Advanced Installer Features

• Installer and Uninstaller - Create packages that completely install and register, respectively uninstall and unregister, your application .
• Always valid MSI 2.0/3.x/4.x/5.0 packages - Each written and unwritten Windows Installer rule, recommendation and best practice is carefully followed.
• Wizard for Simple Project creation - Use the provided wizard to create complete Windows Installer MSI installs in mere minutes.
• Add/Remove (Control Panel) customization - Customize your application's information listed in the "Add/Remove Programs" page of the Control Panel.
• Per-user and per-machine installs - Select which type of installation better suits your needs: per-user or per-machine if the user is Administrator.
• Limit to Basic UI - For unassisted or automated installs: display only a progress dialog and the eventual error message boxes.
• Project files in XML format - They can be easily checked into a version control system and shared between multiple developers.
• Template projects - Create templates based on your current project and ready-to-use for your future projects.
• Context sensitive help and tutorials - Illustrated, integrated help and tutorials are provided for a simple and user-friendly learning of the application.
• 64-bit packages - Create packages that run and install on 32-bit processors or on the latest 64-bit CPUs from Intel and AMD.
• Optionally force rebooting - Prompt the user for a reboot even after a successful install, supporting sensitive components that require it.
• Formatted fields - Use variables and parameters almost anywhere in your installs. They will be resolved at build or run time.
• Visual formatted editing - Edit controls for Formatted and Condition fields offer reference auto-completion, highlight, errors and resolved value hints.
• Run and log MSIs - Launch your MSI package while printing the full Windows Installer log. Syntax highlighting and log summary.
• Windows 10/8/7/Vista and UAC installs - Create installs that run flawlessly on Windows 10/8/7/Vista, targeting its features and supporting its security model.
• Visual Studio Integration - Use the Advanced Installer Visual Studio extension to easily access your installer directly from your IDE.
• Build cache - Enjoy faster development and quicker installer build times with by caching and reusing unchanged archives.
• PowerShell Integration - Create and configure your projects using PowerShell commands.

Installer Analytics (subscription required)

• Installation data - Get essential KPIs for you application, and see how to improve your retention and user experience.
• User data - Know your audience by getting information about active users, language preferences, platform specs, uninstall reasons and impact of updates.
• Issue detection - Detect issues such as blockers, errors, stability and missing prerequisites before they impact your user base.

Application Resources

• Files and folders - Install and uninstall files, create and remove folders. Visually define your distribution tree.
• Create shortcuts - Shortcuts to your files, external files, commands, URLs. Placed anywhere: Desktop, Start Programs menu, etc.
• Windows 10/8 support for shortcuts - Enable Windows 10/8 behavior like: "Pin to Taskbar", "Prevent auto Pin to Start", "Disable Pin to Start" and "Run as administrator".
• Registry keys and entries - Install and uninstall; create or import them from your Registry or REG files straight into your MSI package.
• Environment variables - User or system environment variables to be created, appended or prepended to existing ones upon install.
• Font registration - Register fonts into the OS, specify registration names for non-TrueType fonts.
• Auto register files - Auto registration, for files that support it (such as DLLs and OCXs), can be scheduled at install time.
• Merge Modules into your installation - Create self-contained MSI packages, by including and configuring the required merge modules.
• Application Tiles - Customize how application tiles look in the Start Menu and Start Screen.

Handling Versions

• Upgrading older installs automatically - Older versions of your product found on the user's machine can be removed before installing the newer one.
• Prevent installs of older over newer versions - Advanced Installer will not let the user install older packages over newer ones.
• Side-by-side installs - Create packages (for different versions of your application) that can be installed simultaneously and run side by side.

Installer Conditions

• Prevent installing on unsupported OS's - Easily specify which Operating Systems are supported, preventing the installation on the other ones.
• MSI launch conditions - Conditions that have to be met (applications, frameworks, files, versions, etc.) in order for your package to run.
• Smart condition editor - Quickly and easily edit Windows Installer conditions. Comes with auto completion, property values detection, predefined examples, multiple level undo, etc.

