InstallShield 2012 Spring Express Edition User Guide

Chapter 17: Updating Applications
Working with Upgrades and QuickPatch Projects
Small-update patches also enable Windows Installer 3.0 and later to maintain a valid product state as
other patches are applied and removed individually from the product. In addition, patch sequencing lets
you generate upgrade packages from a smaller set of earlier product states without requiring you to
consider every possible combination of patches that could exist on the target machine. The sample
application lifecycle presented in the following table illustrates this advantage.
Table 17-6: Sample Application Lifecycle for Patches Applied with Windows Installer 3.0
Application Package
All of the small updates in the table above belong to the same patch family. Windows Installer 3.0 and
later uses the patch family to compare a small-update patch with all of the other patches within the same
family and determine the order in which each of the patches should be applied to the target machine.
Patch sequences are added to the MsiPatchSequence table of the patch package database. This table
defines the relationships between patches that target the same family of patches.
Patch Uninstallation
Patch Sequence
Number
Product
Version
1. Base installation — 1.0 —
2. Small update 1 1.0 1.0
3. Small update 2 1.0 1.0
4. Small update 3 1.0 1.0
5. Small update 4 1.0 1.0
6. Minor upgrade — 1.1 1.0
Project: This information applies to QuickPatch projects.
Previous Setups Targeted by
Package
Windows Installer 3.0 or later supports the uninstallation of patches for small updates and minor
upgrades; the patches to be uninstalled must have been installed with Windows Installer 3.0 or later.
When a patch is uninstalled, the product is returned to the state it was in before the patch was
uninstalled. With earlier versions of Windows Installer, an end user who wants to remove a patch needs
to uninstall the patched product and then reinstall the product without applying the patch. In this case,
any patches that should not be removed must be reapplied.
End users can uninstall patches through Add or Remove Programs on systems running Windows XP
SP2 and later. For systems running Windows Installer 3.0 or later with earlier versions of Windows,
patches must be uninstalled from the command line. For more information, see Uninstalling Patches in
the Windows Installer Help Library.
The uninstallation of patches is not enabled by default because not all patches can be uninstalled. For
example, a major upgrade packaged as a patch cannot be uninstalled. It is recommended that you
thoroughly test the uninstallation of your patch before deploying it to your end users. To learn more
about patches that are not uninstallable, see Uninstallable Patches in the Windows Installer Help
Library.
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