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msi-installer-features.md

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Windows MSI Installer Features

Overview

The Windows MSI installer (wix/main.wxs) uses WiX Toolset v3 via cargo-wix. It presents a feature tree during installation, allowing users to opt in/out of each feature group independently.

Feature Tree

Feature Default Description
Ferrite Editor On (required) Core ferrite.exe binary
Start Menu Shortcut On Shortcut in Start Menu > Ferrite
Desktop Shortcut Off Shortcut on the Desktop
File Associations On Registers Ferrite in "Open With" and Windows Default Apps
Markdown (.md, .markdown) On ProgId Ferrite.md
Plain Text (.txt) On ProgId Ferrite.txt
JSON (.json) On ProgId Ferrite.json
YAML (.yaml, .yml) On ProgId Ferrite.yaml
TOML (.toml) On ProgId Ferrite.toml
CSV (.csv, .tsv) On ProgId Ferrite.csv
Explorer Context Menu Off Right-click "Open with Ferrite"
Open with Ferrite (files) Off HKLM\Software\Classes\*\shell\OpenWithFerrite
Open Folder with Ferrite Off HKLM\Software\Classes\Directory\shell\OpenWithFerrite + Background
Add to System PATH Off Appends install dir to system PATH

Key Files

File Purpose
wix/main.wxs WiX installer definition (feature tree, components, UI)
wix/license.rtf Minimal MIT license RTF (required by WixUI_FeatureTree, dialog is skipped)

Implementation Details

File Associations

Uses the modern OpenWithProgids approach rather than forcefully setting extension defaults:

  1. ProgId registration at HKLM\Software\Classes\Ferrite.<ext> with description, icon, and open command
  2. OpenWithProgids entry under each extension (e.g., HKLM\Software\Classes\.md\OpenWithProgids\Ferrite.md)
  3. ApplicationCapabilities registration at HKLM\Software\OlaProeis\Ferrite\Capabilities for Windows Settings > Default Apps
  4. RegisteredApplications entry at HKLM\Software\RegisteredApplications\Ferrite

This is non-invasive -- it adds Ferrite to the "Open With" menu and Default Apps settings without overriding existing defaults.

Explorer Context Menu

Registry entries under HKLM\Software\Classes:

  • *\shell\OpenWithFerrite -- right-click any file
  • Directory\shell\OpenWithFerrite -- right-click a folder
  • Directory\Background\shell\OpenWithFerrite -- right-click folder background (uses %V for current path)

PATH Entry

Uses WiX Environment element with Permanent='no' (removed on uninstall), Part='last' (appends), System='yes' (system-level).

Launch After Install

CustomAction with FileKey='ferrite.exe' and Return='asyncNoWait', triggered from ExitDialog's "Launch Ferrite" checkbox.

UI Flow

Uses WixUI_FeatureTree which provides: Welcome -> CustomizeDlg (feature tree + install dir) -> VerifyReady -> Install -> Exit. License dialog is skipped via Publish overrides with higher Order values.

Cross-Feature References

Registry values use [APPLICATIONFOLDER]ferrite.exe instead of [#ferrite.exe] to avoid ICE69 cross-feature reference warnings. Both resolve to the same path, but [APPLICATIONFOLDER] doesn't create a component cross-reference.

Building

cargo install cargo-wix
cargo wix                     # full release build + MSI
cargo wix --no-build          # MSI only (requires existing target/release/ferrite.exe)

WiX Toolset v3 must be installed. Either:

  • Install via winget install WiXToolset.WiXToolset (requires admin)
  • Download binaries from wix3 releases and use --bin-path

Testing

  1. Install with all features on -- verify associations, context menu, PATH, shortcuts
  2. Install with all features off -- verify clean install, no registry pollution
  3. Upgrade over previous version -- verify clean upgrade
  4. Uninstall -- verify all registry entries and shortcuts removed