POV-Ray : Newsgroups : povray.beta-test : Install location Server Time
7 Jul 2024 06:51:06 EDT (-0400)
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From: Fredrik Eriksson
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 23 Jan 2010 14:29:02
Message: <op.u6z22sgr7bxctx@bigfrog.bredbandsbolaget.se>
On Sat, 23 Jan 2010 19:44:15 +0100, Thorsten Froehlich <tho### [at] trfde>  
wrote:
> On 23.01.10 19:25, Fredrik Eriksson wrote:
>> In some cases, Windows itself will deduce that it is needed and
>> automatically prompt for it.
>
> Indeed, this feature seems to exist if the installer is built with an  
> older version of Visual Studio, for example. I guess the assumption M$  
> makes is that if the system detects an older installer it cannot know  
> about Vista's odd manual privilege requirements and does things  
> automatically.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/bb384154.aspx

"Windows Vista built-in installer detection prompts for consent when you  
run under UAC. A bootstrapper (Setup.exe) built with Visual Studio 2005  
always prompts for consent, regardless of what it is installing."

"In Visual Studio 2008, the behavior of Setup.exe changes; it does not  
prompt for elevation when it is started. To prevent the elevation prompt,  
the embedded manifest of the bootstrapper specifies that Setup.exe run  
with a requested execution level of asInvoker."



The proper way of triggering a privilege escalation prompt with Windows  
Installer is to set the RequiresElevation property appropriately. Relying  
on the installer detection heuristics is a bad idea, not the least because  
it is not available for 64-bit installers.



-- 
FE


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From: Stephen
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 23 Jan 2010 16:01:55
Message: <4b5b63c3@news.povray.org>
Thorsten Froehlich wrote:

> I wonder if all these issues have been resolved in Windos 7...
> 
>     Thorsten

FWIW
When I installed the latest Beta on my Window 7 system it was installed 

me the choice of install for all users. But then as I have only one 
account on this laptop it is hardly surprising.


-- 

Best Regards,
	Stephen


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From: Chris Cason
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 23 Jan 2010 21:47:47
Message: <4b5bb4d3@news.povray.org>
On 24/01/2010 5:25 AM, Fredrik Eriksson wrote:
> Many installers are properly setup to request privilege escalation if  
> needed. In some cases, Windows itself will deduce that it is needed and  
> automatically prompt for it.

The installer is built with installshield, is aware of Vista, and will
request elevation. However it is also marked as being capable of being
installed by a non-privileged user. Combining both of these causes issues
on vista. Due to the way that Windows Installer works (at least with our
current setup - never mind what other software can or might do) it needs to
be started with admin privileges first if it is to work "correctly".

One of the reasons is that Windows lies if the installer asks if it already
has admin privileges (I use this word deliberately since this is exactly
what happens: it is a deliberate action taken by Microsoft to tell the
installer false information). One of these issues is that during the user
interface portion of the install I can't tell if you're privileged or not.

Given that windows allows you to write to program files (but silently
re-directs the writes), technically escalation is not required and thus
vista doesn't necessarily invoke it. Frankly I've forgotten the fine
details but I can say I've spent way too long on trying to get it to behave
the way I want and basically decided it's not worth wasting any more time
on it. This is fundamentally a Microsoft issue and there's little I can do
about it.

-- Chris


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From: Chris Cason
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 23 Jan 2010 21:55:48
Message: <4b5bb6b4$1@news.povray.org>
On 24/01/2010 5:19 AM, Warp wrote:
>   There is something POV-Ray can do: Ask the user what to do. ("Because of
> <reason xyz> POV-Ray will be installed in <the My Documents folder>.
> Yes/No/Cancel.")

After 15 years of working on POV-Ray, I have learnt one thing in
particular: 99% of users don't read what the installer says, but will just
click through on everything. Some will then complain when it does something
they don't expect.

