Platforms View

InstallAnywhere 2021 » Advanced Designer » Project

Use the Platforms view on the Project page to define default settings that are unique to each target operating system. While InstallAnywhere-generated installers runs on any Java-enabled platform, there are features that should be defined separately for each target operating system.

The settings in the Platforms view are organized into the following main categories:

• OS X
• Windows
• UNIX
• System i (i5/OS)
• Pure Java

OS X

Use the OS X area to specify default locations for install and alias folders, the default Java VM for LaunchAnywhere, whether authentication is required for installation, and permissions for files and folders that are created on the target system. The following settings are available in this area:

OS X Settings

Setting

Description

Default Install Folder

Specify the default value for your install location. Select a magic folder in the list and specify a subdirectory as necessary.

For more information, see Magic Folders and Variables.

Default Alias Folder

Specify the default value for the alias location. Select a magic folder in the list and specify a subdirectory as necessary.

End users can override this location on the Choose Alias Folder panel.

For more information, see Magic Folders and Variables.

Select Java VM for LaunchAnywhere

By default, OS X–based installers use the latest valid JVM that is available on the target system. If you want LaunchAnywhere to use an earlier JVM, select the appropriate version. Available options are:

• 1.4*—Require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.4 JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.4.0_0 but less than 1.5.0_0.
• 1.4+—Require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.4 or later JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.4.0_0.
• 1.5*—Require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.5 JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.5.0_0 but less than 1.6.0_0.
• 1.5+—Require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.5 or later JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.5.0_0.
• 1.6*—Require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.6 JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.6.0_0 but less than 1.7.0_0.
• 1.6+—Require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.6 or later JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.6.0_0.
• 1.7*—To require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.7 JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.7.0_0 but less than 1.8.0_0.
• 1.7+—To require LaunchAnywhere to use any 1.7 or later JVM. The JVM version must be greater than or equal to 1.7.0_0.

Note:OS X–based installers do not show Choose Java VM panels; in addition, they do not respond to the settings in the Valid VM list field on the Installer Settings tab (Project > JVM Settings).

Authentication

Use the following subsettings to identify authorization requirements for your installer:

• Requires an Administrator Name and Password to Install—Specify whether your installer and its uninstaller require administrative privileges to install files to and remove files from locations where write permissions are restricted for standard users.
• Always Show GUI—Specify whether you want to ensure that the Authenticate dialog box is shown. It is unnecessary to show the Authenticate dialog box when the end user who runs the installer is logged in as the root user. When an end user successfully authenticates, the installer can write to protected directories and files, such as /usr/bin and /usr/lib.

The default value is Yes.

Note that if you want to require authentication, you must code sign the authentication wrapper, the helper tool, your installer, and your uninstaller. To learn more, see About Authentication and Code-Signing Support for OS or OS X–Based Installers.

Default Permissions

To configure default read, write, and execute permissions for the files that your installer deploys, click the ellipsis button (...) in this setting. The Permissions dialog box opens, enabling you to specify the permissions for owner, group, and others.

This setting shows the value of the specified permissions in octal notation, where the first digit represents the permissions for the owner, the second digit represents the permissions for the group, and the third digit represents the permissions for others.

Code Signing

Specify whether and how you want InstallAnywhere to code sign your OS X–based installer at build time. If you sign the installer, end users can download your installer from outside the App Store and install the product without being blocked by Gatekeeper. The settings in this area are:

• Code Sign the Generated Installer—To code sign your installer, select this check box and complete the other settings in this area.
• PKCS #12 File—Specify the fully qualified path for your PKCS #12 file (.p12). The use of a build-time variable is highly recommended for security purposes.

If the Code Sign the Generated Installer check box in the Code Signing setting is cleared, this setting is disabled.

• Keystore Password—Specify the password for the certificate. The use of a build-time variable is highly recommended for security purposes.

If the Code Sign the Generated Installer check box in the Code Signing setting is cleared, this setting is disabled.

Note that if you want to require authentication, you must code sign the authentication wrapper, the helper tool, your installer, and your uninstaller.

To learn more about code signing or authentication, see About Authentication and Code-Signing Support for OS or OS X–Based Installers.

