How to Use InstallShield’s Silent Install Capabilities

ISS Files and Silent Install Parameters

When it comes to silent installation, there are a few key considerations.

This article focuses on the EXE-based silent installations, as tools like InstallShield, Advanced Installer, and others also support creating MSI files.

In general, it is recommended to push MSI files into a managed infrastructure.

One of the main reasons why MSI is recommended is that it brings a more standardized approach to software installations.

If you are looking for the MSI silent installation parameters or other options, I recommend checking out this article.

For a short overview, whenever you want to install a fully silent MSI, you can use the following command lines:

Msiexec /i setup.msi /qn > To install an MSI
Msiexec /x setup.msi /qn > To uninstall an MSI

For EXE installers created with InstallShield, silent installation relies on ISS files. InstallShield uses ISS (InstallShield Silent) response files to automate the installation.

These files basically record the installation choices and can silently install applications using the “/s” parameter.

By default, the ISS file slips into the Windows directory (C:\Windows\setup.iss). But add /r /f1"path\to\custom.iss" and that's how you decide where the file gets saved.

To create an ISS file, we need to run the installer with /r:

Setup.exe /r

This will start the installation and will record any choices you make during the setup and output the ISS file. After that, you can run the installer with the ISS file like this:

setup.exe /s /f1"path\to\setup.iss"

The “/s” parameter runs the installer silently, while the “/f1” specifies the location of the ISS file to automate the installation.

InstallShield-generated EXE installers support silent installation using the command line switch “/s”. The common parameters include:

• /s - Runs the installer silently using an ISS file
• /r - Records and ISS file for future silent installations
• /f1[path] - Specifies the location of the ISS file
• /f2[path] - Defines the log file location

You can also create an ISS file manually using any standard text editor available. There are some rules that you need to follow:

• The file must include a silent header section ([InstallShield Silent])
• The file must include an application section ([Application])
• The file must include a dialog sequence section ([Dialog Sequence])
• The file must include a dialog data section

As a basic example of an ISS file, we can have a look at this ISS, which was done with Notepad:

[InstallShield Silent]
Version=v7.00
File=Response File
[Application]
Name=MySoftware
Version=1.0
Company=MyCompany
[Dialog Sequence]
Dlg0=Welcome-0
Dlg1=LicenseAgreement-1
Dlg2=DestinationFolder-2
Dlg3=SetupType-3
Dlg4=ReadyToInstall-4
[Welcome-0]
Result=1
[LicenseAgreement-1]
Result=1
[DestinationFolder-2]
Path=C:\Program Files\MySoftware
[SetupType-3]
Type=Typical
[ReadyToInstall-4]
Result=1

There are, of course, some limitations to the ISS as well:

• ISS files only work with InstallShield-based installers
• ISS files are quite hardcoded, meaning if the dialogs change between software versions, the ISS file will not work correctly
• Custom dialogs may require additional scripting.

ISS Files and Silent Uninstall Parameters

To silently uninstall an InstallShield-based application (EXE installers, not MSI packages), you can either use an ISS response file or try the standard silent parameters.

The easiest way to silently uninstall an InstallShield-based EXE app is to try the following silent parameters:

setup.exe /x /s /v"/qn"

The parameters represent the following:

• /x - Uninstall
• /s - Silent Mode
• /v”/qn” - Passes /qn to the MSI inside the EXE (no ui) in case the EXE is a wrapper

If this doesn’t work, then it means we need to create an ISS file. This can be done via recording or manually. To do an ISS file via recording, we need to do the following:

setup.exe /r /x /f1"C:\path\to\uninstall.iss"

Go through the standard uninstall process, and InstallShield will record the ISS file. Once the ISS file is recorded and created, use the following command line:

setup.exe /s /x /f1"C:\path\to\uninstall.iss"

Silent Installation for Advanced Installer Packages

Advanced Installer offers you the possibility to import InstallShield Projects, but does not support ISS files. Instead, Advanced Installer provides its own list of supporting parameters:

/? and /help

Display the help dialog with the command-line options.

/exenoui

Launch the EXE setup without UI.

/exebasicui

Launch the EXE setup with basic UI.

<msiOptions>

Pass options to msiexec.exe in embedded MSI setups.

You can find the full list of Advanced Installer EXE parameters in the Advanced Installer User Guide.

If you are considering migrating from InstallShield to Advanced Installer, check out our comparison of the two solutions here.

Conclusion

InstallShield offers strong silent installation and uninstallation capabilities through ISS response files, allowing for automated software deployment without user interaction. The process involves recording installation choices with `/r`, executing silent installations with `/s /f1"path\to\setup.iss"`, and leveraging key parameters to control execution.

However, ISS files come with limitations: they are limited to InstallShield-based installers, are hardcoded to specific software versions, and may require additional scripting for custom dialogs. If silent uninstallation is required, users can attempt standard silent parameters or record an ISS file for a seamless process.

Ultimately, InstallShield provides a standardized and structured way to handle software installation silently, making it a valuable tool for infrastructure management and automation.