Any chance for silent install options

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teknowledgist
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Any chance for silent install options

Post by teknowledgist »

Hi.

I know about the '/S' switch for a silent, default install, but there are some options (e.g. "replace windows explorer") that are only available at install time. IMHO, those options are more likely to be desired by more advanced users, which means the very people who are more likely to use an automated/scripted method for installing X2 are the ones who don't have the option to do an automated/scripted install because those options have to be manually set during install.

While having all of the install options with command line switches would be great, could at least the options that can only be chosen at install be set up as switches so we can make this easier?

Thanks.
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nikos
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by nikos »

do you install xplorer2 often?
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by teknowledgist »

Every time I rebuild one of my machines. :-)

I have most of the process automated (including getting the latest version), but X2 is one of only a few things I have to do manually.
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johngalt
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by johngalt »

I kinda of have to agree here. It would be awesome if we could automate the installation of X² for these types of things. I tend to cleanly install Windows at least once every 6 months, but I've had to / chosen to install it cleanly no less than 6 or 7 times since I built this rig (partially because it is just that fast to install on, to be sure).

Or, alternatively, an MSI installer to allow for advanced users to install with all the settings they want / to deploy to multiple PCs.
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nikos
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by nikos »

I am not into rebuilding but isn't there a way you can snapshot your entire system, with installed apps and all so you don't need to install things one by one?
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IneedHelp
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by IneedHelp »

An automation script like the ones you'd make with AHK or AutoIt could easily solve this, it's also flexible and extensible and can be applied to anything that doesn't have a silent install feature.
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johngalt
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by johngalt »

nikos wrote: 2021 May 03, 06:38 I am not into rebuilding but isn't there a way you can snapshot your entire system, with installed apps and all so you don't need to install things one by one?
Yes - but with Windows changing every 6 or so months, that renders it somewhat useless. I do make system images, but clean installing can fix things sometimes that a reversion to a backup / system image cannot. If I weren't such an avid PC gamer, I'd be on Linux already and be done with this mess of an OS.
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teknowledgist
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by teknowledgist »

IneedHelp wrote: 2021 May 03, 11:27 An automation script like the ones you'd make with AHK or AutoIt could easily solve this, it's also flexible and extensible and can be applied to anything that doesn't have a silent install feature.
I suppose but why make "everyone" (OK, a handful -- but hopefully growing -- of geeks) invent the wheel when the automation could be simplified from the source? Also, in my experience AHK scripts can take a **lot** of playing to get right and often require tweaks -- especially with installers that can have slight changes.
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by teknowledgist »

nikos wrote: 2021 May 03, 06:38 I am not into rebuilding but isn't there a way you can snapshot your entire system, with installed apps and all so you don't need to install things one by one?
Snapshots have their place, but sometimes it's easier/faster to just start over with a clean setup. Since Xplorer2 is one of my requirements (and one of the only ones without automated install options), it's one rough spot in a mostly smooth process.

Besides, it's obvious in how you have designed Xplorer2 that you see efficient computing as beneficial, so doesn't it make sense to enhance your product with this bit of efficiency? :D
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by nikos »

smooth talking will get you places ;)
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7leagues
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by 7leagues »

I might be talking out of my hat here because, as a user, I'm nowhere nearly as advanced as you guys but it seems to me that the regular reinstall process can be solved by using Macrium Reflect.

Reflect takes an image of your system in any configuration you desire and whenever you want it to. Indeed, the problem of Windows changing so often is why it provides you with the option to backup Windows alone, or with all your program files as a full image that can be redeployed to another machine. Data is backed up separately in differential or incremental modes according to your preference.

Personally, I have a full Windows image backed-up automatically every Sunday. Being somewhat paranoid over the potential for a drive failure, I repeat that exercise on Wednesday to a second external drive.

I find Reflect to be as indispensable as x2. Perhaps even more so as it regularly gets me out of trouble. The only downside is that you need a license for each machine you use it on. However, if you are just changing to a new PC, you can install the 30 day demo version and then transfer your original license once the new machine is ready for use.
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johngalt
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by johngalt »

FWIW, I *do* make use of Macrium. But those only work when you want to revert to what you have - not when you need to upgrade.

When Windows changes (like it is about to do again with 21H1 release imminent), then you have to take the update and make a new set of backups - and after updating in-place like this 3 or 4 times, depending upon what you actually do with your computer, idiosyncrasies can occur (and with my extensive testing and usage, they pretty much *DO* occur). Hence the want / desire / need (in my case definitely a need) to completely cleanly reinstall Windows from scratch.

I'm not had a single version of Windows 10 install that upgrades itself 100% without some sort of error (mostly caused by drivers pushed out by Windows Update), and turning this 'feature' off prevents me from testing what I need to test both for my job and to help various developers whose software I use (like X², as an example).

It's also one of the reasons I looked into (and talked with nikos about) using the portable mode - but it has its own limitations that render it unusable for me, so I'm stuck installing it every time I cleanly install.
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teknowledgist
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by teknowledgist »

Ultimately this is just a request for an additional feature. Plenty of other features that have been added to X² could have been accomplished through various other applications or other workarounds, but Nikos saw the benefit of adding them.

Maybe this feature is less "sexy" that other features and won't be used by the majority of users, but with so many buried and interesting features already in X2, I guarantee there are some that are not used by most folks too. The requested feature also happens to be quite common in the world of software installers, so it doesn't seem to me to be an off-the-wall, why-would-anyone-want-that kind of request.

If Nikos decides it's not worth his time and effort, I am unlikely to shed any tears and will still continue to use Xplorer2. :D
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7leagues
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by 7leagues »

johngalt wrote: 2021 May 13, 16:23 Hence the want / desire / need (in my case definitely a need) to completely cleanly reinstall Windows from scratch.
I'm curious John. To perform a completely fresh install requires you to have a full version of the latest Windows release. How do you get that?
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Re: Any chance for silent install options

Post by johngalt »

Windows 10 Installation tool for latest official release.

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/softwar ... /windows10

Or, if I install an Insider build (which I now only do in VMs, but used to run live on my old system), you get it from Insider Preview site:

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/softwar ... previewiso

(it will ask you to log in with your Microsoft account, and if you are not a part of the insider testing team, then you can either join or it will not allow you to DL anything).
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