Setup Project msi builds+ claims successful install, but no output

Question

As per the title, I create a msi installer and then run it and it claims to have successfully installed and if I look in the control panel to add/remove program it appears there. However, when I look in the directory I specified, there is no change made to it. Nothing is copied into it.

When I run the installer and click the button to create a new directory and choose that new directory to install into, I get no errors. It all runs fine, but after exiting the installer, this new directory is not created.

I follow these steps to create my msi installer:

1. Open Visual Studio and open the project I wish to create installer for

2. File-> Add -> New Project -> Setup Wizard

3. Select "Create a setup for Windows Application"

4. Select "Primary output from (project)"

5. Add additional file -> path to txt file

6. Finish setup wizard

7. Look at Application Folder for setup

8. Right click primary output from (project)

9. Click outputs and verify it is correct

10. Build the setup project

This outputs the .msi file along with the .exe file. There is no problems/errors running either of these. It just doesn't install/copy the files.

Answer 1

Ok, so it was a privileges issue when double clicking the .msi file.

It would run fine and claim to install successfully but it didn't create folders/copy stuff in etc. It needed admin privileges to install.

So, to give it the privileges I edited the .vdproj file that created the .msi file (edited in notepad). I went to the MsiBootstrapper section and changed "RequiresElevation" = "11:FALSE" to "RequiresElevation" = "11:TRUE".

More information can be found here: http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/2kt85ked.aspx

I'm still not completely happy with this, it requires double clicking the .exe file which gives the UAC prompt to get the .msi file to run with the required privileges. It seems very easy for a user to just double click the .msi file and believe things to have installed...