Is there a good alternative to Install Shield?

Question

I am looking for suggestions to an alternative setup application from Install Shield.

We are currently using Install Shield and I have never been impressed with it. It's way too bulky and the scripting system sucks.

Has anyone had any better luck with any of the other products like WiX, Inno Setup, NSIS or InstallAware, etc? I am not worried about the cost, but what I am looking for is a very lightweight, easy to use application to bundle up our .exe and about 20 support DLLs, registering a few, setting up some registry values and install help.

Can anyone recommend something they are using? It would be nice to hear from people who have switched from Install Shield as well, what makes the new app you're using better.

Answer 1

You can start with this list: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_installation_software

There are also a similar question which may help you:

• What are some good alternatives to InstallShield?

Answer 2

WiX is the only MSI packager that truly meets the requirement of "very light weight".

It may have a steep learning curve (which can reduced by using some frontend designers) but being backed-up by Microsoft makes it the primary choice for the .NET environment installations.

Answer 3

KMoraz already gave what would be my recommendation (WiX), so I'll just say this: Stay away from NSIS and other non-MSI-based installation systems. Yes, NSIS is customizable and scriptable as heck. But MSIs are well-established as the Windows package standard, and you don't want to stray from that standard unless you have an extremely unique reason to do so. Admins have come to rely on the homogeneity of MSIs and the robustness of their cleanups, and users have come to associate the Windows Installer UX with professionalism and quality. Think twice before you give up those advantages.