases (x.01, x.02, and so on) are generally free, while major number releases generally incur an upgrade fee. Point releases generally contain maintenance updates such as bug fixes and minor feature additions.

To check for updates:

1. Connect to the Internet.

2. In Wise for Windows Installer, select Help menu > Check for Updates.

A confirmation prompt appears, then you are connected to the Wise Solutions Web site.

• If you have not registered this product, follow the screen prompts to create a user account with Wise and register. You will need a valid product serial number. After you complete the registration, enter the Wise Technical Support Center and click the Downloads link.

• If you have registered this product, you are connected to the Downloads page.

3. Follow the instructions on the Web page to download the appropriate update.

Getting Updates Over the Web

Note

Wise for Windows Installer can remind you to check for updates. Select an option in the Check for Updates drop-down list in Wise Options. This sets the frequency at which you will be reminded to check for updates.

Page 19

Chapter 2

Basics

Read this overview before creating your first installation. It contains information on getting started with Wise for Windows Installer.

Topics include:

! Product Editions.

! About Visual Studio .NET Integration.

! Using Installation Expert.

! About the Product Home Page.

! Using the Task List.

! Where are Installation Resources Stored?

! Using the Enterprise Edition.

! Downloading Redistributable Files such as merge modules and Windows Installer and

.NET runtimes.

Page 20

Product Editions

Wise for Windows Installer is available in 3 editions, each designed to fulfill the needs of a particular type of user. The edition you purchase determines what features are available to you.

! Enterprise Edition is a Windows Installer® and .NET installation authoring tool

supporting organizations that develop multiple applications that share common resources. It helps professional developers create installations that adhere to their organization’s standards, thereby decreasing the risk of deployment errors.

! Professional Edition is a Windows Installer® and .NET installation authoring tool for

professional software developers who want to create installations for the next generation of applications, including desktop, server, Web, and mobile devices.

! Standard Edition is a Windows Installer® and .NET installation authoring tool for

professional software developers who want basic but robust support for creating Windows Installer® and .NET installations.

The following table, which does not include all features, summarizes the differences between each edition. If a feature is not listed, it is included in all product editions. For a more comprehensive list of features, visit the Products section of the Wise Solutions Web site (www.wise.com). For new features and enhancements in the current release, see the Release Notes, available from the Help menu. (In Visual Studio: select Help menu > Wise Help.)

Product Editions

Feature Std Pro Ent

General

Specify the target platform for an installation X X

Create configurable merge modules XX

Macro Editor XX

OLE Automation XX

User-defined tasks X

Use merge modules from the Software Manager database X

Add meta data to the Software Manager database X

Enable the Logon Information dialog to configure server software after installation to run under a particular user

Enable the SQL Connection dialog to generate a valid connection string X X

Enable the Custom Property dialog to gather data from the end user during installation X X

ExpressBuild (distributed compiles) XX

Debugger for Windows Installer XX

Package Contents Reports X

WiseScript Express XXX

Wise Options

Repository options X

Sharing Installation Resources

Open an installation package from the Wise Software Repository X

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Product Editions

Feature Std Pro Ent

Share installation resources in the share point directory X

Distribute to the share point directory X

View and use resources shared by other applications X

Shared Resource Reports in Wise for Windows Installer X

Installation Expert Pages

.NET Framework Security page XX

Clean Build page XX

Mobile Devices page XX

MTS/COM+ page XX

SQL Server Scripts page XX

Web Files page, ability to edit .XML files X X

WebDeploy page XX

WiseUpdate page XX

Tools

Patch Creation and patch support X X X

Software Manager X

Upgrade Sync XXX

Package Validation

Turn individual rules on and off XX

Create a new validation module (.CUB file) X

Create new validation rules X

Page 22

About Visual Studio .NET Integration

You can use Wise for Windows Installer from within Visual Studio .NET. The Visual Studio integrated editor lets you create all the same installation file types that you create in the stand-alone Wise editor. The Wise editor and Visual Studio integrated editor are different interfaces for the same product; they share the same preferences, recently-used file lists, dialog templates, themes, and installation templates. (The Visual Studio integrated editor was formerly sold separately as Wise for Visual Studio .NET.)

There are several differences between the Wise editor and the Visual Studio integrated editor that are inherent in the Visual Studio .NET development environment.

Examples:

! In the Visual Studio integrated editor, you have different choices about how to start a

new project, and you can set source paths to update automatically according to Visual Studio’s build configuration.

! In the Visual Studio integrated editor, installations synchronize automatically with the

other projects in the solution. Example: adding .EXEs, .DLLs, .OCXs, and assemblies to the solution adds them to the installation.

! Installation meta data fields (examples: application name, version, manufacturer,

and default directory) are populated using data from the Visual Studio .NET solution.

When you double-click an installation file in Windows Explorer, you are prompted to select which editor to open the file in. You can set an option on this dialog to always open that file in a specific editor.

If you create an installation project in the Visual Studio integrated editor, and then uninstall Microsoft Visual Studio .NET, you can continue working on the installation project in the Wise editor. However, if you right-click a .WSI or .MSI, an option still exists to edit in the Visual Studio integrated editor, which is no longer possible. Initiate a repair on Wise for Windows Installer to remove options that have to do with the Visual Studio integrated editor.

About Visual Studio .NET Integration

Page 23

Using Installation Expert

To access Installation Expert, click Installation Expert at the lower left of the Wise for Windows Installer main window.

Page Views

Using Installation Expert

Page Groups

Page Area

View Navigation

Testing and Distribution

Page Views

Use the Page Views drop-down list to select a page view, which is a set of Installation Expert page groups and pages. See About Page Views on page 24 and Customizing Page

Views on page 25.

Page Groups

When you select a page view, its pages are organized into page groups. Click the group name to expand or collapse its pages. Click a page name to display that page.

Page Area

When you click a page name in a page group, this area displays the page’s options. Each page lets you define a specific aspect of the installation. (Examples: On the Files page, you define what files are included in the installation. On the Registry page, you define what registry keys and values are created on the destination computer.) Complete just the pages that are pertinent to your particular installation, in any order. If required information is missing, Wise for Windows Installer alerts you to the problem during compile.

To display help for the current page, press F1. To return an Installation Expert page to its last saved state, select Edit menu > Reset Page.

View Navigation

Click these tabs to change views. (In Visual Studio: these are buttons instead of tabs.)

Page 24

Testing and Distribution

Compile, Test, Debug, and Run buttons test and compile the installation. The Distribute button copies the installation package to various locations, such as an FTP site or network directory. It also performs administrative installations. (In Visual Studio: These buttons are not available, but the same functionality is available through menu commands.)

About Page Views

A page view is a set of Installation Expert page groups and pages that you select from the Page Views drop-down list. Select a page view to display only specific page groups and pages. There are 3 types of page views:

! Predefined page views that display the groups and pages most frequently used for a

particular type of installation. The All page view displays all page groups and pages. The Merge Module page view appears for all merge modules. You cannot edit or delete predefined page views.

! Custom page views that you create to meet your specific needs. See Customizing

Page Views on page 25.

! Page views that are created when you create an installation template. You cannot

delete these page views. See Creating and Editing Installation Templates on page 60.

The page views are arranged alphabetically in the Page Views drop-down list with the exception of the All page view, which is always first. The list also includes <New View...> and <Customize Page Views...>, which are at the end of the list and are used to create or customize page views.

Using Installation Expert

Predefined Templates and Page Views

Most predefined installation templates have an associated page view. When you create a new installation by using one of these templates, the page view that is associated with that template becomes the default page view of the installation. When you open the installation, this page view appears in the Page Views drop-down list. You can select a different page view from the list at any time (with the exception of the Merge Module page view, which can only be used with merge modules). When you select a different page view, it changes the pages displayed in Installation Expert but does not change the installation type. If you change the page view and save the installation, this new page view displays the next time you open the installation, unless you clear the Display the page view associated with a project when a project is opened checkbox in Wise Options.

Custom Templates and Page Views

When you create an installation template, a page view is created with the same name and is listed in the Page Views drop-down list. For details on creating custom templates, see Creating and Editing Installation Templates on page 60. However, when you use a template to create an installation, the default page view is the page view that was displayed when the template was created. If the template’s default page view is a custom page view, you can customize it. See Customizing Page Views on page 25.

(Enterprise Edition only.) You can share page views that are associated with an installation template because the page view is stored in the template, which is located in the share point directory.

Page 25

Which Page View Appears?

! The Display the page view associated with a project when a project is

opened checkbox in Wise Options determines what page view appears. If you clear

this checkbox, the page view in Installation Expert does not change when you open a project regardless of its associated page view. See Setting Installation Expert

Options on page 51.

! The All page view is used when you open an installation file that does not have an

associated page view. An .MSI does not have an associated page view.

Customizing Page Views

You can create customized Installation Expert page views that display only the page groups and pages that you use most often. You can customize the page view of custom installation templates or create customized page views that are not associated with a template. You cannot customize the predefined page views, but you can make a copy of a predefined page view and then customize it.

When you customize a page view, you can specify how many page groups appear, what the group names are, and what pages appear under each group.

Using Installation Expert

Buttons to edit page groups and pages are disabled when a predefined page view is selected in Page View Name.

These pages appear under the group selected in Page Groups.

The page groups appear on the left side of Installation Expert.

To create a page view:

1. From the Page Views drop-down list in Installation Expert, select <New View...>.

The Enter Name dialog appears.

2. Enter a name for the page view.

To create an access key for the name, type & before a letter in the name. The page view access keys appear only in the page group’s right-click menu accessed by using the context menu key (the key next to the right Ctrl key).

3. Click OK.

On the Customized Page Views dialog, the new page view is selected in Page View Name, but it has no page groups or page names.

4. To copy the page groups and pages of an existing page view:

• Click Copy View. The Copy View dialog appears.

• Select the page view to copy and click OK.

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You can now customize the page view by changing its page groups and pages.

To customize a page view:

1. From the Page Views drop-down list in Installation Expert, select <Customize Page Views...>.

The Customize Page Views dialog appears.

2. Select the page view from Page View Name, and do any of the following:

• To add a new page group, click the Page Groups Add button and enter a name.

• To rename a page group, select the page group and click Rename.

• To add a page to a page group, select the page group and click the Add button to

the right of Page Names. In the Select Pages to Add dialog, select one or more pages and click OK.

• To delete a page group or a page name, select it and click its Delete button.

3. Click OK on the Customize Page Views dialog.

To delete a page view, select it from Page View Name and click the top Delete button.

Using the Current Feature Drop-Down List

The Current Feature drop-down list appears on pages in the Feature Details page group. When it appears, you can set options on a per-feature or per-condition basis. You add features and conditions on the Features page, then select a feature from Current Feature before setting options on other pages.

Using Installation Expert

Example: Suppose you have 3 features, and each feature requires different registry entries. On the Registry page, you select the first feature from Current Feature, create its registry entries, select the second feature in the list, create its registry entries, and so on. Follow the same steps on the Files or Web Files page: select a feature from Current Feature, then add files for that feature.

During installation, files, registry entries, and other system changes are installed only if the feature they belong to is installed. The same applies to conditions; add files, registry entries, and other changes to a condition, and during installation, those files and registry entries are installed only if the condition is true and the feature is installed.

The All Features (Modify/Delete only) option in Current Feature displays information for all features at once. (Example: On the Files page this option displays all folders and files for all features.) Add and New buttons are disabled while all features are displayed; you must select a single feature to add items.

On some pages, Current Feature also contains numbers in parentheses, which represents the number of that page’s items (files or registry keys) that are assigned to each feature or condition.

Page 27

Using the Current Release Drop-Down List

The Current Release drop-down list appears on pages in the Release Definition page group.

A release is a special version of your application. Example: a 30-day evaluation release for evaluators. Use Current Release to configure separate settings, media, and language options for each release.

Using Installation Expert

Page 28

About the Product Home Page

The Product Home page provides information about your installation of Wise for Windows Installer, quick access to areas of the current installation, and access to Wise Solutions resources on the Web.

The Product Home page appears by default when you start Wise for Windows Installer. To prevent the Home page from appearing by default, clear Display Home page at startup on Wise Options > General tab. To go to the Product Home page, click Home at the lower left of the Wise for Windows Installer main window.

Two Product Home pages are available:

! A static page that is installed with Wise for Windows Installer. This appears if you do

not have an Internet connection, or if you disable the dynamic Home page.

! A dynamic page that is downloaded from the Wise Solutions Web site if you are

connected to the Internet when you start Wise for Windows Installer. To prevent a dynamic page from being downloaded from the Internet, mark Don’t get Home page from Internet on Wise Options > General tab.

The contents of the page vary depending on the edition of Wise for Windows Installer that you are using. Typical contents are:

! List of most recently used installation files.

! Shortcut links for creating a new installation project or opening an existing one.

About the Product Home Page

Page 29

Using the Task List

When Wise for Windows Installer encounters installation issues that could cause problems, it displays them in the Task List. You can manually display or hide the Task List from the View menu.

The Task List gathers all installation issues into one place, and makes it easy to analyze their causes. If the issue is caused by an error in a table, you can quickly jump from the Task List to the row in the table that caused the error. See Finding Table Errors From the

Task List on page 30.

When you resolve the issue that corresponds to a task, the task is deleted the next time you run the procedure that generated the task. Example: If a task was added to the Task List because of a compile error and you resolve that error, the next time you compile the installation that task is removed from the list.

How Tasks are Added to the Task List

! Save or Compile

If errors occur when you save or compile the installation, the errors are displayed in the Task List.

! Package Validation

When you run Package Validation, validation issues appear in the View / Correct dialog. If you mark the Add to Task List checkbox on the View / Correct dialog, each issue becomes a task in the Task List when you click Finish. If Package Validation encounters save or compile errors, the package validation process ends and the errors are added to the Task List. See Package Validation on page 370.

! Check Tables

When you check tables, the installation is searched for component and table errors and results are placed in the Task List. To check tables, select Setup Editor > Tables tab, right-click in the left pane and select Check Tables. See Finding Validation Errors on page 400.

! User-Defined

In the Enterprise Edition, you can add user-defined tasks to the task list. See Adding

User-Defined Tasks on page 31. (Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

! Meta Data

In the Enterprise Edition, when you create an .MSI or .WSI, a task is added to remind you to add the package meta data to the Software Manager database by filling in the Application and Package fields on the Product Details page.

Using the Task List

Note

When you close an installation, all tasks, except user-defined tasks, are removed from the Task List. (In the Visual Studio integrated editor, user-defined tasks are not available.)

Task List Icons

The following icons help you quickly identify the types of tasks:

An error that will cause incorrect behavior and must be fixed.

Page 30

Operations You Can Perform in the Task List

! Filter tasks by type. See Filtering the Task List.

! Find table errors. See Finding Table Errors From the Task List on page 30.

! Sort a Task List’s column by clicking its header.

! Copy a task’s description by right-clicking its description.

! Delete a task by right-clicking its description.

Filtering the Task List

1. Right-click in the Task List and select Show Tasks, then select a filter. (In Visual Studio: right-click in the Visual Studio .NET Task List and select Show Tasks.)

• Save/Compile

(In Visual Studio: this is called Build Errors.) Tasks that correspond to errors generated when you save or compile.

•Validation

Tasks that correspond to issues generated during Package Validation.

• Component

Tasks that correspond to component errors generated when you check tables. For information on how to check tables, see Using the Task List on page 29.

•Table

Tasks that correspond to table validation errors generated when you check tables. For information on how to check tables, see Using the Task List on page 29.

•User-Defined

Tasks that you have created. (Enterprise Edition only).

When you set a filter, it is in effect until you change it. However, when you encounter installation issues, the filter is reset to All so installation issues can be displayed.

Using the Task List

Validation issues found by Package Validation. See Validating a

Package on page 370.

A task you created. In the Enterprise Edition, this icon also appears with a task that reminds you to add the package meta data to the Software Manager database.

Finding Table Errors From the Task List

If a task is associated with a table, you can access that table directly from the Task List, which helps you discover the problem that caused the issue.

