WiX

This article is about a software installation tool. For the website builder tool, see Wix.com. For other uses, see Wix.
WiX Toolset
Original author(s)Rob Mensching, Microsoft
Developer(s).NET Foundation
Initial release5 April 2004; 20 years ago (2004-04-05)
Stable release
5.0.0 / 5 April 2024; 8 months ago (2024-04-05)
Repositorygithub.com/wixtoolset
Written inC++, C#
Operating systemWindows
TypeSoftware development tools
LicenseMicrosoft Reciprocal License
Websitewixtoolset.org

Windows Installer XML Toolset (WiX, pronounced "wicks") is a free software toolset that builds Windows Installer packages from XML. It consists of a command-line environment that developers may integrate into their build processes to build MSI and MSM packages. WiX was the first Microsoft project to be released under an open-source license, the Common Public License.[1][2] It was also the first Microsoft project to be hosted on an external website.[1]

After its release in 2004, Microsoft has used WiX to package Office 2007, SQL Server 2005, Visual Studio 2005/2008, and other products.[3][2]

WiX includes Votive, a Visual Studio add-in that allows creating and building WiX setup projects using the Visual Studio IDE. Votive supports syntax highlighting and IntelliSense for .wxs source files and adds a WiX setup project type .wixproj to Visual Studio.[4]

History

WiX was the first Microsoft project to be released under an open-source license, the Common Public License.[1][2] Initially hosted on SourceForge, it was also the first Microsoft project to be hosted externally.[1]

On June 6, 2010, WiX moved from SourceForge to CodePlex. On August 14, 2012, Microsoft transferred the WiX copyright to the Microsoft-sponsored Outercurve Foundation.[5] At the same time, the license was changed from the Common Public License to the Microsoft Reciprocal License. On May 4, 2016, WiX was transferred to the .NET Foundation.

Since Visual Studio 2012, the traditional setup project type has been removed from Visual Studio (available only as an extension since Visual Studio 2013). WiX is a recommended alternative.[6]

Functions

WiX is a toolset designed to build Windows Installer (.msi) packages using the command line.[4] It comes with the following tools:[5][4][7]

  • Candle: compiles source files into object files
  • Light: combines object files into a .msi file
  • Lit: creates libraries that can be linked by Light.exe
  • Dark: decompiles a .msi file into WiX code
  • Heat: creates a WiX source file
  • Pyro: creates Patch files (.msp) without needing the Windows Installer SDK
  • Burn: coordinates dependency installer

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c d Lawson, Stephen (6 April 2004). "Microsoft goes open source with WiX tool". Computerworld. Retrieved 15 April 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Bisson, Simon (2021-12-01). "Using WiX to build Windows installers". InfoWorld. Retrieved 2024-05-04.
  3. ^ Robbins, John (18 October 2007). "WiX: Hints for New Users (Part 1 of 3)". Wintellect. Archived from the original on 22 February 2014. Retrieved 16 February 2014.
  4. ^ a b c Ramirez, Nick (2010-10-18). WiX: A Developer's Guide to Windows Installer XML : Create a Hassle-free Installer for Your Windows Software Using WiX. Packt Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-1-84951-373-9.
  5. ^ a b Ramirez, Nick (2012-01-01). WiX 3.6 - A Developer's Guide to Windows Installer XML. Packt Publishing Ltd. ISBN 978-1-78216-043-4.
  6. ^ Hodges, Buck (17 March 2011). "Visual Studio setup projects (vdproj) will not ship with future versions of VS". Retrieved 22 September 2021.
  7. ^ Johnson, Bruce (2014-03-05). Professional Visual Studio 2013. John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 978-1-118-83205-9.