Microsoft Deployment Workbench: silent installation of various applications

Silently deploy applications through Windows Deployment Services (WDS) / Microsoft Deployment Workbench, or the command line. Sometimes you just can’t find the correct command parameter – or switch – for silent, unattended software installations. Unattended, silent installation of software is ideal in an automated deployment installation of Windows Server or Windows 7, 8 & 8.1 client computers, through Windows Deployment Services (WDS).

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Windows Deployment Services (WDS) / Microsoft Deployment Toolkit (MDT) silent installation commands

Install and depoly applications using Deployment Toolkit. Here’s a small list of applications and their silent installation command line parameters, to use with Microsoft Windows Deployment Services (WDS) or Deployment Toolkit.

Because this is an older post, the software version listed here are old too. Silent installation command switches shouldn’t have changed recently though.

Using WDS, you can set these software installations up as Synchronous FirstLogonCommands in your ImageUnattend.xml.

Protip: for my Dutch readers I have a post on ITFAQ.nl explaining how to silently install 7-Zip, and how to unpack .zip archives in PowerShell.

Microsoft Windows Update Agent

WindowsUpdateAgent30-x86.exe /quiet /norestart /wuforce

Internet Information Services (IIS) 7 Manager

Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) 7.0 Manager
Don’t forget to enable the IIS-WebServerRole and IIS-WebServerManagementTools in your unattend.xml.

msiexec /i inetmgr_i386.msi /quiet

Microsoft Office

create a configuration .xml file
execute setup.exe using configuration xml file:

setup.exe /config path\to\config.xml

Microsoft Office 2007 Service Pack 2 – extract patch (.msp) files

Microsoft Office 2007 SP2
extract Windows Installer-patch (.msp) files:

office2007sp2-kb953195-fullfile-nl-nl.exe /extract:c:\temp\office-sp2

Microsoft Office 2007 Service Pack 2 – install patch (.msp) files

install patch

cd c:\temp\office-sp2 && msiexec /update MAINWWsp2.msp /quiet

Microsoft Office 2007 Service Pack 3 – extract patch (.msp) files

Microsoft Office 2007 SP3
extract Windows Installer-patch (.msp) files:

office2007sp3-kb2526086-fullfile-nl-nl.exe /extract:c:\temp\office-sp3

Microsoft Office 2007 Service Pack 3 – install patch (.msp) files

install patch

cd c:\temp\office-sp3 && msiexec /update MAINWWsp3.msp /quiet

Install Microsoft Office 2013 silently with PowerShell

Use PowerShell to install Microsoft Office 2013 unattended:

function install_Office2013 {
    &$sharepath\Office2013\setup.exe /config standard.ww\config.xml -Wait
    if (!$?) {
        write-host "Office2013 installation failed"
        return
    }
}

install_Office2013Code language: PHP (php)

Disable SystemRestore with PowerShell

System Restore creates a restore point for every .msi installation. You can disable SystemRestore with PowerShell:

$SysRestore = [wmiclass]"\\$env:COMPUTERNAME\root\default:systemrestore"
$SysRestore.Disable("C:\")Code language: PHP (php)

A more pure PowerShell solution is that you use the Disable-ComputerRestore cmdlet.

Disable System Restore on the specified drive

PS C:\> Disable-ComputerRestore -Drive "C:\"

Disable System Restore on multiple drives

PS C:\> Disable-ComputerRestore "C:\", "D:\"Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit (EMET)

Microsoft Enhanced Mitigation Experience Toolkit 2.1 – don’t use EMET on Windows 10!

msiexec /i EMET_Setup.msi /quiet

Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE)

Microsoft Security Essentials depends/relies on newest Windows Update Agent version, or you’ll receive an error number 327424.

mseinstall.exe /s /runwgacheck /o

7zip silent install

7-Zip silent install

7z920.exe /S

When using the 7-Zip .msi installation file, an optional INSTALLDIR="C:\Program Files\7-Zip" parameter can be added to provide an installation location.

This installs 7-zip silently.

