Since years we use installshield to deliver our software. Since the last Version of our software the following happens:
After installing the program for "all users", when a restricted user logs in, he sees our applications Icon on the desktop. When double clicking it the first time a dialog appears "Configuring ". In recent versions after a while the dialog disappeared and our program stared. Now the process is aborted with a message: "The function is hosted on a unavailable network resource". Our program does not start. But when we create a shortcut to the .exe file by hand everything's fine.
We did not make any modifications to the installer project recently (besides changing the Version number). We also denied to install updates.
Questions:
What can the problem be?
How can i debug a installer?
Not so sure about Installshield (I use Wise) but you should check the following:
Set the MSI Property "ALLUSERS" to 1 in the "Property" table of the MSI database. See Windows Installer SDK documentation for more details. This ensures that all users get a shortcut for launching the application.
Call your installer with
MSIEXEC.EXE /v MyInstall.MSI
from the command line (this sets the logging to verbose) - might help!
Liam
Related
I am trying to uninstall Crystal Report for Visual Studio 2011, and install Crystal Report for Visual Studio 2019. I got the error message of "Error applying transforms. Verify that the specified transform path are valid." when uninstalling the program. Therefore, the newer version of Crystal Report for VS 2019 can't be installed.
I searched around and some posts says about windows registry entries caused the problem. I can't find out a solution on what to do.
Highly appreciate your response.
Crystal Reports: I am wondering if you have installed from a network share that is no longer available, or one where the UNC path specified to your transform is blocked or in other ways incorrect. What you need is a proper log file. Please see below. And have a quick peek here: https://apps.support.sap.com/sap/support/knowledge/en/1220433
There are also some issues with secure transforms and complications arising from this and newer Windows settings and security features. Maybe have a quick look here. Just a few links on the topic.
How many machines do you see this on? Just your own?
Preparation: A couple of things first:
Reboot: Do a reboot before attempting the next uninstall. Just to have a clean slate. Allow system to settle after reboot (give it a couple of minutes to settle down).
Corrupt installation files: Re-download your new setup to make sure its installation file is not corrupted. Try to malware scan it too. And finally set it unblocked as shown here.
Admin Rights: Second, make sure you run with proper admin rights? Run the msiexec.exe command from an elevated command prompt. Please launch an elevated cmd.exe (right click => run as administrator).
Anti-Virus: Disable your anti-virus first to prevent any locks from failing your uninstall.
Debugging "Ideas Lists": Common causes of setup runtime issues
Logging: Now the most important. You must also ensure proper logging for the uninstall effort. You can either use logging by policy
or define it at the command line level. It would be best to enable the
logging policy so the log file is automatically created in the tmp
folder. Please see this answer for more on logging.
When you have done the "Preparation" above, please run the
uninstall and create a proper log file. Here is the command line
(prefer the policy):
msiexec.exe /x "mysetup.msi" /L*V "C:\Temp\msilog.log"
Please open the log you created (or get the log from the temp folder
if you have logging policy enabled). Then inspect the log and match
against this sample log here:
https://www.itninja.com/question/transform-issues
What do you see? Just read line by line and don't be intimidated by
all the "line noise".
Common Technical Issues: If you have problems with all other MSI packages and their operation, you could have a bigger problem. Then you should rule out some runtime issues. Note that some issues are commonly caused by malware (or just technicalities that occur randomly sometimes):
Visual C++ Runtime - reinstall it. There are many versions. See what your package needs. The latest supported Visual C++ downloads.
Unregister / re-register msiexec.exe (can be necessary because of malware or normal technical glitches).
Run chkdsk.exe and sfc.exe to check for file corruptions and corrupt OS files.
Microsoft FixIt: You can use the Microsoft FixIt method as a last resort to clean out your existing installation. This generally works (unless you have hacked too much already), but is not ideal: http://support.microsoft.com/mats/Program_Install_and_Uninstall/ - this approach does not clean up or uninstall, it just unregisters the installed package and leaves all its files and registry settings in place. You can try to install the new version, but some interference issues are likely with the garbage left behind. Yes, you can try to clean up manually, but I would just try to overwrite first.
Links:
What is the root cause of "Error Applying Transforms. Verify that the specified transform paths valid"?
All About the Four Types of MSI Transforms
"Error applying transforms. Verify that the specified transform paths are valid."
I have encountered an error when trying to launch Powershell ISE. The launch starts with 'Loading' displayed in the splash panel, then a dialog box comes up with "An unexpected error has occurred, and Windows PowerShell ISE must close"
I have Googled this error and come up with nothing specific, but I have followed a few steps that have been suggested for fixing other issues.