App Notarization

Specify whether and how you want InstallAnywhere to notarize your OS X–based installer at build time. If you notarize the installer, end users can download your installer from outside the App Store and install the product without being blocked by Gatekeeper. The settings in this area are:

• Notarize the Generated Installer - To notarize your installer, select this check box and complete the other settings in this area.
• Developer Username - Specify the apple’s username for your notarization.

If the Notarize the Generated Installer check box in the App Notarization setting is cleared, this setting is disabled.

• Developer App Specific Password - Specify the App specific password for your application.

If the Notarize the Generated Installer check box in the App Notarization setting is cleared, this setting is disabled.

• Notarization Response Timeout (min) - Specify the notarization response timeout for your application. The default value is 5 minutes. You can also modify according to the payload.

Based on the specified Notarization Response Timeout (min), InstallAnywhere will await for a response of the Notarization status from the Apple server. If the response is not received by the specified time, the installer build fails.

If the Notarize the Generated Installer check box in the App Notarization setting is cleared, this setting is disabled.

Note that if you want to notarize the application, you must code sign your installer, select the Code Sign the Generated Installer check box and complete the other settings in that area.

To learn more about App Notarization, see OS X Notarization.

Windows

Use the Windows area to specify default locations for install and shortcut folders. The following settings are available in this area:

Windows Settings

Setting

Description

Default Install Folder

Enter the default value for your install location. Select a magic folder in the list and specify a subdirectory as necessary.

For more information, see Magic Folders and Variables.

Default Shortcut Folder

Enter the default value for the shortcut location. Select a magic folder in the list and specify a subdirectory as necessary.

End users can override this location on the Choose Shortcut Folder panel.

For more information, see Magic Folders and Variables.

Specify the Launcher JVM Settings on a 64-Bit Machine

Indicate which JVM—32 bit or 64 bit—the installer launcher should use on 64-bit Windows-based target systems.

Windows Execution Level

Select the execution level that your installer launcher requires for Windows-based systems. Available options are:

• As Invoker—The installer launcher is run with the same execution level as its parent process. This execution level is typically standard user privileges, since Windows Explorer runs as a standard user. If the installer launcher does not require administrative privileges and all users can run it without administrative privileges, select this option.
• Highest Available—The installer launcher is run with the highest Windows privileges and user rights that are available to the current user. Administrators must authorize it; non-administrators run it without administrative privileges.
• Administrator—The installer launcher requires local administrative privileges to run. Depending on the privileges of the current user account and the configuration of the target system, this setting may result in a launcher that will not start.

Estimated Size (in MB)

Indicates size specified for installer built, this value appears in ARP entries. Enter an Estimated Size for the installer in Mega Bytes. Any whole number between 1 and 4194303 (4 TB) is valid value. By default, the value is blank and you cannot enter the floating/decimal value for an Estimated Size.

Apply Installer File Attributes

Specify whether the File Attributes should be applied to the installer or not. The possible values are as follows:

• Yes - applies File Attributes to the Installer. By default, this option is selected.
• No - does not apply File Attributes to the Installer.

Apply Uninstaller/Launcher File Attributes

Specify whether the File Attributes should be applied to the Uninstaller and Launchers. The possible values are as follows:

• Yes - applies File Attributes to the Uninstaller and Launchers. By default, this option is selected.
• No - does not apply File Attributes to the Uninstaller and Launchers.

Note:This option should be set to 'No' when you perform manual signing of launchers.

Default Windows UI Mode

Use the following subsettings to select the appropriate default UI mode for the installer and the uninstaller:

• Installer UI Mode—Select the UI mode for the Windows-based installer.
• Uninstaller UI Mode—Select the UI mode for the Windows-based uninstaller.

The choices that are available in these settings depend, in part, on the options that you select for the Allowable UI Modes setting (Installer UI page > Look & Feel Settings view > General UI Settings area). If, for example, Silent is not selected as an allowable mode in the Look & Feel Settings view, Silent is not available in the Installer UI Mode or Uninstaller UI Mode settings.

Note:InstallAnywhere supports Arabic and Hebrew locales in GUI mode only. Console mode installers will not run under those locales

For more information about silent and console installers, see Silent Installers and Console Installers.

Digital Signing

InstallAnywhere includes support for digitally signing your Windows-based installers (the installer .exe file, as well as the installer launcher and the uninstaller launcher) at build time. Digitally signing your Windows-based installers assures end users that your installers have not been tampered with or altered since release. End users are presented with a digital certificate when they run your installers. If you have not digitally signed an installer, end users see an unknown publisher warning when they launch your installer on Windows XP SP2 and later.

