Im trying to upgrade an application from 1.3.0.0 to 3.0.0.6 . That was created by the previous system admin. Ive have opened the .ism project and copied the upgradecode into a new project.
When i install the new .msi over it upgrades correctly and only have one instance off the application in Add/remove programs.
Problem is, its not over writing the two of the files... I have checked in the old project and the installdirectory is set to: [ProgramFilesFolder]\My Product Name and a commandline switch was used INSTALLDIR=D:\MYPRODUCTNAME to change the location of the install directory.
Know what i think is happening when the upgrade takes place, it removes the files from its original location [ProgramFilesFolder]\My Product Name leaving the files still in D:\MYPRODUCTNAME When it goes to install my app it using the INSTALLDIR of D:\MYPRODUCTNAME the files are still there from 1.3.0.0 and it cannot over write the files.
I have tried uninstalling the old app (1.3.0.0) manually from Add/remove and it only removes the .exe and NOT the other two files???
Just an idea: Could someone have copied the files to D:\MYPRODUCTNAME by hand? What happens if you just deinstall the previous version of the product? Do the files remain in D:\MYPRODUCTNAME? Or do they get deleted?
I think you could try to add these files to the RemoveFile table of your upgrade package. Then the problem would be to find where these files are, but that could be done with a System Search.
So what about trying the following approach in your MSI package:
Locate these obsolete permanent files with a System Search
Use the results of this System Search in the RemoveFile table.
You might also ask you why these components were marked as "Permanent". Was there a good reason? Do they contain data that you should migrate when upgrading? Or can you freely delete them?
What are the file types ( dll, ini, txt ... ). Are they versioned files? If so, has the file version increased from one build to another? If not versioned files, what are the creation and modification dates of the original files?
Are these files key files of components?
You might want to google Default File Versioning Rules. Just because one MSI upgrades another MSI doesn't mean that ever single file should or will be upgraded. There are rules that must be followed.
