TestStand Deploy directory to install TestStand

[pboucher@werfen.com]

Where does the testStand deploy get the location that it should install testStand on the target PC from?

Is there a bug in TS 2022 32bit that it will mistakenly try to install TS in a 2021 folder on the target PC?

I've found posts that state that it should be installing TS in the same folder as it finds it on the development PC   but this does not seem to be the case. 

Below is what I see when I run the built installer.  in this case on the development PC,  As you can see there is no 2021 folder here.  

I inherited this PC so not sure if TS2021 was ever installed but it is definitely not installed now.

Update:

I found that install.ini creates has a section [SingleDirectoryDialog]

where Dir3 sets the TS installation folder.  Now just need to find out where the deploy utility gets this from.

[Scott_Richardson]

The MSIs for NI products use something internally call "NIPaths", and the "TESTSTAND2022DIR" value from the image is effectively the lookup to obtain the default installation path for TestStand 2022 (32-bit). That value should resolve to the following registry key:
    "Computer\HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\WOW6432Node\National Instruments\TestStand\22.0\Path".

Does that registry key exist on your target system, and if so, what is its value?

[pboucher@werfen.com]

Thank you for the reply.   I can't get to the target PC right now, but it should NOT exist as it's a clean PC.   on the development PC where the deploy installer is created it looks correct.  

For Clarity I should mention that the install.ini as created has TESTSTAND2021DIR.  I manually changed it to TESTSTAND2022DIR

[Scott_Richardson]

I am confused:

1) why are you manually editing the install.ini?

2) Is the Deployment Utility creating an install with the 2021 value in the install.ini file?

3) Are you manually editing the value and changing it to 2022?

4) Is manually changing it to 2022 your workaround for the unwanted behavior? 

[pboucher@werfen.com]

Exactly.   the deploy utility is making an install.ini that references 2021 even though 2021 is NOT installed currently.

Manually editing the intall.ini to 2022 is the workaround.  I should NOT have to do this, so there is something else wrong that I haven't found yet

I'm as confused as you are to why TS deploy is doing such a silly thing.

[pboucher@werfen.com]

Attaching screen capture video of the deploy utility misbehaving.  I had to screw around with the playback speed to get it under the 10MB limit and added a text overlay with notes, but other then that its true to what happens.

[pboucher@werfen.com]

attaching a bare teststand deploy project created with TS 2022.

If it helps this is what is installed according to package manager

[Scott_Richardson · Accepted solution]

I installed 2022 Q3 (32-bit) on a VM and build a simple MSI based installer and I see the incorrect value in the INI file, so this looks like a bug. I do not see it listed on TestStand 2022 Q4 Known Issues.

Not sure if NI's TestStand team will fix this, but seems like you do have a relatively simple workaround; run a script post build to modify that value.

[pboucher@werfen.com]

Thank you so much for confirming this bug.   I was unable to do so, as I'm having different issues on my second PC.   looks like the 2022 deploy does not work on windows 11 at all.