Note:The ability to digitally sign Windows-based installers at build time requires a personal information exchange file (.pfx) type of digital certificate. In addition, it requires that you are using InstallAnywhere on a Windows-based system. If you try to build a Windows-based installer on a non-Windows system, InstallAnywhere does not sign the resulting installer.

Use the following subsettings to configure digital signature information—including the digital signature files granted to you by a certification authority—that InstallAnywhere should use to sign your Windows-based installer (the installer .exe file, as well as the installer launcher and the uninstaller launcher) at build time:

• Use a file (.pfx)—To use a .pfx file to digitally sign your release at build time, select this option. Then specify the location of your .pfx. You can type the path to the file or use the ellipsis button (...) to browse to the file location.
• Use a certificate store—To reference a certificate store that contains the certificate that you want to use to digitally sign your release at build time, select this option and then enter values in the subsettings under this option.
• Certificate Store Name—Select the name of the certificate store that contains the certificate that you want to use. Available options are:
• Personal
• Trusted Root Certification Authorities
• Enterprise Trust
• Intermediate Certification Authorities

This setting is available if you select the Use a certificate store option.

• Certificate Store Location—Select the location of the certificate store that contains the certificate that you want to use. Available options are:
• User
• Machine

This setting is available if you select the Use a certificate store option.

• Certificate Subject—Enter the subject of the certificate that you want to use, or select from the list of certificates that are available on your machine. This setting is available if you select the Use a certificate store option.

Digital Signing

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• Signature Digest—Choose the signature digest hashing algorithm (or choose to let InstallShield specify it automatically based on the certificate hash). Available options are:
• Based on certificate hash
• SHA-1
• SHA-256
• Dual (SHA-1 & SHA-256)

For more information, see Digitally Signing Windows-Based Installers.

As an alternative to specifying the actual certificate file, timestamp server, and password, you can use build-time variables in these settings (that is, enclose the name of each variable within at symbols: @VariableName@). You can set build-time variables in the Variables view on the Project page, through a .properties file, or through environment variables. To learn more, see Resolving Variables at Build Time.

UNIX

The default settings for UNIX include default locations for install and link folders, default user interface mode, permissions for files and folders that are created on the target system, and Red Hat Package Management (RPM) settings for Linux installations. The RPM feature enables the installer to interact with and make entries into the RPM database. The following settings are available in this area:

UNIX Settings

Setting

Description

Default Install Folder

Enter the default value for your install location. Select a magic folder in the list and specify a subdirectory as necessary.

For more information, see Magic Folders and Variables.

Default Link Folder

Enter the default value for the link location. Select a magic folder in the list and specify a subdirectory as necessary. The default location is the end user’s home directory.

End users can override this location on the Choose Link Folder panel.

For more information, see Magic Folders and Variables.

Default Unix Installer UI Mode

Use the following subsettings to select the appropriate default UI mode for the installer and the uninstaller:

• Installer UI Mode—Select the UI mode for the UNIX-based installer.
• Uninstaller UI Mode—Select the UI mode for the UNIX-based uninstaller.

The choices that are available in these settings depend, in part, on the options that you select for the Allowable UI Modes setting (Installer UI page > Look & Feel Settings view > General UI Settings area). If, for example, Silent is not selected as an allowable mode in the Look & Feel Settings view, Silent is not available in the Installer UI Mode or Uninstaller UI Mode settings.

Note:InstallAnywhere supports Arabic and Hebrew locales in GUI mode only. Console mode installers will not run under those locales

For more information about silent and console installers, see Silent Installers and Console Installers.

Default Permissions

To configure default read, write, and execute permissions for the files that your installer deploys, click the ellipsis button (...) in this setting. The Permissions dialog box opens, enabling you to specify the permissions for owner, group, and others.

This setting shows the value of the specified permissions in octal notation, where the first digit represents the permissions for the owner, the second digit represents the permissions for the group, and the third digit represents the permissions for others.

Enable RPM Registration (Linux Only)

Specify whether you want to enable Red Hat Package Management (RPM) registration. On supported Linux systems, RPM registration creates a virtual package and uses it to make entries to the RPM database.