Example: If a source file for the installation was moved or deleted at its source, a WiseSourcePath table error appears during compile. When you double-click this task, the WiseSourcePath table appears in Setup Editor, and the row in the table that is the cause of the problem is highlighted. Use the source path information in the row to ascertain and resolve the problem.

Page 31

Caution

Deleting, adding, or editing table data directly is not recommended unless you are an experienced Windows Installer developer with a clear understanding of Windows Installer database technology. Editing table data might result in unexpected, undesirable results, including damage to the installation. Wise Solutions cannot provide technical support for problems arising from table editing.

To find table errors from the Task List:

If the task has a table listed in the Table column, double-click the task. The table is displayed in Setup Editor > Tables tab, and the row in the table associated with the task is highlighted. (In Visual Studio: a table is displayed only if a table is associated with the task.)

If you need more information, check the task’s description or press F1 to display the help topic for the selected table in the Windows Installer SDK Help.

Adding User-Defined Tasks

" Enterprise edition only. Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.

Using the Task List

You can add tasks to the Task List. Example: Add user-defined tasks to define work that must be completed on the installation. Tasks you add to the Task List are saved with the installation. You can only add user-defined tasks to a .WSI; you cannot add them to an .MSI.

1. On the first line of the Task List, click Click here to add a new item twice and type the task.

If Click here to add a new item does not appear in the Task List, save the installation file and it will appear.

2. Click anywhere outside the box that contains the new task.

The task is added to the Task List and appears in the Description column. Userdefined tasks do not use the Tables column.

Also see Using the Task List on page 29.

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Where are Installation Resources Stored?

Wise for Windows Installer uses resources such as installation templates, component rules, language files, and so on, to create installations. In the Standard and Professional Editions, these resources are stored in subdirectories of the Wise application directory. In the Enterprise Edition, they are stored in subdirectories of the share point directory.

(Enterprise Edition only.) You can specify alternate locations for storing resources. See

Setting Repository Options on page 54.

Subdirectories Where Resources Are Stored

Directory Contents

000, 001, and so on (Enterprise Edition only.) Contains source files associated with each package’s

installation. The subdirectories are numbered sequentially, such as 000\001, 000\002, and so on. They are created when someone uses Package Distribution to distribute to the share point. For details, see How Source Files Are Indexed on page 36.

Custom Actions (Enterprise Edition only.) Provides a shared location in which you can place files used

in custom actions, such as WiseScripts, VBScripts, .DLLs, and so on, that you use in Windows Installer installations.

Languages Contains the language resource files used to change the language of installations.

Merge Modules (Enterprise Edition only.) This is the default target location for downloading merge

modules, and the default directory from which you select merge modules to add to an installation. In the Standard and Professional Editions, the default merge modules directory is Program Files\Common Files\Merge Modules\Wise Solutions.

Reports (Enterprise Edition only.) Contains the predefined reports (.RPT) that are used in

Software Manager. Also contains the Report.ini file, which stores information about the predefined reports and about any report customizations.

Projects (Enterprise Edition only.) The default location for new installations you create.

Resources Contains installation resources such as bitmap and icon files.

Scripts (Enterprise Edition only.) Contains temporary files (.QUE) representing packages that

have been distributed to but not yet imported into the Software Manager database. For details, see About .QUE Files in the Software Manager Help. The Scripts directory also stores information about package subscriptions.

Templates Contains installation templates, WfWI macros, and additional template files used by

Package Distribution.

Templates\Dialogs Contains the Wise Standard.MSI that provides information used by the New Dialog

Wizard to add a new dialog to an installation.

Templates\File Contains templates used to create a new installation. In the Visual Studio integrated

editor, these templates create installations that are not associated with a Visual Studio .NET solution.

Templates\Project (Visual Studio integrated editor only.) Contains templates used to create an

installation as a project within a Visual Studio .NET solution.

Templates\Reports (Enterprise Edition only.) Contains the template files that are used to format the

shared resources reports in Wise for Windows Installer.

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Where are Installation Resources Stored?

Directory Contents

Themes Contains Themes.ini, which stores information about themes you’ve added or

customized. Also contains subdirectories that store the images for each theme.

Validation Contains the predefined validation modules (.CUB files) that are used by Package

Validation.

Virtual OS (Enterprise Edition only.) Provides a shared location in which you can place Virtual OS

files (.WOS) that are used by the Universal Import feature of Software Manager.

Also see About the Share Point Directory on page 35.

Page 34

Using the Enterprise Edition

Enterprise Edition only.

With the Enterprise Edition of Wise for Windows Installer, you can develop consistent, accurate, and high quality installations based on corporate standards. The Enterprise Edition ensures that you use the correct versions of resources, such as files and registry keys, that are shared across multiple applications. Example: A developer who adds or updates a .DLL in an installation can instantly view a list of other applications that use that .DLL and the versions used. The developer can use this information to ensure that the new application uses the correct version of the .DLL and therefore will not break existing applications.

The Enterprise Edition lets you share commonly used templates, dialog themes, translations, and other installation resources within a single development team or among multiple development teams. This lets developers throughout the organization create installations with common settings and a consistent look and feel. See Sharing

Installation Resources.

The Enterprise Edition also helps organizations that use Wise Package Studio. It eliminates the need to repackage internally developed applications, because the organization’s developers can create installations that adhere to corporate standards. It also reduces rework of internally developed installations by the development team and reduces end-user downtime, because the developers who create installations can be sure to use the correct versions of files and other resources before giving installations to the IT deployment team. See Sharing the Software Manager Database With Wise Package Studio in the Software Manager Help.

Using the Enterprise Edition

Also see:

About the Share Point Directory on page 35 Generating Package Contents Reports on page 37 Generating Shared Resource Reports on page 37

Sharing Installation Resources

" Enterprise Edition only.

A key feature of the Enterprise Edition is the ability to develop and enforce standards for how installations are created. You enforce standards by storing all installation-related resources in a common location and making sure all developers use those resources in their installations.

In Wise Options, you can specify the directories that contain shared resources you will use in installations. See Setting Repository Options on page 54.

You can share the following resources:

! Component rules ensure that every installation will be organized the same way,

which greatly simplifies the management of multiple product installations.

! Custom actions, such as .DLL files, JScript files, and VBScript files, that can be

added to installations.

! Installation templates, dialogs, dialog themes, languages, and resources,

such as bitmaps and icons, that are used in installations. Create installations with common settings and a consistent look and feel.

Page 35

Using the Enterprise Edition

! Merge modules ensure that developers always access approved versions of merge

modules by storing merge modules in a central location, or by using merge modules that are in the Software Manager database.

! Validation modules (.CUB files) simplify the quality assurance process by ensuring

every installation passes the same validation tests.

! Reports let you share customized report menus and custom reports.

Sharing installation resources is accomplished through the share point directory, the Software Manager database, and the Software Manager tool.

! The share point directory is typically installed on a shared network drive. Use the

share point directory to store resources, such as templates, dialogs, and themes, used to create installations as well as the source files used in the application itself. The share point directory can also contain information about applications that are waiting to be imported into the Software Manager database and the source files used by those applications. See About the Share Point Directory on page 35 and Where

are Installation Resources Stored? on page 32.

! The Software Manager database contains information about every resource used by

every application your organization develops. This lets developers see what resources are used by other applications and select source files from the Wise Software Repository, to ensure that they use the correct versions of file resources in applications they develop. Geographically dispersed development teams can maintain multiple Software Manager databases and use a publish/subscribe model to pass information between repositories. See About the Wise Software Repository in the Software Manager Help, and How Source Files Are Indexed on page 36.

! Software Manager lets you manage the information in the Software Manager

database. Use it to import applications into the database, subscribe to applications in other Software Manager databases, and view information about the resources used by applications in the database.

In addition to importing Windows Installer installations and merge modules, Software Manager can import other installation formats such as WiseScripts, SMS Installer files, InstallShield® Developer executables, and any other installation format. This lets you import legacy installations without converting them to Windows Installer format.

See Software Manager Basics in the Software Manager Help.

Also see Sharing the Software Manager Database With Wise Package Studio in the Software Manager Help.

About the Share Point Directory

" Enterprise Edition only.

During the Wise for Windows Installer installation, you specify a share point directory. The default directory name is Wise Share Point, however, you can change the name at installation time.

For recommendations on where to locate the share point directory, see Choosing the

Location for the Share Point Directory in the Wise for Windows Installer Getting Started Guide. You can change the share point directory in Wise Options. See Setting Repository

Options on page 54.

The Software Manager database is associated with a specific share point directory. When you change the default share point directory, you also change the default database.

Page 36

Using the Enterprise Edition

Share Point Directory Contents

! Resources that are used to create Windows Installer installations. Examples:

installation templates, component rules, language files, and so on.

! Predefined reports.

! Temporary .QUE files representing packages that have been distributed but not

imported into the Software Manager database.

! Source files of installations you import into the Software Manager database.

! The default Microsoft Access-based Software Manager database, if you choose to

install it.

If your organization uses Wise Package Studio, the share point directory might contain additional information that is unique to that product.

For a list of the share point subdirectories and their contents, see Where are Installation

Resources Stored? on page 32.

Deleting Files From the Share Point Directory

Caution

Do not edit or delete the contents of the share point directory or its subdirectories outside of Wise for Windows Installer or other Wise Solutions tools. Doing so will cause problems in Software Manager and can result in loss of data.

A common question is “Can I clean up the share point by deleting unused source files?” The answer is no. It is too difficult to know which files are safe to delete.

The only recommended way to delete files from the share point directory is to delete the entire package from the Software Manager database. When you do so, you can delete the package’s source files from the share point subdirectories (000, 001, and so on), if those files are not referenced by any other application. See Deleting a Package in the Software Manager Help.

Also see Sharing Installation Resources on page 34.

How Source Files Are Indexed

A sequentially-numbered directory structure is created under the share point directory to store occurrences of installation source files when:

! You distribute a package to the share point directory.

! You import a single package or multiple packages to the Software Manager database,

and you distribute source files.

An index file named wamdb.idx, located in the share point directory, records the location of the source files. Because files are indexed, distributing source files to the share point eliminates storage of duplicate files and results in smaller storage requirements than if you distribute to a network directory.

Example:

Suppose you have 3 packages, each containing a version of report.dll. The first time you distribute a package containing report.dll, the file is placed in the share point’s 000\001 directory. If you distribute another package containing the same version of report.dll, the file is not saved a second time, but a counter is set for that file in wamdb.idx. If you distribute a third package that uses a different version of report.dll, the file is stored in a

Page 37

second directory, 000\002. The result is a set of all the unique source files used by all the packages in the Software Manager database.

Also see:

About the Share Point Directory on page 35 Copying an Installation to the Share Point Directory on page 280

Importing From the Share Point Directory in the Software Manager Help

Generating Package Contents Reports

" Enterprise Edition only.

Package contents reports provide an overview of the contents of an installation file and make it easy to provide this information to end users. Two reports are available:

! Package Contents Summary

Lists detailed information for every resource in an installation, including files, registry keys, shortcuts, file associations, and merge modules. You can generate this report for .WSI, .MSI, .WSM, and .MSM files.

! Package Contents By Feature

Contains the same information as the Package Contents Summary report, but arranges it by feature. You can generate this report for .WSI and .MSI files.

Using the Enterprise Edition

To generate a package contents report:

Select Reports menu > Package Contents and select either Summary or By Feature. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Reports > Package Contents and select either Summary or By Feature.)

The report is generated and opens in a dialog.

Use a report’s table of contents to quickly access information about a specific type of resource. You can print the report or save it as an HTML or XML file.

Generating Shared Resource Reports

" Enterprise Edition only.

Shared resource reports provide a quick way to review the resources that are shared by the current installation and other packages in the Software Manager database. Two reports are available:

! Shared Files Report

Lists the files that are shared by the current installation and applications in the Software Manager database. For each file, the report lists each application that uses the file and shows detailed file information (examples: version, date/time, path, and so on).

! Shared Registry Report

Lists the registry keys that are shared by the current installation and applications in the Software Manager database. For each registry key, the report lists each application that uses the registry key and shows the key value.

In order to generate the shared resources reports, you must be connected to a share point directory that is associated with a Software Manager database. Typically, this connection is made during installation. To use a different share point directory and Software Manager database, see Setting Repository Options on page 54.

Page 38

Using the Enterprise Edition

The reports are displayed in HTML format. The .XSL templates used to format these reports are located in the Templates\Reports subdirectory of the share point directory. You can customize the .XSL templates to supply branding information, to filter data, or to transform the data to another format.

You also can generate resource reports in Software Manager. The Software Manager reports contain similar information. See Predefined Software Manager Reports in the Software Manager Help.

To generate a shared resource report:

1. Select Reports menu and select either Shared Files Report or Shared Registry Report. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Reports > Shared Files Report or Project menu > Reports > Shared Registry Report.)

The Welcome dialog appears.

2. In Data Source, specify the Software Manager database that contains the resources you want to review. If the Software Manager database you want is not listed, click Open to select it.

3. From Group, select the group that contains the packages to compare this installation to.

4. Click Next.

The report is generated and displayed in the Shared Files Report or Shared Registry Report dialog.

You can save the or print the table report from this dialog. Saving to HTML is available only on computers that contain MSXML.DLL, which is included in Internet Explorer 5.x and higher.

5. When you finish reviewing, saving, or printing the report, click Finish.

Also see Sharing Installation Resources on page 34.

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Downloading Redistributable Files

The Download Redistributables wizard, available from the Help menu, lets you obtain merge modules, Windows Installer runtime installers, and .NET Framework runtime installers. You need the Windows Installer runtimes if you decide to pre-install Windows Installer with an installation. You need the .NET Framework if you are creating an installation that contains .NET elements. Because of size and obsolescence considerations, these files are distributed via the Internet or product CD.

Note

This wizard appears any time Wise for Windows Installer detects a dependency on other merge modules or other redistributables. Example: If you run ApplicationWatch and a file gets added that must be installed with a certain merge module, the Download Redistributables wizard appears and prompts you to download the necessary merge module. This wizard might also appear if you install runtimes with the installation, or if you add files on the Files page that are part of a merge module.

Download redistributable files from the following locations:

! Wise Solutions’ Web Site

Select and download one or more redistributables from Wise Solutions’ Web site. Available redistributables are authored by Wise Solutions or are authored by thirdparty vendors and redistributed by Wise Solutions. See Downloading Redistributables

From the Wise Web Site or Product CD on page 39.

! Other Vendors’ Web Sites

Select and download a redistributable from a third-party vendor’s Web site. Available redistributables are authored by the respective vendor, and you need to contact the vendor for information or help on these redistributables. See Downloading

Redistributables From Other Vendors’ Web Sites on page 40.

Downloading Redistributable Files

Note

If you need to go through a firewall or proxy server to get to the Internet, click the Advanced button near the bottom of the Source Location dialog to modify your Internet connection settings; the Source Location dialog is the first dialog that appears when you use the Download Redistributables wizard. An Advanced Settings dialog appears, where you can specify information for your proxy server. For help with these options, ask your network administrator.

! Product CD

Select and download one or more redistributables from the CD that was used to install the product. Merge modules available from the product CD are authored by Wise Solutions or are authored by third-party vendors and redistributed by Wise Solutions. See Downloading Redistributables From the Wise Web Site or Product CD on page 39.

Downloading Redistributables From the Wise Web Site or Product CD

You must be in an active Wise installation to follow this procedure.

1. Select Help menu > Download Redistributables. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help > Download Redistributables.)

The Source Location dialog appears.

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Downloading Redistributable Files

2. Mark Wise Solutions’ Web Site or Product CD and click Next.

3. If you marked Product CD, specify the location of the CD in the Product CD Location dialog. Then click Next.

A Download Files dialog appears while all available redistributable files are retrieved. The Available Redistributable Files dialog then appears.

4. From Redistributable Type, select the type of redistributable to download.

5. The dialog changes depending on what type of redistributable you selected.

If you selected Merge Modules, the following lists appear:

•Modules Installed

This list contains merge modules in the directories specified in Wise Options. See

Setting Merge Module Directories on page 52

•Modules Available

This list contains merge modules available on Wise Solutions’ Web site or the product CD that are:

# Not in your list of current modules.

# In your list of current modules but are a newer version of those merge

modules.

