Install Sets, Features, and Components
Install sets, features, and components are among the most important concepts to understand when using the InstallAnywhere installer development environment. InstallAnywhere provides levels of granularity for end-user installation options. Install sets and features may be selected by the end-user.
Install sets are groupings of features such as Typical Install or Minimal Install. Features are meant to identify specific units of functionality of your product. Although both install sets and features are made up of files, there is not necessarily a direct correlation between these larger organizational groupings and the files.
Components are groupings of the specific files and actions of your product and are invisible to the end-user. A component may also include a group of registry changes or other elements needed to make a feature work properly. Components are used for the organized sharing of resources and versioning; they are uniquely identified and are the organization tool of the installer developer, not the installer user. A developer could create a component for each feature in the application, a component for shared libraries used by all of the features, and a component for the Help system.
Although developers may assign files, folders, and actions directly to product features, it is best to think of features as groupings of components. Install sets such as Typical Install or Minimal Install are groupings of features. You should address the interaction between the three levels when planning the options to present to the end-user.
InstallAnywhere's organization features both allow you to manage the installation from a developer standpoint and offer your users the maximum number of installation options.
Install Sets
Install sets are the simplest and broadest organizational concept within InstallAnywhere. Install sets are sets of product features that represent high-level, easily selectable, installation options. End-users can choose only one install set. These sets are generally options such as Typical and Minimal, or Client only and Client and Server. End-users select their desired install set using the Choose Install Sets panel or console. Install sets are made up of features.
Features
Features are a logical grouping of capabilities in a product. Features are effective if developers want to give their end-users fine-grained choices. Features are meant to identify distinct parts of the product so the end-user may choose whether or not to install them. It is up to the developer to define the logical grouping of components into features by assigning components to the features.
Features may be hierarchical, and you can include as many as you desire, but must include at least one. One example of features in a hierarchy would be a Documentation subfeature and a Samples subfeature added beneath the main Help feature.
Several features make up each install set, and each feature can belong to one or more install sets. End-users select features as an option from the Choose Install Sets panel or console. Features are visible to the end-user only when the user chooses to customize an install set.
Files can be assigned directly to features, or you can assign components to features. InstallAnywhere actually creates components for you if you assign files directly to features.
End-users can uninstall specific features if desired.
Components
Components are the smallest piece of an installation handled by the installer. From a developer's perspective they are the building blocks of applications or features. End-users never see or interact with components.
There are many advantages to having fine-grained control over components. Common components may be shared between multiple installers, multiple versions of a product, or multiple products. For example, two products in a suite could have several shared components.
Components are uniquely identified so developers may update a specific component or use the Find Component in Registry action to locate a particular component. Components are versioned, as well as having unique IDs, so that a search for a particular version of a component on a system can ascertain whether the latest version has been installed.
Several components make up each feature, and each component can belong to one or more feature. Components are made up of files and actions. Although you can assign files and actions to components, you can also assign files and actions directly to features and let InstallAnywhere automatically create the components.
A file or action may belong to one component only. All installers must have at least one component and can have as many as are needed.
The InstallAnywhere uninstaller is component-based and can provide feature-level uninstallation functionality.
NOTE
For most installations, you will not need to manipulate the components in any way. Components are automatically generated based on the way that you've assigned files to features and install sets.
The Organization Task
The Organization task enables developers to arrange install sets, product features, components, and merge modules (merge modules will be discussed in depth in Chapter 17). Install sets and features allow for levels of installation options for the end-user of the installer. Components are the smallest widget that can be selected by a feature set. Install sets are groupings of features and are an organizational tool for the developer of the installer. Components may be much more than files; they can be sophisticated actions required to install and run applications or features properly.
There is an interaction between the Install Sets, Features, and Components subtasks, as well as the Files task. If an install set is added in the Organization | Install Sets task, features can be assigned to that install set in Organization | Features. If a feature is added in Organization | Features, components can be assigned to that feature in Organization | Components. If a component is added in Organization | Components, files and/or actions can be assigned to that component after they are added in the Files task.
Install Sets
The Organization | Install Sets subtask allows developers to add, name, remove, or order install sets in the installer. In the Install Set List developers define which install set(s) to use as the default option to provide to the end-user. Features are assigned to install sets in the Organization | Features subtask.
When the installer requests install set information, each install set is represented by a graphic element. The Choose Image… button enables developers to select the graphic element.
Rules may be associated with an install set, and that association is created by selecting Rules in the customizer and adding rules. The rules for install sets are evaluated before the install set is installed. If the rules on the install set evaluate to false, the install set will not be displayed.
Features
The Organization | Features subtask enables developers to add, name, remove, or order features.
Rules may be associated with a feature set, and that association is created by selecting Rules in the customizer and adding rules. The rules for feature sets are evaluated before the feature set is installed. If the rules on the feature evaluate to false, the feature will not be displayed.
Components
The key file must be present in all subsequent versions of the component. It is used to define the component's location when the Find Component in Registry action is used.
The Organization | Components subtask enables developers to add, name, remove, order, identify, and version components.
Rules may be associated with component sets, and that association is created by selecting Rules in the customizer and adding rules. The rules for component sets are evaluated before the component set is installed.