Installshield Product Code -

The installation uses this GUID at run time to perform its most critical functions: it checks to see if a product with that same GUID has already been installed, determines where to store uninstall information, and identifies when a setup is running a maintenance or update operation. When a product is installed, Windows creates a registry key under HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Uninstall that is named after this Product Code GUID.

Which do you use? (MSBuild, Jenkins, Azure DevOps, etc.) Do your users require silent installations ?

You must change the Product Code when deploying a . A Major Upgrade changes the product significantly, such as moving from Version 1.0 to Version 2.0. Changing the Product Code tells Windows Installer to treat the new setup as a separate product that can automatically detect and uninstall the older version using the Upgrade Code. installshield product code

Version | Product Code | Date | Release Type --------|------------------------------|------------|------------- 1.0 | 11111111-2222-3333-4444-555555555555 | 2023-01-01 | Initial 2.0 | 66666666-7777-8888-9999-AAAAAAAAAAAA | 2024-06-15 | Major Upgrade

For continuous integration (CI/CD) pipelines, you can script Product Code generation using InstallShield’s command line interface (IsCmdBuild.exe) combined with a tool like uuidgen . The installation uses this GUID at run time

You can use IsCmdBld.exe (InstallShield command-line builder) to modify the .ISM file using a script:

You can view, generate, or modify the Product Code directly within the InstallShield IDE. Open your deployment project in InstallShield. (MSBuild, Jenkins, Azure DevOps, etc

Every Windows Installer package (.msi) must have a Product Code, which is formatted as a registry-standard GUID. It looks like this: 12345678-ABCD-1234-ABCD-123456789ABC

To generate a brand-new identifier, click the button (or the refresh icon) at the end of the property row. How to Find a Product Code on a Target Machine

| Code | Name | Purpose | When to Change | | :--- | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Product Identifier | Uniquely identifies the product for installation, maintenance, and uninstallation. Links to the Windows Installer's internal database. | When performing a major upgrade or creating a completely new product. | | Package Code | Package Identifier | Uniquely identifies the specific .msi file. Embedded in the Summary Information Stream. | For every build to ensure the file is treated as new. | | Upgrade Code | Family Identifier | Links related products (different versions, languages) into a single upgrade family. | Never, across the entire lifecycle of a product family. |

Windows treats your new version as a completely different product. Users end up with two independent installations. Fix: Once you ship version 1.0, write down your Upgrade Code in a source-controlled text file. Never change it.