Import

• Import Visual Studio Setup projects - Quickly convert your existing Microsoft Visual Studio Setup projects to Advanced Installer.
• Import InstallShield LE projects - Quickly upgrade your existing Visual Studio 2010 InstallShield LE installer projects to Advanced Installer.
• Import WISE projects - Create installation packages by importing WISE projects.
• Import WiX projects - Leverage existing installer projects while accessing the numerous Advanced Installer features and capabilities.
• MSI/MSM import - Import third party MSI installers and MSM merge modules into your own Advanced Installer Projects.
• Import Microsoft Visual Studio projects - Jump-start your installer by importing your existing VS project. Auto-detect names, files and dependencies.
• Import Visual Basic 6.0 applications - Import applications developed in Visual Basic 6.0 to get a head start on creating their installer.
• Import Embarcadero RAD Studio applications - Create installers for applications developed with RAD Studio.
• Import Real Studio applications - Develop installers for Real Studio applications.
• Import Inno Setup projects - Switch to Windows Installer easier than ever before. Move to MSI setups without wasting the effort already spent.
• Import NSIS projects - Switch your NSIS projects to Windows Installer. Enjoy Advanced Installer's ease of use and wealth of features.

Installer Continuous Integration

• Command line mode execution - Build your release packages in a completely automated script, like Make, Ant or NAnt.
• RAD Tools Integration - Enable users to create installers directly from your RAD tool environment.
• Team Foundation Server - Use Advanced Installer's full support to benefit from TFS as back end for your integrated development environment.
• Azure DevOps - Build Advanced Installer projects using Azure DevOps.
• Jenkins - Integrate the Advanced Installer project in your build system using our custom designed plugin.
• TeamCity - Dedicated build runner for Advanced Installer.
• Bamboo - Dedicated Bamboo tasks for Advanced Installer.

Delivery Options

• Single, self-contained MSI installs - Create a single MSI package that contains bundled everything required to install your application.
• Unpacked installations - The files stay unbundled next to the MSI file, suited for regular installs or to run directly from (CD, DVD) source.
• Archive files into CABs - Your application resources can be archived into CAB files, compressed (for size) or uncompressed (for speed).
• Smart Cabbing - Automatically checks that files with the same source are included only once in the generated CAB file.
• Online installs - The MSI packages can be launched from an URL, either directly by the user or by the EXE bootstrapper (in Pro edition).

Professional Edition Features

• Configure Windows Features - Use the intuitive GUI to enable the optional Windows Features your application requires.
• Microsoft Authenticode Digital ID signature - Digitally sign generated or included files - authenticate your products and MSIs for improved customer credibility. Device Guard and Azure Key Vault integration.
• Software Identification Tag - The easiest way to implement ISO 19770-2 standard compliance in your software products.
• Command line mode editing - Change the project without bringing up the UI - at command line or in batch scripts.
• PowerShell Custom Actions - Run PowerShell scripts by using the dedicated editor, predefined prerequisites, launch conditions, and much more.
• Multi-volume installs - Split large installs onto several disks, with customizable size and number of archives and volumes.
• LZMA compression for installers - Reduce the size of your install packages using some of the best compression algorithms in the industry.
• Large file support - Include in your project files larger than 2GB and pack them using multi-core-aware LZMA compression.
• Installer encryption - Protect your installers using AES encryption. A password will be automatically requested before installing your package.
• User registration, serial code validation, SKUs - Ask the user for a serial code during install. Validate it online, through bundled algorithm or your custom DLL.
• Wizard for Professional Project creation - Use the provided wizard to create professional Windows Installer MSI installs in mere minutes.
• Friendly Wizards - Easy to use, intuitive wizards are ready to assist you during your install creation. Get more done in less time.
• Project Notes - Document every intricate detail of your projects in order to improve your installer team collaboration.
• EXE/DLL dependency detector - Quickly and easily find out and include in your installation the libraries that your EXE and DLL files depend on.
• Fast installation - Automatically optimize your packages for the fastest possible installation.
• Single Package Authoring - Create a single MSI package able to install both per-user and per-machine with a selection dialog for the user.
• Mixed 32/64-bit installers - Powerful wizard helps author single, unified installers that run as 32-bit on 32-bit and as 64-bit on 64-bit platforms.
• Control Panel Applets - Install applets in Control Panel to configure and customize your system-level services and applications.
• Visual Studio 2017 Extension and Add-In installers - Easily create dedicated installers for Visual Studio 2017 extensions and add-ins (in Ent. edition).
• Microsoft Office Add-In installers - Easily create dedicated installers for Microsoft Office add-ins directly from a Visual Studio Project or from a disk location.
• Adobe Products Add-In installers - Create dedicated add-in installers for most often used Adobe products.

