Specifying Instance Management Behavior

InstallAnywhere 2018

The maintenance mode support in InstallAnywhere includes instance management functionality that enables you to specify whether multiple instances of a product can be installed on the same machine.

If an installation includes both maintenance mode support and support for multiple instances of the product on the same machine, when an end user launches maintenance mode, they are able to specify which instance of the product they want to perform maintenance on.

Caution • When setting up instance management behavior, do not include a variable in the name of the uninstaller launcher. This will break the instance management feature.

Note • The instance count is only as secure as the security of the InstallAnywhere product registry file. For more information, see Product Registry.

Important • The instance management options are only enabled if the Enable Maintenance Mode support check box is selected. However, you can provide maintenance mode support without enabling instance management support.

To specify instance management behavior:

1. In the Advanced Designer, on the Project page, click Advanced. The Advanced view opens.
2. In the Maintenance Mode area, select the Enable Maintenance Mode support check box. InstallAnywhere enables the maintenance option check boxes, as well as the Enable Instance Management options, enabling you to select or clear each of them.
3. In the Instance Management area, select the Enable Instance Management check box. InstallAnywhere enables the Instance Management options.
4. In the Instance Management area, select the appropriate check boxes.

To learn more, see Instance Management Settings.

Important • When an installer that has instance management support is launched, it needs to determine how many instances of the application have already been installed. To do this, the installer queries the product registry to locate the uninstaller executable for that application. By default, the uninstaller executable file is named Change ProductName Installation.exe. However, if you have chosen to rename the executable file of the uninstaller, that file will not be located and the instance management support will not work properly.

Note • If you include support for instance management functionality in your project, note the following:

• Instance management uses the global/local zerog registries. If these directories are altered, the instance management functionality does not work properly.
• The InstallAnywhere Uninstall Component, which is a standard component in an InstallAnywhere project, should have the key file set to the Uninstaller executable file, which is the default setting. However, if the key file is modified, the instance management functionality may not be able to manage instances, since it would be unable to find the Uninstaller.

The key file for the InstallAnywhere Uninstall Component is set in the Organization view (Organization page > Components view > Properties tab).

Identifying a New Instance Based on Version Field Level

The following table demonstrates how the selection made in the Version Field Level That Determines New Instance list as well as the comparison of the installer vs. installed instance versions determine whether an existing installed instance is found on the target system. In this table, an instance is found when the listed conditions are met.

Conditions That Identify an Instance Based on Version Field Level

Selected Version Field Level

Major Version

Minor Version

Revision Version

Entire Version

[Any]

 

 

 

Identical

Major

Installer > Instance

 

 

 

Installer = Instance

 

 

Installer > Instance

Minor

Installer > Instance

 

 

 

Installer = Instance

Installer > Instance

 

 

Installer = Instance

Installer = Instance

 

Installer > Instance

Revision

Installer > Instance

 

 

 

Installer = Instance

Installer > Instance

 

 

Installer = Instance

Installer = Instance

Installer > Instance

 

Installer = Instance

Installer = Instance

Installer = Instance

Installer > Instance

Subrevision

 

 

 

Installer > Instance

Here are a few examples:

Examples of Identifying a New Instance Based on Version Field Level

Selected Version Field Level

Installer
Version

Instance
Version

Result

Major

2.9.0.1

2.8.7.3

Instance will be listed on the Manage Instances dialog box because all of the following conditions are true:

1. Major is selected
2. Installer Major version (2) is equal to the Instance Major version (2)
3. Installer entire version (2.9.0.1) is greater than entire Instance version (2.8.7.3)

Minor

2.7.3.0

2.5.1.0

Instance will be listed on the Manage Instances dialog box because all of the following conditions are true:

1. Minor is selected
2. Installer Major version (2) is equal to the Instance Major version (2)
3. Installer Minor version (7) is greater than Instance Minor version (5)

Revision

3.5.2.5

3.5.4.8

Instance will not be listed on the Manage Instances dialog box because condition 4 is false:

1. Revision is selected
2. Installer Major version (3) is equal to the Instance Major version (3)
3. Installer Minor version (5) is equal to the Instance Minor version (5)
4. Installer Revision version (2) is greater than Instance Revision version (4) [FALSE]

See Also

Instance Management Settings

InstallAnywhere 2018 Help Library

March 2018

 Copyright Information | Flexera

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