If you selected Windows Installer Runtimes, .NET Framework, or .NET

Compact Framework, the following lists appear:

• Versions Installed

This list contains redistributables that are located in the Wise for Windows Installer Stub directory

• Versions Available

This list contains the versions of redistributables that are available on the Wise Web site

6. In the Modules Available or Versions Available list, mark one or more checkboxes for the redistributables to download.

7. Click Next. If you chose to download any merge modules, the Target Location dialog appears, where you specify merge modules’ download location; otherwise the download starts and you can skip the next step. Runtimes are downloaded to private directories where they are accessed as needed by Wise for Windows Installer.

8. From Target Location, select the directory to download the selected merge modules to, then click Next.

The drop-down list shows all merge module directories specified in Wise Options. See Setting Merge Module Directories on page 52.

The selected redistributables are downloaded from the Internet or CD.

9. Click Finish on the Download Files dialog to exit the wizard.

The merge modules you selected are now in the directory you specified as the target location. If any merge modules had dependencies on other merge modules, those merge modules were also downloaded. Other runtimes are located in their required directories.

Downloading Redistributables From Other Vendors’ Web Sites

You must be in an active Wise installation to follow this procedure. Wise Solutions has no control over other vendor’s redistributable files. Check with the vendor for product support.

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Downloading Redistributable Files

1. Select Help menu > Download Redistributables. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help > Download Redistributables.)

The Source Location dialog appears.

2. Mark Other Vendors’ Web Sites and click Next. When all available redistributables are retrieved, the Available Redistributable Files dialog appears.

3. In the list box, select the redistributable to download, then click Download to launch your Internet browser, if necessary, and connect to the corresponding vendor’s Web site.

4. Follow the links and prompts on the Web site to download the redistributable. Be sure to download merge modules to a directory specified in Wise Options. See

Setting Merge Module Directories on page 52.

5. When the download is complete, return to the Available Redistributable Files dialog and click Next.

6. Click Finish on the Download Files dialog to exit the wizard.

The merge modules and other runtimes you selected are now in the directory you specified as the target location. If any merge modules had dependencies on other merge modules, those merge modules were also downloaded.

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Chapter 3

Setting Up

Before you create and edit installations, set up Wise for Windows Installer to reflect your company’s standards:

! Set options that control the installations you create and determine the installation

resources you use.

! Decide whether you need to customize the templates that installations are based on.

! Decide which rule set to use to help you manage the creation of components in

installations. You can edit the predefined rule sets or create new rule sets. If the predefined rule sets do not meed your needs, you can duplicate them and modify the copies as needed, or you can create new rule sets.

Topics include:

! Setting Options.

! Creating and Editing Installation Templates.

! Component Rules.

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Setting Options

You can set options that control the installations you create and determine the installation resources you use. Some of the options are global; they are set for all files you open with Wise for Windows Installer, including files you created previously. Other options provide defaults for new files and do not affect existing files.

You set options on the Options dialog, which you access by selecting Tools menu > Options. In Visual Studio: select Tools menu > Options and click Wise Options in the list at the left of the dialog.

The Options dialog contains several tabs. (In the Visual Studio integrated editor they are called pages.) See:

Setting General Options Setting .NET Assembly Options on page 45 Setting Advertising Options on page 46 Setting Digital Signature Options on page 48 Setting ExpressBuild Options on page 49 Setting Installation Expert Options on page 51 Setting Merge Module Directories on page 52 Activating Suppressed Prompts on page 53 Setting Repository Options on page 54 Setting Source Control Options on page 55 Setting the Default Target Platform on page 56 Setting Visual Studio Options on page 57 Setting Wildcard Groups on page 59

Setting Options

Setting General Options

To set general options, select Tools menu > Options and click the General tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > General.)

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

Automatic Options

! Create backup copy during save

Mark this to create a new backup file every time you save. The backup file name consists of the current file name plus a number. (Example: if the current file name is Sample.wsi, the backups are named Sample1.wsi, Sample2.wsi, and so on.) Only the file you are working on is backed up. (Example: if you open a .WSI and save it, the corresponding .MSI is not backed up.) Use caution with this option if you are working with large installation files; if you save often, your disk space will quickly become depleted.

! Add default remarks to installation sequences

Although most Wise project (.WSI) files have remarks that explain the actions in the sequences, compiled .MSIs do not. Mark this to add remarks to the current .MSI and all .MSIs that you open subsequently. Remarks are added to .WSIs only if no remarks already exist.

! Don’t get Home page from Internet

Mark this to disable the dynamic Product Home page that is downloaded from the Wise Solutions Web site and display the static Product Home page that is installed with Wise for Windows Installer.

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Setting Options

! Create XML copy during save

Mark this to update a copy of the installation in XML format every time you save. If a copy does not exist, it is created. The copy has the same name as the installation file with the extension .XML appended, and it is saved in the same directory. (Example: If the current file name is Application.wsi, the XML copy is named Application.wsi.xml.) This lets you check the XML version of the installation into a source code control system and use text-based file comparison tools to find changes. See Saving an Installation as XML on page 93.

Compiler Options

The following options are default settings for all new compiles. Changing these settings does not affect installations that have already been compiled.

! Add custom actions for predefined folders in merge modules

This affects the merging of merge modules that place files in predefined directories, such as \Windows, \System32, and so on. Mark this to have the merge emulate the behavior of Microsoft’s merge tool, mergemod.dll, which uses custom actions to handle predefined directories. Clearing this checkbox can fix potential problems with capitalization inconsistencies in the directory name.

Note

Wise for Windows Installer has its own code for merging a module into an .MSI, but this checkbox causes your merge to follow the Microsoft conventions for merging. Microsoft’s merging code adds a custom action to the installation for each predefined directory referenced in each included merge module. The custom action uses a Set Property action to set the predefined directory name, whereas the Wise for Windows Installer code sets the predefined directory name by adding an item to the Directory table of the Windows Installer database.

! Display error if merge modules conflict with main installation rows

Merge module errors occur if a merge module contains a row that has the same key as a row in the main installation. Clear this to ignore such errors and let the merge module row overwrite the row in the main installation.

! Enable Quick Compile

Mark this to speed the compile process by compressing only previously uncompressed or changed files. Quick Compile writes the .MSI table information. If a file or media has changed, a full compile will occur instead. Quick Compile is for project files only. You can also speed compile time by using ExpressBuild, a multiprocessor compile feature in the Professional and Enterprise Editions. See Setting

ExpressBuild Options on page 49.

Startup Options

! Display Home page at startup

Mark this to have the Product Home page appear by default when you start Wise for Windows Installer.

! Check for Updates

Select an option to set the frequency at which you will be reminded to check for updates to Wise for Windows Installer. Update reminders occur only when Wise for Windows Installer is launched.

! Preferred Editor

This option appears only if Microsoft Visual Studio .NET is installed. It determines which editor is launched when you double-click a Windows Installer file. Always

Page 45

Prompt always shows a dialog that prompts you to choose the editor. Last Saved In uses the editor in which the installation file was last saved.

! Reload last project at startup

Mark this to open the last installation you worked on when you launch Wise for Windows Installer. (Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

! Refresh Projects Integrated with Visual Studio .NET

When you open a project that has been integrated with Visual Studio .NET, this option causes the Visual Studio solution to be rebuilt so that this installation has the most recent files. “Integrated” means the project has been added as part of a Visual Studio .NET solution. (Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

Setting .NET Assembly Options

" Windows Installer 2.0 or later only.

You can specify whether you create standard Win32 or .NET installations, and customize how Wise for Windows Installer handles the .NET assemblies. Select Tools menu > Options and click the .NET Assemblies tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Assemblies.)

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

Setting Options

Note

If the options on the .NET Assemblies tab are disabled, install the .NET Framework and run a manual repair of the Wise for Windows Installer .MSI from Add/Remove Programs. (Not applicable in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

COM Interop Options

! Default Application Type

This determines the default setting for the Application Type field on the Product Details page for new installations. Changing this field does not affect existing installations.

• Win 32 (non .NET)

Select this if you typically create standard Win32 installations without .NET assemblies.

• .NET Application

Select this if you typically create .NET installations with only .NET elements.

• Mixed (.NET and Win32)

Select this if you typically create installations containing both Win32 and .NET elements. When this option is selected, .NET assemblies you add to an installation are registered so that they can be called as though they were COM components. For information on COM interoperability, search for “Interoperating with Unmanaged Code” in the MSDN Library (msdn.microsoft.com/library/).

! Rescan COM interop registry keys on compile

Mark this to scan and update interop registry keys for .NET assemblies each time you compile. This checkbox is available only if the .NET Framework is installed on your computer.

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Setting Options

Assembly Scanning Options

The scanning options are available only if the .NET Framework is installed on your computer.

! Scan Dependencies

Specify how dependency assemblies are added to an installation. You can add them manually or have Wise for Windows Installer scan the assembly manifest for dependencies and add them automatically. Changing this option does not affect assemblies that have already been added to installations.

• Never scan dependencies

If you select this, you must add dependency assemblies to installations manually on the Files or Web Files page.

• Prompt to scan dependencies

When you add a .NET assembly to an installation, Wise for Windows Installer scans its manifest for dependencies and prompts you to select which ones to add to the installation.

• Always scan dependencies

When you add a .NET assembly to an installation, Wise for Windows Installer scans its manifest for dependencies and adds them to the installation.

! Rescan assembly dependencies on compile

Mark this to scan for new assembly dependencies each time you compile.

! Rescan assembly attributes on compile

Mark this to rescan and update assembly attributes each time you compile. This checkbox is marked by default.

Note

On .NET Framework versions earlier than 1.1, scanning does not occur when you add an assembly from a UNC or mapped network drive (example: the share point directory). To enable scanning of such assemblies, either upgrade to .NET Framework version 1.1 or later, or change your .NET security so that the share point directory is fully trusted.

Setting Advertising Options

You can specify how to gather self-registration and advertising information for files you add to an installation. Windows Installer considers some kinds of registry entries, such as file extension definitions, to be advertising information. For details, see Platform Support of Advertisement in the Windows Installer SDK Help.

To set advertising options, select Tools menu > Options and click the Advertising tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Advertising.)

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

The following options are default settings for all new components. Changing these settings will not affect existing components.

! Advertising Setting

Select one of the “scan” options to have Wise for Windows Installer inspect your computer’s registry and the files in the installation and automatically add Windows Installer advertising information for the files that you add to the installation.

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Setting Options

The different scan options let you determine whether the advertising information is added to the advertising tables (AppId, Class, Extension, Mime, ProgId, TypeLib, Verb), to the registry, or both. The scan options also cause AppPath registry information to be added to the installation automatically, although it is not related to advertising. Only AppPath information at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\App Paths\ is added.

This system of registration is more robust than letting the file self-register at installation time because it does not depend on the presence of other files on the destination computer, nor does it depend on how well the .OCX or .DLL file adheres to self-registration conventions. However, the .OCX or .DLL files must already be registered correctly on your computer. If you prefer not to register installation files on your computer, you can run the scan routine as a stand-alone utility on a different computer. See Using WiseComCapture.exe on page 143.

• Do not scan advertising information

Use self-registration for components that support it. Wise for Windows Installer will not scan files or the registry.

• Scan advertising information into registry keys

Add advertising information to the installation as registry keys only; do not create entries in advertising tables. This results in an installation that does not support advertising through COM.

• Scan advertising information into advertising tables

Place registry entries that are considered to be advertising information into advertising tables. Create registry entries for any information that cannot be placed in the advertising tables. This results in an installation that supports advertising.

• Scan advertising into both advertising tables and registry

Place registry entries that are considered to be advertising information into advertising tables AND into registry keys. This way, all advertising information is included in the installation; none is lost.

Caution

When registry entries are created for any information that cannot be placed in the advertising tables, the installation is more accurate because no information is lost. However, this might cause an error or warning when you run the Application Specification Logo test in Package Validation.

! Automatically add self-registration

Mark this to add self-registration information to the installation whenever you add an .OCX or .DLL file that supports self-registration. Typically, .OCX and .DLL files are self-registered dynamically on the destination computer by calling self-registration functions. If you mark this checkbox, Windows Installer registers your .OCX and .DLL files. The .DLL or .OCX may require certain files to be installed already in order to self-register properly.

! Default to rescan advertising for new components

If the advertising information contained in your files might change during the development process, mark this to scan the advertising information and update the installation every time you compile. The scan options in the Advertising Setting field above only read the advertising information that’s present in the file when you first add it to the installation.

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This field sets the default for new components; if you change it, existing components are not affected. The Rescan advertising information during compile checkbox on the Component Details dialog can override this setting for individual components.

Setting Digital Signature Options

You can add a digital signature to an installation on the Digital Signature page. If an installation includes a digital signature, you use the signcode.exe utility to:

! Create a hash of the code, using an algorithm such as MD5 or SHA;

! Encrypt the hash using your private key

! Create a package containing the code, the encrypted hash, and the publisher’s

certificate.

For information on digital signatures, visit www.verisign.com.

To set global options for digital signatures, select Tools menu > Options and click the click Digital Signature tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Digital Signature.)

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

Setting Options

The following options apply to all future installations. They do not affect installations you created previously.

! Signcode.exe Location

Enter the pathname of the signcode.EXE that performs the signing tasks. For details, refer to the ActiveX SDK.

! Credentials File

Enter the pathname of the credentials file that contains your Digital ID; the path can be relative to the .WSI you’re compiling. Your credentials file is provided by Verisign or another certificate authority. You must use the same computer to apply for and obtain your Digital ID. You can then use the private key and Digital ID to sign files on a different computer.

! Private Key File

Enter the pathname of the private key file generated by your browser during the process of applying for a Software Publisher’s ID; the path can be relative to the .WSI you’re compiling. A private key file has the extension .PVK. If this key is lost or stolen, contact Verisign or your certificate authority immediately.

Also see:

Adding a Digital Signature to Your Installation on page 212

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Setting ExpressBuild Options

" Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

Note

For multi-processor compile to occur using distributed computers, all source files of the installation must be on a shared drive and must be specified in the installation with UNC paths. (Example: \\SERVER\file.exe). In addition, when you open the installation file, you must open it in such a way that it is referenced by a UNC path. Example: After selecting File > Open, browse to the installation underneath the My Network Places icon or type the entire UNC path in the File Name field. These requirements do not apply to using multiple processors within one computer.

With ExpressBuild, you can use multiple processors to speed compile time for large builds. Use multiple processors on the local computer, and use the main processor of multiple distributed computers (called a build group). The processors on the local computer can be physical or virtual processors. You can also set up your own computer to provide processing power for another build computer.

ExpressBuild speeds compile time by distributing the time-consuming task of compressing .CAB files among multiple processors. Therefore, the greatest time savings are realized when you have multiple .CAB files. Specify .CAB file creation rules in Installation Expert > Media page.

If you turn ExpressBuild on, it is turned on globally; that is, it is in effect for all installation files you open, regardless of when they were created.

Setting Options

How ExpressBuild Groups Work

" Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

You can specify a build group of computers within the same NT domain or workgroup to share processing of compiles. To specify a build group, first you select an arbitrary name for the build group. Then, on those computers that will be part of a build group, you do one of 2 things:

! If Wise for Windows Installer is not installed, then run WiseExpressBuild.exe, which

is located in the share point directory. The Wise ExpressBuild dialog opens. Specify the group name and whether the WiseExpressBuild.exe should open at system startup. WiseExpressBuild.exe runs in the background and responds to and manages compile requests from the build computer. You can open it and edit its properties by double-clicking on its icon in the Windows taskbar.

! If Wise for Windows Installer is installed, open it on that computer. Select Tools menu

> Options, click the ExpressBuild tab, and mark the Allow My Computer to Build for Others checkbox. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options >

Prompts.) Then enter the group name of the build group your computer will build for. Do this on each computer that will share processing as part of a single build group. When you click OK on the Options dialog, the WiseExpressBuild.exe immediately begins running on your computer, with its icon showing in the system tray area of your taskbar.

Note

Performance slowdowns will occur on computers in build groups when they are called upon to help process compiles.

