1 reply to this topic

[Rubio]

I need to somehow protect my MSIs, by encrypting them or otherwise, so that only authorized persons can install them. Previously I've used legacy installs and have password-protected my CABs. The user has entered an ID and a CD-key in a front-end application, which determines if the user has appropriate priviledges to install the requested application. The front-end application then starts the actual installation with the correct password. All this is done, because we ship all our products on a single CD, and provide each customer with an ID and CD-key, the combination of which determines which products they are allowed to install. I'd like to switch to Windows Installer, but can't, unless I can figure out a solution to the above problem.

Thanks!
-- Rubio

[Martin Aigner]

With Orca you can lock the database in the "Summary Information Stream" but neither Orca nor other tools I know care about this.

Protecting a MSI-Database would break the idea to generate a open system where you can customize your installation for your personal needs.

The recommended way to protect your program is to write the serial number into the registry (or any other place) and verify the legal use directly in the executable.