Dev Blogs
We recently discussed External Location and how it lets Windows find files referenced in but installed by some other (not-MSIX) installer. Many people call this kind of package a "Sparse package". Many even think sparse packages are the important feature, and External Location is a minor implementation detail. But...what is a sparse package? Fi...
We talked recently about PackageVolume as one of the ways to stage packages. Let's turn our gaze to External Location, which plays a distinct role in MSIX, with similarities to - and important differences from - other options. Why is External Location? MSIX deployment provides a full-service software installation stack. The process is simple: co...
We often talk about "running an application", "launching an app", or "starting an app". This conjures up visions of spinning up a new process, giving the application life. For packaged applications, Windows has a specific term for bringing an application to life: activation. Bringing a packaged process to life involves more than ordinary unpacka...
Overheard in a recent conversation: Enterprise Administrator: "The ***redacted*** application is awesome, but it really should be an MSIX package." Microsoft Developer: "Ummm, it already is." That sparked another question: How can you tell if an application is packaged or unpackaged? Turns out there's a few simple w...
Payload files Payload files are files stored in and delivered by the package. This includes your code, assets, and data, such as executables, DLLs, images, configuration files, and resources. For example: Content files The term content is sometimes used in MSIX-related APIs and documentation, but it does not provide as clean a classifica...
An MSIX package can be staged in several ways and locations: By far the most common is PackageVolume. We'll dig into the rest in future posts, but for now let's focus on MSIX PackageVolume. In the beginning... When MSIX first appeared in Windows 81 packages would be staged to a unique directory under . More specifically, packages were pl...
How does MSIX service a package while it's in use? Simple: It doesn't. A core principle of MSIX servicing is: Do not service a package while it's in use. Deployment provides several ways to deal with that constraint. Options range from terminating applications to deferring servicing until the package is no longer in use. How hard can it be? '...
As previously discussed, we can divide processes into the two broad categories of packaged vs unpackaged, based on if the process HAS or LACKS package identity. Packaged processes can be divided into three broad categories: All three have package identity, but they make different tradeoffs between compatibility and modern packaged behavior....
MSIX uses a Garbage Collection (GC) design for staged package lifetime and destaging. Throughout this article: Package Core Principles A staged package can't be destaged while any references to it exist. This is a direct consequence of MSIX's core architectural principles: Consequently, removing a package's payload from disk is not ...
Just as There is no Install – it’s ‘Stage’ and ‘Register’ explained that Install is not truly an installation operation in MSIX, Remove is similarly not an uninstall operation. This can be surprising - sometimes even alarming - to developers coming from traditional installer technologies such as MSI, where uninstalling software typically implies: ...