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Setting Options

Requirements for Using ExpressBuild

" Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

! The computer that initiates the compile of the installation must be running Windows

NT, Windows 2000, or Windows XP or later.

! If you use a computer running Windows 9.x or Me to share compile processing, the

workgroup name of the 9.x/Me computer must match its domain name. Also, the build group name must be in 8.3 file name format.

! In the following instances, because of .CAB formation issues, multi-processor

compile does not take place and normal compiling occurs:

• If you select Uncompressed external files from the Compression Option

field on the Media page.

•If you select One Cab in the Cab Options field on the Media page, or if the .MSI

contains only one .CAB for some other reason.

• If you select any size other than zero in the Max Media Size field on the Media

page.

• If you are in a merge module.

! Because each processor compresses .CAB files, using multiple processors is more

efficient if files are arranged into multiple, moderately-sized .CAB files. To achieve this, select One Cab per feature or One Cab per component in the Cab Options field on the Media page.

Additional requirements for using the option to Build Using Multiple Distributed Computers:

! All the installation source files must be shared so that all members of the build group

have network privileges to access them.

! The paths to all installation source files must be in UNC notation. Change paths to

UNC notation using Tools menu > Convert Source Paths. (In Visual Studio: select Project menu > Convert Source Paths.) If any source files have paths to the local drive (Example: C:\MyFiles\file.jpg) then multi-processor compile does not occur. For information on using this tool, see Changing Source Paths in an Installation on page 325.

! The path to the installation file must be referenced in UNC notation. When you open

the installation file, open it in such a way that it is referenced by a UNC path. Example: When opening a file, browse to the installation underneath the My Network Places icon or type the entire UNC path in the File Name field. If you browse under the My Computer icon, the path will not be referenced in UNC notation.

ExpressBuild Options

" Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

To set ExpressBuild options, select Tools menu > Options and click the ExpressBuild tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options> Wise Options > ExpressBuild.)

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

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Setting Options

You can mark any combination of the 3 checkboxes below. After you mark either of the first 2 checkboxes, compiles will attempt to use multi-processor compile unless prevented from doing so. If you mark Allow My Computer to Build for Others, your computer is immediately available to assist in compiles being performed on other computers.

See Requirements for Using ExpressBuild on page 50 for requirements for using the following options, and for reasons why multi-processor compile does not take place.

! Build Using Multiple Local Processors

Mark this to have multiple processors within this computer help process compiles. The processors on this computer can be physical or virtual processors. You must also enter the number of local processors in the field below. There are several requirements for using this option.

• Number of Local Processors

Enter the number of physical or virtual processors available on the current computer.

! Build Using Multiple Distributed Computers

Mark this to have more than one computer help process compiles. You must have previously set up a build group to use this option. There are several requirements for using this option.

• Build Group Name

Enter the build group name. See How ExpressBuild Groups Work on page 49.

• Build Group Domain

Enter the NT domain name of the build group. All members of a single build group must be in the same NT domain.

! Allow My Computer to Build for Others

Mark this to have this computer be available to help process compiles initiated on another build computer. Performance degrades while this computer helps to process compiles. This causes WiseExpressBuild.exe to start immediately.

• Build Group Name

Enter the group name of the build group that your computer will be a member of. If another computer compiles using your build group name, then your processor will be used to help compile.

Setting Installation Expert Options

To set general options for Wise for Windows Installer and Installation Expert, select Tools menu > Options and click the Installation Expert tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Installation Expert.)

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

! View directories for all features on Files page

Mark this to display all directories on the Files page, regardless of what feature the directory was created for.

Clear this to display only the directories that were created for the current feature (the feature selected in the Current Feature drop-down list.) Example: If you create a directory for FeatureA, and then use the Current Feature drop-down list to

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Setting Options

go to FeatureB, you no longer see the directory you made for FeatureA. This does not apply to the Web Files page.

! View registry keys for all features on Registry page

Mark this to display all registry keys on the Registry page, regardless of what feature the registry key was created for. This displays a composite view of all registry keys created for all features. If this checkbox is not marked, only keys created for the currently selected feature (in the Current Feature drop-down list) are displayed.

! Show merge module components

Mark this to view the files and registry entries from merge modules in Installation Expert. You can only view merge module components in an .MSI. By default, these items are hidden.

! Listbox Compatibility Mode

If your computer has certain video drivers, you might have problems selecting items from list boxes within Wise for Windows Installer. If items you select from list boxes are continually misinterpreted by Wise for Windows Installer, mark this checkbox to eliminate list box problems.

The following 3 checkboxes determine how features are displayed on the Features page. You can override these settings using the right-click menu on that page.

! Expand all features on Features page

! Display Feature title instead of name on Features page

! Display hidden features on Features page

! Display the page view associated with a project when a project is opened.

Mark this to display an installation project’s default page view when the installation opens. If you clear this checkbox, the page view in Installation Expert does not change when you open a project regardless of its associated page view.

! Use advanced drawing routines (restart required)

If a black box appears at the bottom of the Installation Expert page group list, cutting off the last several pages in the list, mark this checkbox and restart your computer to eliminate the problem.

! Display Project Summary Page when a project is opened

Mark this to have the Project Summary page appear when an installation is opened.

Setting Merge Module Directories

To set default directories for storing merge modules, select Tools menu > Options and click the Merge Modules tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options> Wise Options > Merge Modules.) You also can access these options when you add a merge module to an installation; click the Directories button on the Select Merge Module dialog. See Adding a

Merge Module to an Installation on page 344.

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

You can store merge modules on a local drive or a shared network drive. When you add a merge module to an installation, you can select from the merge modules in the directories you specify here. When you use the Download Redistributables wizard, you can download merge modules to directories you specify here.

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Setting Options

In the Enterprise Edition, you can use merge modules that are in the Software Manager database, which helps ensure that developers always access approved versions of merge modules.

! Default Merge Module Directory

Shows the path to the default merge module directory. All merge modules that are in this directory—along with the merge modules that are in the directories shown in the Directory list below—are listed on the Select Merge Module dialog that appears when you click the Add button at the right of the Merge Modules page.

To exclude the merge modules in the default directory from the list, mark Do not show merge modules from the Default Merge Module Directory.

! Read Merge Modules List From Software Manager Database

(Enterprise Edition only.) Mark this to include merge modules from the Software Manager database on the Select Merge Module dialog that appears when you click the Add button on the Merge Modules page.

! Directory

Enter additional directories where merge modules are stored. Merge modules in these directories are listed on the Select Merge Modules dialog. Example: If you save your company’s user-created merge modules in the shared network directory V:\Modules, and you add V:\Modules to the Directory list, the merge modules in that directory will appear on the Select Merge Module dialog.

To add a directory to the list, click Add, browse for the directory, and click OK. To include subdirectories in the search, mark the checkbox in the Include Subdirs column. The next time you click the Add button on the Merge Modules page, modules in that directory appear on the Select Merge Module dialog.

To delete a directory from the list, click the directory and click Delete. Merge modules in that directory will no longer appear on the Select Merge Module dialog.

Activating Suppressed Prompts

Some of the prompts that appear in Wise for Windows Installer contain a Don’t show this message again checkbox that lets you suppress the prompt in the future.

To reactivate prompts that you previously suppressed:

1. Select Tools menu > Options and click the Prompts tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Prompts.)

The dialog lists the prompts you have suppressed and shows your last response to each prompt. If you have not suppressed any Wise for Windows Installer prompts, nothing is listed.

2. Select the prompt message line and click Activate.

The prompt is removed from the list. The next time you encounter a situation in which that prompt applies, the prompt will appear.

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

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Setting Repository Options

" Enterprise Edition only.

You can specify the directories that contain shared resources you use in installations. Select Tools menu > Options and click the Repository tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Repository.) You also can change the share point directory and Software Manager database from this dialog.

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

For information about sharing resources, see Sharing Installation Resources on page 34.

Note

Changing the share point directory or a specific path does not copy resources to the new location. The new location you specify must already contain resources. Typically, you will specify a share point or path that is already in use by another team.

! Share Point

(Read-only.) This displays the share point directory that contains the shared resources. You cannot edit this field, however, you can click Configure to connect to a different share point directory. When you click Configure, the Share Point Directory dialog appears. Browse to an existing share point directory and click Next. If the share point you selected was created in an older version of Wise software, then you might also be prompted to enter the Software Manager database name and the server where it resides. When the share point has been changed, click Finish to end the wizard.

Setting Options

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor only.) You must restart Visual Studio .NET for the share point change to take effect.

! Repository Data Source

(Read-only.) This displays the Software Manager database data source that is associated with the share point directory above. The database displayed here is used as the default in Package Distribution when you distribute to the share point directory.

Default locations are set for specific types of resources based on the share point directory above. Typically, you will use the default locations. If you want to set individual share locations for specific resources, click Advanced. The Repository Advanced Settings dialog appears. To change a default location, double-click one of the following items in the list box and browse to a new path.

You can use the variable [WiseSharePoint] to represent the share point directory in the following paths. You also can use the predefined variables that appear on the Path Variables page. However, you cannot use other user-defined path variables because they are specific to a single installation and the following paths are global options.

! Component Rules

Specify the location of ComponentRules.ini, which contains the rules that govern how components are created in installations.

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Setting Options

Caution

If you are sharing component rules in the Enterprise Edition, be careful when editing existing rule sets because your changes will overwrite rule sets used by other members of the development team.

! Custom Actions

Specify the location in which you will save files used in custom actions (examples: WiseScripts, .DLL files, JScript files, and VBScript files) that can be added to installations. This is the default location whenever you browse for a file in a custom action dialog.

! Default Project Directory

Specify the default directory in which all new installations will be saved. The default is the Projects subdirectory of the share point directory.

Note

Changes in this field do not take effect until you exit and restart the product.

! Dialogs

Specify the location of the Wise Standard.MSI that contains information used by the New Dialog Wizard to add a new dialog to an installation.

! Languages

Specify the location of language resource files.

! Resources

Specify the location of the icon and bitmap resources that are used in installations.

! Templates

Specify the location of installation templates and WfWI macros.

! Themes

Specify the location of the themes that are used to customize installation dialogs.

! Validation Modules

Specify the location of the validation modules (.CUB files) and settings used in Package Validation.

Also see Setting Options on page 43.

Setting Source Control Options

" Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.

You can set options that enable source control functionality. Select Tools menu > Options and click the Source Control tab.

The following global options set the levels of interaction Wise for Windows Installer has with your source code control system (SCCS). For details, see Using Source Control on page 315.

The following options apply to the current installation and all future installations. Changing these options does not affect installations you created previously.

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Setting Options

Note

If the following options do not appear on the Source Control tab, you probably don’t have a source code control system on your computer. It could also be that your SCCS is unrecognized or that there are communications problems between the SCCS server and your computer.

! Enable source control

Mark this to enable all source control functionality both in the current installation and all future installations. When you mark this checkbox, the following 3 checkboxes are enabled, as well as the items in the Source Control menu. When source control is enabled, you can add files to source control, check files in and out, get the latest version of files, track history, and view differences.

! Check out file when it is opened

If this is marked, then each time you open a file that has been previously checked in, the file will be automatically checked out for you. If your source code control system is not available, you can cancel attempts to connect and work on the local copy of the file.

! Check in file when it is closed

If this is marked, then each time you open a file that has been previously checked out, the file will be automatically checked in for you.

! Add new files to source control

If this is marked, then each time you create a new installation file and save it, you will be prompted to add it to your source code control system.

Enabling the source control options above does not implement source control in the installation. It merely enables you to add and remove files from the source code control system, and to check them in and out. Use the options on the Source Control menu to perform these tasks.

Setting the Default Target Platform

" Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

You can determine the default platform for new installations and set options for converting existing 32-bit installations to 64-bit. Select Tools menu > Options and click the Target Platform tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Target Platform.)

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

Note

64-bit installations are supported only by Windows Installer 2.0 or later.

! Target Platform Selection

The options in this section determine whether new installations you create are enabled for 64-bit or 32-bit platforms.

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Setting Options

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor only.) The Setup Wizard contains options that let you change the target platform for a particular project.

• Default to 64-bit .MSI/.WSIs

If you mark this, all new .MSI and .WSIs that you create are 64-bit enabled.

• Default to 32-bit .MSI/.WSIs

If you mark this, all new .MSI and .WSIs that you create are 32-bit enabled.

• Select platform in New Installation File dialog

If you mark this, you can select the platform for each new installation in the Target Platform section of the New Installation File dialog. (Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

! Convert 32-bit .MSI/.WSIs to 64-bit

Mark this to convert 32-bit .MSI and .WSIs to 64-bit when you open them.

Caution

If you mark this checkbox but not the next 2 checkboxes, then every 32-bit installation file you open is converted to and saved as 64-bit.

When you mark this checkbox, the following checkboxes are available:

• Prompt before converting 32-bit files to 64-bit

Mark this to display a warning message each time you are about to convert a 32bit file to 64-bit.

• Preserve original 32-bit .MSI/.WSIs when converting to 64-bit

Mark this to leave the original 32-bit installation file intact and create a 64-bitenabled copy. When you save the 64-bit file, its file name defaults to the original file name with “(64-bit)” appended to the end. Example: If your original file is named MyApp.wsi, the file name for the new 64-bit installation file will be MyApp (64-bit).wsi.

Note

You cannot convert 64-bit installations to 32-bit.

Also see:

Specifying the Target Platform in an Installation on page 82 Setting Options on page 43

Setting Visual Studio Options

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

To set global defaults for the way your installations integrate with Visual Studio .NET solutions, select Tools menu > Options > Wise Options and click Visual Studio. The Visual Studio options apply only to installations that are integrated with a Visual Studio .NET solution. The Visual Studio options provide defaults for future installations. Changing these options does not affect installations you created previously.

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Setting Options

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

Projects Options

To override these defaults for individual installations, or to change them for existing installations, edit the Projects page of the installation project settings. See Entering

Project Settings on page 84.

! Scan Method

Each time you load, save, or build an installation project or change its settings, Wise for Windows Installer can scan the other projects in the solution for new files to add to the installation. See Scanning the Solution for New Files on page 89.

Specify the default level of scanning that will occur for new installations.

• Never scan solution

If you select this, you must add new files to installations manually using the Files page. Also, when files are removed from a solution, you must remove them from the installations manually.

• Prompt only when new files are detected

Select this to be prompted each time there are new files in the solution that need to be added to the installation. The prompt appears during save, build, or compile.

• Prompt when any files are detected

This is the highest level of prompting. Like the previous option, the prompt appears during save, build, or compile when there are new files. Also, if you previously excluded files by clearing their checkboxes, you’ll be prompted to confirm that those files should be excluded.

• Always scan solution

Each time Wise for Windows Installer scans a solution, it adds new files to the installation and deletes files that have been removed from the solution.

! Bind installed files to the solution build configuration

Mark this to set the default for new projects you create. This option causes the installation source paths to change automatically when you change a project’s build configuration. To change this option for an existing project, right-click a project name in Solution Explorer, and select Properties.

Main Project Options

To override these defaults for individual installations, or to change them for existing installations, edit the Main Project page of the installation project settings. See Main

Project Page on page 86.

! Automatically Update Product Information

Mark this to update the installation’s product name, version, and manufacturer whenever you rebuild the solution or whenever the version number of the main target file changes.

! Create Shortcut

Mark this to add a shortcut for the main target file to each installation.

Also see Setting Options on page 43.

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Setting Wildcard Groups

On the Wildcard Groups tab, you can create groups of wildcards so you don’t have to type multiple wildcards repeatedly. Select Tools menu > Options and click the Wildcard Groups tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options> Wise Options > Wildcard Groups.)

On the Files and Web Files pages in Installation Expert, you use the wildcard groups when you add directory contents. Wildcard groups on in the Wildcard Groups tab appear in the Include Wildcards list on the Add Contents and Wildcard Details dialogs. Select a wildcard group to add just a subset of the files in the directory whose contents you are adding.

Several wildcard groups are predefined, which you can edit. If you delete them, they are recreated on application launch. Also, wildcards that you enter in any Include

Wildcards field are added to the list of wildcard groups.

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor.) To display context-sentitive help, click the Wise Help link on this dialog.

