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MSI Configuring Add/Remove Programs in Windows Installer
What is Add/Remove Programs?
(MSI Configuring Add/Remove Programs in Windows Installer) It is a GUI provided by windows to Add, Remove, and modify the programs
How to customize Add/Remove Programs through MSI?
One can supply all of the information needed to configure Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel by setting the values of certain installer properties in the application’s Windows Installer package. Setting these properties automatically writes the corresponding values into the registry. If the installer detects that the product is marked for complete removal, operations are automatically added to the script to remove the Add/Remove Programs folder in Control Panel information for the product. If an application is not registered, it is not listed in Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel. Applications that have been installed as per-user for the current user are displayed in the Add/Remove Programs of the current user. Applications that have been installed per-machine are displayed in the Add/Remove Programs of all users.
Note that installation packages that use the LIMITUI property must also contain the ARPNOMODIFY. This is required for a user to obtain the correct behavior from Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel utility when attempting to configure a product. The installer uses the following public properties to manage Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel.
| Property name | Brief description of property |
| ARPAUTHORIZEDCDFPREFIX | URL of the update channel for the application. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPCOMMENTS | Provides Comments for the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPCONTACT | Provides the Contact for Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPINSTALLLOCATION | Fully qualified path to the application’s primary folder. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPHELPLINK | Internet address, or URL, for technical support. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPHELPTELEPHONE | Technical support phone numbers. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPNOMODIFY | Prevents display of a Change button for the product in Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. Note This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface. Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 98/95: Clicking on Add/Remove for the product uninstalls the product after prompting the user to confirm the uninstallation. |
| ARPNOREMOVE | Prevents display of a Remove button for the product in the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. The product can still be removed by selecting the Change button if the installation package has been authored with a user interface that provides product removal as an option. Note This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface. Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 98/95: This property prevents display of the application in the Programs List of the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. |
| ARPNOREPAIR | Disables the Repair button in the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. Note This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface. |
| ARPPRODUCTICON | Identifies the icon displayed in Add/Remove Programs. If this property is not defined, Add/Remove Programs specifies the display icon. |
| ARPREADME | Provides the ReadMe for Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPSIZE | Estimated size of the application in kilobytes. |
| ARPSYSTEMCOMPONENT | Prevents display of the application in the Programs List of the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. Note This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface. Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 98/95: This property has no effect. |
| ARPURLINFOABOUT | URL for application’s home page. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |
| ARPURLUPDATEINFO | URL for application updates information. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key. |