phillipk
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2017 11:52 pm

I can't convert my .msi to .appx because I'm using HKCU

Tue Sep 19, 2017 2:03 am

My .msi installer makes some edits to HKEY_CURRENT_USER, but when running "Desktop Bridge Setup Builder" I get the following warning:
WARNING: Registry. Registry entries under HKEY_CURRENT_USER will not be available when the application will run.

It generates the .appx but when I run it, it doesn't make the registry edits I need.

Is there a way to make this work? I'll promptly reply to any questions that try to help resolve this. Thanks in advance!

Daniel
Posts: 8237
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2012 1:11 pm
Contact:  Website

Re: I can't convert my .msi to .appx because I'm using HKCU

Wed Sep 20, 2017 2:34 pm

Hello,

Please keep in mind this is due to the Universal Windows Platform design. An AppX package cannot deploy registries under "HKEY_CURRENT_USER" hive. An AppX package can deploy only registries under "HKLM\Software" registry key. Check the "Registry" section of the "Behind the scenes of the Desktop Bridge" article for more details on this subject.

Just let us know if you have any further question.

All the best,
Daniel
Daniel Radu - Advanced Installer Team
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phillipk
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2017 11:52 pm

Re: I can't convert my .msi to .appx because I'm using HKCU

Wed Sep 20, 2017 7:33 pm

Thanks--that helps a bit. I changed my registry values to only write to HKLM, the source .msi works exactly as I want... but when I convert to an .appx it appears to make no edits to the registry. Here's a view the moment before I convert:


https://photos.app.goo.gl/7YEDXh23LCWM75Fh2

Daniel
Posts: 8237
Joined: Mon Apr 02, 2012 1:11 pm
Contact:  Website

Re: I can't convert my .msi to .appx because I'm using HKCU

Mon Sep 25, 2017 4:10 pm

Hello,

Please keep in mind that after AppX package installation the registry won't be installed on the current system. They will be available into a virtualized container which is created when the application runs. To see what registries are available to your application you can use the "Invoke-CommandInDesktopPackage" cmdlet to open the registry editor.

For instance you can use a PowerShell command like this:

Code: Select all

Invoke-CommandInDesktopPackage -PackageFamilyName <yourPackageFamily> -AppId <yourAppId> -Command "C:\Windows\regedit.exe"
All the best,
Daniel
Daniel Radu - Advanced Installer Team
Follow us: Twitter - Facebook - YouTube

phillipk
Posts: 3
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2017 11:52 pm

Re: I can't convert my .msi to .appx because I'm using HKCU

Mon Sep 25, 2017 5:49 pm

Thanks for the info...

However, the registry change is a URIScheme so that the user can click a special link to launch the app. That is, like how one can launch the gotomeeting app from a special link on the web. Something like:
myprotocol://parameters_to_my_app

Before install, the link does nothing. After install, the browser presents the user with a confirmation dialog and THEN it launches the app. So the user never manually launches the app, but rather it gets launched when they click a web link.

It may require a different tact than I'm taking--but I'm pretty sure there's a solution.

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