How to install Windows programs

First Uninstall a Previous Release

If you are upgrading from a previous release, you MUST MANUALLY UNINSTALL the previous release before installing a new release. To manually uninstall

1.  Go to the Windows Control Panel -- Add or Remove Programs and find the program in the list. (see Figure 1.)
2.  Click Remove. If you see the program is listed twice (previous release and current release), remove them both.

Failure to do this will result in two releases installed side by side (causing a mixed set of DLLs) and will likely cause program errors. The Support Information (see Figure 1.)link will tell you the release number of an installed program.

You will not lose any user saved data files. And user preferences are generally not lost. See the program's Version History page for any special considerations. Uninstall only removes program executable files. User data files and preferences will generally be maintained from release to release but see the program Version History page for any exceptions with a new release.

Keep the Installer Program

It is a best practice (although optional) to move the program Setup file (MS Installer MSI file) to a permanent folder location BEFORE installing the program. And do not delete it after installing. The reason is that Windows remembers the MSI location path in case you need to use the Change -- Repair button in Add or Remove Programs at a later date. The MSI files from a previous release can be deleted once that release is uninstalled.

Program Installation and User Access Rights

The default program install target location is in the Windows Program Files folder (usually C:\Program Files). Installing to this folder requires a User Id with 'Administrator' rights.

How to Install install using Run As 'Administrator'

1.  Go to Start -- All Programs -- Accessories -- Windows Explorer.
2.  Right click on Windows Explorer, then pick "Run As" from the context menu.
3.  In the resulting dialog, click the radio button next to "The following user:"
4.  Pick an Id that has "Administrator" rights from drop-down list.
5.  Enter the password for that account.
6.  Windows Explorer will open with "Administrator" rights.
7.  Now navigate to the folder where you saved the program installer file and double click it to start the installer.

Windows XP Installs
XP User Ids are either Administrator or Limited accounts. You can determine which type of account you have by going to Control Panel -- User Accounts. If you have a Limited account and do not know the password to an account with Administrator rights, install as follows. Create a new folder to install to (example, create C:\ProgramFiles2\SoundMill). Then when prompted during installation, select this folder as the installation target folder. You are guaranteed to have 'write' access to any folder you create. Also you must check the Install for "Just me" radio box. To Install for "Everyone" on the computer requires Administrator rights.

Windows 7 or Vista Installs
Vista uses a different security mechanism called User Account Control . Vista User Ids are either Administrator or Standard accounts. By default, User Ids are standard users (without Administrator rights). When an operation needs Administrator rights, the user is prompted to "Type an administrator password". However, there are Vista 'hacks' that turn off User Account Control and the prompt may not happen. You may not even be aware that a program has turned it off. If you try to "Install For All Users" without entering administrator password, the install will likely fail or be incomplete, causing errors when you try to start the program.

See this page for more info on Run as Administrator in Vista.

Run the Installer (XP example)

On the product Download page, click on the Program Installer link. You will get a File Download - Security Warning dialog like the one below. This is normal -- Windows is just asking if you trust the source Website. If you click Run, the file will be downloaded and the install will start immediately. If you click Save, the file will be downloaded to your Downloads folder. Security conscious users do this to scan the file with their Anti-virus program before installing -- in general, a prudent step for any download. When you are ready to install, double click on the installer file in your Downloads folder.

You may also receive a Windows security warning saying the Publisher could not be verified (see dialog below). It means that Windows could not find a publisher digital signature on the file and therefore cannot verify it as a trusted source. This is normal -- our install files do not carry digital signatures. Click Run to start the installer.

When the program installer starts, you will be asked to agree to the license agreement and pick an folder location to install to. When the installer finishes, go to Start -- All Programs -- ProgramName to run the program.

Installation errors

Message: "Unable to install because a newer version of this product is already Installed."
If you get this message, you probably need to uninstall a previous installed release, then run the installer MSI again. Go to Control Panel -- Add or Remove Programs to uninstall it.