If you select Yes in this setting, the ellipsis button (...) in this setting is enabled. Click this ellipsis button and configure additional settings. For detailed information, see RPM Specification Settings Dialog Box.

Enable SWVPD Registry Integration (AIX Only)

Specify whether you want to include AIX registry (software vital product data) support in your project’s installers. On AIX systems, this option ensures that products are properly added to and removed from the SWVPD registry.

If you select Yes in this setting, the ellipsis button (...) in this setting is enabled. Click this ellipsis button and configure additional settings. For detailed information, see SWVPD Registry Settings Dialog Box.

Note:If you enable SWVPD registry integration and leave one or more settings on the SWVPD Registry Settings dialog box blank, the installer uses corresponding values from the General Settings view on the Project page.

Require Root

Specify whether the installer requires root account permissions. A root account is the user name or account that by default has access to all commands and files on a Linux or other Unix-like operating system. It is also referred to as the root account, root user, or the superuser. If you select Yes in this setting, the Error Message setting under Require Root is enabled.

Error Message

Specify an error message to appear if the installer is run with a non-root account. This field is enabled when Yes is selected from the Require Root drop-down list.

System i (i5/OS)

The System i (i5/OS) area contains a setting for installers that target the i5/OS operating system running on System i. To build installers for i5/OS, you must have access to an i5/OS system. The following settings are available in this area:

System i (i5/OS) Settings

Setting

Description

Enable (RAIR) System i (i5/OS) Registration

Specify whether you want the installer to enter product information in the i5/OS Registered Application Information Repository (RAIR). If you select Yes, the installer adds information about the product’s features to the RAIR when the product is installed.

Note:Some systems management products, such as Management Central, use RAIR to determine what software is installed on an i5/OS system.

Pure Java

The Pure Java area contains settings that determine the UI mode that pure Java installers and uninstallers use. The following settings are available in this area:

Pure Java Settings

Setting

Description

Follow Platform-Specific Default UI Mode

Specify whether pure Java installers use the project’s default UI mode. The default value is Yes.

If you select No, use the Installer UI Mode setting and the Uninstaller UI Mode setting to specify the default UI modes for pure Java installers and uninstallers.

Installer UI Mode

Select the UI mode for pure Java–based installers. Available options are:

• GUI—GUI mode renders an installer with wizard panels and dialog boxes.
• Console—Also known as command-line interface, console-mode installers can perform remote installations over telnet or on systems without a graphical windowing environment.
• Silent—Silent installers do not interact with end users. They are suitable for distribution when all of the settings are already known, or they are provided in a response file.

The choices that are available in this setting depend, in part, on the options that you select for the Allowable UI Modes setting (Installer UI page > Look & Feel Settings view > General UI Settings area). If, for example, Silent is not selected as an allowable mode in the Look & Feel Settings view, Silent is not listed in the Installer UI Mode setting.

Note that this setting is disabled if Yes is selected for the Follow Platform-Specific Default UI Mode setting.

Note:InstallAnywhere supports Arabic and Hebrew locales in GUI mode only. Console-mode installers will not run under those locales.

For more information about silent and console installers, see Silent Installers and Console Installers.

Uninstaller UI Mode

Select the UI mode for pure Java–based uninstallers. Available options are:

• GUI—GUI mode renders an uninstaller with wizard panels and dialog boxes.
• Console—Also known as command-line interface, console-mode uninstallers can perform remote uninstallations over telnet or on systems without a graphical windowing environment.
• Silent—Silent uninstallers do not interact with end users. They are suitable for distribution when all of the settings are already known, or they are provided in a response file.
• Same as Installer—Use the same UI mode that is configured for the pure Java–based installer.

The choices that are available in this setting depend, in part, on the options that you select for the Allowable UI Modes setting (Installer UI page > Look & Feel Settings view > General UI Settings area). If, for example, Silent is not selected as an allowable mode in the Look & Feel Settings view, Silent is not listed in the Installer UI Mode setting.

Note that this setting is disabled if Yes is selected for the Follow Platform-Specific Default UI Mode setting.

Note:InstallAnywhere supports Arabic and Hebrew locales in GUI mode only. Console mode installers will not run under those locales.

For more information about silent and console installers, see Silent Installers and Console Installers.