InstallAware

Our company recently removed admin privileges from our laptops. When I'm logged in as myself (non-Admin) and run an install, a login dialog pops up requesting the credentials of an account with admin privileges.

My msi

[*]Looks for the "UninstallString" under HKCU\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall<App Name>
[*]Executes the command string retrieved in step 1.
[*]Continues with the Rest of the Installation
This worked fine before the security changes. Now when my MSI runs

[*]The Software listed in HKCU...\Uninstall is not removed because that registry path is invisible to me.
[*]The new software does not appear in Control Panel-Programs and Features
[*]The new software seems to function just fine; If not for the logs we wouldn't know that it installed without error.

Why would the Admin account I was given not be able to see the HKCU\SOFTWARE..\Uninstall key?

The command line we use is msiexec.exe /i company.msi /qn /lvx* C:\msirun.log

Should I be adding anything to this commandline?

If you are installing PER-MACHINE (ALLUSERS=TRUE), you must have full ADMIN rights to install the package. Alternatively, you must provide Admin credentials when the elevation prompt pops up.

It turned out to be a mistake.

It turns out that the service technician that was helping me used a different account with administrative access.

My msi looks for user installs under HKCU. It didn't find it because it was installed by a different user and therefore in another part of the registry. This is why I couldn't see it. I was logged in as myself and not as the technician that did the install.

MYSTERY SOLVED!