Installer INI File Documentation

[ViewWindowText]

Set the text displayed in the Main Window

No

ViewText

String Displayed in Main Window

No

Unknown Install

Any string of characters or

No Entry

Subtitle

Subtitle String Displayed as second line in Main Window

No

Empty (nothing displayed)

Any string of characters or

No Entry

[CleanupSection]

Entry removed in 32-bit.

For floppy installs not supported in 32-bit.

CleanupExe

Entry removed in 32-bit.

None

The Master Installer is configured to launch this executable with several command line parameters, it is recommended that the mastcln.exe program ONLY be used for this purpose. This entry allows renaming of the executable.

CleanupDir

Entry removed in 32-bit.

None

Again, this entry must be the directory below the root of the floppy drive.

Do not use a "\" in front of the entry.

[ServerRootPath]

The Server Root Path section is used to tell the Master Installer where it resides relative to the root of all the applications to be installed.

Yes

ServerSubDir

The path below the root for all installs

Yes

None

Any string of characters or

No Entry

If no entry is specified, this means that the Master Installer is at the Root of the Install directory.

Do not use a "\" in front of the entry.

[LogFile]

The LogFile section is used to enable logging and optionally set the path and name of a log file

No

LogEnabled

This entry will enable logging in the Master Installer.

No

No

Yes, No

By default logging is disabled in the Master Installer.

LogFilePath

This entry will set the path for the log file on the Target Drive chosen by the user to install the applications on.

No

No Entry

Any valid directory name

If this entry is missing or blank, the log file will be placed at the root of the Target Drive. If the entry is not a valid directory on the Target Drive, again the log file will be placed at the root of the Target Drive.

LogFileName

This entry contains the name of the log file.

No

mastlog.txt

Any valid DOS file name

If an invalid file name is given, a warning message will appear that the log file was unable to be opened and logging will be disabled.

LimitLogFileSize

This entry determines if the log file size will be limited.

No

Yes

Yes, No

By default, if logging is enabled, so is the limiting of the log file size.

LogFileMaxKB

This entry determines maximum size of the log file in Kilobytes. 1 Kilobyte = 1024 bytes.

No

45

1 <= value <= 5000

The default value of 45KB was chosen because Notepad can open a file up to 50,000 bytes. Thus, the log file can always be viewed with Notepad.

[ShutDown]

The ShutDown section is used to set the behavior for the Master Installer when a user or Windows attempts to close the program before all installs are complete.

No

PromptOnClose

This entry will determine if the user will be prompted whenever Windows or the user tries to close the Master Installer before all installs are complete. When the user is prompted, they are given the option of closing the Master Installer or continuing with the Install.

No

Yes

Yes, No

If this entry is set to No, then the Master Installer will just ignore any attempt to close before all installs are complete.

PromptOnWinExit

This entry will determine if the user will be prompted whenever Windows is attempting to shutdown before all installs are complete. When the user is prompted, they are given the option of allowing Windows to shutdown or continuing with the Install.

No

Yes

Yes, No

If this entry is set to No, then the Master Installer will just ignore any attempt to shutdown Windows before all installs are complete.

[Restart]

The Restart section is used to configure the behavior of the Master Installer after all installs are complete.

No

RestartOnExit

This entry is used to request that the Master Installer restart the computer after all installs are complete.

No

No

Yes, No

If this entry is Yes, then the Master Installer will reboot the computer (not only shutdown Windows, but also force a reboot).

PromptForRestart

OnExit

If the above entry is Yes, this entry will determine if the user will be prompted before the Master Installer restarts the computer. When the user is prompted, they are given the options to allow the Master Installer to restart the computer or continue with the current Windows session.

No

Yes

Yes, No

If this entry is set to No, then the exit dialog for the Master Installer has the added text "The computer will restart now."

CloseProgMan

Groups

Function removed in 32-bit.

This function will ONLY work for Windows 3.1 and WFW 3.11. This function is disabled on Win 95 and Win NT platforms.

The Program Manager menu setting for Options, Save Settings on Exit must be checked for this function to save the changes.

This function closes ALL Program Manager groups.

[RootForInstalled

Apps]

The RootForInstalledApps section is used to set a "root" path that can be searched for all installed applications for version checking.

No

RootDirFor

InstalledApps

This is the path on the Target Drive below which all applications that are already installed should be found.

No

None

Any valid directory

If an install app has CheckVersions=Yes and if the exe is not found in the location specified by InstalledExePath, then if this entry is present, then the directory will be checked on the Target Drive to see if it exists. If the directory exists, then all directories including and below will be searched for the executable. If the directory is invalid, then the entire target drive will be searched. NOTES: If a valid directory is specified, then only all directories below will be searched, the entire Target Drive will NOT be searched. Do not use a "\" in front of the entry.