Builds

• Multiple Builds - Build multiple installers from a single project creating packages customized for various deployment scenarios.
• APPX Bundles - Create APPX bundles for multiple architectures and platform types.
• Pre/Post-Build Events - Customize your installer build process with pre- and post-build events: copy or move files, run commands.
• Reports - At-a-glance reports outlining essential information about your installer.
• ICE Validation - Run ICE validation suites as a final step in the build process, messages being appended to the Build Log.
• Validation Fixes - Suggest and apply fixes for package validation errors resulted from running ICE validation suites.
• Windows App Certification Kit Validation (WACK) - Run WACK validations as a final step in the build process for MSI, AppX and MSIX packages, messages being appended to the Build Log and inside an HTML report.
• MSIX Packaging - Build MSIX packages from your existing projects. Get you desktop application in the Windows Store with just a few clicks.

Professional Application Resources

• Synchronized folders - Specify installation folders to be synchronized with folders on your disk, with include and exclude patterns.
• Path Variables - Ability to use custom, per-machine configurable Variables in project paths.
• Compute file hashes - Turn this feature on to eliminate unnecessary file copying during a repair process.
• File associations and mime types - Associate files having certain extensions with your application for open, edit, view, print or other operations.
• Vista Default Programs - Take advantage of the Windows Vista's new support for registering applications to handle file types.
• Advertised shortcuts - Advertised shortcuts trigger installation of features on demand or application check and repair when launched.
• INI files and entries - Import full INI files. Easily create and edit, update or change INI entries.
• Search for applications and resources - Search for components, files, folders, registry and INI entries during the install process.
• Test-run searches - Invaluable tool allowing you to test Windows Installer searches on the spot, seeing the results immediately.
• Permissions - Set permissions to define in detail the allowed user access to files, folders, registry keys and entries.
• Resource removal on install - Remove files, registry keys and values during both install and uninstall stages.
• File install actions - Move, copy or duplicate any file during install. Reserve additional space for install costing.
• Uninstall cleanup - Now it's easy to make sure your application doesn't leave anything on your user's system after uninstall.
• Persistent user data - Persist user-modified settings and configurations through upgrades and repairs of your application.
• Temporary installation files - Include additional files that must be present at install time, without being installed themselves.

Resource Registration

• Extract registration information - The registration data can be extracted from files that can auto-register, and installed directly in the Registry.
• Services - Install and register services. Control (start, stop, etc.) them both on install and uninstall.
• ODBC drivers, data sources and translators - Install and easily set the attributes on ODBC drivers, data sources and translators.
• COM, COM+ and DCOM - Fully specify COM, COM+ and DCOM components for registration at install time.
• COM Interfaces - Create COM Interfaces using Advanced Installer GUI.
• COM+ import - Import complete COM+ installation MSIs into existing Advanced Installer projects.

.NET Framework

• .NET and Win32 assemblies - Install .NET and Win32 assemblies in Global Assembly Cache (GAC) or privately, side-by-side on Windows XP.
• .NET/COM interoperability - Let Advanced Installer extract registration information and register your .NET assemblies for COM interoperability.
• Precompile .NET assemblies - Improve .NET applications performance and startup time by precompiling them to native images on install.
• Assembly attributes - Advanced Installer automatically scans and detects .NET assembly attributes freeing you from this task.
• .NET project template - Use the provided template and wizard to create installers for .NET framework applications in mere minutes.
• .NET prerequisite - Check if the right .NET framework is present on the target machine and, if necessary, download and install it.
• .NET Custom Actions - Write Custom Actions using the .NET framework, taking advantage of InstallerClass.

Custom Actions

• Custom actions - Extend your installer's capabilities by executing JS, VBScript, an EXE, or a function in a DLL during install.
• Nested Install custom actions - Launch an embedded MSI file from your installation in order to install, repair or remove another product.
• Multi-file Custom Actions - Provide resources in separate files. Call normal, third-party multi-file programs as custom actions.
• Predefined actions library - Predefined Custom Actions, ready to be used and easy to customize: play audio file, detect/stop processes and services, etc.
• Standard DLL call - Predefined Custom Action allows you to call any function in any standard DLL.