Platform: Windows 8.1 Pro
Powershell ISE product version: 10.0.14409.1005
(Cannot open shell so cannot run cmdlet to get exect version details)
Things I have tried
1 The plain Powershell shell **does** launch.
2 Tried launching ISE with -NoProfile & -MTA switches no luck
3 Rename powershel_ise.exe.config so it cannot be read in both System32 & WOW64 folders
4 Upgrade .NET Framework to 4.5.1
5 Upgrade Management Framework to 5.1
6 Other machines within our environment with same image and patch level have **not** encountered this problem
7 Cannot find an associated error in the Event viewer logs
I really don't want to blow the machine away and start again so any suggestions or fix would be appreciated !
Angus
I had the same issue, I was able to fix it with recreating my user profile.
You can log as different user and try to run powershell_ise in that profile, if it runs, so more likely you can fix it. Just have somebody with admin rights delete your profile, and then just log back. Or if you have admin rights go create another account with admin, go to system properties / user profiles and remove your current profile ( just save files you need to keep)
"I renamed the C:\Users<name>\Documents\WindowsPowerShell directory and re-ran ISE and it didn't crash. Something up with that profile directory for me... –
Duncan Smart
Feb 10 '21 at 11:07"
Solved my similar issue! :D
Go to Documents C:\Users<loggedinProfileName>\Documents\WindowsPowerShell and re name from WindowsPowerShell to Old_WindowsPowerShell it will work if its crashes because for user profile.
Recently forced upgraded to windows 10 by microsoft. Windows Start and cortana froze. Searched google and from powershell ran
Get-AppXPackage -AllUsers | Foreach
{Add-AppxPackage -DisableDevelopmentMode -Register "$($_.InstallLocation)\AppXManifest.xml"}
Now lot of my windows application have disappeared. They show up with #{AppPackageName} in taskmanager or when searched using cortana for example #{Microsoft.ZuneMusic_2019.6.15131.0_neutral_~_8wekyb3d8bbwe}. I can not remove these app using any command like
Tried to install store app manually and get error Merge Failure : error 0x80070003 : Cannot register the Microsoft.WindowsStore_2015.21.25.0_x64__8wekyb3d8bbwe package because there was a merge failure with the following file: C:\Program Files\WindowsApps\Microsoft.WindowsStore_2015.21.25.0_neutral_split.scale-100_8wekyb3d8bbwe\resources.pri
Full log below:
Now I understand that store app is not getting add because add process is causing error or merge failure with another package (?). The problem is get/Add-AppxPackage are resolving dependency of application with package-version: Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_10.1510.13020.0_neutral_split.scale-100_8wekyb3d8bbwe
AND/OR
Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_10.1510.13020.0_neutral_split.language-hi_8wekyb3d8bbwe
My laptop c:\program files\windowsapp only has Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_10.1510.9020.0_neutral_split.scale-100_8wekyb3d8bbwe (not diff in version 13020 and 9020). Note: The version no on app is 13020 but dependent package on drive is 9020.
Second package is missing from drive (Microsoft.WindowsCalculator_10.1510.13020.0_neutral_split.language-hi_8wekyb3d8bbwe).
How to get my calculator and windows store application back.
<1>Create a new user account and Log into the new account
<2>You can also try
Running the System File Checker by running
sfc /scannow
Download files from Windows Update to replace the corrupt ones by running
DISM /Online /Cleanup-Image /RestoreHealth
You may try the following, at your own risk.
I had the same issue after trying to reinstall the apps via that powershell thingy. Fixed it and returned the apps to their out-of-box state by first wiping everything from C:\Program Files\WindowsApps and C:\Users*\AppData\Local\Packages and then reinstalling Windows over itself from the tech bench ISO (from under Windows and keeping "traditional" apps and files in place, of course). I had to use the ISO because the media creation tool wasn't cooperative at all, throwing some error at me. Just in case, the aforesaid wiping didn't cripple the vitals like the immersive control panel or something else, just the typical no start menu/dead modern apps/no right click on the taskbar items.
By the way, the whole problem started after the 1511 update. Modern apps would refuse to remember their settings, and windows shell experience host would freeze for no reason, taking the start menu and things like volume control with it. I've had this Windows installation for a couple of years now, and the system has gone pretty smoothly through the 8.0-8.1-10 update process over that time, but that 1511 screwed something big time.
