InstallAware IDE Targets Microsoft's New MSIX Packaging Format -- Visual Studio Magazine

InstallAware IDE Targets Microsoft's New MSIX Packaging Format

By David Ramel
04/16/2019

InstallAware Software announced a new IDE said to be the first on the market specifically dedicated to working with Microsoft's new MSIX app packaging format.

Microsoft last fall introduced an MSIX packaging tool that represents the company's new direction, building upon the previous .msi, .appx, App-V and ClickOnce installation technologies with a new way to package Universal Windows Platform (UWP) and Win32 apps for distribution through the Microsoft Windows Store.

InstallAware MSIX Editor now appears on the company's Web site with the promise to help developers build and edit next-generation MSIX installation packages, even if they don't have their source code.

While Microsoft touted safety, security and reliability with the new format, InstallAware indicated MSIX lacks support for run-time decision-making capabilities that were baked into InstallAware's own previous MSI packages. The company also hinted at other previously available functionality lacking in the new system.

"Despite the impossibility of embedding run-time intelligence into MSIX packages, they are the only format accepted by Microsoft for Windows Store submissions," said the enterprise software deployment specialist in a statement today (April 16). "MSIX packages also run in a secure sandbox, which while being isolated from the core operating system, are able to interface with almost as much of the user endpoints as with MSI packages. Security and ease of management are key mantras of the MSIX vision, which Microsoft has made clear is the future direction of application deployment on Windows."

The new tool reportedly lets developers:

Create new MSIX packages from scratch.
Load any pre-existing MSIX package regardless of authoring kit.
View and extract resources inside of any MSIX package.
Update the contents and logic of any MSIX package.
Save changes as a brand-new MSIX package.
Save changes as a new MSIX modification package (designed for enterprises that do not own the code of an application and only have the installer).
Submit MSIX packages to the Windows Store.

"Unveiling the entirety of its contents, the InstallAware MSIX Editor permits any range of modifications to be made to the package -- from files to registry keys, shortcuts to language, and identity to capabilities," the company said.

Coincidentally, Microsoft just last week announced an update to its MSIX Packaging Tool.

About the Author

David Ramel is an editor and writer at Converge 360.

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