To add a wildcard group so it appears in Include Wildcards:

1. On the Wildcard Groups tab, click the Add button.

The Wildcard Group Details dialog appears.

2. Complete the dialog and click OK:

• Group Name

Enter a name to precede the wildcards in the Include Wildcards list. This is a visual identifier to help you quickly find the wildcards in the list.

• Wildcards

Enter semi-colon delimited wildcards. (Example: Enter *.EXE;*.DLL for all .EXE and .DLL files. A ? represents any one character.)

Later, when you add contents or set automatic updating on the Files or Web Files page, this wildcard group is available from the Include Wildcards list.

Setting Options

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Creating and Editing Installation Templates

When you create a new installation or merge module, it gets its configuration from a template file. Templates contain logical defaults and commonly used settings. Some template files are predefined and appear when you create a new installation. You also can create your own templates.

Example: Suppose that all the installations you create have the same system configuration requirements and the same dialogs. You can create a new template that has those changes preconfigured. To do this, you would create a new installation, make the necessary changes to the System Requirements and Dialogs pages, and then save the installation in a specific location. Thereafter, every time you create a new installation, the template you saved is available to base new installations on.

Templates are stored in the Templates directory.

! In the Standard and Professional Editions, the Templates directory is under the Wise

for Windows Installer application directory.

! In the Enterprise Edition, the Templates directory is under the share point directory.

This lets all developers in your organization access the same templates.

For details, see Sharing Installation Resources on page 34 and Where are Installation

Resources Stored? on page 32.

Caution

Editing predefined templates is not recommended, because they might be overwritten during upgrades. Instead, save customized templates with different names, or make copies of the predefined templates and edit the copies.

To create a custom template in the Wise editor:

1. Select File menu > New.

The New Installation File dialog appears.

2. Select a template file on which to base the new template and click OK. Only icons that have a corresponding file in the Templates directory are templates; other icons cannot be used to create or edit templates.

A new installation or merge module opens.

3. Make all the changes that should appear in installations created with this template.

4. To include a description that will appear in the New Installation File dialog when you click this template:

• Select Setup Editor > Product tab.

• Click the Summary icon.

• In the upper right pane, double-click Comments.

• On the Summary Details dialog that appears, enter a description of this template

in Value and click OK.

5. When you finish editing the installation, select File menu > Save As. In the Save As dialog, name the file and save it in the Templates\File directory as a .WSI. .MSI, WSM, or .MSM.

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Creating and Editing Installation Templates

displayed when the template was created. If the template’s default page view is a custom page view, you can customize it. See Customizing Page Views on page 25.

6. To test the new template, select File menu > New.

The New Installation File dialog appears and the file you just created appears in the Custom Templates category. If the New Installation File dialog does not contain the new template, verify that you saved the installation as a .WSI or .WSM in the Tem p l at es d i r ec to ry.

7. Select the template you just created and click OK.

8. To test the template, verify that the changes you made in the installation template are present in this new installation file.

To create a custom template in the Visual Studio integrated editor:

1. If a solution is open in Visual Studio .NET, close it.

2. Select File menu > New > File.

The New File dialog appears.

3. From the Categories list, select Wise Files.

4. In the Templates list, select an icon on which to base the new template. Some icons are not templates, but instead invoke an import process or prompt to create a new transform.

• To create a template in .WSI or .WSM format, select a project icon (name ends

with “Project”).

• To create a template in .MSI or .MSM format, select a file icon (name ends with

“File”).

5. Click Open.

A new installation or merge module opens.

6. Make all the changes that should appear in installations created with this template.

7. When you finish editing the installation, select File menu > Save As. Name the file, and save it in either:

• Templates\Project directory (.WSI or .WSM). These templates appear when you

select File menu > New > Project.

• Templates\File directory (.MSI, .MSM or .WSI). These templates appear when

you select File menu > New > File.

When you save the installation template, a page view is created with the same name and is listed in the Page Views drop-down list. However, when you use the template to create an installation, the default page view is the page view that was displayed when the template was created. If the template’s default page view is a custom page view, you can customize it. See Customizing Page Views on page 25.

8. To test the new template, do the following:

• If you saved the template in the Templates\Project directory, select File menu >

New > Project. On the New Project dialog, click Wise Setup and Deployment Projects in the Project Types list. Your new template should appear in the Templates list.

• If you saved the template in the Templates\File directory, select File menu > New

> File. On the New File dialog, click Wise Files in the Categories list. Your new template should appear in the Templates list.

9. Select the template you just created and click OK.

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Creating and Editing Installation Templates

10. To test the template, verify that the changes you made in the installation template are present in this new installation file.

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Component Rules

You can select or create rules that help you manage the creation of components in an installation. Using component rules eliminates the need to specify component information for every individual resource you add to an installation and ensures that components are created consistently across all installations. Component rules can also help you align component GUIDs in an upgrade with component GUIDs in previous versions of the installation.

When you first create an installation, you select a component rule set to manage components you add to that installation. Then, whenever you add a resource, such as a file, registry key, shortcut, or anything else that can be installed, components are created for those resources in accordance with the rule set you selected. Example: You can always create a new component for each new file added to the installation, or you can group related resources, such as help files, into one component.

Two predefined rule sets are provided. You might find that they manage your components satisfactorily and no customization is necessary. If the predefined rule sets do not meed your needs, you can duplicate them and modify the copies as needed, or you can create new rule sets to reflect your company’s standards. For descriptions of the predefined rule sets, see Microsoft Best Practices Component Rule Set on page 68 and

One File Per Component Rule Set on page 69. For instructions on creating new rule sets,

see Customizing Component Rules on page 66.

(Enterprise Edition only.) You can share component rules with others in your organization via a share point directory. Sharing component rules ensures that you always use the most current set of rules and that your installations always adhere to company standards for creating components. To share component rules, select Tools menu > Options, click the Repository tab, and click the Advanced button. (In Visual Studio: Tools menu > Options > Wise Options > Repository.) Make sure a shared directory is specified for the Component Rules path. See Setting Repository Options on page 54.

Component Rules

About Component Rules

A component rule set manages components that are added to installations.

! A rule set is a collection of rules.

! A rule consists of one or more conditions and one or more actions.

! A condition determines the criteria that a resource must meet in order for an action

to be performed. Example: If you select the condition Added resource is a Shortcut, the action is only performed for shortcut resources.

! An action determines how a resource will be assigned to a component.

In the Standard and Professional Editions, rule sets are stored in the registry. In the Enterprise Edition, rule sets are stored in an .INI file located in the share point directory. You can change the location; see Setting Repository Options on page 54. Do not attempt to edit the .INI file outside of the Component Rules dialogs.

Caution

If you are sharing component rules, when you edit existing rule sets your changes will overwrite rule sets used by other members of your team.

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How Component Rules Are Applied

Component rules are applied in the order they appear from top to bottom in the list of rules on the Customize Component Rules dialog. When a rule has multiple conditions, only resources that meet all the conditions have the rule applied to them. Once an added resource matches the conditions in a rule, the action is applied and no subsequent rules are evaluated for that resource. If you add a resource that does not meet any of the conditions in the rule set, then the Microsoft Best Practices rule set is used for that resource.

Selecting a Component Rule Set

Use the Component Rule Selection dialog to select a rule set and component naming conventions for the current installation or to set the default rule options for all future installations.

The component key values you enter on the Component Rule Selection dialog can be overridden by specific rules. Example: If you use a rule set that contains rules for naming certain types of components, then only the components that do not meet the conditions in the rule set will be named using the component key value options you specify here.

To select a component rule set:

1. Select Component Rules menu > Select Rule Set. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Component Rules > Select Rule Set.)

The Component Rule Selection dialog appears.

2. From Rule Set Name, select the rule set to use for this installation.

3. To make the specified rule set the default for all future installations, mark Make this the default rule set for all Windows Installer files.

4. In the Component Key Values section, select an option from the Default list to determine the naming convention for new components. If the rule set you use specifies the component naming under certain conditions, the naming convention you specify here will be overridden when those conditions are met.

• Set component key to a named Base

Select this to name new components with specified text plus an incremental number. Selecting this option enables the Base field. Enter text to serve as a base for the component name (example: Component). Component names will be incremented from this base (example: Component1, Component2, and so on).

• Set component key to key of keypath or first resource

Select this to name components as follows:

# If the resource is a file, registry key, or ODBC data source, give the

component the same name as the key of the keypath.

# For any other type of resource, give the component the same name as the

key of the first resource in the component.

• Set component key to table name of keypath or first resource

Select this to give new components the name of the table in which the keypath or first resource resides. If multiple components are named for the same table, an incremental number is added to the component name (example: File1, File2, and so on).

5. From Files, you can select a different naming convention for components that are based on file resources. You can use the long file name of the keypath file, the short

Component Rules

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file name of the keypath file, or the naming convention specified in the Default field above.

6. To make the options in the Component Key Values section the defaults for all future installations, mark Make this the default key naming convention for all installations.

7. Click OK on the Component Rule Selection dialog.

All resources that you add to this installation from this time forward will be organized into components according to the rule set and other conventions you specified.

Using Component Rules to Align GUIDs in an Upgrade

Component rules can help you align component GUIDs in an upgrade with component GUIDs in previous versions of the installation. If GUIDS or key paths for the same component don’t match between the new and old .MSI, the component could inadvertently get deleted because Windows Installer does not recognize the components as being the same. Aligning component GUIDs for matching components prevents upgrades from deleting necessary files in the newer version.

If you are working on an upgrade installation, you specify the previous versions of the installation on the Previous Installation Versions dialog. Then, make sure you use a component rule set that contains a rule for aligning component GUIDs with previous versions. Example: The 2 predefined rule sets contain a rule in which, if the keypath resource matches a resource in the previous .MSI list, the component layout of the previous .MSI is matched and the component key is set to match the previous version. All new resources you add to the upgrade installation will be checked against the previous installations.

To ensure that all resources you add to an upgrade installation are aligned with previous versions, specify the previous installation versions before adding any resources to the installation. If you have already added resources to the installation, as is the case when you use a copy of a previous .WSI as a starting point for creating an upgrade installation, you must run UpgradeSync to align GUIDs for existing components.

Component Rules

To use component rules to align GUIDs in an upgrade:

1. Create or open the upgrade installation.

2. If you have already added resources to the upgrade installation, run UpgradeSync to align GUIDs for existing components. See Using UpgradeSync on page 300.

3. Select a rule set to use for this upgrade. See Selecting a Component Rule Set on page 64. Make sure the rule set you select contains a rule for aligning component GUIDs with previous versions; this should be the first rule in the rule set.

For best results, use the same rule set, if any, that was used in the previous versions. That way, component creation in the upgrade will be consistent with the previous versions.

4. Select Component Rules menu > Previous Versions. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Component Rules > Previous Versions.)

The Previous Installation Versions dialog appears.

5. On the Previous Installation Versions dialog, specify the previous versions of this installation.

• To add a previous version .MSI to the list, click Add, click to browse to the

.MSI, and click Open. The .MSI is added to the list.

• The previous versions will be checked in the order they appear in this list.

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6. Click OK on the Previous Installation Versions dialog.

All new resources you add to the upgrade installation will be checked against and aligned with the previous installations you specified.

Customizing Component Rules

If the predefined component rule sets do not reflect your company’s standards, you can create a new rule set. The predefined rule sets, Microsoft Best Practices and One file per component, are read-only and cannot be modified. However, you can copy a predefined rule set and modify the copy.

When creating new rules, refer to Microsoft’s rules for creating components; see Organizing Applications into Components and Changing the Component Code in the Windows Installer SDK Help.

Caution

If you are sharing component rules, when you edit existing rule sets your changes will overwrite rule sets used by other members of your team.

To add a new component rule set:

1. Select Component Rules menu > Customize. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Component Rules > Customize.)

The Component Rules Manager dialog appears, listing the predefined rule sets and custom rule sets you have created.

2. Click New.

The Enter Rule Set Name dialog appears.

3. Enter a unique Rule Set Name to identify this rule set and click OK.

The new rule set name appears and is selected in the Component Rules Manager dialog.

4. Click Modify.

The Customize Component Rules dialog appears.

5. In the Customize Component Rules dialog, click Add to add the first rule for this rule set.

This starts the Component Rule Wizard, which you step through to add the conditions and actions that comprise the rule. For details on using the Component Rule Wizard, see Adding and Editing Component Rules on page 67.

6. When you have finished adding rules to the rule set, click OK in the Customize Component Rules dialog and then click OK in the Component Rules Manager dialog.

The new rule set is added to the list of available rule sets. To use the new rule set for the current installation or to make it the default for all future installations, you must select it as described in Selecting a Component Rule Set on page 64.

Component Rules

To customize an existing component rule set:

1. Select Component Rules menu > Customize. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Component Rules > Customize.)

The Component Rules Manager dialog appears, listing the predefined rule sets and any custom rule sets you have created.

2. Click a rule set.

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Component Rules

• To copy the rule set, click Copy, type the new name on the Enter Rule Set Name

dialog, and click OK.

• To modify the rule set, click Modify. The Customize Component Rules dialog

appears, where you can add, edit, and delete rules. For details, see Adding and

Editing Component Rules on page 67.

Note

If you selected a predefined rule set, all the buttons on the Customize Components Rules dialog are disabled because the predefined rule sets are read-only. However, you can use this dialog to view the rules in a predefined rule set.

• To rename the rule set, click Rename, type the new name on the Enter Rule Set

Name dialog, and click OK.

• To delete the rule set, click the Delete button to the right of the rule set name.

3. Click OK in the Customize Component Rules dialog.

Adding and Editing Component Rules

You can add component rules to a rule set, edit existing component rules, and delete component rules.

The predefined rule sets, Microsoft Best Practices and One file per component, are readonly and cannot be modified.

Caution

If you are sharing component rules, when you edit existing rule sets your changes will overwrite rule sets used by other members of your team.

To edit a component rule:

1. Select Component Rules menu > Customize. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Component Rules > Customize.)

The Component Rules Manager dialog appears, listing the predefined rule sets and any custom rule sets you have created.

2. Click a rule set and click Modify.

The Customize Component Rules dialog appears.

• To add a rule, click Add. This starts the Component Rule Wizard, which lets you

define component rules. For details, see the procedure below.

• To edit a rule, click the rule in the rules list and click Details. This starts the

Component Rule Wizard, which you can step through to change the rule name or change any of the conditions or actions. For details, see the procedure below.

3. When you finish, click OK on the Customize Component Rules dialog.

The Component Rules Manager dialog reappears.

4. Click OK.

To add or edit a component rule:

1. On the Name dialog of the Component Rule Wizard, enter a name for the new rule and click Next. If this is an existing rule, the name is already entered and you can accept or change it.

The Conditions dialog appears.

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Component Rules

2. In the Which condition(s) do you want to check? list, mark the checkbox next to each condition to check.

When there are no conditions for performing the action(s) in this rule, select the condition Always perform associated action.

As you mark checkboxes, the conditions appear in the Rule description list. If you select a condition that is incompatible with a condition you’ve already selected, the first condition you selected is removed from the list.

3. If a condition contains underlined text, click the underlined text to open a Rule Details dialog. There you can select a value for the underlined text.

Example: If you selected the condition Added resource is a file with name any you would click the word any and enter a specific file name. Wildcards are allowed.

4. When you’ve added all conditions that comprise the rule, click Next on the Conditions dialog.

The Actions dialog appears.

5. In the Which action(s) do you want to perform? list, mark the checkbox next to the action or actions to perform.

The actions you mark appear in the Rule description list. If you select an action that is incompatible with an action you’ve already selected, the first action you selected is removed from the list.

6. If an action contains underlined text, click the underlined text to open a Rule Details dialog. There you can specify a value for the underlined text.

Example: If you selected the action Set component key to Component would click the word Component and enter specific text.

7. When you’ve added all actions to the rule, click Finish on the Actions dialog.

The Customize Component Rules dialog reappears. The rule is displayed in the upper list box and its details are displayed in the Rule description list.

8. You can continue to add and edit rules. When you finish, click OK on the Customize Component Rules dialog.

The new rules are added to the rule set and the Component Rules Manager dialog reappears.