SNMP Informant

informant-std-17.exe /silent

Ghostscript PS2PDF

ps2pdf 8.15 (direct download)

converter.exe /auto

CutePDF Writer

CutePDF Writer 2.8 (depends/relies on ps2pdf)

/no3d for no ASK-toolbar

CuteWriter.exe /verysilent /no3d

Gpg4win

GPG4Win 2.1.0

gpg4win-2.1.0.exe /S

Notepad++

Notepad++ 5.9.8

npp.5.9.8.Installer.exe /S

FileZilla

FileZilla 3.5.3

FileZilla_3.5.3_win32-setup.exe /S

Adobe Reader X

Adobe Reader X 10.0.1

msiexec /i AcroRead.msi /quiet

Adobe Reader X update

Adobe Reader X 10.1.2 update

msiexec /update AdbeRdrUpd1012.msp /quiet

Adobe Flash Player Active-X

Adobe Flash Player Active-X 11.1.102.63

msiexec /i install_flash_player_11_active_x_32bit.msi /quiet

Adobe Flash Player Plugin

Adobe Flash Player Plugin 11.1.102.63

msiexec /i install_flash_player_11_plugin_32bit.msi /quiet

Learn how to uninstall and remove Adobe Flash Player in Windows Server in PowerShell.

Mozilla Firefox

Mozilla Firefox 11 (and newer/up)

"Firefox Setup 11.0.exe" /S /V"/Passive /NoRestart"Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Mozilla Thunderbird

Mozilla Thunderbird 11

"Thunderbird Setup 11.0.exe" /S /V"/Passive /NoRestart"Code language: JavaScript (javascript)

Windows Installer command line options may always come in handy:
https://docs.microsoft.com/eun-us/windows/desktop/Msi/command-line-options

Software deployment through WDS Windows Server
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Jan Reilink

1 month ago

Windows has the ability to allow the MSI package (.msi file) contents to be extracted using the command line or via a script. I keep forgetting the correct msiexec syntaxis to use to extract files from an .msi file (MSI package), so here is a short post with the command.

To extract all files from a .msi file, use the following msiexec.exe command:
.wp-block-code {
border: 0;
padding: 0;
}

.wp-block-code > div {
overflow: auto;
}

.shcb-language {
border: 0;
clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);
-webkit-clip-path: inset(50%);
clip-path: inset(50%);
height: 1px;
margin: -1px;
overflow: hidden;
padding: 0;
position: absolute;
width: 1px;
word-wrap: normal;
word-break: normal;
}

.hljs {
box-sizing: border-box;
}

.hljs.shcb-code-table {
display: table;
width: 100%;
}

.hljs.shcb-code-table > .shcb-loc {
color: inherit;
display: table-row;
width: 100%;
}

.hljs.shcb-code-table .shcb-loc > span {
display: table-cell;
}

.wp-block-code code.hljs:not(.shcb-wrap-lines) {
white-space: pre;
}

.wp-block-code code.hljs.shcb-wrap-lines {
white-space: pre-wrap;
}

.hljs.shcb-line-numbers {
border-spacing: 0;
counter-reset: line;
}

.hljs.shcb-line-numbers > .shcb-loc {
counter-increment: line;
}

.hljs.shcb-line-numbers .shcb-loc > span {
padding-left: 0.75em;
}

.hljs.shcb-line-numbers .shcb-loc::before {
border-right: 1px solid #ddd;
content: counter(line);
display: table-cell;
padding: 0 0.75em;
text-align: right;
-webkit-user-select: none;
-moz-user-select: none;
-ms-user-select: none;
user-select: none;
white-space: nowrap;
width: 1%;
}
msiexec.exe /a C:Usersuserpathtofile.msi /qb TARGETDIR=C:UsersuserstempCode language: PowerShell (powershell)
A more PowerShell way is to:
Start-Process -NoNewWindow msiexec.exe -ArgumentList "/a C:Usersuserpathtofile.msi /qb TARGETDIR=C:Usersuserstemp" -WaitCode language: PowerShell (powershell)
Make sure you type out full paths and the destination directory must exist.
Msiexec.exe command arguments used:

/a: Specifies administrative installation
/qb: Specifies there’s a basic UI during the installation process.
TARGETDIR=: Represents the installation directory for an InstallScript installation, or for an administrative Windows Installer based installation (when the user runs Setup.exe or MsiExec.exe with the /a command-line switch).

7-Zip can also be used to extract .msi files (read in Dutch “7-Zip installeren“)Share this post:
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alex

4 years ago

great work!