I have CAs which I use to access files next to the MSI but not included in the msi. These are files such as release notes which I want to copy onto the target machine but not include in the installer as they are written after the installer has been built.
CAs which access the MSI location via SOURCEDIR or the OriginalDatabase Properties can get the path to the external file but if the location of the msi file is on a network drive then CAs with System Context (required by Vista) cannot get at the directory even though it contains the MSI file. System Context does not have access to the network at all!
I am forced to use CAs with the impersonate bit. They cause an error on Vista validation suite
What are my options on Vista to access external files?
Don't worry about the ISICE error on this one. It's easily argued that it should be a warning instead, and it's intended for the bulk of deferred CAs which are written to modify higher privilege areas of the target system. If your CA does not do that, the ISICE does not apply.
I have a custom action that copies some files during an admin installation. This is a deferred in system context custom action, but the copy operation doesn't work when the target directory is on a network drive. As the original submitter noted, when running wit no impersonation the custom action seems not to be able to resolve the network path, so the copy operation fails.
My guess is that network drives are only defined at the user context, so when running with no impersonation network drives are undefined. Is that right? Could someone advise on how to work around this issue (without having to clear the no-impersonation bit)?
