require a temporary file during installation

If you were not using VS 2008:

1. You wouldn't be installing the temporary file only to remove it later.
You'd store it in the Binary table and stream it out to disk to be used,
then removed. This probably sounds like gobbledygook because Visual Studio
setups are minimalist setups for developers who don't really know the
speciality of MSI-based setups.

2. If you did install it, you'd use a tool that lets you set the ComponentId
to null as here:

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/libr...07(VS.85).aspx and ComponentId
being null means it won't restore on a repair.

So VS setups don't expose all the complexities of MSI files, and you could
use Orca (or a post-build script)to edit the MSI file to set that
ComponentId to null as in 2.

--
Phil Wilson
The Definitive Guide to Windows Installer
http://www.apress.com/book/view/1590592972


"Tieske" <Tieske@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
news:319A3D9D-E243-461D-A8CF-E74909F28AB5@microsoft.com...
>I have the following issue;
>
> I wrote a small application (500kb), and added a custom action to perform
> some checks after installing (3000kb). In VS2008 I set the file that is
> required for the checks to be installed in the program files directory.
> This
> way I have a fixed refernece where to find the file when the custom action
> executes. I can't add it to the programs own install directory as the user
> may change the installation location and my custom action doesn't know
> that
> path.
>
> Now all works fine, but when the custom action completes, I have it delete
> the 3000kb file from the program files directory, just to clean it up.
>
> Problem; when I now start my installed application, the auto-repair of the
> MsiInstaller starts, confuses the user, restores the deleted file in the
> program files directory and only after that it starts the application.
>
> Can I make the MsiInstaller stop restoring the file? or alternatively, how
> can I go about a scenario where this large file is only temporarily used
> during installation time, and then removed?
>
> any help is greatly appreciated!
>

I have the following issue;

I wrote a small application (500kb), and added a custom action to perform
some checks after installing (3000kb). In VS2008 I set the file that is
required for the checks to be installed in the program files directory. This
way I have a fixed refernece where to find the file when the custom action
executes. I can't add it to the programs own install directory as the user
may change the installation location and my custom action doesn't know that
path.

Now all works fine, but when the custom action completes, I have it delete
the 3000kb file from the program files directory, just to clean it up.

Problem; when I now start my installed application, the auto-repair of the
MsiInstaller starts, confuses the user, restores the deleted file in the
program files directory and only after that it starts the application.

Can I make the MsiInstaller stop restoring the file? or alternatively, how
can I go about a scenario where this large file is only temporarily used
during installation time, and then removed?

any help is greatly appreciated!