Example: the installer used to ask if it should register POV-Ray as the
application to open .INI files. This question was clear and required a
yes/no answer. I still got people complaining that POV had 'stolen' the
association for INI files and that this 'was really rude' (or words to that
effect). So, I took that feature out and no longer associate INI files.

To put it simply, the installer has to be written in such a way as to cater
to the vast majority of users *without* causing us support hassles. This
means I have to apply KISS to the design.

-- Chris


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From: Warp
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 24 Jan 2010 13:16:10
Message: <4b5c8e6a@news.povray.org>
Chris Cason <del### [at] deletethistoopovrayorg> wrote:
> On 24/01/2010 5:19 AM, Warp wrote:
> >   There is something POV-Ray can do: Ask the user what to do. ("Because of
> > <reason xyz> POV-Ray will be installed in <the My Documents folder>.
> > Yes/No/Cancel.")

> After 15 years of working on POV-Ray, I have learnt one thing in
> particular: 99% of users don't read what the installer says, but will just
> click through on everything. Some will then complain when it does something
> they don't expect.

> Example: the installer used to ask if it should register POV-Ray as the
> application to open .INI files. This question was clear and required a
> yes/no answer. I still got people complaining that POV had 'stolen' the
> association for INI files and that this 'was really rude' (or words to that
> effect). So, I took that feature out and no longer associate INI files.

> To put it simply, the installer has to be written in such a way as to cater
> to the vast majority of users *without* causing us support hassles. This
> means I have to apply KISS to the design.

  I think that in this particular case the path-of-least-confusion would be
for the installer to fail to install by default if the user has no
privileges to install to the Program Files directory (with a clear error
message stating so), and make the option to install into the My Documents
directory non-trivial (but accessible).

  But I understand it if it's mostly out of your control if the installer
program is made by Microsoft and not you.

-- 
                                                          - Warp


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From: Christian Froeschlin
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 24 Jan 2010 19:18:06
Message: <4b5ce33e@news.povray.org>
Warp wrote:

>   What do other programs do? 

Well, most software simply doesn't support being installed by a
user with restricted rights. It's perfectly normal under Windows.
And if you are on a Windows system where you don't have access to
administrator privileges even through elevation, then it's usually
an environment where you shouldn't be installing software anyway.

The concept of UAC is designed to force developers to write
software which *runs* under a restricted user account. It does
not seem to be designed to encourage software which *installs*
under a restricted user account (although that is mainly due
to naming conventions ... if you think of "my documents" as
your "home" directory, what povray does makes some sense).


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From: scott
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 25 Jan 2010 05:28:16
Message: <4b5d7240@news.povray.org>
> There is really no need to start over discussing the benefits and 
> drawbacks of Vista rights management! They are for M$ to fix, and nothing 
> POV-Ray can do anything about.

I wonder how every other piece of software manages it?


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From: Thorsten Froehlich
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 25 Jan 2010 06:29:13
Message: <4B5D8089.7030901@trf.de>
On 25.01.10 11:28, scott wrote:
>> There is really no need to start over discussing the benefits and
>> drawbacks of Vista rights management! They are for M$ to fix, and
>> nothing POV-Ray can do anything about.
>
> I wonder how every other piece of software manages it?

I don't know a lot of software that can be installed without administrator 
rights on Windows...

	Thorsten


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From: Thorsten Froehlich
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 25 Jan 2010 06:29:20
Message: <4b5d8090$1@news.povray.org>
On 25.01.10 11:28, scott wrote:
>> There is really no need to start over discussing the benefits and
>> drawbacks of Vista rights management! They are for M$ to fix, and
>> nothing POV-Ray can do anything about.
>
> I wonder how every other piece of software manages it?

I don't know a lot of software that can be installed without administrator 
rights on Windows...

	Thorsten


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From: scott
Subject: Re: Install location
Date: 25 Jan 2010 07:10:06
Message: <4b5d8a1e$1@news.povray.org>
>> I wonder how every other piece of software manages it?
>
> I don't know a lot of software that can be installed without administrator 
> rights on Windows...

I wonder why.


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