InstallAware

Hi,

I've been using Installshield all these while and have no experience in MSI based installation. Basically, I'm quite impressed with the Web Media Block feature. I think it's a cool feature.
However, here are some of my questions which i hope you guys could help me answer. Thanks in advance!!

Web Media Blocks
1) During the deployment of web media blocks, must the 7zip file be at the root of the server?? Can it reside at some other location?? (e.g. http://www.companyserver.com/webfiles/mediablock.7zip)

2) Can the media blocks be deployed from FTP server??

3) Is there any difference if i use Download File + Extract 7Zip Archive instead of Web Media Blocks.


(Un)Install MSI Setup
1) I created 2 IA setups (Installer A & Installer B). Then i use Group Policy wizard to convert Installer B to a single .msi file. With Installer A, i tried to launch Installer B using (Un)Install MSI Setup. It seems like the installer is working well (as i see progress bar and progress text flashing), however, upon investigation, the files are not installed and the registry/shortcut not created. What could have gone wrong?? Does this command have to be called before/after Apply Install (or some other places)??

2) If I have an installer running another child installation, can i control the progress bar to run only once?? Currently, the progress bar runs from 0->100 then resets to 0 again. (it runs a few times)

Also for Download Files, i don't see the download progress bar. Even though it's downloading. Am i missing something??

Web Media Blocks:

1) Of course, the exact location is specified in the Web Media Block command.

2) FTP, HTTP, HTTPS, or even a local network location if you want to lock down setups to your corporate network!

3) Yes, the two are completely different. Web Media Blocks are considered part of your distribution media and their content layout is managed internally by InstallAware. A Web Media Block is not the same thing as a compressed 7zip file of your application data. InstallAware optimizes Web Media Blocks such that they can be shared between setups, and also in other ways for performance and runtime reliability.

(Un)Install MSI Setup:

1) When nesting InstallAware setups, you shouldn't use this command, but instead Run Program, or Run Light Mode Setup. The same goes for using hybrid InstallShield MSI/InstallScript projects.

2) The progress bar is controlled internally by Windows Installer. InstallAware simply reports the native progress feedback of Windows Installer.

Download Files:

Make sure you have a progress dialog showing, non-modally, before calling the command!

CandiceJones wrote:(Un)Install MSI Setup:

1) When nesting InstallAware setups, you shouldn't use this command, but instead Run Program, or Run Light Mode Setup. The same goes for using hybrid InstallShield MSI/InstallScript projects.

2) The progress bar is controlled internally by Windows Installer. InstallAware simply reports the native progress feedback of Windows Installer.

Thanks for the reply. Using Run Program works fine. However, it doesn't update the progress bar.
Is it possible to track the progress of nested installation?? My up-coming projects would probably need to spawn 2-3 child installers (created using IA). We would want the users to know the progress rather than to wait blindly for the installation to end.

Sorry, not possible. I recommend setting PROGRESSMODE to MARQUEE so users still get a nice progress effect. Because InstallAware setups can manually control progress through the script, its not possible to "sniff" their progress.

CandiceJones wrote:Web Media Blocks:

2) FTP, HTTP, HTTPS, or even a local network location if you want to lock down setups to your corporate network!

Hi CandiceJones,

I understand that Web Media Blocks can be run from either the same folder as setup executable or from the web. Is it possible to run from other path in the harddisk or CD??

E.g. On my installation CD, I have 3 folders with a setup each. All of them use the same Runtime Redist (packaged into Web Media Block). If i were to bundle the Web Media Block in each folder, it will take up quite a lot of space. Is it possible to put just one copy at the root of the CD and all the installer will reference to it??

That's a great feature request actually. Unfortunately at this time it won't work, but we may have a mechanism for that in future versions.