[DriveReq]

The DriveReq section is used to specify target drive requirements.

No

<InstallReqMeg>

This is the number of MB required free space on the target drive.

No

50

1 - 32767

The Master Installer defines a MB as
1,000,000 bytes, so the required meg may not match what the Windows Explorer reports exactly.

[InstallableApps]

The InstallableApps section is used to specify all apps that will be available to have their install run by the Master Installer.

Yes

<InstallApp>

This is the name of the section for the install application to be run by the Master Installer.

At least one install app

None

Any INI file section name.

The value following the section entry is optional. I use the value "Installable" for readability ONLY.

NOTES: The order the Install Apps are run is determined by the order they are listed in this section.

[<InstallApp>]

This is the INI section to hold all of the settings for the Install App.

For EACH Install App in the InstallableApps section.

None

Matching value to entry in InstallableApps section.

This section is repeated for each install application. All of the entries that are set by Install App are placed here.

InstallByDefault

This entry determines if the Install will be run by the Master Installer for a Typical Install.

Yes

None

Yes, No

If this setting is No, then version checking will still be performed (if CheckVersions=Yes), however if a Typical Install is selected, the application will not be installed. Also, if a Custom Install is selected, then the Install App will appear in the Don't Install list.

ServerInstallDir

This entry states where the Install directory is located below the Master Installer.

Yes

None

Any valid path, or No Entry.

Used for Server Install only.
If this entry is empty, then the install is at the same level as the Master Installer.
The Master Installer combines this path with the drive the Master Installer is being run from and checks to see if the directory exists. If the directory does not exist, a dialog is displayed and the user is allowed to specify where the executable for the install can be found, or cancel the Master Installer.

Do not use a "\" in front of the entry.

FirstVolName

Entry removed in 32-bit.

Used for Floppy Installs only.

For Floppy Installs, the Master Installer will prompt the user to insert the first disk for each install and check the Volume Label against this entry.
If the Volume Label does not match, then the user will be asked to insert the correct disk or cancel the Master Installer.

InstallName

This entry is the Name of the Install. This name will appear in the Install or Don't Install list for a Custom Install and in any messages generated from the install app (such as version checking, dependencies, etc.)

Yes

None

Any characters.

This is the friendly install name.

InstallExe

This entry is the executable to be run by the Master Installer.

Yes

None

Any valid executable name.

For a Server Install, the Master Installer will attempt to launch the executable with this name in the subdirectory specified by the ServerInstallDir entry. If the executable does not exist or cannot be launched, a dialog is displayed and the user is allowed to specify where the executable for the install can be found and the executable name, or cancel the Master Installer.

For a Floppy Install, the Master Installer will attempt to launch the executable on the floppy, if the executable cannot be launched the Master Installer will cancel.
Do not use a "\" in front of the entry.

InstallParam

This entry specifies the command line parameter to launch the install executable with.

No

None

Any valid command line parameter, or No Entry

If no entry exists, or this entry is not present, the install executable will be launched with an empty string for a command line parameter.

Dependency

This entry specifies if the install application is dependent on any other applications.

Yes

None

Any other install app section or "Baseline".

Baseline means that the application must be installed by the Master Installer unless version checking is enabled for the app and an equal or greater version exists on disk.

Note: This entry is NOT checked by Typical Installs.

The Master Installer uses this entry to determine if the Install List is valid for Custom Installs. When the user clicks the OK button in the Applications To Be Installed dialog, the Install List and the Don't Install lists are checked.

If version checking is enabled for the applications, then the following rules apply ONLY if the version on disk is less than the version to install.

If any install app that has a dependency equal to Baseline is in the Don't Install list, a dialog is displayed and user is told the application is required. If any install app in the Install List has a dependency on an install that is NOT in the Install List, then a dialog is displayed and the user is told that the dependent application must also be installed.

CheckVersions

This entry determines if version checking is enabled for the Install App.

Yes

None

Yes, No

VersionToBe

Installed

This is the version of the application to be installed by the Master Installer.

If Check

Versions=Yes, otherwise No

None

Any valid version number separated by periods

The versions compared are the version of the installed executable on disk and the version in this entry.

CheckStringVersion

This entry determines if the string or integer version of the file will be checked.

If Check

Versions=Yes, otherwise No

None

Yes, No

The string version is shown in the File Manager when properties of an executable or dll are shown.

If this entry is Yes, then the version string of both the executable on disk and the VersionToBeInstalled entry are checked. The strings are first made lower case and then "padded" if ONLY digits are in between periods, then compared from left to right character by character. For example, if the version 15.04.3 was compared with 15.4.2, the padded version would be 15.04.2 which would be less than 15.04.3.

