Share via


Adopting Windows Installer 4.5

It's been a few months now since the Windows Installer 4.5 redistributable was released [link]. Over the past couple months I have received several questions (quite often similar in nature) that warrants this blog post <grin>. In this post, I will attempt to answer some of the most frequently asked questions with regards to adoption & deployment of MSI 4.5.

1. I’m considering taking a dependency on MSI 4.5 for my next release. I would like to know how prevalent MSI 4.5 might be in our target environments. Do you have any data on this?

 

We are pleased to hear that you are considering taking advantage of the new feature set and functionality provided in MSI 4.5. We have some data that may help you understand the current penetration of MSI 4.5 in the ecosystem.

a. Statistics from the Microsoft download center:

As of March 2009, there have been over 5.6 million downloads of MSI 4.5 (combined across all supported platforms & OSes).

b. Other ways in which MSI 4.5 is being deployed to users machines:

Yes, besides the fact that users are downloading MSI 4.5 from Microsoft download center, there are also other mechanisms via which MSI 4.5 is being deployed to users machines. For example;

- SQL Server 2008 (both full server as well as express version) requires MSI 4.5 as a pre-requisite.

- This dependency in turn has a cascading effect on other products that are already dependent on SQL Server 2008 or will be in the future.

c. Future Windows service packs:

MSI 4.5 will be natively included in all future service packs of Windows. It is already included in Windows Vista and Server 2008 SP2. Release candidate for this service pack is presently available from the Microsoft download center.

2. When will MSI 4.5 be deployed via Windows Update?

 

MSI 4.5 will be on Windows Update as part of future service packs to Windows (see #1, part c). It will not be available independently as a required mandatory update like Windows Installer 3.1 v2.

3. Is it true that there is a forced reboot required on Windows Vista and Windows Server 2008 with MSI 4.5? Unlike Windows XP and Windows 2003, this reboot can't be deferred?

 

Yes, it is true that servicing Windows Installer always requires a reboot on Vista and above. The new changes made to the Windows Vista servicing stack in combination with the change made by Windows Update to always have the Windows Installer loaded, causes the update to be “pended” until a subsequent reboot thus generating the mandatory reboot requirement when servicing the Windows Installer. We understand that a reboot can be difficult to absorb for applications taking a dependency on MSI 4.5. Unfortunately, none of the solutions that could be pursued were low cost and low risk enough to be acceptable at that point in the Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 ship cycle. However, the growing prevalence of MSI 4.5 (details provided in #1), is mitigating the reboot issue to some extent.

4. We are considering the possibility of bootstrapping Windows Installer 4.5 with our product’s setup. Is there a single 4.5 redistributable that can cover multiple OS versions and CPU architecture that is of a smaller size?

 

No, there is no single redistributable package to install MSI 4.5. There exist different installation technologies to install a Windows component like Windows Installer on Vista and above OSes versus down-level OSes (Windows XP and Server 2003). Additionally, the binaries itself are different based on OS version and platform architecture.

[Author: Zainab Hakim]
This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties, and confers no rights. Use of included script samples are subject to the terms specified at https://www.microsoft.com/info/cpyright.htm.

Comments

  • Anonymous
    March 05, 2009
    PingBack from http://www.anith.com/?p=15932

  • Anonymous
    March 13, 2009
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    March 18, 2009
    Dear Zac, Thank you for your comments and suggestion. We will pass on your feedback to the Windows Live team.

  • Anonymous
    March 18, 2009
    Not having a single redistributable is a royal PITA. Who cares if there are different installation technologies? That doesn't stop you from writing a bootstrapper (say, Instmsi45.exe) that launches/downloads the correct installer based on the platform that the bootstrapper detected. Now I have to do all that myself just to provide a seamless prerequisite install. And our application can be installed on Windows XP, Server 2003, or Vista. Sigh....

  • Anonymous
    March 22, 2009
    Slightly off-topic but I couldn't find an explanation for how to install multiple packages using msistuff, which is implied by the following paragraph in the Best Practices page. "Do not use a repackaging tool to consolidate several Windows Installer packages into a single package. Instead you can use the Msistuff.exe tool to configure the Setup.exe bootstrap executable to install the packages one after another." -dave

  • Anonymous
    March 25, 2009
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    March 27, 2009
    Installing Windows Installer 4.5 does not say if it is successful or not. When I go to Services Windows Installer is not there. I believe that either .net 3.5 or Live Setup tools or OMNItech support caused problems with Windows Installer. Where do I go for help as I have followed all of the general suggestions on technet and other sites in the web I have tried registering I have tried totally uninstalling and reinstalling and I do not see the service. Ironic that windows installer can't install windows installer.

  • Anonymous
    April 07, 2009
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    April 10, 2009
    i need to downlaod a Microsoft Windows Insttaller 4.5 /5.0 XP SP2+, Server 2003 SP1+, Vista, and Server 2008

  • Anonymous
    April 16, 2009
    I created a MSI package which has an embedded msi package (I used the chained msi method in InstallShield 2009).  This chained MSI package installer works on XP, but it failed to install on Windows Home Server. Does anyone have suggestions? (I downloaded Windows Install 4.5 for Windows 2003 server, because there is no version for Windows Home Server)

  • Anonymous
    April 19, 2009
    The comment has been removed

  • Anonymous
    April 19, 2009
    i need to downlaod a Microsoft Windows Insttaller 4.5 /5.0 XP SP2+, Server 2003 SP1+, Vista, and Server 2008

  • Anonymous
    May 15, 2009
    Can any body help? my windows installer does not work? I cannot install programs or unistall them?