How do I install a .MSI Windows download?

Dave, as per your article on IE Search Prefixes, I am trying to download and install the enabler script IE_Search_Prefixes.msi, but when I get the file onto my computer, Windows XP doesn't know what to do with it. Double-clicking the .msi file just generates an error message?

Dave's Answer:

An interesting problem, particularly since when I tried to download this particular script it all ran smoothly without a hiccup on Windows XP Pro. A bit of rummaging around in Google, however, and I ascertained that the ".msi" filename suffix refers to files built for the Microsoft Windows Installer.

Theoretically, Microsoft Windows Installer is included with all versions of Windows more recent than Windows 2000, but either it's not in your version of XP or something glitched and it's not hooked up to the registry properly. Don't worry, though, I am not going to suggest you edit your registry file!

Fortunately, Microsoft comes through and there are detailed instructions on their site for downloading instmsi.exe, the Microsoft Windows Installer:

• instmsi.exe for Windows 95, 98 and Me

• instmsi.exe for Windows NT 4.0 and 2000

In both cases, as far as I can tell, the procedure is the same: download the file and run it. Easy enough.

Microsoft also includes this interesting information about the Microsoft Windows Installer, if you're interested in what it can do:

With Windows Installer and the .msi package file format, software installation and removal has become more reliable and resilient while providing a larger set of installation options. Windows Installer performs the following tasks:

Restores original computer state upon installation failure: Windows Installer keeps track of all changes made to the system during the application installation process. If the installation fails, Windows Installer can restore, or roll back, the system to its initial state.
Helps prevent certain forms of inter-application conflicts: Windows Installer enforces installation rules that help to prevent conflicts with shared resources between existing applications. Such conflicts can be caused when an install operation makes updates to a dynamic link library (.dll) shared by an existing application, or when an operation deletes a dynamic link library shared by another application.
Reliably removes existing programs: Windows Installer can reliably uninstall any program it previously installed. It removes all the associated registry entries and application files, except for those shared by other installed software. You can uninstall an application at any time after a successful installation. (Removal should not be confused with rollback, which restores a computer to its initial state when an installation failure has occurred.)
Diagnoses and repairs corrupted applications: An application can query Windows Installer to determine whether an installed application has missing or corrupted files. If any are detected, Windows Installer repairs the application by recopying only those files found to be missing or corrupted.
Supports on-demand installation of application features: Windows Installer can be instructed to initially install a minimal subset of an application. Later, additional components can be automatically installed the first time the user accesses features that require those components. This is known as advertising. For example, Windows Installer could install Microsoft Word with a minimal set of features. The first time the user tried to access a mail merge function (not included with the original installation), Windows Installer would automatically install the mail merge component. Similarly, Windows Installer can also purge components that go unused in an application. For example, Windows Installer could be configured to remove the mail merge component if it goes unused for 60 days.
Supports unattended application installation: Installation packages can be configured to require no installation process interaction from the user. During the installation process, Windows Installer can query the computer for desktop attributes, including determining whether any applications were previously installed by Windows Installer.

All in all, quite a capable application. Install it, then launch the ".msi" file to load the IE Search Prefixes and you should be good to go!

Categorized: Windows PC Help (Article 3947, Written by Dave Taylor)
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Comments

Re installing xxx.msi programs

Hi Dave,

Had a problem installing the free HP Visual Zone Express v1.5 graphics utility whose download file has an msi extension. Kept getting error message "not a valid Win32 application'. (My system is WIN XP SP1 on a Pentium 4 @ 2.8 GHz.)
After a couple of tries, (to wrong HP department), HP 'Total Care' was rather quick to reply that it was quite likely that the download file was corrupt in some way, and to try a new download. I did, and this solved the problem. This may help others with same problem.

Incidentally, the help came from a guy named Adam, (probably in India), but the reply came in a couple of hours.

Thanks,

RMS (Gnomie in Toronto)

Posted by: R M Schultz at April 8, 2005 5:28 PM

Hello,

I have a question in regards to installing a .msi extension on a Mac X OS 10.4 Tiger to work on Safari browser. The website that i go to requires for me to download a .msi extension in order for me to view certain things on that page. But Mac does not have an application that will open a .msi application. or does it?? I would really appreciate if you could help me with this as the website that I need the .msi to install is part of my work for data entries. I can always use my PC for that but why go back and forth if you could use just the Mac for it.

thanks
Ricci

Posted by: Ricci at March 8, 2006 7:58 AM

Ricci, the site you're visiting is not Mac compatible. The '.msi' file is only for Windows computers.

Posted by: Dave Taylor at March 8, 2006 10:36 PM

Hi Dave,

Thanks for your response..Is there any other way around this problem?? Could I maybe change the .msi extension to like .dmg or something that Mac would recognize?? The program is actually msxml.msi..Some people say that maybe Virtual Pc would work..would it??

Thanks
Ricci

Posted by: Ricci at March 9, 2006 12:21 AM

I'm sure you can't just magically transform it into Mac-friendly data, Ricci. MAYBE you could work within Virtual PC, but I'd also be a bit worried that you might infect your virtual windows world with an unknown .msi file too...

Posted by: Dave Taylor at March 9, 2006 12:25 AM

Hi Dave,

Thanks again for the infos..Well I guess i would just have to use the Pc for my entries then..It's just that I'm beginning to like using the Mac all the time and would have been great if I could have also use it for my work entries. I guess I won't try the Virtual PC then cause alot of people are also saying that it is way...too...slow...

Appreciate again for your help..

