How to Handle Install Prerequisites

[Tim]

Hello, I want to use Group Policy to install some software on client
machines. I understand that GP can only use .msi and .msp files. However,
my .msi has several prerequisites that dictate it be launched via a setup.exe
file. Yes, I can write a .msi file to do the installation, but would have to
delete the prerequisites so that a setup.exe was not created. This resolves
the issue of using only an .msi or .msp with GP, but does not resolve the
issue that the software I want to install has prerequisites. How does one
handle the installation of prerequisites, via GP, for a given .msi file?

Thanks in advance!
--
Tim Stevens
Software Installation Developer

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[Anthony [MVP]]

Tim,
You just need to know what the pre-requisites and install them before the
application.
Usually they are things like ISScript or .NET. You can create policies to
install these as standard on all your machines. Or else you can put them in
your policy before the main product.
Usually they won't do an install if already installed, but you can create an
msi wrapper that checks as a condition, and that saves a bit of time,
Anthony
http://www.airdesk.com

"Tim" <T...@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
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[Tim]

Thanks Anthony, that makes a lot of sense! I will give it a try.

--
Tim Stevens
Software Installation Developer

[jmd.msdn]

Hello.
Take a look at WiX to rapidly generate a .msi containing your setup.exe &
other commands.
I had to install MS App-V client on all my computers which is a .msi file.
But this file required 2 prerequisites, a C++ dll and another one.
And there is also a setup.exe to install all, the 2 prequisites + the .msi
client.
I installed Wix in Visual Studio and created a new .msi containing this
setup.exe and use a GPO to install on my computers.

"Tim" <T...@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
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[Anthony [MVP]]

The problem with that is that you lose all the installation logic built into
the vendor's setup. Most vendor msi's have a stack of custom actions. If you
capture the installation you will only obtain the output of those actions on
one specific computer. Fine if every computer is the same as the capturing
computer, not otherwise.
Anthony,
http://www.airdesk.com

"jmd.msdn" <jmd....@newsgroup.nospam> wrote in message
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