InstallShield 2011 Released

On 19th August, Flexera Software released InstallShield 2011, their flagship product to create setups using Windows Installer (MSI) or InstallScript technologies, and virtual application packackes for Microsoft App-V.

Highlights of this release:

Enhanced Visual Studio 2010 and .NET Framework 4.0 Support
Integration with Microsoft Team Foundation Server
Enhanced 64-Bit Application Support
InstallShield Prerequisites for SQL Server 2008 R2 Express, SQL Server Native Client, Visual C++ 2010, and Other Redistributables
Unicode InstallScript Support and Enhanced Script Editor
Pre- and Post-Build Events to call external programs or scripts
Expiring Setup Launcher and Custom Icon for setup.exe
Changes to Standalone Build Module Licensing (see below)

While some of these may not seems like a big deal, they are practical improvements. For instance, many users have been asking how to use their own icon for the setup.exe file instead of InstallShield's standard icon. Also the pre and post build events could be very handy, especially the "in between" event which enables you to run an external command after the setup has been created but before it is packaged into the self extracting exe.

InstallShield 2011 is available in Premier, Professional and Express editions. The Limited Edition which is available free of charge to Visual Studio users has not been updated yet.

Stand-Alone Build Engine Returns to InstallShield Professional

The Standalone Build Module enables developers to automate installation builds and and integrate them with their product builds. It is installed and run on clean machines separate from the InstallShield IDE, and includes only the part of InstallShield that builds the installation.

Some years ago, the InstallShield Build Engine (SAB) was included with InstallShield Premier and Professional. But with the release of InstallShield 12 in the year 2006 the SAB was removed from the Professional tier, so anyone who needed the SAB had to purchase the Premier edition. (Existing customers were grandfathered with rights to use the SAB until the release of InstallShield 2009, two years ago.) This decision was strongly criticized back then.

Today the Stand Alone Build module returns to the Professional edition: Users buying InstallShield 2011 Professional also get one SAB license.

On the other hand, the number of SAB licenses included with the Premier edition was reduced from 10 to 5 (but customers with an active maintenance plan are grandfathered to 10 SAB licenses, so they don't lose anything).

Stand Alone Build Module now available separately

If the included SAB licenses aren't enough for your scenario, you can now buy additional SAB licenses separately. They are available as single licenses and as team bundles with 10 or 30 licenses.

Changes also in the way SAB licenses are enforced: In contrast to the InstallShield IDE which requires activation over the internet, the SAB uses a license file. Customers can generate such license file in Flexera Software's web portal by entering a unique ID of the build machine (I think the network card's NIC number). This license file can then be transferred to the build machine over the internal network or a USB stick, so you don't have to expose your build machine to internet threats.

Here are links to the release notes:

InstallShield 2011 Premier and Professional:
http://www.flexeraso...1_prepro_en.pdf

InstallShield 2011 Express:
http://www.flexeraso...2011_exp_en.pdf

And here's the new EULA with updated terms for SAB licensing:
http://www.flexeraso...a_IS2011_en.pdf

InstallShield can be purchased from the InstallSite Shop at http://www.installsi...stallshield.htm

Stefan Krueger