9. Click OK.

, you

Microsoft Best Practices Component Rule Set

When you use this predefined rule set, components are created using Microsoft’s component creation guidelines; see Organizing Applications into Components and Changing the Component Code in the Windows Installer SDK Help.

If an added resource does not meet the conditions in a rule, the next rule is evaluated for that resource. If the resource does not meet the conditions in any of the rules, the component is created according to the final rule.

! Match components in previous versions of the .MSI

If the keypath resource matches a resource in the previous .MSI list, match the component layout of the previous .MSI and set the component key to match the previous version.

! Add all executable files to their own components

If the added resource is a 32-bit executable file (.DLL, .OCX, or .EXE), create a new component.

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Component Rules

! Add all .TLB files to their own components

If the added resource is a .TLB file, create a new component.

! Group Matching .HLP and .CNT files together

If resource file names are the same and their file extensions are .HLP or .CNT, add them to the same component. The .HLP will be the keypath file.

! Group matching .CHM and .CHI files together

If resource file names are the same and their extensions are .CHM or .CHI, add them to the same component. The .CHM will be the keypath file.

! Put registry keys associated with files or components in matching

components

If the added resource is a registry key, and the registry value name or value refers to a file or component, add the resource to an existing component that contains the same type of resource.

! Put Current User registry keys in their own component

If the added resource is a registry key under HKEY_CURRENT_USER, add the resource to the component matching the conditions and set the component key base to CurrentUser. The component key base will be incremented for each new component matching this condition. Example: CurrentUser1, CurrentUser2, and so on.

! Put non-Current User registry keys in their own component

If the added resource is a registry key NOT under HKEY_CURRENT_USER, add the resource to an existing component that contains the same type of resource.

! Group all non-executable files to their own component

If the added resource is not a 32-bit executable file (.DLL, .OCX, or .EXE), add the resource to an existing component that contains the same type of resource.

! Name new non-advertised shortcuts by destination directory

If the added resource is a shortcut, add it to an existing component containing nonadvertised shortcuts in the same destination directory.

! Group non-keypath resources by resource type

If the added resource cannot be set to the keypath, that is, if it is not a file, registry key, or ODBC data source, add the resource to an existing component that contains the same type of resource.

! Create new components for resources not matching other criteria

For all other resources that do not match the criteria above, create a new component for the resource and set the component key to the table name of the keypath or the first resource. If multiple components are named for the same table, an incremental number is added to the component name. Example, File1, File2, and so on.

One File Per Component Rule Set

When you use this predefined rule set, each file you add to the installation becomes its own component.

! Match components in previous versions of the .MSI

If the keypath resource matches a resource in the previous .MSI list, match the component layout of the previous .MSI and set the component key to match the previous version.

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Component Rules

! Add all files to their own components

If the added resource is a file, create a new component.

! Put registry keys associated with files or components in matching

components

If the added resource is a registry key, and the registry value name or value refers to a file or component, add the resource to an existing component that contains the same type of resource.

! Put Current User registry keys in their own component

! Put non-Current user registry keys in their own component

If the added resource is a registry key NOT under HKEY_CURRENT_USER, add the resource to an existing component that contains the same type of resource.

! Name new non-advertised shortcuts by destination directory

If the added resource is a shortcut, add it to an existing component containing nonadvertised shortcuts in the same destination directory.

! Group non-keypath resources by resource type

If the added resource cannot be set to the keypath, that is, if it is not a file, registry key, or ODBC data source, add the resource to an existing component that contains the same type of resource.

! Create new components for resources not matching other criteria

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Chapter 4

Working With Wise Installation Files

This section describes the basic procedures for working with installation files.

Topics include:

! Before You Create an Installation.

! File Types.

! Project Files and Database Files.

! Options for New Installations.

! Starting a New Installation.

! Specifying the Target Platform in an Installation.

! Entering Project Settings.

! How the Installation Integrates With the Solution.

! Scanning the Solution for New Files.

! Opening an Installation Package.

! Comparing Windows Installer Files.

! Saving an Installation as XML.

! Working With Installations in the Software Manager Database.

! Compiling, Testing, and Running An Installation.

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Before You Create an Installation

To avoid interruptions during installation development, gather the following information before you begin creating an installation in Wise for Windows Installer.

! All the files to install on the destination computer. This includes program files, files

necessary for optional features, related .DLLs, drivers, and other support files.

(Visual Studio integrated editor only.) Some of these files (examples: .DLLs, .OCXs, and .EXEs) might be added automatically when you create the installation project.

! Any third-party installations that the installation will provide. Example: Adobe

Acrobat Reader.

! Which files and other system changes comprise which features. (In Windows

Installer, a feature is a distinct part of your application’s functionality. Examples: a spell-checker, a thesaurus, or a collection of clip art.) If the installation will let end users select optional components, you must organize files into features when you create the installation.

! A list of the changes that must be made to system information files (examples: .INI

files, the registry, and so on) for your application to run properly.

! The application’s system requirements in as much detail as possible. Consider not

only memory and disk requirements, but also the minimum screen depth and resolution, and the minimum required version of the operating system.

! Any custom graphics, referred to as billboards, that should be displayed during

installation.

! Any changes that should be made to the dialogs that will be displayed during

installation. See Using the Dialogs Page on page 428 for a list of dialogs.

! If applicable, a Readme file and a license agreement file.

Before You Create an Installation

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File Types

In Wise for Windows Installer, you can create and edit different types of Windows Installer database files. You can work in the Windows Installer database file or in a project file that contains instructions for compiling the Windows Installer database file. See Project Files and Database Files on page 74. Each extension is described below.

Extension Description

.MSI Windows Installer database, which is a distributable installation. The .MSI extension is

associated with the Windows Installer executable, MSIExec.EXE. When an .MSI is opened, Windows Installer executes it, thereby installing the application. You can open and edit an .MSI in Wise for Windows Installer; however, options that have to do with creating an .MSI, such as those on the Releases, Release Settings, and Media page, are disabled. To convert an .MSI to a project file (.WSI), see MSI to WSI Conversion on page 365.

.WSI Windows Installer project file, which describes an .MSI but does not store contents. It

is in the same format as an .MSI. You edit a .WSI in Wise for Windows Installer and compile it to the corresponding .MSI. The .WSI is smaller in size and you can set multiple options for the output of the .MSI.

.MSM Windows Installer merge module, which is a pre-compiled library of components (files,

registry changes, and other system changes) that installs a discrete part of your application. It cannot be run alone, but must be merged with an .MSI during the .MSI compile. Merge modules provide flexibility in developing installations because you can break the installation into logical parts and share merge modules between installations. See About Merge Modules on page 330.

.WSM Windows Installer merge module project, which describes an .MSM, but does not store

merge module contents. You edit a .WSM in Wise for Windows Installer and compile it to the corresponding .MSM. See About Merge Modules on page 330.

.MST Windows Installer transform, which changes a Windows Installer package at runtime

and must be applied from the command line. See About Transforms on page 348.

.MSP Windows Installer patch, which updates an existing installed application. Patches

contain only the differences between the old and new versions of an application. Create a patch with the Patch Creation tool, which creates an .MSP file to distribute to end users. See Patches on page 302.

.PCP Windows Installer patch project, which describes and compiles to a Windows Installer

patch. A .PCP file is created from the Patch Creation tool. See Patches on page 302.

.EXE You can compile an .EXE that encapsulates the .MSI or that calls an external .MSI.

Doing so gives you the option of pre-installing Windows Installer software before performing your own installation, which ensures the installation will run. For details, see Setting Build Options for a Release on page 187 and Adding Prerequisites to a

Release on page 189.

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Project Files and Database Files

Typically, the installation you distribute is an .MSI. Windows Installer operates on .MSIs, which are a type of relational database that stores installation information and files in tables. See About Microsoft Windows Installer on page 538.

On the Build Options page (see Setting Build Options for a Release on page 187) or on the Media page (see Setting Up Media for Distribution on page 202), you can specify to output an installation in different ways:

! As a single-file .MSI, which contains compressed installation files.

! As an .MSI that has external compressed .CAB files.

! As an .MSI that has external uncompressed files.

! As an .EXE that contains the .MSI and installation files.

! As an .EXE that launches an external .MSI.

If you to output an .EXE, you can then pre-install Windows Installer or other runtimes.

When you create an installation, you can work either in a .WSI (project) file or an .MSI. The same applies to merge modules; work in an .MSM file or a .WSM (project) file.

Project Files and Database Files

How are installation files and paths stored?

Can you create releases?

Compiling does what?

Can you switch from working on one file type to the other?

If you work in .WSI or .WSM (Wise project)

Externally. The project contains paths to the installation files. During compile, they are compiled into the resulting .MSI or .EXE.

Yes. Use the Releases page and other Release Definition pages.

Reads the project information and compiles a database file (.MSI or .MSM), which contains installation files.

You can switch from a project file to a database file by compiling the project, opening the resulting database file, and continuing development in the database file. However, an .MSI created by compiling a .WSI does not contain file paths; it contains only the files themselves. Therefore, any files added prior to the switch will not be refreshed from disk because they have no file path. Only those files you add after the switch contain file paths and are refreshed from disk.

If you work in .MSI or .MSM (Windows Installer database)

Inside the database file. Files are refreshed from disk unless Don’t update or recompress files when saving is marked on the Product Details page.

No. Because you are already working in the final output file, options for multiple output files are disabled, which includes all Release Definition pages.

Refreshes files from disk unless Don’t

update or recompress files when saving is marked on the Product Details

page.

Use MSI to WSI Conversion (see MSI to

WSI Conversion on page 365) to convert

an .MSI to a .WSI. It extracts installation files from an .MSI, saves them to disk at locations you specify, and creates a .WSI that points to those files.

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Starting a New Installation

Follow the steps below to create a new standard Windows Installer installation. To create a new transform, see Creating a Transform Based on an Existing .MSI on page 348, and to create a new merge module, see Creating a Merge Module As a New Installation on page 334.

To start a new installation in the Wise editor:

1. Select Start menu > Programs > Wise Solutions > Wise for Windows Installer.

The New Installation File dialog appears. If it doesn’t appear, select File menu > New. For details on options in the New Installation File dialog, see:

• Options for New Installations on page 79.

• File Types on page 73.

• Project Files and Database Files on page 74.

2. In the Categories list, click Predefined Templates.

3. In the Templates/Tools list, click the Windows Application icon.

A Windows Application installation is a standard installation intended for a Windows computer or server.

For information on other icons in the list, see:

• Web Application icon: About Web Installations on page 217.

• Server Application icon: Obtaining Logon Information From a Dialog on

page 447.

• Pocket PC Application and Smartphone Application icons: Creating a Pocket PC or

Smartphone Installation on page 239.

• Palm Application icon: Palm OS Installations on page 252.

4. In the File type section, specify the type of file to create:

• Create an .MSI (Windows Installer database), which is a distributable

installation. Because an .MSI typically encapsulates all the files in the installation, it is larger and takes longer to save. Also, some options that determine the output of an .MSI are not available when you work with the .MSI itself.

• Create a .WSI (Windows Installer project), which contains instructions for

compiling an .MSI. When you work in a .WSI instead of an .MSI, the .WSI file is smaller and you can set multiple options for the output of the .MSI.

For information on .MSI and .WSI files, see File Types on page 73 and Project Files

and Database Files on page 74.

5. Select a target platform if necessary: 32-bit or 64-bit. For details, see Specifying the

Target Platform in an Installation on page 82.

The Target Platform section appears only if Select platform in New Installation File dialog is marked in Wise Options.

6. Click OK. The new installation opens.

Starting a New Installation

To start a new installation in the Visual Studio integrated editor:

When you start a new installation, you have several options for how to proceed. Not only do you choose whether to create a project associated with a solution, but you also choose what kind of file to create. Typically, you will create an installation in one of these ways:

Page 76

! As a project integrated with a Visual Studio .NET solution. Do this to create an

installation for an application you’ve developed in Visual Studio .NET. See Creating an

Installation Within a Solution on page 76.

! As a stand-alone installation that is not integrated with a solution. Do this to package

application files that are not already in a Visual Studio .NET solution into an installation. See Creating a Stand-alone Installation on page 77.

Creating an Installation Within a Solution

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

When you work in the Visual Studio integrated editor, you typically create an installation as a project within a Visual Studio .NET solution. Because the installation is synchronized with the other projects in the solution, additions or changes you make in the other projects can be added to the installation automatically. For information on what gets updated, see How the Installation Integrates With the Solution on page 88.

Each Visual Studio installation project contains settings that control how it interacts with other projects in the solution. You can enter project settings when you create a new installation, or you can create an installation with default settings. You can edit project settings at any time. See Entering Project Settings on page 84.

To create a stand-alone installation that is not integrated with a Visual Studio .NET solution, see Creating a Stand-alone Installation on page 77.

Starting a New Installation

Note

For best results, build the solution before creating the installation. This ensures that the target files are available for integration into the installation. If the main project’s target file does not exist when you create the installation, project information might not appear on the Product Details page as expected. The data will be included in the compiled .MSI, and will appear on the Projects page the next time you compile the installation project.

To create an installation within a solution:

1. Start Visual Studio .NET and open a solution.

2. Select File menu > New > Project.

The New Project dialog appears.

3. In the Project Types list, select Wise Setup and Deployment Projects.

4. In the Templates list, do one of the following:

• (Professional and Enterprise Editions.) Select the Setup Wizard icon to create a

new Windows Application installation and enter its project settings.

• (Standard Edition.) Select the Windows Application icon, which creates a new

installation with default settings, which you can change later.

A Windows Application installation is a standard installation intended for a Windows computer or server.

For information on the other icons in the list, see:

• Web Application icon: About Web Installations on page 217.

• Server Application icon: Obtaining Logon Information From a Dialog on

page 447.

• Merge Module icon: Available Tabs and Pages in Merge Modules on page 331.

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Starting a New Installation

5. In Name, enter a name for the installation file. In Location, specify the directory in which to save the project.

6. Mark Add to Solution.

7. Click OK.

If you selected the Windows Application icon, an installation project is created in the location you specified and is listed in Solution Explorer. Skip to the last step.

If you selected the Setup Wizard icon, the Wise Setup Wizard appears.

8. Step through the Wise Setup Wizard:

• On the wizard’s Overview page, review the project settings.

• On the wizard’s Project Type page, select the Windows Application option.

• For information on other settings in this wizard, see Entering Project Settings on

page 84.

•Click Finish.

An installation project is created in the location you specified and is listed in Solution Explorer.

9. Double-click the .WSI file in Solution Explorer.

The installation opens.

Also see:

Starting a New Installation on page 75 Options for New Installations on page 79

Creating a Stand-alone Installation

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

You can create an installation that is not associated with a Visual Studio .NET solution. Example: You might do this when you are not creating the .EXE and .DLL files that make up the installation. In such cases, there is no need to synchronize the installation with other Visual Studio projects.

To create an installation that is part of a Visual Studio .NET solution, see Creating an

Installation Within a Solution on page 76.

To create a stand-alone installation:

1. Start Visual Studio .NET. If a solution is open, close it.

2. Select File menu > New > File.

The New File dialog appears.

3. In the Categories list, select Wise Files.

4. In the Templates list, click one of the following icons:

• Windows Application File

Create an .MSI (Windows Installer database), which is a distributable installation. Because an .MSI typically encapsulates all the files in the installation, it is larger and takes longer to save. Also, some options that determine the output of an .MSI are not available when you work with the .MSI itself.

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• Windows Application Project

Create a .WSI (Windows Installer project), which contains instructions for compiling an .MSI. When you work in a .WSI instead of an .MSI, the .WSI file is smaller and you can set multiple options for the output of the .MSI.

For information on .MSI and .WSI files, see File Types on page 73 and Project Files

and Database Files on page 74.

5. Click Open.

A new installation opens.

Also see:

Starting a New Installation on page 75 Options for New Installations on page 79

Creating a Device Driver Installation

" Supported by Windows 2000, Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, or later.

You can create an installation that supports Microsoft’s Driver Install Frameworks (DIFx). Microsoft created the Driver Install Frameworks to significantly improve the quality of device driver installations. For information on this initiative, search for “Driver Install Frameworks” in the MSDN Library (msdn.microsoft.com/library/).

