User Interface Management in Deployment

The User Interface Editor can be used to specify and set properties for predefined dialog boxes that are displayed during installation on the target computer.

The User Interface Editor is a tree control containing two sections: Install and Admin. The Install section contains dialog boxes that will be displayed when the end user runs the installer; the Admin section contains dialog boxes that will be displayed when a system administrator uploads the installer to a network location.

A default set of predefined dialog boxes is displayed in the editor; you can rearrange or delete these if you choose. The default set of dialog boxes varies according to the type of deployment project.

Predefined dialog boxes are divided into three categories:

• Start dialog boxes are displayed before the installation begins. Common uses are to gather customer information or to allow the user to change the installation directory.

• A Progress dialog box is displayed to provide feedback on the progress of an installation.

• End dialog boxes are displayed once the installation has finished successfully. Common uses are to notify the user that the installation is complete or to allow the user to launch the application.

Note

Visual Studio Setup and Deployment projects do not support custom dialog boxes or other user interface elements that you create yourself. Also see Installation Dialog Box Restrictions.

Dialog boxes can be moved between category nodes by dragging with the mouse or by using the Cut and Paste commands on the Edit menu.

Tip

If you do not want to display a user interface, delete all dialog boxes from the User Interface Editor.

In This Section

Topic	Description
Installation User Interface Dialog Boxes	Describes the user-interface dialog boxes that can be added to a deployment project.
How to: Add and Remove Installation Dialog Boxes in the User Interface Editor	Describes how to choose dialog boxes to display during installation.
How to: Customize Installation Dialog Boxes in the User Interface Editor	Explains how to modify the appearance or behavior of a dialog box.
How to: Enable Online Registration in a Deployment Project	Describes how to provide the ability for users to register your product online.
How to: Specify Per-user or Per-computer Installation	Describes how you can specify whether you want your application to be installed for all users of a computer or only for the user doing the installation.

Related Sections

Topic	Description
Properties for the User Interface Editor	Describes properties available in the User Interface Editor.
How to: Open the Deployment Editors	Explains how to open the deployment editors.
File Installation Management in Deployment	Describes the File System Editor, which allows you to add project outputs, files, and other items to a deployment project and specify where they will be installed on the target computer.
Registry Settings Management in Deployment	Describes the Registry Editor, which allows you to specify registry keys and values to be added to the registry of the target computer.
File Types Management in Deployment	Describes the File Types Editor, which is used to establish file associations on the target computer.
Custom Actions Management in Deployment	Describes the Custom Actions Editor, which allows you to specify additional actions to be performed on the target computer at the end of an installation.
Launch Condition Management in Deployment	Describes the Launch Conditions Editor, which allows you to specify conditions that must be met in order to successfully run an installation.
What's New in Deployment	Describes new features related to setup and deployment.