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windowsdeploymentwindows-installerautorun

Creating autorun.inf - "Application not found" error

I didn't expect to be deploying an application through a CD installation in 2018, but here we are. I have following files on my ISO image:

E:
 |- autorun.inf
 |- Setup.msi
 |- CD_icon.ico
 |- setup.exe

Here's a screenshot:

enter image description here

The autorun.inf contains the following content:

[autorun]
icon=CD_icon.ico
label=Instal MySoftware
UseAutoPlay=1
shellexecute=Setup.msi

[Content]
MusicFiles=false
PictureFiles=false
VideoFiles=false

When I double click the CD file or select "Run or install program from media" I get this error dialog for this CD image:

enter image description here

What's wrong with my ISO file? Why is the icon not showing and the installer does not run?

Solution

  • Windows 7-10 Ignoring Autorun.inf: This wikipedia article describes differences in the handling of autorun.inf over time: Autorun.inf. And more on AutoRun. It appears you need a real CD / DVD to test this double click. You have an ISO file? Maybe burn it to real media?

    Setup.msi: Are you sure you can kick off an MSI like that? Don't you need a full msiexec.exe command line or better yet: a setup.exe wrapper which kicks off the installation? Tools such as Advanced Installer feature support to create such launchers. I think Installshield has it too. UPDATE: you probably can use an MSI file directly, since you use the shellexecute and not the Open "commands".

    Previous Answers: Here is an older question relating to the use of ISO files: trigger setup.exe when I mount an iso.

    Security Software: And as mentioned in the comment. Many security suites disable all auto-run and auto-play features of Windows - a well known issue that I just want to mention.