[Geoserver-devel] Interesting discovery about windows installer

Jukka_Rahkonen · August 15, 2014, 6:43pm

There are two options: manual which runs a .bat file and installation as a service. The comments in sources suggest that in the good old days the manual alternative was making the installation for the current user and service alternative for all users. Is it so that the requirement to elevate to admin rights ruins the creation of shortcuts for the non-admin user who started the installer? https://github.com/geoserver/geoserver/blob/master/src/release/installer/win/GeoServerEXE.nsi

If admin rights are needed in any case wouldn’t it be best to make the “manual” installation for all users as well?

-Jukka-

(attachments)

···

Chris Snider wrote:

I found this reference for the NSIS installer that helps explain the differences for the users: http://nsis-dev.github.io/NSIS-Forums/html/t-373468.html

Essentially, if the installing user is NOT an admin, they are UAC prompted for an administrative account. This then installs as that elevated administrative account.

I haven’t run the Windows GeoServer installer, so I am not familiar with the options. How many different types of installs are there? Launch from BAT? Launch as Service? Others?

Thanks,

Chris Snider

Senior Software Engineer

Intelligent Software Solutions, Inc.

From: Rahkonen Jukka (Tike) [mailto:jukka.rahkonen@anonymised.com]
Sent: Friday, August 15, 2014 12:14 PM
To: Chris Snider; ‘Geoserver-devel’
Subject: Re: [Geoserver-devel] Interesting discovery about windows installer

Hi,

Yes, Windows User Account Control (UAC) opens a pop-up and requires admin credentials before installer is started. No other questions are asked after that. From the point of view of a first time Geoserver user I suppose that getting no shortcuts into start menu may feel like the installation was not successful despite Geoserver starts by running startup.bat from %GEOSERVER_HOME%\bin. I tried to find some information what should be done for NSIS if the scenario is “Start installer as %USER%, execute it as %ADMIN%, and create shortcuts into %USER%\STARTMENU. Something about that is for example in http://www.klopfenstein.net/lorenz.aspx/simple-nsis-installer-with-user-execution-level.

-Jukka Rahkonen-

Chris Snider wrote:

Jukka,

When running this installer as “normal user”, does the installer ask you for permission execute the installer? Do you get any prompts from the installer about allowing the change?

Chris Snider

Senior Software Engineer

Intelligent Software Solutions, Inc.

From: Rahkonen Jukka (Tike) [mailto:jukka.rahkonen@anonymised.com]
Sent: Friday, August 15, 2014 9:40 AM
To: Geoserver-devel
Subject: Re: [Geoserver-devel] Interesting discovery about windows installer

Hi,

This one makes a successful installation with default settings into Program Files (x86) on my home computer. It does not create shortcuts into start menu if installer is started as normal user. If I log in as admin and run installer then the shortcuts are created.

-Jukka-

Andrea Aime wrote:

Here is an updated installer based on conversations with Jukka:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2361103/geoserver-2.6-SNAPSHOT.exe

Cheers

Andrea

–

==

GeoServer Professional Services from the experts! Visit

http://goo.gl/NWWaa2 for more information.

==

Ing. Andrea Aime

@geowolf

Technical Lead

GeoSolutions S.A.S.

Via Poggio alle Viti 1187

55054 Massarosa (LU)

Italy

phone: +39 0584 962313

fax: +39 0584 1660272

mob: +39 339 8844549

http://www.geo-solutions.it

http://twitter.com/geosolutions_it

Chris_Snider · August 15, 2014, 7:04pm

For the service install, it would have to be an administrative account to enable setting up the service account. For the manual process, it could be added to the common folder as Jody commented on in another email.

It seems that the installer could either:

a. Update to separate installers; one for a service, and one for manual starting

b. Update to ask for UAC privileges based on the user requesting Service install or Manual install

This assumes that the installer does one or the other.

I also found a reference to http://nsis.sourceforge.net/Docs/MultiUser/Readme.html which seems to allow what is desired.

(attachments)

···

Chris Snider

Senior Software Engineer

Intelligent Software Solutions, Inc.

From: Rahkonen Jukka (Tike) [mailto:jukka.rahkonen@anonymised.com]
Sent: Friday, August 15, 2014 12:43 PM
To: ‘Geoserver-devel’
Subject: Re: [Geoserver-devel] Interesting discovery about windows installer

There are two options: manual which runs a .bat file and installation as a service. The comments in sources suggest that in the good old days the manual alternative was making the installation for the current user and service alternative for all users. Is it so that the requirement to elevate to admin rights ruins the creation of shortcuts for the non-admin user who started the installer? https://github.com/geoserver/geoserver/blob/master/src/release/installer/win/GeoServerEXE.nsi

If admin rights are needed in any case wouldn’t it be best to make the “manual” installation for all users as well?

-Jukka-

Chris Snider wrote:

I found this reference for the NSIS installer that helps explain the differences for the users: http://nsis-dev.github.io/NSIS-Forums/html/t-373468.html

Essentially, if the installing user is NOT an admin, they are UAC prompted for an administrative account. This then installs as that elevated administrative account.

I haven’t run the Windows GeoServer installer, so I am not familiar with the options. How many different types of installs are there? Launch from BAT? Launch as Service? Others?

Thanks,

Chris Snider

Senior Software Engineer

Intelligent Software Solutions, Inc.

From: Rahkonen Jukka (Tike) [mailto:jukka.rahkonen@anonymised.com]
Sent: Friday, August 15, 2014 12:14 PM
To: Chris Snider; ‘Geoserver-devel’
Subject: Re: [Geoserver-devel] Interesting discovery about windows installer

Hi,

Yes, Windows User Account Control (UAC) opens a pop-up and requires admin credentials before installer is started. No other questions are asked after that. From the point of view of a first time Geoserver user I suppose that getting no shortcuts into start menu may feel like the installation was not successful despite Geoserver starts by running startup.bat from %GEOSERVER_HOME%\bin. I tried to find some information what should be done for NSIS if the scenario is “Start installer as %USER%, execute it as %ADMIN%, and create shortcuts into %USER%\STARTMENU. Something about that is for example in http://www.klopfenstein.net/lorenz.aspx/simple-nsis-installer-with-user-execution-level.

-Jukka Rahkonen-

Chris Snider wrote:

Jukka,

When running this installer as “normal user”, does the installer ask you for permission execute the installer? Do you get any prompts from the installer about allowing the change?

Chris Snider

Senior Software Engineer

Intelligent Software Solutions, Inc.

From: Rahkonen Jukka (Tike) [mailto:jukka.rahkonen@anonymised.com]
Sent: Friday, August 15, 2014 9:40 AM
To: Geoserver-devel
Subject: Re: [Geoserver-devel] Interesting discovery about windows installer

Hi,

This one makes a successful installation with default settings into Program Files (x86) on my home computer. It does not create shortcuts into start menu if installer is started as normal user. If I log in as admin and run installer then the shortcuts are created.

-Jukka-

Andrea Aime wrote:

Here is an updated installer based on conversations with Jukka:

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/2361103/geoserver-2.6-SNAPSHOT.exe

Cheers

Andrea

–

==

GeoServer Professional Services from the experts! Visit

http://goo.gl/NWWaa2 for more information.

==

Ing. Andrea Aime

@geowolf

Technical Lead

GeoSolutions S.A.S.

Via Poggio alle Viti 1187

55054 Massarosa (LU)

Italy

phone: +39 0584 962313

fax: +39 0584 1660272

mob: +39 339 8844549

http://www.geo-solutions.it

http://twitter.com/geosolutions_it