Mocking Windows Installer

Is it possible to mock the Windows Installer? I would like to set up tests for various scenarios during install. I don't really care what is stored in the Windows 开发者_C百科Installer databases, I just want to test the output of the installer packages (what files have changed, etc).

Edit

I suppose I could setup VMWare images and script them. Does anybody know how to script/automate tasks in VMWare instances?

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Yes, it's possible. You need two things:

1. A setup authoring tool which can generate the packages. A command line interface or scriptable solution would be great for automation.
2. A resource monitor which determines what each installation does. You can use Process Monitor or another tool which monitors files and registry.

As an optional feature I would also suggest a log parser. This way you can create a verbose log for each installation and analyze the log to see what it did to the target machine.

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There is no way to mock MSI. You either trust that it works and evaluate the data in the MSI to predict what will happen or you use infrastructure automation to spin up machines and execute the installer then run tests to confirm the expected behavior.