Installing a few apps unattended

[Ckasdf]

Hello, I am creating a Windows XP Pro SP2 unattended disc, and so far I have got the updates and the drivers integrated into the disc.

Now I am trying to get the following programs integrated:

*Open Office

*Firefox browser

*AVG antivirus

*esword Bible reader

*esword localize

*Foxit PDF reader

*VLC media player

I have been testing in a virtualized install of XP silent installing via the terminal, which I think is how the tutorial on this site does it, and so far I have VLC & Open Office installed without user input, but I can't manage to get the others to work - they either just pop up the usual GUI installers or a message that says I'm using the wrong syntax for installing. Most of the apps don't work for putting "appname /?" to get the options.

Once I create a script (*.cmd) where do I put it and how do I reference it in the installation process?

Thanks for any help you can give!

[arwidmark]

The best source I have found for silent installations is appdeploy.com, check their Package KB.

As for sequencing/installing the applications during deployment I highly recommend using the free task sequencer from Microsoft, part of MDT 2010 Lite Touch. Go to http://www.microsoft.com/deployment for download, and to http://www.deploymentcd.com for step-by-step guides and video tutorials on how to use it.

Edited April 29, 2010 by arwidmark

[Ckasdf]

Thank you so much for linking me to appdeploy.com - it gave me the answers I needed. I wasn't sure what to do with the other two links you gave me, but after I created a batch file (install.cmd) I referenced it in nLite, which took care of things.

One more semi-related question - in order to save space on the XP install disc, I have three programs (including Open Office) on a separate CD (so I don't have to burn DVDs) and I have the CD set to automatically run the autorun.inf file, which references disc2install.cmd, which runs the install process for the three programs.

I referenced the CD drive as "e:" in the script, but it turned out to be "d:" - it'll likely be "d:" on all the computers I install, but in case something weird happens and something gets a random letter, is there a way to reference the CD drive via a system variable instead of drive letter? In nLite it was "%SOURCE%" - would it be the same for the runonce thing?

Thanks again for the quick help!

[Sp0iLedBrAt]

%source% refers to the drive from which Windows is installed, so if you're using it as a variable to do that, then YES. you could also take a look around for %cdrom% on google, or here http://www.computing.net/answers/dos/how-to-find-cdrom-letter-in-batch-file/8766.html for example

[HØLLØW]

Hey ho,

just create a file named "CD.txt", put it in the root of your CD and add the following code to your install-script:

FOR %%i IN (D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z) DO IF EXIST %%i:\CD.txt SET CDROM=%%i:

This will determine your CD-Drive in the variable "%CDROM%".

So you can run your .exe-files like this:

%CDROM%\application.exe /silent

Edited May 3, 2010 by HØLLØW

[Ckasdf]

Hey guys, thanks for your help, I've got the disc created & I'm working on installing them all!

[HØLLØW]

As "arwidmark" said, you can use "appdeploy.com" to find your silent switches.

But very often, you can find the switches on the website of the app in the FAQ or the documentation.