Package Organization

• Organize package features - Organize your Windows Installer package in features and sub-features. Create, set attributes and install conditions.
• Group components in features - Group installation components into features, share them or set their attributes and install conditions.
• Build one CAB per feature - Save bandwidth by ensuring that for online installs only features actually installed will be downloaded.
• Isolated components - Ensure the components you need are next to your application and will not be overwritten by other software.
• Qualified/Published components - Another level of indirection in your components supports pluggable components and replaceable implementations.

EXE bootstrapper

• Customized EXE bootstrapper - Bootstrap your MSI or MSIX(AppX) package into an EXE file with a custom icon, file description and version.
• MD5 signatures - Setups can use MD5 for checking self and downloaded files (prerequisites or updates) integrity.
• Prerequisites - Create setups that can automatically search for, download and install prerequisite applications. Full CLI support from Enterprise.
• Install/update Windows Installer - Set it as prerequisite and your setup will be able to download and update it on the target machine.
• Latest version check - On launch, check online for a newer version of this installer, and if available, download and install it instead.
• Bootstrapper UI - The Bootstrapper UI has Enhanced UI rendering engine with MSI Dialog table, making the EXE and MSI dialogs indistinguishable.
• Bootstrapper for Desktop Bridge apps - On launch, we check on which OS the package is running and install an MSIX(AppX) package, for Windows 10, or an MSI for older systems.

User Interface

• Change banners and images - Customize the way dialogs look during the installation process by changing the background banner images.
• Over 75 bundled setup themes - You have over 75 built-in custom themes to effortlessly give your application a professional (and gorgeous!) look.
• Additional Dialogs - Select one of the available pre-built dialogs to appear in front of the user during the installation.
• Background image slide shows - Schedule image slide shows during the install of your application. Advertise your brand and products, show off their abilities.

Localization

• Create packages in other languages - Currently localizations in 31 languages for MSIs, EXE bootstrapper and all helper utilities are already included.
• Localize in a new language - Translating additional languages is as easy as editing an XML file generated as a dictionary of untranslated strings.
• Multilingual packages - Generate a single MSI or EXE file with all the desired languages. Automatically match the end-user's default language.
• Language Selection Dialog - Allow your users to select any installation language from the languages included in your installer.
• Localize UWP package - Localize your Universal Windows Platform package and distribute it worldwide through the Microsoft Store.

Automatic Updater

• Advanced Updater tool - Highly configurable and versatile, it automatically checks for, downloads and installs patches and updates.
• Visual Updates Editor - Edit your updates configurations visually in dedicated projects and build in multiple locales.
• HTTP authentication, HTTPS - Downloading over HTTPS is supported, as well as HTTP authentication which prompts for a user and password.
• Server-side license check - Server-side license check is supported, as another way to hinder piracy.

Windows Store

• Windows Store Apps - Package your applications for next generation deployment in Windows 8/8.1/10 and beyond with AppX.
• Import Windows Store Apps - Import and edit existing Windows Store App packages using the friendly Advanced Installer GUI.
• Mobile Installers - Create CABinet packages that can be used to install applications on Windows CE / Mobile platforms.
• MSIX ∙ Desktop Bridge - Full support to build, debug and customize MSIX(AppX) packages for your Win32/.NET applications, through Desktop Bridge. Create UWP and WSA packages from your existing projects.
• Package Support Framework - Migrate to the MSIX package standard by using the built-in support for the Package Support Framework.

Internet Information Services (IIS)

• Web Sites and Web Applications - Configure and deploy Web Sites, create Front Page Server Extensions, Web Application Mappings, etc.
• Import Web Applications - Quickly configure web sites, virtual directories and application pools by importing directly from your working configurations.
• Virtual Directories - Configure and deploy Virtual Directories, associate a Web Application, open FTP access, etc.
• Configure IIS server - Configure the IIS server, register ISAPI filters, backup the metabase, open the Management Console, FastCgi Applications.
• Application Pools - Assign specific configuration settings to a worker process (or processes) that services a group of applications.
• IIS 5.1 to 10 - Full support for IIS 5.1, 6, 7, 8, 8.5 and 10 running on Microsoft Windows XP all the way to Windows 10 and 2012 R2 Server OSs.
• User Accounts integration - Configure anonymous access for IIS or authentication fully integrated with the User Accounts functionality.
• HTTPS/SSL configuration - Configure HTTPS/SSL parameters for websites: bindings, digital certificates and options.
• ASP.NET support - Dedicated wizard. Register your ASP.NET (including .NET 4.5) web application with IIS 7/8 or with IIS 5/6.
• Configure Custom Properties - In addition to the dedicated UI features, custom properties help you modify the majority of IIS 7 or above attributes/collections.