Cheers
Ricci

Posted by: Ricci at March 9, 2006 12:38 AM

Hi Dave,

Question, since the new MacBook is out soon , do you think the msxml.ms would work on it since it's running with the Intel Core Duo processor??

Thanks
Ricci

Posted by: Ricci at March 22, 2006 2:33 AM

Ricci, I'm afraid that until there's a legit and legal way to run Windows XP on the MacBook (they're already shipping, btw) that you're going to be out of luck with the MSXML program.

Posted by: Dave Taylor at March 22, 2006 6:36 AM

Hi Dave, I came across this and just wanted to get your input if this is the answer I am looking for from using Windows XP on a Mac:

http://wiki.onmac.net/index.php/Main_Page
http://wiki.onmac.net/index.php/HOWTO

Cheers
Ricci

Posted by: Ricci at April 1, 2006 12:01 AM

Yeah, that looks like a good place to do some research to figure out how to get Windows XP running on a new Intel-based Macintosh. Good luck to you!

Posted by: Dave Taylor at April 1, 2006 12:03 AM

looks like my windoxp pro version does not have awindows installer and becaus eof this i am unable to open the msi files. I tried to download the windows installer INSTMSI.EXE file from microsoft website but there were versions only for 95,98,2000 amd me . I dowloaded that but could not install as I get a message wrong O?S or wrong version

Posted by: Rammi at August 22, 2006 6:25 AM

Hey Dave, I m FAREED. I Had suffered alot and desperately beleive tht u will b having a solution for me. Basically i m a user of windows platform, but recently i got a Ibook G4. i m instead very happy with this switching but as i was Windows user I got used to some very particular softwares, like the one i m having issue with. I use a software called "PCCALL" on windows for doing calls internationally. Now I wanted to install it on my Ibook, but as it is a .msi file i m not able to install it on mac, It is not having the MAC version. I need ur kind help for installing it on mac, please show me the way to install it or any other ways. and if you can also suggest me if is there any Installer software for mac which can execute the installation files of windows in MAC. Or any other way thru which I can make my MAC experience more Comfortable as i was in WINDOWS. I hope u will Consider my Kind request. and if possible if u can mail me..coz may i may not get back to this site properly. Hoping to get reply from you. Thanks and Regards.....FAREED

Posted by: fareed at March 14, 2007 11:49 AM

when i am clicking on a .msi file its giving me error message that "the installscript engine is missing from this machine" and its also displaying that to run ISS.msi file if i have it
other wise "contact some personal" what should i do iam helpless please help me with regards amar

Posted by: amarnath at June 28, 2007 8:29 AM

Hi Dave:

It looks like your article on .msi installs isn't helping me. "XP or something glitched and it's not hooked up to the registry properly". I'm not getting an error of any kind...it simply won't install...and the microsoft site doesn't say anything about XP. Any advice?

Cheryl

Posted by: Cheryl at December 11, 2007 12:38 PM

Hey Dave could you help me out? Just to give you some details of what I wanted to do:

I created an Outlook pluggin for 2003. but in order to install that I need to make sure that 2 applications are installed in the client machine. So. I need Advance Installer to do the following:

1 - Install 2 pre-requisite applications if they are not present
2 - Install the main application

How would I do that?

Thanks

George

Posted by: George at February 20, 2008 2:09 PM

Hi Dave, I am trying to install apple itune from internet but is always asking about not signed valied security certificate, so what is the that and how to install it.

Thanks

Nahed

Posted by: Nahed at March 27, 2008 9:08 AM

Hi Dave,
I have a question regarding .msi files.Whether these files comes with Windows Installer pack or simply they support the .msi files in windows xp.Actually my problem in application is i want jamweb.msi file for oracle ad4j.Where can i get this?

Thanks
Aparna

Posted by: aparna at July 3, 2008 3:27 AM

Dave,
As part of one of my jobs, I have to access webmail and I keep getting a popup error box telling me it cannot find a file with "installation package mimeclnt.msi" and it is a S/MIME problem. I don't understand as Outlook Express runs great, and the webmail on my regular coldwell banker site works okay, but on this one, it is a hassle. I have to keep closing the box 5 or 6 times and it goes away. Any thoughts. Thanks for your help.

Posted by: Brian Liddicoat at July 8, 2008 3:50 PM

When i try and open an msi file, it loads a patching tool for a game i dont even have, so i went to check what the program opens with, and all msi files somehow got changed to a star trek mod. I need to know what the actual application it opens with. Can anyone help?

Posted by: Danny at December 23, 2009 7:48 PM

please solv my security certificate

Posted by: paresh at February 18, 2010 4:14 AM

Hi Dave,
Whenever i download any application or software like torrent or km player or yahoo IE8 and etc...as i'll run the programme after downloading it'll show "not a valid win32 application"and something-something like this....Please help me out what to do??????i am not at all able to download anything on my system....
Regards,
Prachi

Posted by: Prachi at March 22, 2010 11:21 AM

hi
Gad bles you
how to instalation windo xp short not and videos

Posted by: hailegiorgis at May 31, 2010 10:10 PM

nice information about .msi .....
Thanks

Posted by: Dotiv at November 25, 2010 10:18 PM

Hi Dave
I have a Question regarding While I am installing one .msi application But that's not installed. What is the problem.......?

Posted by: chandrareddy at July 25, 2011 7:28 AM

I have something to say, now that you mention it, but ...

I do have a lot to say, and questions of my own for that matter, but first I'd like to say thank you for all your efforts on this Web site by buying you a cup of coffee!

I do have a comment, now that you mention it!

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