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Configuring Add/Remove Programs with Windows Installer

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You can supply all of the information needed to configure Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel by setting the values of certain installer properties in your application's Windows Installer package. Setting these properties automatically writes the corresponding values into the registry. If the installer detects that the product is marked for complete removal, operations are automatically added to the script to remove the Add/Remove Programs folder in Control Panel information for the product.

If an application is not registered, it is not listed in Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel. For more information, see Adding and Removing an Application and Leaving No Trace in the Registry.

Applications that have been installed in the per-user installation context are displayed in the Add/Remove Programs of the current user. Applications that have been installed in the per-machine installation context are displayed in the Add/Remove Programs of all users. Applications that have not been installed per-machine, and have only been installed as per-user applications for users other than the current user, do not appear in the Add/Remove Programs of the current user.

Note that installation packages that use the LIMITUI property must also contain the ARPNOMODIFY. This is required for a user to obtain the correct behavior from Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel utility when attempting to configure a product.

The installer uses the following public properties to manage Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel.

Property name Brief description of property
ARPAUTHORIZEDCDFPREFIX URL of the update channel for the application. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPCOMMENTS Provides Comments for the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPCONTACT Provides the Contact for Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPINSTALLLOCATION Fully qualified path to the application's primary folder. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPHELPLINK Internet address, or URL, for technical support. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPHELPTELEPHONE Technical support phone numbers. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPNOMODIFY Prevents display of a Change button for the product in Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.Note: This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface.
ARPNOREMOVE Prevents display of a Remove button for the product in the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel. The product can still be removed by selecting the Change button if the installation package has been authored with a user interface that provides product removal as an option.Note: This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface.
ARPNOREPAIR Disables the Repair button in the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.Note: This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface.
ARPPRODUCTICON Identifies the icon displayed in Add/Remove Programs. If this property is not defined, Add/Remove Programs specifies the display icon.
ARPREADME Provides the ReadMe for Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPSIZE Estimated size of the application in KB.
ARPSYSTEMCOMPONENT Prevents display of the application in the Programs List of the Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.Note: This only affects the display in the ARP. The Windows Installer is still capable of repairing, installing-on-demand, and uninstalling applications through a command line or the programming interface.
ARPURLINFOABOUT URL for application's home page. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.
ARPURLUPDATEINFO URL for application update information. The value the installer writes under the Uninstall Registry Key.

Note

For information regarding the Set Program and Defaults tool, refer to the section Working with Set Program Access and Computer Defaults.

Uninstall Registry Key