Binary record in a wixlib

Question

Each one of my installers utilize certain temporary exes and dlls. In my WiX project I can put them in the Binary table. Since they're shared across all projects is it possible to put them into a wixlib? What would the syntax be.

I'm doing something similar with properties using the PropertyRef attribute. There is no corresponding BinaryRef attribute to do the same with the Binary table.

Answer 1

There is no corresponding BinaryRef attribute to do the same with the Binary table.

For elements that don't have a corresponding *Ref element, you can use the following workaround:

• Create an empty ComponentGroup element (which is valid WiX code) in the fragment.
• Insert a ComponentGroupRef element where you want to reference the Fragment. This pulls in the whole content of the Fragment, not just the ComponentGroup.

Example:

<Fragment>
    <ComponentGroup Id="MyBinaries"/>
    <Binary Id="Binary1" SourceFile="Files\Binary1.xyz"/>
    <Binary Id="Binary2" SourceFile="Files\Binary2.xyz"/>
</Fragment>

To reference MyBinaries from another .wxs file:

<Fragment>
    <ComponentGroup Id="SomeComponents">
        <ComponentGroupRef Id="MyBinaries"/>
    </ComponentGroup>
</Fragment>