Why is Windows Installer Prompting for a Reboot?
It is easy to determine if Windows Installer prompts for a reboot because it installed over a file that is in use. The first step is to generate a verbose log file. In the verbose log file, look for the presence of the ReplacedInUseFiles property in the property dump.
If this property is present with a value of 1, then the Installer will require a reboot because it overwrote an in-use file.
To determine which file was in-use, scan the log file for "Info 1603" and "Info 1903" messages. The 1603 message will be logged by the InstallValidate action. For example:
Action start 19:55:42: InstallValidate.
...
Info 1603. The file d:\test\sample.exe is being held in use by the following process: Name: sample.exe, Id: 4068, Window Title: 'Sample'. Close that application and retry.
Normally, this message coincides with the presentation of the FilesInUse dialog box. In silent UI cases, this dialog box will not be presented. Additionally, not all files that are in use will show up in the FilesInUse dialog box. The FilesInUse dialog box may not be displayed if the files in use are not executables, the process holding the files is the process invoking the installation, or the process holding those files is one that does not have a window title associated with it.
The FileCopy opcode in the install script can also log the 1603 info message. In the above example, the log file contains:
...
Info 1603. The file D:\test\sample.exe is being held in use. Close that application and retry.
At the end of the script during cleanup, the following log file message identifies the culprit for the reboot:
Info 1903. Scheduling reboot operation: Deleting file D:\Config.Msi\12544a31.rbf. Must reboot to complete operation.
While the file is named 12544a31.rbf, it is the Sample.exe file. In order to install the file, the in-use file was renamed to the .rbf file and will be deleted upon reboot.
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