How To Invoke Silent MDAC or DA SDK 2.0 Redistribution

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This article was previously published under Q192009

SUMMARY

The redistribution for Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) version 2.x is essentially a setup program encapsulated within another setup program. The outer setup provides a single .exe which, when run, extracts the contents needed for the inner setup and then invoke the setup. Subsequently, to control the behavior of the redistribution, you need to invoke it with command line switches that control both inner and outer setups. For example, this article explains how to invoke a silent install, or even to suppress the restart that would otherwise occur when the inner setup concludes running.

Note This article does not apply to MDAC versions 2.5 and later. Please see the "References" section for the article that applies to MDAC 2.5 switches.

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MORE INFORMATION

The following samples apply to any of the MDAC redistribution programs for versions 2.0, 2.1 Service Pack 2:

      mdac_typ.exe - Installs the full MDAC 2.0 2.x stack of components, drivers and providers.

To make the MDAC redistribution run unattended you use the "/Q" command. By default, this passes on "/Q" to the inner setup. If you want to change the inner setup options, you override the default command by using the outer setups /c: option.

The tips in this article do not apply to the Data Access 2.x SDK setup.

The installation of Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) writes to the RunOnce registry key, which usually means that the computer must be restarted for the installation to complete. To have an unattended installation that does NOT automatically restart, you can use the following command:

   <mdac_type.exe> /q /C:"setup /QN1"

This runs the inner setup in unattended mode and is not automatically rebooted. If you really want a minimalist user interface (UI), you can use the following command:

   <mdac_type.exe> /q /C:"setup /QNT"

To extract the inner setup into a directory, you would use the following command:

   <mdac_type.exe> /t:<path> /c

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Outer Setup Command Line Options

You can determine the command line options of the outer setup through the following statement:

Command line options for the outer setup include:

   /Q            - Quiet modes for package.
   /T:<fullpath> - Specifies Temporary Working folder.
   /C            - Extract files only to folder when used with /t.
   /C:<cmd>      - Override install command defined by author.

After extracting the inner setup to a temporary directory, you can use the following command to extract the command line options:

    setup /?

The question mark switch above only works for MDAC 2.1 Service Pack 2 and earlier versions. If this command is issued with MDAC 2.5, Setup runs.

Command line options for the inner setup of MDAC 2.1 Service Pack 2 and earlier versions include the following:

   Command Line Option      Description
   -----------------------------------------------------------------------

   /A                       Administrator Mode.

   /G <filename>            Generate logfile of installation activity.

   /Q[0|1|T]                Quiet install mode (0 shows exit, 1 hides exit,
                            T hides all display).

   /QN[1|T]                 Quiet install mode with reboot suppressed.

   /R                       Reinstall application (MDAC 1.5 Redistribution
                            only)

   /U[A]                    Uninstall the application but leaves shared
                            components (/UA to remove all).

   /X <filename>            Set network log location for tracking install
                            instances.

   /Y                       Install without copying files.

Note The /U switch is not applicable in MDAC versions 2.1 SP2 and later. To reconfigure MDAC, the component checker should be used. Please see the "References" section for more information.

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REFERENCES

For additional information about how to use Component Checker, click the following article number to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

307255 (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/307255/ ) INFO: Component Checker: Diagnose Problems and Reconfigure MDAC Installations

For more information, please see the following Microsoft Web site:

http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms810805.aspx (http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms810805.aspx)

For information on MDAC 2.6 installation, please reference the MDAC 2.6 Setup FAQ.

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