If this entry is No, then the integer versions of the files will be compared. The integer versions use 4 integers, the left most version number being the most significant.

If more than one installed executable is found, the one with the highest version number will be compared.

ExeName

This is the name of the executable on disk that will be used to check the version number.

If Check

Versions=Yes, otherwise No

None

Any valid DOS file name.

The Target Drive is searched for the executable named here. If the executable is not found on disk, then the Master Installer will assume the version to install is greater than the installed version (none). If the specified executable does not contain valid version information, then a warning is given to the user that version information will not be used for the executable.

InstalledExePath

The path on the Target Drive where the installed executable should be found.

If Check

Versions=Yes, otherwise No

None

Any valid path or No Entry

This path is used to first to search the Target Drive for the executable. If it is not found here, then if the directory specified by the RootDirForInstalledApps entry is specified and exists, the Target Drive is searched from this directory and "downward".

If the RootDirForInstalledApps entry does not exist or is invalid, then the entire Target Drive is searched for the executable.

WarnOnInstall

This entry determines if a warning message will be given to the user whenever the application is installed.

Yes

None

Yes, No

WarnOnInstallMsg

This is a warning message (up to 255 characters) that will be given to the user whenever this application is installed.

If Warn

OnInstall=Yes, otherwise No

None

Any valid characters.

For a Typical Install the warning message is given, and the user is given the option to install the application or exit the Master Installer.

For a Custom Install, the user is presented with a warning dialog when they click OK on the in the Applications To Be Installed dialog. The user is given the options to proceed (OK), Re-select, or Cancel the Install.

DisplayToUser

This entry determines if this application will be displayed to the user when a Custom Install is run.

No

Yes

Yes, No.

This entry has no effect for a Typical Install.

WARNING: If you set this value to No and InstallByDefault is set to No, the application will never be installed.

AskForVerResp

This entry determines if the user will be asked whether or not to install this application when a Typical Install is run.

No

Yes

Yes, No.

This entry has no effect for a Custom Install.

For a Typical Install when this entry set to No:

If the application version on disk is less than the version to be installed, then the install will be run.

If the application version on disk is greater than the version to be installed, then the install will not be run.

The value of the next INI entry will determine what will happen if the application version on disk is equal to the version to be installed.

InstallIfEqualVer

This entry determines if the application will be installed if the version to be installed equals the version already installed.

If AskFor

VerResp=

No, then this field is required, otherwise No

No

Yes, No.

For a Custom Install this entry will determine which list the install application will be placed in when the version to install equals the version already installed.

For a Typical Install:

If this entry set to No, then a dialog box will confirm the users choice not to install the application if the version to be installed equals the version already installed.

If this entry is set to Yes, then the install will be run if the version to be installed equals the version already installed. No confirmation dialog is given.

ManualWait

Determines if this install should be handled "Manually" by the user. The Windows Platform is detected and if the platform matches the one specified then the Master Installer will inform the user we can't handle this app and to press the "Launch Install" button to start the install. Next, another dialog is displayed which asks the user to press the "OK" button when the install has completed.

No

Never

Always

Never

WinNT

Win95

This was added because the Winzip Self Extractor install cannot be handled correctly by the Master Installer.

Win32Install

This is an identifier that states it the install to be run is a 32-bit or not. This entry is ONLY used when running the NT version of the Master Installer.

No

No

Yes, No

If this value is set to Yes, and the value for ManualWait is Never or Win95, then if Master Installer is running on Windows NT a 16-bit Helper Application will be launched. The 16-bit Helper Application is controlled by COM and used to "watch" 16-bit installs to know when they complete. The 16-bit Helper Application is called Mast16.exe and MUST be included in the same directory as the MastinstNT.exe executable, which will run on Windows NT.

InstallPlatform

Indicates Windows Platforms to install on.

No

Any

Any

WinNT

Win9x

Win95

Win98

This value deternines if an install is to be added to the install list. The value Win9x will include an install on both Win95 and Win98. If the install is not valid for the platform it will not even show in the install list when a Custom Install is chosen.

SilentInstall

This entry tells the Master Install if an install runs TOTALLY silent.

No

No

Yes, No

If this flag is set to Yes, then the entry SplashText is required.

SplashText

Text to be displayed on splash screen while install runs

No

None

Any text string

If this flag is set to Yes, then this value is required.

SleepTimeAfterStart

Time to wait after launching install before determining what processes were started by the install.

No

0

0-32,767

This is an integer value specifying the number of milliseconds (to wait one second, set this value to 1,000). This entry does NOT apply to 16-bit installs on WinNT. This entry is also ignored on installs run with ManualWait.