We just want to install software on the server and it shouldnt need a GPO to do that. It is not one particular app that will not install it is anything-ie no updates, Java, no programs will currently install. The errors we get pertain to the Windows installer service which also appears to get hung giving an error that another installation is already running.

Hi, Can you post the exact error message you are getting while trying to install? Regards, Rafic If you found this post helpful, please give it a "Helpful" vote. If it answered your question, remember to mark it as an "Answer". This posting is provided "AS IS" with no warranties and confers no rights! Always test ANY suggestion in a test environment before implementing!

I have a 2008 R2 server that is unable to install msi packages-or it seems anything for that matter. It starts the install and then fails. I have run sfc /scannow and it shows no corruption. when i run the file with msiexec /a it starts but gives an error about a database. I have tried multiple files and reboots and still no success. Any clues what else i can try?

Hi If the installation is assigned to the computer itself the program will be installed the next time it starts; you'll have to manually restart the server if there isn't some auto-restart mechanism. If the program can not be installed without asking the questions, you wont be able to install it via GPO. You can initially test this by running msiexec /qb /i installer.msi; if it installs you should be fine; otherwise it will fail. Depending on the program you might be able to get around this by specifying properties for the installer. When manually run properties are specified in the form msiexec /i installer.msi property=value and you can specify multiple properties. Check out the http://AppDeploy.com website for your app, it might have the information you need (if your app requires these properties). You might also be able to create an Installer Transform (MST) that changes how the installer works slightly, thus allowing the program to be deployed. The usual tool to use is MS's Orca, which is part of the Platform SDK (IIRC). There are other tools available. The AppDeploy website might have info about writing an MST for your app; otherwise you'd have to learn Orca enough to fumble through it (hit-and-miss). Rarely, the app vendor will publish information on how to write MSTs or Properties=Value pairs. (I love those vendors that do, makes my life a lot easier, especially with complex apps). http://www.trainsignal.com/blog/installing-software-using-gpos-on-windows-server-2008 Good Luck