Windows Installer Editor Reference
336
Upgrading Applications
See also:
About Patch Sequencing
on page 336
Creating a Patch File
on page 337
For additional topics, see
About Upgrading Applications
on page 330.
About Patch Sequencing
¾
Windows Installer 3.0 or later.
Patch sequencing ensures that patches are applied in the correct order, regardless of the
order in which they are actually provided to the destination computer.
Sequencing is supported for small update patches only. Sequenced patches can be
installed by Windows Installer 2.0, but the sequencing is ignored.
You add sequencing information to a patch during Patch Creation. You can add
sequencing to a patch you created previously. Step through Patch Creation, open an
existing patch file, enter sequencing information, and complete the wizard to recompile
the patch.
Order in which patches are applied
z
Patches without sequence information are applied in the order they are provided to
the destination computer. Example: If Patch2 is provided before Patch1, they will be
applied in that order.
z
Sequenced patches are applied in sequence order.
Patch families
A patch family is a group of patches that update the same, similar, or related
functionality of the application and should be applied in a specific order relative to other
patches in the same family. Most patches belong to a single family, and most
applications are updated by a single family. However, a patch can belong to multiple
families if it applies to more than one application or includes multiple fixes.
Example: Suppose you have two applications that are sold separately, but are also sold
together as a suite. Patches A and C update only Application1 and belong to family 100.
Patch B updates only Application2 and belongs to family 200. Patch D updates both
applications and belongs to family 100 and family 200.
You might sequence these patches as follows:
The patches would be applied to the applications in this order:
z
Family 100: A, C, D
Patch
Updates
Family
Sequence
A
Application1
100
10
B
Application2
200
10
C
Application1
100
20
D
Application1
100
30
Application2
200
20