For Java Installer Features

• Console/GUI Java applications - Package both console applications (within a terminal window) and GUI applications (that have a graphical user interface).
• Write Win32 services in Java - Quickly and easily create, package, install and run Win32 services written in Java.
• Multiple Java applications per package - Install several Java applications (each with its own settings and native launcher) with the same package.
• 100% native code, no JVM overhead - Installers contain only native code and technologies, for the smallest footprint and the tightest platform integration.
• Wizard for Java Project creation - Use the wizard to create complete Windows and Mac OS X installers for your Java application in mere minutes.
• Import Eclipse projects - Point Advanced Installer to your Eclipse project and it will instantaneously create your installer and launchers.
• Import IntelliJ IDEA projects - Powerful wizard employed to help you create installation packages by importing IntelliJ IDEA workspaces.
• Pack200 packing for JAR files - Coupled with LZMA compression, can reduce the size of code archives to as low as 20% of the initial size.
• Flexible ClassPath, Library and System paths - Include JAR files, folders, Windows Installer properties and environment variables in your application's paths.
• Edit JVM parameters - Easy to use GUI to edit runtime options, system properties, VM command line and other parameters.
• Powerful memory sizing options - Specify JVM initial and maximum heap and stack sizes, fixed or in bounded physical memory percentages.
• JRockit JRE - Bundle or run your Java applications using the JRockit Java Runtime Environment.
• JRE bundling - Create packages that include a private JRE for your application or a bundled one to install on the computer.
• JRE/JDK prerequisite - Check if the right JVM is present on the target machine and, if necessary, download and install it.

Java Native Launcher

• JRE/JDK detection and selection - Powerful and customizable way to find the installed JVMs and to select the one fitted to run your application.
• Your process name instead of java/javaw - Set your own process name to appear in the task manager and the Windows XP task bar groups.
• Custom application/EXE icon - Include a professional native Windows ICO icon in your executable, with multiple resolutions and color depths.
• File version and name for executable - Embed the version information and name into the generated executable file of your Java application.
• Instant-on native splash screen - A custom splash screen displayed as soon as the EXE file is launched, without having to wait for the JRE to load.
• Java 6 native splash screen - Use the standard Java 6 native splash screen API if available, or fall back on the one provided otherwise.
• User friendly error handling - Errors are treated internally, or if not possible, presented to the user well explained and with solution suggestions.
• Single application instance - Optionally enforce a system-wide unique instance of your product, redirecting secondary launches to this instance.
• Stdout and stderr redirection - Redirect the standard streams to files so the user can check for errors and exceptions even for GUI applications.
• Native 64-bit launcher - A native 64-bit Java launcher version allows you to load your application into a discovered (or bundled) 64-bit JRE.
• Embed JAR in EXE - Protect your application code and simplify deployment by running your JAR directly from the native launcher, without an extraction.

Mac OS X Packages

• Mac OS X standalone bundles - Create standard, standalone, native application bundles for your Java products to be installed on Mac OS X computers.
• Java applications for Mac OS X - Build standalone Java applications ready to be signed and published on the App Store.
• Translate Windows settings to Mac OS X - Every installer setting with an equivalent on Mac OS X will be used directly like it is used in the Windows package.
• Platform-specific Mac OS X settings - Settings that are specific to Mac OS X can be specified separately for the best platform integration.
• Minimum Mac OS X version - Specify the minimum version of Mac OS X required to run your application.
• Native Mac OS X icon - Specify a ICNS file to be used to graphically identify your application on Mac OS X.
• Mac OS X splash screen - Display a specified splash screen when launching your application on Mac OS X.
• Mac OS X localization - The Mac OS X packages are also easily localizable, with a number of built-in languages already included.
• Mac OS X file associations and mime types - Define document types and associate them with your application.