Advanced Installer Upgrade Guide

Everything you should know about upgrading
to a newer version of Advanced Installer

Pros & Cons
Upgrading or NOT

How to check for
Product Updates

Identifying the
Upgrade Options

Side-by-Side
Installation Option

Addressing Main
Concerns

FAQ & Further
Steps

Why keep your software packaging tool up to date

Improved performanceBug fixesNew featuresReliable securityIncreased compatibilityReduces costs

As a Windows Consultant, I need to help my customers to upgrade to the latest Windows versions, this means I have to face many app compatibility issues. I always have to package or script the app to run it in the latest Windows version. This process hadn’t been easy with the available free tools, but then I met Advanced Installer, an amazing solution that makes my job easier. I really love how Advanced Installer works, and the amazing support they have, because I know I can ask for help without any problem.

Sergio Calderon
MVP WINDOWS AND DEVICES FOR IT
WINDOWS INSIDER MVP

Pros & Cons
Upgrading or NOT to a New Version

PROS

Access to bug fixes that might affect you without knowing it
Access to new features and technologies, new integrations that help you do things that were not possible with older versions
Access to improvements that will surely simplify your work
Up-to-date documentation, tutorials, and how-to’s that match the latest versions

CONS

Depending on the installer’s complexity, the conversion can be done quickly or not

REMARKS

Upgrading your software at least two or three times a year reduces a conglomerate of major issues and bugs compared to upgrading just once every few years.
If you have a big break between upgrades, you have higher chances of experiencing issues during project conversion.
Upgrading several times during a year almost eliminates conversion bugs’ complexity and risks.

How To Check for Product Updates

There Are Three Ways to Check for Advanced Installer Product Updates

Checking manually for updates

This option implies manual interventions.

All you have to do is to:

Open the File Menu in the Advanced Installer application User Interface
Hover over the “Help” section
Select “About” Menu

Once you go through the steps above, a wizard informing you about any available updates will show automatically.

Automatic pop-up message

The second option is the automatic pop-up message that is shown whenever a new version of Advanced Installer is available.

You have three options you can choose from:

Download and install the version
Set a reminder for the next day
Disable the automatic updates check

Check the Advanced Installer
website for the latest release

The third option is to go to our Download page and
check the latest version available for download.

Alternatively, you can check the newest release available on our Release Notes history page or check the product announcement message from the Advanced Installer UI dedicated section.

Advanced Installer

v22.3

Download

By downloading you agree with our End User License Agreement.

Advanced Installer requires Windows 7, 8 or 10.

Identifying the Upgrading Options

There are two methods to upgrade your project to a newer version of Advanced Installer

Remove the previous version installed on your
machine and install the new version.

Choose the side-by-side installation option
and have both product versions installed.

Aside from the two options, you can always test the latest version of Advanced Installer on a
Virtual Machine since it won’t interfere with your machine’s resources.

Side-by-Side Installation Option

The side-by-side installation allows you to install multiple versions of Advanced Installer on the same machine.

Side-By-Side Installation - Advantages

It allows you to quickly test something against two different versions of the productIt allows you to keep previous versions installed, just in case the newer version has problemsIt allows you to easily scan what has changed between the previous and newer versionsIt is a good opportunity to decide if the newer version brings new improvements and functionalities that you might needIt simplifies the testing process of your project during upgrades - evaluating newly added features in a new project or analyzing what bug fixes have been fixed

Side-By-Side Installation - How to Apply It

Applying a side-by-side installation is a straightforward process and consists of four steps.

Check for Product Updates (go to this section to choose the most suitable option for you)

Download and launch the installation kit of the newer version

During the installation, you will be prompted with a dialog that lets you decide whether you want to remove the older version(s) or install it side-by-side.

Choose the side-by-side installation option.

You can install the new version on the same machine, in different installation folders. They can both run at the same time.
If you have automated scripts that trigger builds or a Visual Studio extension, you might need to update them to specify exactly which version of Advanced Installer you want to be used.

Addressing Main Concerns - Upgrading and Testing Your Project

You need to take three mandatory steps to start testing your project conversion.

Open your Advanced Installer Project (.AIP file) using the new version of Advanced Installer.

Build your newly loaded Advanced Installer Project file.

Save your project. Upon saving the project in the newer version of Advanced Installer, a backup copy is created next to the original project, so don’t worry about losing any work.

Make sure you do not remove the backup file, as once the project was saved in the latest version, it can no longer be opened in older versions. If something goes south, you can use the backup copy to continue developing your project in the older version.

Testing Your Project - Aspects You Should Pay Close Attention to

When testing a project conversion, you should first make sure that there are no big User Interface changes. If there are any, you should inspect whether these changes affect the project's structure in any way.

Make sure the installer behaves the same, the application resources are installed as expected, and that no functionalities were altered after the conversion.

Another part you need to test is the build automation (e.g. Visual Studio builds or any other CI/CD integration you have).

Make sure to test all the install scenarios of the application: New install, Upgrade, Uninstall, Maintenance, Silent and full UI.

The last checks that need to be tested are for the final package that gets built. Is the new package looking and behaving like the one generated with the previous version?

Automation is your friend. Use it to cover 90% of the test scenarios mentioned above.

Frequently Asked Questions - Further Steps

How do we test Advanced Installer before each release?

Here's a short list of solid testing scenarios we apply before each Advanced Installer's release. Most of them are automated and run daily.

Test that all of our current project options work.Test that newly added features work.Test that the bugs found during the last version are fixed.Test that the UI does not have any data displayed wrong.Check that the installer correctly executes.It installs files in the correct folder.It correctly adds registries, etc.Check that creating upgrades/patches functionality works.

Will I lose my project's functionality if something is not working right in the latest version?

No. When we save an old project with a newer version of Advanced Installer, we create a backup copy. This way, the project can still be modified in an older version of Advanced Installer. So, don't worry about losing any of your work.

Do I need to buy a license when upgrading to a newer version of Advanced Installer?

To upgrade to a newer version of Advanced Installer, you need to have an active Maintenance Plan. You can either extend your maintenance plan or renew it. All new licenses include a 12 months maintenance plan.

If you don't have an active Maintenance Plan, you can still try the latest version of Advanced Installer through our 30-day full-featured trial.