InstallShield 2012 Express Edition User Guide - Knowledge Base ...

Task To create a shortcut that automatically starts your product’s uninstallation process:
1. In the View List under System Configuration, click Shortcuts/Folders.
Chapter 9: Configuring the Target System
Editing the Registry
2. In the Shortcuts explorer, right-click the folder that should contain the uninstallation shortcut and
then click New Uninstall Shortcut. InstallShield creates a new shortcut with the default name
Uninstall.
3. Type a name for the shortcut. To rename the feature, right-click it and click Rename.
4. Configure the settings as needed.
Editing the Registry
The Windows registry is a system-wide database that contains configuration information used by
applications and the operating system. The registry stores all kinds of information, including the
following:
• Application information such as company name, product name, and version number
• Path information that enables your application to run
• Uninstallation information that enables end users to uninstall the application easily without
interfering with other applications on the system
• System-wide file associations for documents created by an application
• License information
• Default settings for application options such as window positions
Keys, Value Names, and Values
The registry consists of a set of keys arranged hierarchically under the My Computer explorer. Just
under My Computer are several root keys. An installation can add keys and values to any root key of the
registry. The root keys that are typically affected by installations are:
• HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
• HKEY_USERS
• HKEY_CURRENT_USER
• HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT
A key is a named location in the registry. A key can contain a subkey, a value name and value pair, and a
default (unnamed) value. A value name and value pair is a two-part data structure under a key. The
value name identifies a value for storage under a key, and the value is the actual data associated with a
value name. When a value name is unspecified for a value, that value is the default value for that key.
Each key can have only one default (unnamed) value.
Note that the terms key and subkey are relative. In the registry, a key that is below another key can be
referred to as a subkey or as a key, depending on how you want to refer to it relative to another key in the
registry hierarchy.
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