I'm looking for a solution to run multiple setup files (.exe and .msi) in sequence without any user input. The idea is to have everyone in my workgroup to have the same development tools (eclipse, python, cygwin, etc) by running one installer. Besides creating a batch script, is there a software out there that could create such a wrapper of installers?
Thanks!
From my knowledge there aren't any tools which create this type of wrappers, or if there are they are not MSI-based. This is because Windows Installer is very restrictive when it comes to running multiple installers simultaneously.
You can try using a setup authoring tool which supports package prerequisites. This way you can create a dummy package which installs nothing, but still handles all the applications you want installed.
If you want some suggestions don't hesitate to contact me.
Related
everyone! I'm making an installer that is going to set a machine up for use of a piece of software. Adobe Media Server is one of the software requirements. I'm wondering if there's any way to automate the installation of it. I can, of course, open the wizard through a command line, but at that point, the user needs to be there to continue installation. I'm really looking for more of a "set it and forget it" type of solution. If anybody knows of any way this is possible, please tell me. I'm not finding anything online so far.
I'm assuming you are doing this on a Windows server, in which case you will have to do some heavy integration with the Adobe Media Server installer. A good open source tool for installer bundling would be Inno Setup. This is much easier to accomplish on a linux server, where you could execute a function within a script that downloads the installer, and extracts it with defined parameters. I believe the package name for a YUM install on linux is: AdobeMediaServer_5_LS1_linux64.tar.gz
You can search for any installers building tool which supports adding prerequisites and add the Adobe Media Server as a prerequisite to your installer. Also, you should configure your Adobe Media Server prerequisite to be installed with a silent/unattended command line.
I work at a software company,
And we have a product for Windows OS that is installed using a custom installer.
We want to have an automated system that will run the installer on a daily basis, make sure that everything is installed and functional (application installed, appears in Add/Remove, shortcut created, registry keys created, browser addons installed, etc)
I also want to test the functionality of the app by using a GUI macro of some sort.
Is there anything like what i'm looking for?
We ended up using TestComplete 9 from SmartBear: https://smartbear.com
Its doing exactly what we need, and it has many advanced features like connecting to remote virtual computers for parallel testing.
So I have a compliled matlab code, 'Example.exe'...I want to create an installer package that does the following:
My exe file will reside on a network drive.
My installer will first ask the user for the installation path.
It will then copy the exe (along with some other supporting files) in the given path....IF the folder already exists, it will ask the user for overwrite confirmation.
After the copying is done, my installer will ask the user if they want to install the MCR and accordingly install it(or not).
After everything is done, a shortcut to the exe is created on the desktop.
My question is, is there some installer package generator that can do all this ?? I understand matlab can create an installer package, but I want my file to be copied from the network drive. I also don't have Visual Studio so, can't create an msi.
There's a simple way to do this, you'll need a software called IExpress, It can create a self-extracting executable (.EXE) or a compressed Cabinet (.CAB) file using the provided interface (IExpress Wizard). Its included in all versions of windows (I think..). To run the IExpress Wizard, go to your local drive then: Windows\System32, Search for "iexpress" then run the program.
then...
Follow these steps:
1. Run iexpress.exe
2. Create a new 'Self Extraction Directive' file
3. Extract files only
4. Specify the title, promt user options, license, etc
5. Start adding files to your package
7. Specify other options (window, message)
8. Enter the path where you want your package to be.
Then you're almost done, create your package (might take a few mins), distribute it, upload it and all.
For more details visit http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/how-to-make-an-exe-installation-file/
There is no simple way to do that. But if you tightly tied to Windows platform, you definitely can learn Windows Installer technology. It's NOT related to Visual Studio!
Just download WiX toolset (it is free and Open Source!) and learn MSDN docs about Windows Installer.
But it is complex way, remember. You can spent months learning how to make great Windows installers.
Ofcourse, you can use Inno Setup or NSIS, but I don't recommend that, because them re-engineer installer technology instead of native Windows Installer's.
If you want, I can learn you by Skype or something like. :-)
Or (isn't great offer?) I can write the installer for you and send you all code and describe which for what is.
Use iExpress! Available from win xoxo and over (xp)
With windows 8 pro you can make a package with your voice! Only with win 8 or 8.1 pro.
any recommendations about those inno setup scripts so the compiled install run smoothly on windows 7?
Don't install anything to user-directories. Assume the installer will be run from a different account than the one that will use the installed application.
If you need to save user-specific stuff install it as a template to a shared location (ideally read-only to regular users, e.g. under {app}) and have your application copy it from there on first startup.
Don't create Quick Launch shortcuts
Oliver Giesen's suggestion is what I'm using, but it has a disadvantage... there seems to be no way to remove the {userappdata} folders for all users when uninstalling the program, meaning you can never do a clean uninstall/reinstall.
Inno Setup has full support for Windows 7. Just make sure to use the latest version of Inno Seup, preferably the Unicode edition.
I have an old legacy application around for which I only have the installer. it doesn't do anything more than uncompress and register itself and his library's.
As i don't have the source-code it gives me a lot of headaches in maintenance problems. In some particular computers (Acer Aspire One with Windows) just do not run.
I would like to extract the files and re-create this installer with NSIS. Is this possible or I'm nuts?
The original installer has been created with Ghost Installer Studio.
One option is to find a machine that it does run on, and then install some "install guard" software (often called things like Acme Uninstaller). Use this to track what actually gets installed and then copy the relevant files and write your own.
It looks like a lot of hassle to me, and you may be on thin ice with regards to the licence.
You could try using a program that monitors new files being installed and then get the files that were installed from their respective paths.
For instance, I found this in about 10 seconds with Google, there are more programs like it, but I am inexperienced with those available for Windows.
If it uses a MSI file, you can use Orca or SuperOrca to get at the stuff packed inside.
This is typically the job of Repackaging Software. There are a few ways such tools work but typically it is by taking a look at a system before and after you install it on a clean system and building a custom installer from the detected changes. This is normally done to generate a customized installation and/or one that can be automated in its deployment. I'm not aware of one that generates an NSIS package, the standard format today is MSI (Windows Installer).
If you have the original installer any repackager will do, but even without the original setup program you can do as some of the others here suggest and monitor the use of the application for its requirements. The two most popular repackaging tools are InstallShield AdminStudio and Wise Package Studio. The feature may also be part of a setup authoring solution, so check with your in-house developers if you can.
A full list of repackaging tools can be found here at AppDeploy.com
One free repackaging tool available for creating Windows Installer setups from another [legacy] setup tool (with which I must divulge I'm involved) is the AppDeploy Repackager. Another free repackager is WinINSTALL LE.