I'm tasked with reducing a 50-page installation manual to "much less"; a bunch of applications need to be installed in a specefic order, with specific options, and so on. Can I use any of the popular installers (WiX, NSIS, Inno Setup) to automate this process, or do I need to use Powershell?
I've read about what these installers can do, and as far as I can see they're designed to install one application to one computer -- I haven't seen that or even if they can be used to control other installers in a very detailed fashion -- "use this, this, and this option on this wizard page, but not that one on the next wizard page, and install to this path, then enter these details (users, whatever)".
Am I wildly over-understanding what these tools can do? Given that I need to do this, what's the best way to go about it?
Update 2: I learn that installers do offer silent install by way of a config file. Neat! I'm currently looking at NSIS (spawning Powershell scripts and other installers) as the option that's easiest to just start & go with. I like that I don't need a custom IDE for it. But I'm also wondering wether NSIS is (soon) obsolete, in a Windows 7&10 world?
You should look at WiX with a custom bootstrapper UI. That can be used to install any number of setups in whatever order you want. The tricky question is whether all those setups need to show their own UIs, one after the other. If they can all be installed silently with command line paramaters, then your WiX bootstrapper could show your UI to collect all the options, and then install each of the setups silently while you show progress for the entire operation. You could also get a single entry for the entire package in Programs&Features. So something like WiX could do it, but the UI requirements could make it awkward.
PowerShell CAN do it, but it's through invoking COM objects and sending keys to the window, so it's not the BEST way to do it. I'm going to repost something I posted yesterday to a similar question about using PowerShell to uninstall some unwanted software.
QFT:
PowerShell isn't going to interact with the prompts... you can't just tell it to click "Next" in an executable because it can't see it.
You can send keys to it though. You're really just using COM objects.
So, first, get your process ID by setting a variable that contains an array, the data for which is defined by the name of your process. Let's say your process is called, "Uninstall" and the process is ALREADY RUNNING:
$a = Get-Process | ?{$_.Name -eq "Uninstall"}
Start the COM:
$wshell = New-Object -ComObject wscript.shell;
Bring the uninstallation program with this process ID to the front so we can send it keystrokes:
$wshell.AppActivate($a.id)
Give it a few seconds to bring that window forward. I chose 5, but if your machine isn't stressed, 2 is probably enough:
Start-Sleep 5
Now start telling it what keys you want to send. The syntax here is this: whatever is in the () is what will be sent. The position in the single-quote is the keystroke to send, after the comma is how long you want it to wait before proceeding. Assuming the first screen is "Next" you can send your first command by telling PowerShell to send the ENTER key and wait 5 seconds:
$wshell.SendKeys('~',5)
The wait function is optional, but for your purposes, you're definitely going to want it. (If you don't want it $wshell.SendKeys('~') would send the ENTER key and immediately move to the next command.)
Walk through the uninstallation yourself manually, using all keystrokes, and for any keystroke you send, pay attention to how long it takes before the next part of uninstallation is loaded, and wait longer than that with your script (e.g. if it processes your ENTER key instantaneously, I'd have it wait 3 or 5 seconds before it sends the next command. If it takes 5 seconds to load, I'd tell it to wait 10 seconds before sending the next command).
Letters are letters, and numbers are numbers. Most non-commands are just assigned to their keys (meaning if you want to type "K" your command would just be $wshell.SendKeys('K')) You can get the rundown for the specific keys here: https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/office/aa202943(v=office.10).aspx.
/QFT
You may want to look into Auto-It, but that's based on pixel, last I checked, so if you run it on machines with different screen resolution, it can cause problems.
How you approach this really depends on if these other installers supports silent mode and/or answer files. This page list the options for some of the popular installers.
If they do and you decide to use NSIS then you would just do something like this:
Name "BundleInstaller"
OutFile "bundlesetup.exe"
RequestExecutionLevel Admin
Page Components # Comment out this if you don't want the user to have a choice
Page InstFiles
Section -Init
InitPluginsDir # $PluginsDir directory is deleted when the installer quits
SetOutPath "$PluginsDir"
SectionEnd
Section "Foo v1.2.3"
DetailPrint "Installing Foo"
File "FooSetup.exe"
ExecWait '"$PluginsDir\FooSetup.exe" /S /D=$ProgramFiles\Foo' # This is the syntax for NSIS installers
SectionEnd
Section "Bar 2015"
DetailPrint "Installing Bar 2015"
File "BarSetup.msi"
ExecWait '"MSIEXEC" /qb /i "$PluginsDir\BarSetup.msi" REBOOT=ReallySuppress'
SectionEnd
Section -Cleanup
SetOutPath "$Temp" # Release current directory lock on $PluginsDir
SectionEnd
If this solution is not possible then you are looking at some form of automation like the other answers have suggested.
