Advanced Installer - Install or Maintenance

Question

I am using Advanced Installer and would like to know where do I configure when it needs to take the Installation process and when it need to take the Maintenance process. I am not sure if it is configurable. If not I would like to know how Windows decides which process to perform. help is very appreciated.

Answer 1

There is no need to configure that, the packages created by Advanced Installer know exactly when to go to install or maintenance phase, this is controlled by Windows Installer on each machine where you install the package. Try the simple installation tutorial to see how it works.

Basically, each package has guide, the product code, that is registered on the system by Windows Installer when you run it first and install your app. The second time you launch the same MSI Windows Installer will see the product code is registered as installed and automatically enter maintenance, showing the appropriate dialogs.

If you don't want a package to be enter maintenance phase, i.e. run only the install phase (every time you launch it) just go to Product Details page in your project and untick the option "Register product with Windows Installer".