Per-machine Installations
The per-machine installations of an application means that the application is available for all users of a computer. It also means that:
- Shortcuts are installed to the All Users profile.
- COM registration is always written to HKLM\Software\Classes.
- On Windows 2000, at elevated privileges.
- Icons and transforms are stored in %WINDOWS%\Installer\{ProductCode}.
- The installer sets the following properties to the following values during per-machine installations.
Beginning with Windows Vista, applications should use the SHGetKnownFolderPath function and the KNOWNFOLDERID to determine the full path to the special folders. The names of the Windows Installer System Folder Properties remain unchanged. The extended functions of the Knownfolder API subsume all the functionality of the original versions. Existing applications that use the SHGetFolderPath function and the CSIDL will continue to work.
| Property | KNOWNFOLDERID | CSIDL |
|---|---|---|
| DesktopFolder
The full path of the Desktop folder for All Users. |
FOLDERID_PublicDesktop Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_COMMON_DESKTOPDIRECTORY Existed on Windows 2000. |
| ProgramMenuFolder
The full path of the Program Menu folder for All Users. |
FOLDERID_CommonPrograms Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_COMMON_PROGRAMS Existed on Windows 2000. |
| StartMenuFolder
The full path of the Start Menu folder for All Users. |
FOLDERID_CommonStartMenu Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_COMMON_STARTMENU Existed on Windows 2000. |
| StartUpFolder
The full path of the Start Up folder for All Users. |
FOLDERID_CommonStartup Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_COMMON_STARTUP Existed on Windows 2000. |
| TemplateFolder
The full path of the Templates folder for All Users. |
FOLDERID_CommonTemplates Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_COMMON_TEMPLATES Existed on Windows 2000. |
| AdminToolsFolder
The full path of the Administrative Tools folder for All Users. |
FOLDERID_CommonAdminTools Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_COMMON_ADMINTOOLS Existed on Windows 2000. |
| AppDataFolder
Starting in Windows Vista, the full path of the Roaming folder for the current user; otherwise, the full path to the Application Data folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_RoamingAppData Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_APPDATA Existed on Windows 2000. |
| CommonAppDataFolder
The full path of the folder that contains the application data for All Users. |
FOLDERID_ProgramData Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_COMMON_APPDATA Existed on Windows 2000. |
| FavoritesFolder
The full path of the Favorites folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_Favorites Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_FAVORITES Existed on Windows 2000. |
| PersonalFolder
Starting in Windows Vista, the full path of the Documents folder for the current user; otherwise, the full path of the My Documents folder or Personal folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_Documents Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_PERSONAL Existed on Windows 2000. |
| SendToFolder
The full path of the SendTo folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_SendTo Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_SENDTO Existed on Windows 2000. |
| FontsFolder
The full path of the System Fonts folder. |
FOLDERID_Fonts Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_FONTS Existed on Windows 2000. |
| ProgramFilesFolder
The full path of the Program Files folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_ProgramFiles FOLDERID_ProgramFilesX86 Introduced in Windows Vista.
|
CSIDL_PROGRAM_FILES CSIDL_PROGRAM_FILESX86 Existed on Windows 2000. |
| CommonFilesFolder
The full path of the Common Files folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_ProgramFilesCommon FOLDERID_ProgramFilesCommonX86 Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_PROGRAM_FILES_COMMON CSIDL_PROGRAM_FILES_COMMONX86 Existed on Windows 2000. |
| WindowsFolder
The full path of the Windows folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_Windows Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_WINDOWS Existed on Windows 2000. |
| SystemFolder
The full path of the System folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_SystemX86 Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_SYSTEMX86 Existed on Windows 2000. |
| LocalAppDataFolder
The full path of the folder that contains local (nonroaming) applications. |
FOLDERID_LocalAppData Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_LOCAL_APPDATA Existed on Windows 2000. |
| MyPicturesFolder
Starting in Windows Vista, the full path of the Pictures folder for the current user; otherwise, the full path of the My Pictures folder for the current user. |
FOLDERID_Pictures Introduced in Windows Vista. |
CSIDL_MYPICTURES Existed on Windows 2000. |
See Also
Specifying a Per-User or Per-Machine Installation
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Build date: 3/9/2009