So I created another user account and set them to be a computer
administrator, then logged in as the new user. However, now all .msi files
are of an unknown type for this user and I cannot execute/install them.
There is no icon associated with them and when I double-click the file it
asks me which program I want to run it with. WTF? I thought Windows
Installer was machine-wide?

So if I log back in as me, they are associated with msiexec. The Install
action is associated as follows:

"C:\WINDOWS\System32\msiexec.exe" /i "%1" %*

With DDE enabled, and a topic of System. Does this seem correct?

So why can't I install an .msi file on the new user's account? I did not
expect this behaviour at all.

Mark.

"Nepatsfan" wrote:

> "Mark_Melvin" <Mark_Melvin@discussions.microsoft.com> wrote in message
> news:F507A6EB-5E6F-4CC7-8F38-642FE8135DE2@microsoft.com...
> > Hi There,
> >
> > I have a problem with my machine (Windows XP 32-bit SP3) that has just
> > appeared and I have tried everything I can possibly think of with no luck (I
> > am quite computer literate...so you are not dealing with a noob here). I'm
> > looking for some expert help here because it is driving me insane.
> >
> > So, the problem is I cannot install *anything* that uses Windows Installer
> > (.msi) under the covers. This includes many third party software packages
> > that I use, as well as Windows XP packages and updates themselves. What
> > happens when I run an .msi file is I see the Windows Installer dialog briefly
> > flash up on the screen and nothing happens. There is no error or even any
> > event in my event logs, and if I run the .msi file using msiexec with all
> > logging and debug info turned on, I get nothing in the log file except a
> > single line indicating it started.
> >
> > The weird part is this just started to happen one dayu so obviously
> > something has changed on my system to screw things up. After much beating my
> > head against the monitor and desk I attempted to run one of the failing
> > installers "as Administrator" and it worked. Wha..? I *am* an
> > administrator, so why does running it as Administrator make any difference
> > whatsoever?
> >
> > Anyway, the *only* way I can get anything based on Windows Installer to
> > install now is to open a dos prompt and type:
> >
> > runas /user:Administrator "msiexec.exe /i c:\full\path\to\installer.msi"
> >
> > This prompts me for my password and runs the installer just fine. But I am
> > and always have been an adminstrator! I don't get it. Here is a list of
> > things I have tried recently to fix this:
> >
> > -Install all available Windows updates
> > -Remove all .NET versions and re-install as required
> > -Remove Silverlight
> > -Remove Windows Installer and re-install
> > -Update to Windows Installer 4.5 (I think that is what this is -
> > WindowsXP-KB942288-v3-x86.exe)
> > -Roll back to an earlier date
> > -Undo the roll back
> > -Install Windows XP SP3
> > -Yell and scream
> >
> > So, now I am posting here. The only possible thing I can think of that may
> > have any bearing on this whatsoever is that originally my username did not
> > have a password associated with it. At some point in the past I changed my
> > account to have a password associated with it and if I recall correctly this
> > changed permissions on a bunch of files. My user password is now the same as
> > the administrator password on this machine. The only thing I can think of is
> > that some system file or directory got its permissions all screwed up and is
> > the root of the problem. I'd be happy to provide any additional information
> > if requested as I would love to solve this one. It is shortening my
> > life-span...
> >
> > Thanks in advance,
> > Mark.
> >
>
>
> If you're unable to get this resolved for your user account you might want to
> log on with the Administrator account, create a new user account that's a member
> of the administrators group, and see if the problem persists. If it doesn't
> happen with the new account you might consider abandoning your old account and
> copying your old files to the new account. Log on as Administrator and use the
> procedure outlined in this article to copy files from one account to the other.
>
> How to copy data from a corrupted user profile to a new profile
> http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/811151
>
> As noted in the article, you'll have to manually move email messages and
> recreate any accounts.
>
> Good luck
>
> Nepatsfan
>
>
>