You know -- I've been making installers for awhile.... but still don't have a clear understanding of the actuall under-the-hood process when it comes to uninstall.
How does it really work?
The instructions for uninstall live in the MSI file. But after you install, where are these uninstall instructions placed? Is there some system folder where the uninstall is put?
Tell me more about the details of uninstall -- and how it relates to the MSI file that was installed....
Suggested Articles
Hi,
There are several ways to launch the uninstallation of a MSI package:
- use the "Add/Remove Programs" applet in the Control Panel
- launch the MSI package after it has been installed (it will go into maintenance mode: Modify, Repair and Remove options)
- use the "msiexec /x" command
In all these cases, the information needed by the Uninstall process is stored in the MSI (which is usually cached by Windows). Therefore, when the Uninstall is launched all the resources (files, registry entries etc.) registered in the MSI will be removed. Also, during the Uninstall process you can use custom actions for the features not supported by Windows Installer.
You can read more about the Install/Uninstall process here:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms954376.aspx
Regards,
Cosmin
There are several ways to launch the uninstallation of a MSI package:
- use the "Add/Remove Programs" applet in the Control Panel
- launch the MSI package after it has been installed (it will go into maintenance mode: Modify, Repair and Remove options)
- use the "msiexec /x" command
In all these cases, the information needed by the Uninstall process is stored in the MSI (which is usually cached by Windows). Therefore, when the Uninstall is launched all the resources (files, registry entries etc.) registered in the MSI will be removed. Also, during the Uninstall process you can use custom actions for the features not supported by Windows Installer.
You can read more about the Install/Uninstall process here:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms954376.aspx
Regards,
Cosmin