what does windows installer mean

windows installer is one of the components of Win2K/WinXP/WinVista. It is a tool specially used to manage and configure software services; under Win95, Win98, WinMe and WinNT4.0, it is provided as an additional product, allowing Users install and configure software products and applications.

#The operating environment of this article: windows10 system, thinkpad t480 computer.

Microsoft Windows Installer, as one of the components of Win2K/WinXP/WinVista, is a tool specially used to manage and configure software services. It is provided as an additional product under Win95, Win98, WinMe and WinNT4.0, allowing users to effectively install and configure software products and applications. The new Installer provides new features for software products, such as using the command line to install products and increasing user customizability.

Software Features

Windows Installer software installation technology. The technology includes Windows Installer Server for 32-bit Windows operating systems, and a new package file format for storing information about configuration and installation.

Windows Installer is more than just an installer, it is an extensible software management system. Windows Installer manages the installation of software, manages the addition and removal of software components, monitors file recovery, and maintains basic disaster recovery by using rollback.

Additionally, Windows Installer supports installing and running software from multiple sources and can be customized by developers who want to install custom programs.

Windows Installer features include: Restore your computer to its original state when installation fails: Windows Installer tracks all changes made to the system during program installation. If installation fails, Installer can restore the system to its original state. This is called a "rollback".

Related Issues

Help prevent certain forms of conflicts between programs: A program being installed or uninstalled may cause problems with another program already installed on your computer , or even cause the computer to stop responding (hang). Installer can enforce some installation rules to help prevent conflicts when an installation operation updates a dynamic link library (DLL) file shared by an existing program, or when an uninstall operation deletes a DLL file shared by another program.

Diagnose and repair corrupted programs: Programs can ask the Installer to determine whether an installed program is missing files, or if the files are corrupted. It can then ask the service to copy only the files that have been found to be missing or damaged again as needed to repair the program.

Reliably uninstall existing programs: Installer can reliably uninstall any previously installed program and delete all associated registry entries and program files, except those shared by other installed software. Except for entries.

Support on-demand installer feature: Installer can be instructed to install a minimal subset of programs first. Then, the add-on is automatically installed the first time you use a feature that requires the add-on.

Support unattended program installation: Installer supports using scripts to install programs according to the administrator's instructions.

Windows Installer technology is divided into two parts that work together: the Client Installation Service (Msiexec.exe) and the Microsoft Software Installation (MSI) package file. Windows Installer installs programs using information contained in package files.

The Msiexec.exe program is a component of Windows Installer. When Setup calls Msiexec.exe, it uses Msi.dll to read the package (.msi) file, apply any transform (.mst) files, and incorporate the command line options provided by Setup. Installer performs all installation-related tasks, including copying files to the hard disk, modifying the registry, creating shortcuts on the desktop, and, if necessary, displaying dialog boxes to prompt the user for installation preferences.

After Windows Installer is installed on your computer, it changes the file type of registered .msi files so that when you double-click the .msi file, Msiexec.exe will run.

Each MSI package file contains a relational database that stores the instructions and data required to install (or uninstall) the program in various installation scenarios.

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