Wise for Windows Installer contains an installation template that simplifies the process of creating installations that install device drivers. This template includes custom actions that are needed to install the driver using Driver Install Frameworks for Applications (DIFxApp), as well as custom actions to uninstall the driver when the application is uninstalled.

1. Make sure your device driver meets Microsoft’s requirements for driver packages that are used with the Driver Install Frameworks.

2. Start a new installation and select the Device Driver icon on the New Installation File dialog. See Starting a New Installation on page 75. (In Visual Studio: start a new stand-alone installation and select the Device Driver icon on the New File dialog. See

Creating a Stand-alone Installation on page 77.)

3. Select Setup Editor > Components tab.

4. In the left pane, right-click the INF component and select New > File.

The Add Files to Installation dialog appears.

5. Specify the .INF file that is associated with your device driver and click Open.

6. In the left pane, right-click the INF component and select Details.

The Components Details dialog appears.

7. Make the following changes and click OK:

•Directory

Change this to match the target location of this .INF file.

•File Key Path

Select the .INF file that you just added to the installation.

8. Continue authoring the installation.

Starting a New Installation

Page 79

Options for New Installations

There are several ways to create new installations. To display options, select File menu > New. (In Visual Studio: select File menu > New Project or File menu > New File, and select the Wise project type or category.)

You can create new files either in Windows Installer database format (.MSI, .MSM) or in Wise’s project format (.WSI, .WSM). See Project Files and Database Files on page 74. Some options let you start a new installation by using a tool (example: Palm Application) and some let you create different kinds of Windows Installer installations from templates. You can create custom templates, which appear as additional options for new installations. See Creating and Editing Installation Templates on page 60.

Tips

! In the Wise editor, templates are organized in category subfolders. Examples:

Predefined Templates, Custom Templates, and so on.

! In the Visual Studio integrated editor, templates are organized by integrated project

and stand-alone files:

• Select File menu > New > Project > Wise Setup and Deployment Projects for

new projects that are integrated with a solution.

• Select File menu > New > File > Wise Files for stand-alone files.

Options for New Installations

New Installation Options

Note

In the Visual Studio integrated editor, to determine the file type of a given option, select the option and then view the help text that appears at the bottom of the dialog. In the Wise editor, the file type is determined by the file type options.

! Setup Wizard

(Visual Studio integrated editor only. Not available in Standard edition.) Runs a wizard that creates a Windows Application, Web Application, Server Application, or Merge Module installation. With this wizard, you can customize the settings rather than accepting the defaults of the standard templates. See Creating an Installation

Within a Solution on page 76.

! Windows Application

Creates a standard installation with default settings. See Starting a New Installation on page 75. (In the Visual Studio integrated editor, see Creating an Installation

Within a Solution on page 76. If this name ends with “File”, it creates a stand-alone

file that’s not part of a solution; see Creating a Stand-alone Installation on page 77.)

! Web Application

(Professional and Enterprise editions only.) Creates an installation intended to be run on Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS). See About Web Installations on page 217.

! Server Application

(Professional and Enterprise editions only.) Creates an installation intended to be run on Microsoft IIS, with an additional dialog for recording logon information. See

Obtaining Logon Information From a Dialog on page 447. Installations created from

this template work only on Windows NT, Windows 2000, or Windows XP.

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Options for New Installations

! Device Driver

Creates an installation that installs a device driver. This template supports Microsoft’s Driver Install Frameworks (DIFx). It includes custom actions that install and uninstall the device driver properly. See Creating a Device Driver Installation on page 78.

! Merge Module

See Creating a Merge Module As a New Installation on page 334. (In Visual Studio: see Creating a Merge Module Within a Solution on page 336. If this name ends with “File”, it creates a stand-alone file that’s not part of a solution; see Creating a Merge

Module As a New Installation on page 334.)

! Transform

See Creating a Transform Based on an Existing .MSI on page 348.

! Mobile Device Tools

(Professional and Enterprise editions only.) The following tools create an installation for a mobile device.

• Pocket PC Application

See Creating a Pocket PC or Smartphone Installation on page 239.

• Palm Application

See Palm OS Installations on page 252.

• Smartphone Application

See Creating a Pocket PC or Smartphone Installation on page 239.

! Conversion Tools

The following tools convert an existing installation from another format to Windows Installer format.

• SMS Installer or WiseScript Installation

See Convert SMS Installer or WiseScript Installation on page 358.

• InstallShield Professional

See Convert InstallShield Professional on page 356.

! Import Tools

The following tools open an import wizard, where you select a development project file to import. Target file information is extracted from the project file and added to the installation. See Import Visual Studio Projects on page 360.

• Visual Basic

(In Visual Studio: this is named Import Visual Basic.)

• Visual C#

(Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

• Visual J#

(Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

! File type options

(Wise editor only.) Select the format of the file:

• Create standard .MSI or .MSM file that contains all binary and cabinet

files

Mark this to create a new Windows Installer database file. Because the installation file generally encapsulates all the files of the installation, an .MSI is usually larger in size and takes longer to save. Also, some options that determine the output of an .MSI are not available if you work with the .MSI itself.

• Create .WSI or .WSM project file that can be compiled into an .MSI or

.MSM

Mark this to create a project file instead of a installation file. Unlike .MSIs, project files are not distributable installation files; they describe and compile a

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Options for New Installations

distributable file. They do not contain installation files. This option lets you edit and save the .WSI quickly and has more options for outputting the .MSI. A .WSI compiles to an .MSI, and a .WSM compiles to an .MSM (merge module).

! Target Platform options

(Professional and Enterprise editions only.) This section appears if the Select platform in New Installation File dialog option is marked in Wise Options. For

information about 64-bit installations, see What’s Different in a 64-Bit Installation? on page 82.

• Create installation for 32-bit platform

Enables the installation for 32-bit platforms.

• Create installation for 64-bit platform

Enables the installation for 64-bit platforms.

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Specifying the Target Platform in an Installation

Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

You can specify whether installations are enabled for 32-bit or 64-bit platforms. The target platform is set when the installation is first created; you cannot change the target platform after the file is created. The target platform default for new installations is controlled by the Target Platform Selection setting in Wise Options. See Setting the

Default Target Platform on page 56.

(Visual Studio only.) When you create a project with the Setup Wizard, you can override the default target platform for that particular project. You do this on the Main Project page of the Setup Wizard. See Entering Project Settings on page 84.

(Wise editor only.) If you specify Select platform in New Installation File dialog in Wise Options, a Target Platform section appears on the New Installation File dialog when you select File menu > New. In this section, you can change the default platform when you create a new installation.

Note

64-bit installations are supported only by Windows Installer 2.0 or later.

Also see What’s Different in a 64-Bit Installation? on page 82.

What’s Different in a 64-Bit Installation?

" Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

A 64-bit installation file differs from a 32-bit installation in the following ways:

! The minimum version of Windows Installer is set to 2.00 in the Installer Version

field on the General Information page. Do not override this setting in a 64-bit installation, because 64-bit installations are not supported by Windows Installer versions earlier than 2.0.

Note

Installations with an Installer Version of 2.0 or later cannot run on Windows NT 4.0, Service Pack 5 or earlier. This is a Microsoft restriction.

! The value Intel64 is added to the Template Summary summary item, which

indicates the platform and language versions supported by the installation. To display this value, select Setup Editor > Product tab > Summary icon. Do not change this value in a 64-bit installation, however, you can change the language ID.

! Condition Builder contains 2 additional property values: VersionNT64 and Intel64.

! The Directory table contains additional folders with “64” appended to their names.

! The Files page contains an additional predefined directory, Program Files (x86).

! You can designate a component as a 64-bit component by marking the 64-bit

component checkbox on the Component Details dialog. See Adding and Editing a

Component on page 391.

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Specifying the Target Platform in an Installation

! The Read Registry Value dialog contains a checkbox that lets you include 64-bit

components in a registry value search. See Searching For a Registry Value on page 174.

! When you create a custom action that calls a JScript or VBScript file, a checkbox lets

you call a 64-bit script.

! The Target Platform field on the Product Details page provides a quick way to

determine for which platform an installation is enabled. See Product Details Page on page 100.

Also see Specifying the Target Platform in an Installation on page 82.

Page 84

Entering Project Settings

Visual Studio integrated editor only.

Each Visual Studio installation project has settings that control how it interacts with other projects in the solution.

Stand-alone installations that are not integrated with a Visual Studio .NET solution do not have project settings.

To access project settings:

Do one of the following:

! While creating a new installation project, select Setup Wizard on the New Project

dialog. (Professional and Enterprise Editions only.) See Creating an Installation

Within a Solution on page 76.

The Wise Setup Wizard dialog appears. Available pages are: Overview, Project Type, Projects, and Main Project.

! Right-click an existing installation project in Solution Explorer and select Properties.

The Property Pages dialog appears. Available pages are: Projects, Project Outputs, and Main Project.

Entering Project Settings

Overview Page

Note

The Property Pages dialog contains a link to the Configuration Properties page, however, configuration properties do not apply to Wise editor installation projects.

Also see:

Overview Page on page 84 Project Type Page on page 85 Projects Page on page 85 Main Project Page on page 86 Project Outputs Page on page 87

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

The Overview page summarizes the project settings for the project you are creating. Review the settings to make sure they are correct. To change these settings, click the links at the left to access the Project Type, Projects, or Main Project pages.

Also see:

Creating an Installation Within a Solution on page 76 Entering Project Settings on page 84

Page 85

Project Type Page

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

The Project Type page lets you specify what kind of installation project you are creating. This page is accessible only from the Wise Setup Wizard when you create a new installation (Professional and Enterprise Editions only).

! Windows Application

Create a standard Windows Installer installation (.WSI). This is intended for installation to Windows computers or servers. See Creating an Installation Within a

Solution.

! Web Application or Web Service

Create a standard Windows Installer installation (.WSI). This has options preconfigured to enable it to be installed to a Microsoft Internet Information Server. See About Web Installations on page 217.

! Server Application

Create a standard Windows Installer installation (.WSI). This is the same as the Web Application above except that it also prompts the end user to enter valid NT logon information. See Obtaining Logon Information From a Dialog on page 447.

! Merge Module

Create a standard merge module project (.WSM). See Creating a Merge Module

Within a Solution on page 336.

Entering Project Settings

Projects Page

Also see:

Creating an Installation Within a Solution on page 76 Entering Project Settings on page 84

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

On the Projects page, you select projects to add to the installation you are creating. Access this page either from the Wise Setup Wizard when you create a new installation, or by right-clicking a project in a solution and selecting Properties.

! Select the projects to include in this package

From this list of all projects in the current solution, select the ones to add to this installation. (All projects are selected by default.) Output files of the selected projects are added to this installation.

If you add a project to this solution later, it will be added to the project list and selected for inclusion.

To exclude a project from the installation, deselect it.

! Scan Method

Each time you load, save, or build an installation project or change its settings, Wise for Windows Installer can scan projects in the solution for new files to add to the installation. See Scanning the Solution for New Files on page 89.

Specify the level of scanning that will occur for this installation. The default is determined by the Scan Method option in Wise Options.

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Entering Project Settings

• Never scan solution

If you select this, you must add new files to installations manually using the Files page. Also, when files are removed from a solution, you must remove them from the installations manually.

• Prompt only when new files are detected

Select this to be prompted each time there are new files in the solution that need to be added to the installation. The prompt appears during save, build, or compile.

• Prompt when any files are detected

• Always scan solution

Each time Wise for Windows Installer scans a solution, it adds new files to the installation and deletes files that have been removed from the solution.

! Bind installed files to the solution build configuration

Mark this to have the installation source paths change automatically when you change this project’s build configuration. The default is determined by a checkbox in Wise Options.

Also see:

Creating an Installation Within a Solution on page 76 Entering Project Settings on page 84

Main Project Page

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

On the Main Project page, you specify the main project and set options that affect the main project. Access this page either from the Wise Setup Wizard when you create a new installation, or by right-clicking a project in a solution and selecting Properties.

! Main Project

Select the project that generates the main target, or executable file, for your application. (Example: If the main executable for the project is Sample.exe, you would select the project that generates Sample.exe.) When you select a project, a shortcut is generated for the main target and the version number in the Wise project is updated from the main target.

If you select <None>, or if you are in a merge module, shortcut generation and version updating does not occur.

! Automatically Update Product Information

Mark this to update the installation’s product name, version, and manufacturer whenever you rebuild the solution or whenever the version number of the main target file changes. (In a merge module, only the version is updated .) The default is determined by a checkbox in Wise Options. This is disabled if you select <None> in Main Project.

! Create Shortcut

Mark this to add a shortcut for the main target file to the installation. The default is determined by a checkbox in Wise Options. This is disabled if you select <None> in Main Project.

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! Target Platform

(Wise Setup Wizard only.) This defaults to the Target Platform Selection in Wise Options. You can change the target platform for this particular installation project.

Because you cannot change the target platform after the project is created, this option does not appear on the Property Pages dialog.

Also see:

Creating an Installation Within a Solution on page 76 Entering Project Settings on page 84

Project Outputs Page

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

By default, the installation includes only the main output file (.EXE or .DLL) from each project in the solution, and the content files from each project. On the Project Outputs page, you select which projects to include in the installation and specify additional project output files to include in the installation.

This page is accessible only on the Project Properties dialog. Right-click a project in a solution and select Properties.

! Project

Select the project to specify additional outputs for.

! Output Groups

Select one or more types of output files to include in the installation:

• Debug Symbols

Include the project’s debugging (.PDB) files.

• Localized Resources

Include files marked as resources for the project. Example: additional files for a specific language.

•Source Files

Include all source code files in the project.

• Content Files

Include all files marked as content within the project, that is, files that are not compiled but are meant to be distributed with the application. Examples: HTML, ASP, and ASPX files.

• Primary Output

Include the .DLL or .EXE built by the project.

Entering Project Settings

Also see:

Creating an Installation Within a Solution on page 76 Entering Project Settings on page 84

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How the Installation Integrates With the Solution

Visual Studio integrated editor only.

When you add an installation to a Visual Studio .NET solution, as described in Creating

an Installation Within a Solution on page 76, the following items are added to the

installation project:

! All primary outputs (.EXEs and .DLLs) of the projects in the solution, and all content

files in the solution. (Content files are not compiled but are meant to be distributed with the application. Examples: HTML, ASP, and ASPX files.) When a project consists only of a .DLL or .OCX, has no additional content, and is a dependent of another project, it is not added to the installation by default.

To add other outputs to the installation, select them on the Project Outputs page in the project settings.

Wise for Windows Installer can scan for files you add or delete after you’ve created the installation project, and can add them to or delete them from the project. See

Scanning the Solution for New Files on page 89.

! Assembly dependencies, if you have selected one of the rescan assembly options in

Wise Options.

View these in Installation Expert > Files page.

! The application name, version, and manufacturer from the main project in the

solution.

View these in Installation Expert > Product Details page. The default directory is filled in with the same name as the main project. You can change the main project on the Main Project page in the project settings.

Note

Except for the product version, once the information on the Product Details page is set, it does not change if you change the information in the main project.

! An advertised shortcut for the application.

On the Project Outputs page in the project settings, you can choose not to create a shortcut.

When you add a new project to the solution, its outputs are added to the installation.

To exclude a project from the installation, or to change how the installation project integrates with the solution, edit the installation’s project settings. See Entering Project

Settings on page 84.

Note

Only files that reside in the directory where the solution (.sln) file resides and its subdirectories can be managed with source control. Files that reside in system directories or other locations outside the solution directory are not managed by source control, and therefore do not appear in the Other Files or Source Files folders under the installation project in Solution Explorer.

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Scanning the Solution for New Files

" Visual Studio integrated editor only.

Wise for Windows Installer can scan projects in a solution for new output files that need to be added to the installation, and add those files to the installation.

Scanning occurs when you:

! Load, save, or build an installation project within a solution.

! Change the installation’s project settings. Examples: output types, projects to

include.

How and when the solution is scanned is determined by the Scan Method option. The default is set in Wise Options and can be changed for specific installations on the Projects page in the project settings. See Setting Visual Studio Options on page 57 and

Projects Page on page 85.