I'd say there are two forms of automation; one where the app you are automating has to be the active window and the other where you send messages instead of keystrokes.
Just sending Enter to the active window with some sleep's thrown in is of course the easy solution but it can break if somebody starts interacting with the machine.
NSIS supports commands like FindWindow and SendMessage and I assume AutoHotkey does as well. The advantage to using FindWindow to find a specific HWND and then sending it a message directly is of course that the application does not have to have keyboard focus. This approach requires a bit more work but the end result is better because you only use SendMessage after finding the right window (and you can make sure the window/control is visible and enabled etc) so you know the application is in a known state without having to hope that the sleep was long enough...
Installing other installers is no problem with any decent installer builder.
These other installers are either msi, exe or zip files.
I do not assume that the installers (for SQL database servers and the like) offer silent install (by way of a million command-line parameters or a config file).
I highly doubt I can launch these installers in silent mode (with a million command line parameters)... :-(
Fetch the installer for the SQL database server and check it.
Most of the installers offer a silent install.
msi or exe files created by another installer builder accept CLI arguments to select components and set the target path
even exe files created as SFX archives accept a target path for the unpackaging
some installers do not provide all form-fields of their GUI configuration dialogs as CLI parameters. for those installers you would need a post-configuration step, which might simply consist of copying a default config file into the application folder
Yes, its also possible to center an installer around the idea of "gui automation" or "inserting keystrokes" using AutoIt, AutoHotkeys or any other Automation tool from inside the main installer.
You would need to build an automation script for each installer and execute it from the main installer. Its probably nice for testing and replaying the individual component installations.
But YAGNI.
Given that I need to do this, what's the best way to go about it?
Make a full run and note all the installation steps.
list the installers you need
find the download urls
download the installers
download additional tools you need (unzip?)
for each installer check the CLI arguments it accepts
check if you get a decent default configuration, when leaving some CLI args away
install each installer from the CLI into your target location
Then translate the steps you have into the Installer builder of your choice. Its mostly copy pasting CLI commands into Exec() or ShellExec() calls, followed by copying config files and fiddling around with cross-component configuration.
I haven't seen that or even if they can be used to control other installers in a very detailed fashion
Just think of all the game installers shipping DirectX or the pre-packaged web-development stacks like XAMPP or WPN-XM (speaking of the last: you might take a look at this InnoSetup script file).
A wrapped installation of multiple software components is pretty common.
I installed Eclipse (Kepler) on this W7 64-bit machine and initially I could run it "normally" by just clicking the desktop icon or whatever.
Then I replaced the whole "workspace" directory with one from another machine (because I'm changing systems).
Now if I run Eclipse not "as administrator" it opens and will even run apps... but nothing can be saved, including changes to files and updates to the .metadata of any kind.
I changed all the "ownership" and "permissions" which could possibly be involved. I am the only user of this machine, and I am in the administrators group. I CAN still use it, if I run "as an administrator". But I'm stumped why the UAC should have been happy to run Eclipse before without the "as 'strator" but now refuses...
Because... what I've understood about this question is that the UAC looks at apps and decides whether or not they look dodgy and on that basis decides whether you have to run "as 'strator". So what's changed?
I have the option of uninstalling Eclipse and reinstalling it, and then incrementally adding the various project folders... fine, it may work. But I like to understand these things as far as is feasibly possible!
Because... what I've understood about this question is that the UAC looks at apps and decides whether or not they look dodgy and on that basis decides whether you have to run "as 'strator".
UAC doesn't do anything like that. UAC is an ability of Windows to run an application as an administrator. There are three four ways an application can be run as an administrator (causing the UAC consent dialog to appear):
you right-click the application and select "Run As Administrator"
the application has been manifested with a requestedExecutionLevel of requireAdministrator
the application has a filename that looks like a setup application (e.g. setup.exe, install.exe, update.exe), in which case the Shell opts to run it elevated just in case
you call ShellExecute with the runas verb.
i think there's one of two things happening:
you missed a spot, in which case you should use Process Monitor to look for Access denied errors
you tried copying files to a protected location (e.g. Program Files) and they were instead redirected to:
C:\Users\Mike\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files(x86)\Eclipse
And then when you run Eclipse, the files are not there.
Again, use Process Monitor to find where Eclipse is looking for what.