Package Validation: Benefits and Directions

Here's a very nice piece on the how's and why's behind validating your installation packages. Dive into the deep end and get a good fast overview of validation and how to get the most out of it.

What is Validation?

A tool that checks Windows Installer installations to ensure reliability, internal consistency, and compliance with standards. Error checks are performed based on rules in validation modules, including Microsoft's Application Specification for Windows 2000.

Validation scans the database for errors that may cause incorrect behavior in the context of the entire database. One can validate the sample package using Orca or Msival2.exe (both are provided with the Windows Installer SDK). Validate both the merge module and the MSI before merging. The validation tables of the MSM and the MSI must be consistent for the merge to be successful.

Why Validate a MSI package?

Attempting to install a package that fails validation can damage the user's system. Always run validation on packages before attempting to install them, and rerun validation after making any changes to a package.

It is strongly recommended that one should run validation on every new or newly modified package before attempting to install it the first time. Most Windows Installer authoring tools contain the facility to perform package validation.

How is Validation Done?

Most Windows Installer authoring tools use Internal Consistency Evaluators, also called ICEs, to perform package validation. ICEs are custom actions written in VBScript, or in JScript, or as a .dll or .exe. When we run an ICE, it scans the package's database to identify entries that are valid individually but might cause incorrect behavior in the context of the entire database.

ICE custom actions return four kinds of messages:

• Informational. Provide information from the ICE and do not indicate a problem with the database. Often the information is about the ICE itself, such as a brief description. These messages can also provide progress information while the ICE runs.
• Warnings. Report database authoring that causes incorrect behavior in certain cases. Warnings can also report unexpected side effects of database authoring For example, entering two separate conditions of the same property name spelled the same way but with a "case" difference in the letters of the name. Because Windows Installer is case-sensitive, it treats these as two different properties.
• Errors. Report database authoring that cause incorrect behavior. For example, duplicate component GUIDs cause Windows Installer to incorrectly register components.
• Failures. Report the failure of the ICE custom action. Failure is commonly caused by a database with such severe problems that the ICE cannot even run.

Package Validation using Wise Package Studio

The below steps describe how to implement the process using WPS.

1. Invoke the Package validation wizard from the side pane of Wise package studio as shown in Fig 1.
   
   

   Figure 1

   Click to view.

2. Browse the .WSI or .MSI file on which the isolation has to be performed as shown in Fig 2.
   
   

   Figure 2

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3. Choose on the validation checks. The next screens depend on the options selected here. This is shown in Fig 3.
   
   

   Figure 3

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   The Package is being validated. Refer to Fig 4.

   

   Figure 4

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4. The IC errors and details of this package is displayed in the following window. Refer Fig 5.
   
   

   Figure 5

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5. Now, you can save the ICE report and check for its relevance in the desired environment.

Package Validation using ORCA

Orca.exe:

Orca tool is shipped with Windows Installer SDK. This tool allows the user to open a Windows Installer database as a database and examine or make changes to it.

Install Orca.msi with basic instructions on the machine.

1. Edit the MSI package using Orca.(Right click on the MSI and choose option Edit with ORCA). When done a ORCA database explorer opens as shown in the figure 6.
   
   

   Figure 6

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2. Go to Tools-> Validate (also can be invoked using Cntl+L ). This is shown in Fig no 7.
   
   

   Figure 7

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3. In the validation Set dialog choose the Evaluation Criteria/File and mention the ICE's to be run on that particular package. This is shown in Fig no 8.
   
   

   Figure 8

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4. When all the options are chosen click the button Go. This will start the validation process for this package. Refer Fig 9.
   
   

   Figure 9

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   On Completion of Validation, all the ICE errors are displayed in a window as shown in Fig 10.

   

   Figure 10

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5. You can copy all the ICE errors and Paste it in a excel sheet as shown in Fig 11.
   
   

   Figure 11

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   Further, all the ICE errors are also displayed in the Orca tool. Refer Fig 12.

   

   Figure 12

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Now, we can check for the errors in the ICE report and resolve the same to suit our client environment.