Course Introduction
This course introduces the participants to InstallShield and will the participants will learn how to :
- Create and organize an installation project
- Install files and create shortcuts
- Install and configure special types of files and data, such as registry and INI data, COM servers, Windows services, and .NET assemblies
- Work with MSI sequences and custom actions
- Customize your installer’s user interface
- Package your Windows installer for Windows Vista, Windows 7, and later
- Use the Automation interface to modify your project outside the graphical environment
- Improve your installer’s appearance using advanced control types
- Provide detailed user feedback using billboards, progress information, and logging
- Correctly create custom actions for extending Windows Installer functionality (and learn when not to!)
- Avoid common pitfalls when coding custom actions
- Work with InstallShield prerequisites and chained installations to handle multi-package requirements
Pre-Requisites
- Basic idea of how to Install/Uninstall software
- Create and manage files/folder with windows file explorer
- Basic windows terminologies – DLLs, Control Panel, Add/Remove programs,
- Basic Virtualization understanding
- Familiarity with progamming or scripting languages like VBScript, C/C++ and C# – this is good to have and will help for some advanced topics like custom actions and so on.
Target Audience
IT Managers, IT Staff, Professionals who want to learn application packaging using InstallShield
Course Outline
**Please note: All sessions will be 30% theory and 70% hands on.
Introduction
You will begin by learning about the background and motivation for using the Windows Installer service and how InstallShield fits into the installation development process. You will also learn about the resources available as you work with InstallShield, including:
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Windows Installer Service
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Installation Mechanism
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InstallShield environment
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Installation Terminology
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Project Assistant
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Installation Designer
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Global Product and Project Data
About Projects
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Installation terminology
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Using the Project Assistant
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Using the Installation Designer
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Working with features and components
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Global product and project data
Installing Files
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Static and dynamic file linking
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Working with destination folders
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Best Practice fundamentals
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“Key” resource usage
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GUID usage
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Restarts and the Windows Restart Manager
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Creating shortcuts
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Using merge modules and prerequisites
Building Releases
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Using the Release Wizard
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Media types
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Web installations
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Command-line builds
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Using the InstallShield Automation interface
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Digitally signing the installation and files
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Using the Standalone build system
Deploying an Installation
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Running an installation
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Understand how to interact with User Account Control (UAC)
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Maintenance and uninstallation
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Reducing installation time for large packages
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Using msiexec.exe
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Silent and reduced-UI installations
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Passing properties from the command line
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MSI Log Analyzer
Non-file System Changes
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Registry data
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Text files
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INI files, XML files, and arbitrary text files
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Environment variables
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File associations
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Setting file, folder, and registry permissions
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Scheduled tasks
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Installing Special Files
Installing Special Files
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COM servers
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Windows services
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.NET Assemblies
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Running SQL scripts
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Forcing data removal
Creating and consuming reusable installation elements
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Creating merge modules
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Creating InstallShield prerequisites
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Working with repositories
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Creating suite projects
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Chaining MSI installations
Conditions and actions
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MSI properties
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Condition syntax and examples
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Installation sequences
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Custom actions: action types and guidelines
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Getting and setting properties
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Launching executables
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Calling DLLs
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Managed code custom actions
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Editing MSI tables directly
User Interface
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How MSI determines dialog order and conditions
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Working with control events
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Working with control conditions
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MSI Debugger
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Creating new dialog boxes
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Subscription to Actions
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Localization
Updates and Patches
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Types of updates
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Creating minor upgrades
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Creating major upgrades
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QuickPatch projects
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General patch projects
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Patches and User Account Control
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Uninstalling a patch
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Working with Suite Installers
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How to create and deploy transforms
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Direct MSI editing