INFO: Setup Factory and the Windows Installer

[Support]

INFO: Setup Factory and the Windows Installer

Document ID: IR02032

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The information in this article applies to:

• Setup Factory 6.0

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SUMMARY

This article provides information on Setup Factory 6.0 and the Windows Installer.

DISCUSSION

The Windows Installer Service is a service provided by Microsoft. It must be installed on an end user's system before any installation based upon it can be run. It helps to standardize the installation process on different computers. When using the Windows Installer Service one must provide the service with a database (usually with the extension .MSI) that contains all the instructions that Windows Installer Service will follow when installing the software. This file is known as a Windows Installer Package.

Setup Factory 6.0 does not use the Windows Installer Service, it uses it's own runtime engine to manage the installation process. This means that when you are distributing a Setup Factory 6.0 based installation you will always be distributing the correct version of the runtime engine. With the Windows Installer you must make sure that the end user has (at least) the version of the Windows Installer that you used to develop your install with. If they do not have this version then your version of the Windows Installer Service must be installed on the user's system.

Setup Factory 6.0 does not use the Windows Installer Service for a variety of reasons, the two major reasons are: increased complexity, and restrictive rules.

Since the Windows Installer provides features like "Install On Demand" and "Repair" it also forces an increase in the complexity involved when creating an installation. In many cases this increase in complexity is not warranted since these features will not be used.

The Windows Installer Service imposes a set of rules upon any installation that uses it. In general these rules are well thought out and help protect the end user's system, but there are occasions when these rules will stop an installation from performing a much-needed task. Setup Factory 6.0 does not impose these limitations on developers designing their installations, allowing them to accomplish almost anything they want to accomplish.

KEYWORDS: Setup Factory 6.0, Windows Installer, MSI

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Last reviewed: November 6, 2002
Copyright © 2002 Indigo Rose Corporation. All rights reserved.