InstallAware

Has anyone run across an issue with strings and variable assignments not working correctly on Windows Server 2008 Standard 32 bit? I have one customer's system which the installer was not properly parsing the $TITLE$ or apparently other assignments using that $<Variable Name>$ method.

The symptom was the dialog screens instead of showing the value of the variable instead shows $TITLE$ in the captions but it appeared to be elsewhere also as it was generating errors about "" not being a valid integer value. But the line number that was shown in the error made no sense as at that line in the main script is a comment. I am guessing the line number doesn't directly relate to the main script when include scripts are being used?

I tested placing a messagebox at the start of the script and that did parse correctly, but again once it got to the dialog screens it was still showing incorrectly. So somewhere between the start of the project and the user interview it is stopping. This same script/generated executable works properly on other test systems I have in house though so I can't duplicate the issue on a system that I can debug.

I know this isn't much to go one, but was hoping someone may have seen similar behavior before.

Thank you,
Chris

I forgot to add I am using InstallAware 2012 and the install uses the Native Engine set to true.

Dear Chris,

if you want I can try to execute a debug on my test environment with WS 2008.

Are you able to reproduce it in a very very simple project?

Let me know.

Regards

That's the hard part. A simple script I haven't been able to reproduce it. There must be something in between that is setting it off specific in the features this install is using, but I haven't been able to narrow it down yet.

Dear Chris,

that is a problem ... I can understand you but at the same time, how can I help you?

Regards

If it isn't a condition or symptom you already have seen come up in the past then you can't yet because I don't have enough info to help you even begin to look at it.

I'm going through right now trying to build a basic installer that uses the same features the problem one uses up until the dialogs section and will see if I can get it to break at some point.

Dear Chris,

let me know if you have any news to work on.

Regards

Francesco,

After some experimentation I found that the problem occurs after using the "Detect SQL Instances" component in InstallAware. The customer's system is Windows Server 2008 standard 32 bit edition. As soon as the detect SQL instances returns the Installer no longer parses any o the variables. Newlines in text just show a $NEWLINE$ as well as any other normal variable wrapped in the dollar signs.

I hope this information helps you,
Chris

Dear Chris,

are you able, when you have some time, to provide me just a simple project that I can forward to dev team?

I know that you give me enough info to replicate, but if you could do it .... it will help me a lot.

Thanks in advance