comparison

Competitive Matrix

MSI Factory 2.0 is the next-generation intelligent setup builder for Windows. It fully leverages Microsoft’s Windows Installer XML (WiX) compiler technology for creating 100% pure MSI format installer packages in a faster and more intuitive way.

Use the chart below to compare MSI Factory 2.0’s features to a variety of competitive installer products. Note that there is also a feature comparison chart to help you choose between MSI Factory 2.0 and Setup Factory 8.0.

	MSI Factory 2.0	InstallShield Professional	InstallShield Express	Wise Installation Studio	Wise Installation Express
Design Environment
Modern Design Environment
File-Centric List View
Project Wizard
Multiple file properties
Customizable toolbars
Unattended building
WiX Features
Generate WiX Project Files
Support for WiX Fragments
Support for WiX Extensions
WiX Based XML Actions
	MSI Factory 2.0	InstallShield Professional	InstallShield Express	Wise Installation Studio	Wise Installation Express
MSI Features
Product Information
Package Information
Add/Remove Programs Options
Include Binary Resources
Configure Features
Edit Components
Include Merge Modules
Set File Properties
Modify Registry
Modify INI Files
Create Shortcuts
Set Environment Variables
Make File Associations
Configure Services
ODBC
Launch Conditions
System Searching
Installation Types
Define Media Types
Upgrade Codes
Custom Actions (DLL, EXE, VBScript, JScript)
Set File Permissions
Set Registry Permissions
64-Bit Support
Restart Manager (MSI 4.0)
Enable UAC (MSI 4.0)
	MSI Factory 2.0	InstallShield Professional	InstallShield Express	Wise Installation Studio	Wise Installation Express
Extended Runtime Capabilities
Show Message Box (CA)
Download File from Internet (CA)
Post Data to Web
Launch Web Page
IIS Support
COM+
Driver Install Framework (DIFx)
Update XML Files
Modify Users and Groups
Build Capabilities
Digital Signature Signing
Build Configurations
Build Multi-CD/DVD Installs
Bootstrapper
Scriptable bootstrap EXE Wrapper
Create Self-Contained Exe
OS Prerequisite Checking
.NET Framework
Add Your Own Runtimes
LZMA Compression
Encryption
Single Password Protection
Download files from the internet
Detect and close processes
Run multiple MSI installs
Detect previous installation state
Selectively extract from archive
Run your own programs
Interact with Web scripts
File copy, delete, move
Control and query services
Read and write XML files
Interact with the Registry
Search the system for files
	MSI Factory 2.0	InstallShield Professional	InstallShield Express	Wise Installation Studio	Wise Installation Express
User Interface
Customize User Interface
Visual Dialog Editor
Insert Custom Screens
Skinnable (Themes)
Windows Vista Issues
Windows Vista Compatible
Target Windows Vista Systems
Minimize reboots using Restart Manager
User Account Control Support
Digital Signatures
Localization
Multilingual runtime support
LUA Scripting
LUA Script Support
300+ Actions Included
Product Support
Help Documentation
Training Videos
User Forums
Email Support		$$$	$$$	$$$	$$$
Phone Support	PER INCIDENT	$$$	$$$	$$$	$$$
Maintenance	1 YEAR INCLUDED	$$$	$$$	$$$	$$$
Product Information
Version	Version 2.0	Version 12	Version 12	Version 7	Version 7
Price	$495	$1,799	$499	$1,199	$449

 

* This information was gathered from publicly available sources as of May 2007. MSI Factory is a trademark of Indigo Rose Software Design. All other trademarks or registered trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

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Feature	Autorun MAX! Home Edition	Autorun MAX! Business Edition	AutoPlay Media Studio
License and Branding
Distribute Projects for Commercial Use
Remove Branded Credits Screen
Change Executable Version Information
Design Environment
Maximum Pages per Project	100	250	2500
WYSIWYG Design Environment
Guidelines, Rulers and Grids
Project Explorer Panel
Object Properties Grid Panel
Object Browser Panel
Hide Objects at Design Time
Runtime Features
Non-Rectangular Windows
Background Music
Simultaneous Audio Channels	1	1	7
Startup Movie (Video)
Startup Movie (Flash)
Third-Party Dependency Checking
Menu Bars
Resizable Applications
Objects
Button
Label
Paragraph
Image
Video
Flash
Web
Hotspot
Input
ListBox
ComboBox
Tree
Progress
Expandable with Object Plugins
Modify Objects at Runtime
Actions
Quick Actions	10	10	10
Scripting
Scripting Actions	N/A	N/A	520
Expandable with Action Plugins
Color Syntax Highlighting Script Editor
“Intellisense Style” Code Completion Editor
Arithmetic Operators
Custom Variables
Relational and Logical Operators
User-Defined Functions
Control Structures (if, while, repeat, for, do, else)
Tables, Arrays and Custom Data Structures
Custom Error Handling
SQLite Database Support
XML File Support
Web Downloads/Communication
Events
Globals
Project Events	2 (Startup, Shutdown)	2 (Startup, Shutdown)	4 (Startup, Shutdown, Size, Menu)
Page Events			10 (Preload, Show, Close, Timer, Audio, Size, Menu, Key, Mouse Button, Mouse Move)
Object Events	1 (On Click)	1 (On Click)	2-7 (Depends on the object)
File Formats
Image Files	bmp, jpg, pcx, png, tga, tif, wmf, apm, emf, psd, pcd, gif	bmp, jpg, pcx, png, tga, tif, wmf, apm, emf, psd, pcd, gif	bmp, jpg, pcx, png, tga, tif, wmf, apm, emf, psd, pcd, gif
Video Files	asf, asx, avi, wax, wmv, wvx, wmp, wmx, mpg, m1v, mpa, mpe, mpv2	asf, asx, avi, wax, wmv, wvx, wmp, wmx, mpg, m1v, mpa, mpe, mpv2	asf, asx, avi, wax, wmv, wvx, wmp, wmx, mpg, m1v, mpa, mpe, mpv2
Flash Files
Audio Files	wav, raw, ogg, aif, aiff, wma, asf	wav, raw, ogg, aif, aiff, wma, asf	wav, raw, ogg, aif, aiff, wma, asf
Button Files
Publishing Options
Burn CD-R/RW
Burn to DVD-R/RW
Build to Hard Drive Folder
Build to Single File Executable
Build to ISO Image
Pricing
Price (US$)	$49	$129	$295