! If you add an existing .WSI to a solution, the .WSI project’s original scan method

setting is preserved.

! If you add an existing .WSI project to a solution and no scan method setting is

found, the default scan method is used.

You can specify the level of scanning that should occur for each installation. See Projects

Page on page 85.

How the Installation Integrates With the Solution

Add Project Outputs to Installation Dialog

This dialog appears during save, build, or compile when the scan method is set to prompt. On this dialog, you can:

! Mark checkboxes for files to add them to the installation project.

! Edit the destination feature and target directory by clicking a file and editing the

appropriate cell.

! Add and edit multiple files at once by selecting them and clicking the Properties

button. On the Project Output Properties dialog that appears, you can add a new feature and add a new directory for all of the selected files.

Note

In a Web installation, you can only change the destination feature.

Why Would You Change the Scan Method?

You can change the scan method for specific installations on the Projects page in the project settings.

You might want to change an installation’s scan method at various stages of the development cycle. Example:

! At the beginning of a development project when you are continually creating new

projects and files, you would want to add all new files automatically.

! As development continues and you become more discriminating about the files you

add to the installation, you might want to be prompted to add files.

! At the end of the development cycle, you can turn the scanning off altogether so you

don’t introduce any new files into the installation.

Also see How the Installation Integrates With the Solution on page 88.

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Opening an Installation Package

Enterprise Edition only. Not available in the Visual Studio integrated

editor.

In the Enterprise Edition, when you select File menu > Open, the Open dialog that appears contains two tabs that let you open an installation package from a directory or from the Wise Software Repository.

The Repository tab on the Open dialog provides a centralized list of installation packages and eliminates the need to navigate your file system to find an installation file. Because packages can be added to the repository early in the development cycle, use this method to ensure that you open the correct file.

When you select a package from the repository:

! The package opens from its location in the repository. Typically, this is the Scripts

directory or your default project directory.

! If the package status is Available, you are prompted to change the status to Under

Development.

Caution

Use caution when changing available packages, because they might have been deployed to end users.

Opening an Installation Package

! If you try to save the package, a prompt asks if you want to overwrite the file that is

in the repository.

To open a package from a directory:

Click the File System tab on the Open dialog. This tab is the same as the standard Windows Open dialog.

To open a package from the Wise Software Repository:

1. Click the Repository tab on the Open dialog.

Packages are displayed in the list box if they have a valid path to an installation file (.MSI, .WSI, and so on). If a package’s path to its installation file is missing or broken, or is not accessible by the current computer, that package is not listed. Also, subscription packages are not listed.

2. Database displays the current Software Manager database. To select a package

from a different database, click .

The Select Data Source dialog appears. This is a standard Windows ODBC connection wizard, which lets you connect to a database via an ODBC data source.

3. Specify criteria for filtering the packages that are displayed:

•Groups

This lists the groups defined in Software Manager.

•Status

This lists the possible package statuses.

• Package Type

This lists the available package types.

4. Select a package in the list and click Open.

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Opening an Installation Package

If you change an installation that you opened from the repository, re-import it into the Software Manager database. Otherwise, changes will not be reflected in the repository.

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Comparing Windows Installer Files

Visual MSIDiff lets you compare .MSI, .WSI, .MSM, .WSM, or .MST files and see the differences in the Tables tab in Setup Editor.

Options for Comparing Files

! Compare the current file to another file.

! Compare any two files. (Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

! Compare a transform to its base .MSI, to see the items the transform changes in the

.MSI.

To view differences between two Windows Installer files:

1. Open a file.

2. Select Tools menu > Visual MSIDiff and then select an option. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Visual MSIDiff.)

• Compare Current File to Another File

A standard file dialog appears. Specify the file to compare the current file to and click Open.

•Compare Any Two Files

The Compare Windows Installer Files dialog appears. Specify the files to compare and click OK. The file you specify in the Compare field becomes the current file. (Not available in the Visual Studio integrated editor.)

• Compare Transform to Base .MSI

(Transform files only.) Automatically compares the .MST to its base .MSI.

You are taken to Setup Editor > Tables tab and the Visual MSIDiff Key dialog appears, which describes icons that indicate changes. Changes are shown in the tables and rows where they occur.

3. On the Visual MSIDiff Key dialog, take note of the symbols and colors that indicate changes and click OK.

If the Visual MSIDiff Key dialog does not appear, you might have marked its Do not show this dialog again checkbox. You can reactivate this prompt in Wise Options.

4. Scroll through tables on the Tables tab, looking for the symbols for changed tables. Click on changed tables to view differences in rows, which are indicated by symbols and colors.

As you work in the installation file, the symbols indicating changed items are updated dynamically. The compare stays on until you end it.

5. To end the compare, select Tools menu > Visual MSIDiff > End Current Compare. (In Visual Studio: Project menu > Visual MSIDiff > End Current Compare.) This turns off compare symbols and closes the comparison file.

Comparing Windows Installer Files

Also see Tables Tab on page 397.

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Saving an Installation as XML

You can save a copy of an installation (.WSI, .MSI, WSM, or .MSM) in XML format. This lets you check the XML version of the installation into a text-based source code control system (SCCS), use text-based file comparison tools to find changes, or perform analyses with XML reporting tools.

You can set a global option in Wise Options to create an XML copy every time you save an installation file, or you can export to an XML file on an as-needed basis. Depending on the size of the installation file, creating an XML copy can take several minutes.

You cannot open an XML-format file in Wise for Windows Installer.

To create an XML file during saves:

Use this method when you plan to check the XML file into an SCCS from Wise for Windows Installer. This ensures that the XML copy is always synchronized with the original installation file.

1. Select Tools menu > Options and click the General tab. (In Visual Studio: Tools > Options > Wise Options > General.)

2. Mark the Create XML copy during save checkbox.

This global option causes an XML copy to be created every time you save an installation file. The copy has the same name as the installation file with the extension .XML appended, and it is saved in the same directory. (Example: If the current file name is Application.wsi, the XML copy is named Application.wsi.xml.)

Saving an Installation as XML

To export an XML file as needed:

Use this method when you do not have an integrated SCCS, or to compare the version of the installation you’re working in to the version that you checked out of your SCCS.

1. Select File menu > Export to XML. (In Visual Studio: Project > Export to XML.)

2. In the Save As dialog that appears, specify a file name with the extension .XML and click Save.

If you have not named the installation file yet, name and save the installation file on the Save As dialog. When the Save As dialog reappears, specify the .XML file.

The current installation is saved and exported to XML format.

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Working With Installations in the Software Manager Database

Enterprise Edition only.

There are restrictions on editing and saving an installation that has been added to the Software Manager database (either by adding its meta data or importing it).

When the Package Path Matches a Package in the Database

If you open an installation file and the Software Manager database contains a package with the same package path, the application and package names on the Product Details page are disabled. This is because the installation is connected to the package in the database. You can only edit these names on the Package Attributes dialog in Software Manager.

If you edit the installation’s meta data, the meta data in the database is updated when you save the installation. If you change the installation, re-import it to the Software Manager database to update its resources.

Opening a Copy of a Package in the Database

If you open an installation file that is a copy of a package in the Software Manager database, the application and package names are populated and enabled. Change one or both of these names before saving the installation to avoid overwriting the package in the database. Then, when you then save the installation, a new package and its meta data are added to the Software Manager database.

Example: You want to create a patch for an installation that is in the Software Manager database. You open a copy of the installation file to change it. Before you save the installation, you change its package name on the Product Details page. When you save the installation, a new package with the same application name, and its meta data, are added to the database.

Duplicate Package in Software Manager Database Dialog

If you open an installation file that is a copy of a package in the Software Manager database, and you don’t change the application and package name on the Product Details page, the Duplicate Package in Software Manager Database dialog appears when you try to save the installation. Select an option and click OK:

! Create a New Package (recommended)

Mark this to create a new package in the Software Manager database. The Product Details page opens so that you can change the application or package name before saving the installation file.

! Overwrite Existing Package

Mark this to overwrite the package in the Software Manager database. The meta data of the package in the database is overwritten, and its resources are removed from the database.

! Work Disconnected

Mark this to keep the installation file disconnected from the Software Manager database. When you save the installation, its meta data is not added to the database.

To connect the installation file to the Software Manager database, change the application or package name on the Product Details page and save the installation. A new package and its meta data are added to the database.

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Compiling, Testing, and Running An Installation

To test an installation, you can:

! Compile the installation to an executable .MSI or .EXE. See Compiling An

Installation.

! Test the installation, which appears to run but does not make any modifications on

your system. See Testing An Installation on page 96.

! Debug the installation in an .MSI debugger, which lets you step through the

installation while viewing the property values and other table data. This actually runs the installation, and lets you see exactly what it is doing at any time. See Running

the Debugger on page 484. The Debugger for Windows Installer is available in the

Professional and Enterprise Editions only.

! Run the compiled installation, which is either an .MSI or an .EXE. See Running An

Installation on page 96.

Note

When working in a .WSI, you can set the installation to generate more than one installation program by adding releases to the Releases page. If you test, debug, or run an installation that contains multiple releases, you are prompted to select a release.

Compiling An Installation

Compiling an installation compresses its files, builds .CABs if necessary, and creates the installation .MSI. Depending on the .EXE option you select on the Build Options page, compiling can also create an installation .EXE. (In Visual Studio: compiling and building do the same thing.)

The number and type of files generated depend on the settings you select on the Build Options and Media pages. If the installation contains multiple releases, all releases in the installation are compiled. To compile a specific release, go to the Releases page, select one or more releases, and click the Compile button at the right of the Releases page.

If you are working in a .WSI or .WSM file, you can speed the compile process by marking the Enable Quick Compile checkbox in Wise Options. Quick Compile compresses only previously uncompressed or changed files. If a file or media entry has changed, a full compile occurs instead. You can also speed compile time by using ExpressBuild, a multi-processor compile feature in the Professional and Enterprise Editions. See the description of Quick Compile in Setting General Options on page 43 and see Setting ExpressBuild Options on page 49.

To compile an installation in the Wise editor:

! Click Compile at the lower right of the main window.

To compile an installation in the Visual Studio integrated editor:

Select one of the following commands from the Build menu:

! Build Solution

Compiles all projects in the current solution. If quick compile is enabled and you have already built this solution, this command compiles only what has changed since the last build.

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Compiling, Testing, and Running An Installation

! Build <project name>

Compiles only the project you have selected in Solution Explorer. If quick compile is enabled and you have already built this project, this command compiles only what has changed since the last build.

! Rebuild Solution

Compiles all files in all projects in the solution.

! Rebuild <project name>

Compiles all files in the project you have selected in Solution Explorer.

! Compile

Compiles the current project or installation file. This is the only command available for installations that are not part of a Visual Studio .NET installation.

Compile Results

If you are working in an .MSI or .MSM, compiling saves the file. If file paths are stored in the .MSI, compiling first refreshes the files with the latest version. If files cannot be read, or other errors occur, errors are listed in the Task List. (In Visual Studio: errors appear in the Visual Studio .NET Output window as they are encountered and then, at the end of the compile, they are listed in the Task List.) Use the Task List to determine the source of the errors; see Using the Task List on page 29.

If you see messages that files are missing, you can suppress the file refresh by marking the Don’t update or recompress files when saving checkbox on the Product Details page. If merge modules are missing, you can download them using Help menu > Download Redistributables. (In Visual Studio: Help menu > Wise Help > Download Redistributables.)

Testing An Installation

You can compile and test an installation in test mode, which does not install or modify files or change the system. This lets you run through the UI and logic of an installation without making changes. Click Test at the lower right of the main window. (In Visual Studio: select Project menu > Start in Test Mode.)

If this installation contains multiple releases, you are prompted to select one.

You cannot test a transform or a merge module by itself. It can only be run in conjunction with an .MSI. To run a transform or merge module, run the base .MSI from the command line with the appropriate command line options, which are documented in the Windows Installer SDK Help.

Note

If you change the installation and then test it, but the change is not apparent, exit the installation and compile it. Then test it again.

Running An Installation

Compile and run an installation to install a release on your computer. To do so, click Run at the lower right of the main window. (In Visual Studio: in Solution Explorer, right-click the installation project icon and select Set as StartUp Project. Then, select Debug menu > Start Without Debugging. The additional options below are not available.) Then choose the type of installation from the button menu:

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Compiling, Testing, and Running An Installation

! Force Reinstall

Normally, if an application is installed and you attempt to install it again, Windows Installer prompts you to remove it. This option uses command lines to bypass the uninstall. Existing resources are replaced, and new resources are laid down. (The command line msiexec.exe /FAMSUV [MSIFILENAME] is used. See Command Line Options in the Windows Installer SDK Help.)

! Uninstall --> Install

If the application is already installed, this option first uninstalls it automatically, then installs.

! Run

Runs the installation normally. If the application is already installed, you are prompted to uninstall it.

If this installation contains multiple releases, you are prompted to select one.

The installation runs as it would on the destination computer, actually installing files and modifying the system.

You cannot run a transform or a merge module by itself. It can only be run in conjunction with an .MSI. To run a transform or merge module, run the base .MSI from the command line with the appropriate command line options, which are documented in the Windows Installer SDK Help.

Note

If you change the installation and then run it, but the change is not apparent, exit the installation and compile it. Then run it again.

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Chapter 5

Defining an Installation Project

When you start a new installation, you enter information about the installation and the application, and define the structure of the installation.

Topics include:

! Project Summary Page.

! Product Details Page.

! General Information Page.

! Add/Remove Programs Page.

! Features Page.

! Managing Binary Resources.

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Project Summary Page

The Installation Expert > Project Summary page provides the following information about the current installation project and quick access to areas of the installation:

! Links to Installation Expert pages that have content in the current installation and,

where appropriate, the number of items defined on each page. Examples: how many features are defined on the Features page, how many files have been added to the Files page, and so on.

! (Enterprise Edition only.) Links to the Package Contents reports.

! Installation package meta data (read-only). To edit the meta data, see Product

Details Page on page 100.

A checkbox in Wise Options determines whether the Project Summary page appears when an installation is opened.

Project Summary Page

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Product Details Page

Use Installation Expert > Product Details page to enter, edit, or view an installation’s meta data. Meta data is displayed for .MSI, .WSI, and .MST files. In the Value column of the Package Meta Data table, you can enter or edit meta data that is not read-only.

Note

The meta data that appears when you create a transform comes from the base .MSI. If you change a transform’s meta data, it is set when the transform is applied.

(Enterprise Edition only.) If you define meta data fields in Software Manager, they appear on the Product Details page unless the Software Manager database cannot be found. You can edit these meta data fields on the Product Details page or in Software Manager. In Software Manager, you can also change the order in which the meta data fields appear on the Product Details page. See Defining Custom Meta Data Fields in the Software Manager Help.

(Enterprise Edition only.) For an .MSI or .WSI, you can add the meta data that appears on the Product Details page to the Software Manager database. This lets you add package information to the Software Manager database early in the development process. It also eliminates the need to enter the meta data manually in Software Manager and ensures that every package in the database has meta data that meets your corporate standards. See Adding Meta Data to the Software Manager Database on page 102. Also see How to Get Packages Into the Software Manager Database in the Software Manager Help.

Product Details Page

Note

(Visual Studio integrated editor only.) Except for the product version, once the information on the Product Details page is set, it does not change if you change the information in the main project.

! Application

(Enterprise Edition only.) Enter the name to use for this application in the Software Manager database. This can be the same as the Product Name meta data field.

! Package

(Enterprise Edition only.) Enter a unique name to identify this package in the Software Manager database. Typically, you use the Application name plus specific version information. Example: If the Application name is Product, the Package name might be Product 5.05.

! Product Type

(Read-only.) This displays Windows Installer for installations and Transform for transforms.

! Product Name

Enter the name of the application, which by default is the name of the first directory you create on the Files or Web Files page. The end user sees this name during installation and in the Add/Remove Programs dialog.

(Visual Studio integrated editor only.) If this installation is part of a Visual Studio .NET solution, this is pre-filled.

! Manufacturer

Enter the manufacturer or publisher of the application.

100