Silent Installation

What is Silent Installation?

Silent installation refers to the installation of software or applications on a computer system without requiring any user interaction or input. In a silent installation, the installation process occurs in the background, without displaying any user interfaces, prompts, or dialog boxes that would normally require the user to make choices or provide information. This type of installation is particularly useful in scenarios where an administrator or IT professional needs to deploy software across multiple computers or systems efficiently and consistently.

Silent Installation Method

Download the Installer

Obtain the installer file you want to install silently. This could be an executable (.exe), Microsoft Installer (MSI), or any other installer format.

For example, in this article we will be using the ReportMiner.exe file to perform the silent installation.

Open a Command Prompt

To initiate the silent installation, you'll need to use a command-line interface. Open the Command Prompt as an administrator.

To achieve this, first search for “Command Prompt” in the Windows search bar then right-click the Command Prompt app, and select Run as administrator from the context menu. This will launch the Command Prompt with administrative privileges.

Navigate to the Installer Location

Locate the installation file and open its location in Windows Explorer. Once you have located the file in Windows Explorer, the full path will be displayed in the address bar at the top of the window. The address bar shows the complete path from the drive letter to the file's location.

For example, this file is located at "C:\Users\muhammad.hasham\Desktop\Silent Installation Files" as evident with the full path displayed in the address bar.

Alternatively, you can also right-click the file and select Properties from the context menu. In the Properties Window, you'll find a Location field that displays the full path to the file.

Navigating to a Directory Using Command Prompt

To silent install the file, change your current location to the specific folder containing the installer using the Command Prompt. To do so, enter the following command in the Command Prompt:

cd {Path to installer}

For example:

cd C:\Users\muhammad.hasham\Desktop\Silent Installation Files

Run the Silent Installation Command

Use the appropriate command to run the installer in silent mode. This command might involve specifying command-line switches that suppress dialogs and prompts.

For .exe File

General File:

“Application.exe” /s /v"INSTALLDIR=“path\toInstall\files”/qn"

Example:

"ReportMiner.exe" /s /v" INSTALLDIR=“C:\Users\muhammad.hasham\Desktop\Silent Installation Files”/qn"

Using MSI FILE general cmd:

General File:

msiexec /i Product.msi /qn INSTALLDIR=“path\toInstall\files”

Example:

msiexec /i "ReportMiner 7 64-bit.msi" /qn INSTALLDIR=“C:\Users\userName\Desktop\Silent Installation Files”

Note: INSTALLDIR=“path\toInstall\files” during installation is entirely optional. If you choose to provide this parameter, the software will be installed in the designated location. However, if you omit this parameter, the software will be installed by default in the “Program Files” folder on the C drive.

To run it in this manner:

"ReportMiner.exe" /s /v" /qn"

Wait for Installation to Complete

The silent installation might take some time. Wait for the installation process to finish. Depending on the software, you might receive an output indicating the progress and success of the installation.

Verify the Installation

After the installation is complete, verify that the software is installed as expected. You might want to check the installation directory, program shortcuts, or any other relevant indicators.

To uninstall

Use the provided command in the Command Prompt to remove the silently installed file.

General File:

msiexec /x "Product.msi" /qn

Example:

msiexec /x "ReportMiner 7 64-bit.msi" /qn

This concludes our discussion on Silent Installations.