The "Setup.exe" is provided provided by InstallShield.
The information found in this HTML file is provided by the company
in the help files.
Setup Silent Mode
InstallShield Silent is supported only on 32-bit platforms.
InstallShield Silent allows automated electronic software distribution, also known as silent installation. With InstallShield Silent, there is no need for a user to monitor the installation and provide input via dialog boxes. An InstallShield Silent installation runs on its own, without human intervention.
You must launch InstallShield Silent with the Setup.exe -s command line parameter. To comply with Windows 95 logo requirements, a silent installation must create a response file in which the default installation options are selected.
You can run your setup with the Setup.exe -r parameter to select setup
options and automatically record the InstallShield Silent Response File,
or you can create your own from scratch.
Steps to create a silent installation
Follow these steps to create a silent installation:
1. Create the response file using Setup -r
2. Play back the silent installation
1. Create the response file
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
A normal (non-silent) installation receives the necessary input from
the user in the form of responses to dialog boxes. However, a silent
installation does not prompt the user for input. A silent installation
must get its user input from a different source. That source is the
InstallShield Silent Response File (.iss file).
A response file contains information similar to that which an end user
would enter as responses to dialog boxes when running a normal setup.
InstallShield Silent reads the necessary input from the response file at
run time.
The format of response files resembles that of an .ini file, but response files have .iss extensions. A response file is a plain text file consisting of sections containing data entries.
Recording a response file
You have the option of letting InstallShield create the response file for you. Simply run your setup with the Setup.exe -r command line parameter. InstallShield will record all your installation choices in Setup.iss and place the file in the Windows folder.
All InstallShield built-in and Sd dialog box functions are designed
to write values into the Setup.iss file when InstallShield runs in record
mode (Setup -r).
2. Play back the silent installation
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
After you have created the installation and the response file, you are
ready to run the installation in silent mode using InstallShield Silent.
When running an installation in silent mode, be aware that no messages
are displayed. Instead, a log file named Setup.log captures installation
information, including whether the installation was successful. You
can review the log file and determine the result of the installation.
To launch InstallShield Silent, run Setup.exe with the -s option.
InstallShield also provides the -f1 and -f2 switches so you can specify the name and location of the response file and the location of the log file.
See the examples under Setup usage examples.
To verify if a silent installation succeeded, look at the ResultCode
value in the [ResponseResult] section of Setup.log. InstallShield
writes an appropriate return value after the ResultCode keyname.
Setup usage
The following examples illustrate the use of Setup.exe, including use of the command line switches -s, -d, -f, -f1, -f2, and -f32s:
setup
Launches Setup and tries to load Setup.ins from the same directory
that contains Setup.exe.
setup -fTest.ins
Launches Setup and tries to load Test.ins from the same directory that
contains Setup.exe.
setup -fC:\Mydir\Test.ins
Launches Setup and tries to load Test.ins from the C:\Mydir folder.
setup -d
Launches the InstallShield Visual Debugger and tries to load Setup.ins
from the same folder that contains Setup.exe.
setup -dC:\Mydir\Test
Launches the InstallShield Visual Debugger, tries to load Setup.ins
from the same folder that contains Setup.exe, and looks for the Setup.rul
file in the C:\Mydir\Test folder.
setup -d -fC:\Mydir\Test.ins
Launches the InstallShield Visual Debugger and tries to load Test.ins
from the C:\Mydir folder.
setup -s
Launches InstallShield Silent and tries to load Setup.ins and Setup.iss
from the folder containing Setup.exe. The log file Setup.log is created
in the same folder.
setup -s -f1C:\Mydir\Mydir.iss
Launches InstallShield Silent, tries to load Setup.ins from the same
folder, and uses Mydir.iss (from the C:\Mydir folder) as the response file.
This example also creates the log file Setup.log in the same folder as
that of the response file (C:\Mydir).
If you specify an alternate compiled script using the -f switch and
you place -f1 before -f in the command line, Setup will ignore the -f1
switch and will create the response file (the .iss file) in the Windows
folder.
setup -s -f1C:\Mydir\Mydir.iss -fC:\Mydir\Mydir.ins
Will not launch InstallShield Silent because the -f1 switch is used before the -f switch, and -f1 is therefore ignored. No log file will be generated. However, the -fC:\Mydir\Mydir.ins portion of the command line is executed.
setup -s -fC:\Mydir\Mydir.ins -f1C:\Mydir\Mydir.iss
Launches InstallShield Silent, tries to load Mydir.ins from the C:\Mydir
folder, uses Mydir.iss from the C:\Mydir folder, and generates the log
file Setup.log in the C:\Mydir folder.
setup -s -fC:\Mydir\Mydir.ins -f1C:\Mydir\Mydir.iss -f2C:\Mydir\Mydir.log
Launches InstallShield Silent, tries to load Mydir.ins from the C:\Mydir
folder, uses Mydir.iss from the C:\Mydir folder, and generates the log
file Mydir.log in the C:\Mydir folder.
setup -f32s
Launches the 32-bit InstallShield engine (_inst32x.ex_), overriding
the default 16on16=Y setting and any 16on16=Y setting existing in Setup.ini.
(When there is no Setup.ini file present, 16on16=N is in effect.)
16on16=Y instructs Setup.exe to launch the 16-bit InstallShield executable
(_inst16.ex_), if present, whenever the target system operating system
is 16-bit, even if Win32s is present. If 32-bit InstallShield cannot
be launched, an error message is displayed and the installation exits.
A few notes on using Setup.exe: