Create An Installer From Visual Studio

Toggle navigation

• Featuresfeatures by EDITION:ArchitectManage any packaging project with our Repackager, MSI(X) editing, and MECM/Intune integration for a complete application lifecycle.

  Explore Architect Features ›

  EnterpriseAutomate team workflows with CI/CD integrations & auto-updates for your end-users, while leveraging our team management portal for smooth collaboration.

  Explore Enterprise Features ›

  ProfessionalCreate secure MSI, EXE, and MSIX installers with PowerShell Automation, Visual Studio Integration, and Trusted Signing for robust packaging.

  Explore Professional Features ›

  FreewareBuild basic installers quickly with essential tools for small packaging projects.

  Explore Freeware Features ›

  FEATURES by role: For Developers For IT Pros For Managed Service ProvidersorBrowse all features ›Get a FREE Personalized Demo!
• Analytics
• Help
• Forum
• Blog
• Pricing

• Download

Start Free TrialHelpFAQForumUser GuideContactCustomer Info

• Introduction
• Registration
• Using Advanced Installer
• Features and Functionality
• Tutorials
  • Simple Installation
  • Professional Installation
  • How to create a package using the command line interface
  • Enterprise Installation
  • Major upgrade tutorial
  • Creating transforms
  • Professional Installation using PowerShell commands
  • SharePoint Solution Installers
  • Other Languages
  • New Language
  • Java Product Installation
  • Java Service Installation
  • Setup package for a Tomcat web application
  • Mac OS X package for a Java application
  • IntelliJ IDEA import
  • Patch Authoring
  • Debug Desktop Bridge Apps
  • Deploying Updates
  • Using the Dialog Editor
  • Using SQL Databases
  • App-V Tutorials
  • Visual Studio Tutorials
    • Importing/Converting a Visual Studio Setup Project
    • Visual Studio Application Import
    • Create installers from Visual Studio
    • Add an MSIX build to your Visual Studio solution
    • Create VSIX Installers
    • Azure DevOps
  • Creating a new VM
  • RAD Tools Integration
  • MSI Import
  • WISE Import
  • Create MSIX
  • Import MSIX
  • Import Desktop Bridge AppX Package
  • IIS Tutorial
  • Deploy an MSI through GPO
  • Add trial support to your VB application
  • Multiple Builds
  • XML Locator Search
  • MSM with parameters for custom actions
  • Edit MSI packages through CLI
  • Create a package to deploy an Office Add-In developed in Visual Studio
  • Running scripts inside MSIX
  • How to import and convert an MSI to an MSIX without repackaging it?
  • How to install a Windows service through an MSIX package.
  • Configure Auto Updates for Your Application with Advanced Updater
  • Integrating licensing support in electron application
  • Deploy an MSIX package along with non-MSIX prerequisites
  • Install Dependencies and Runtimes using MSIX
  • Install Visual C++ Runtime
  • MSI Package Validation Using a .CUB File
  • Create an MSIX App Attach Image
  • How to package a Node.js application and deploy it to users
  • Add an MSIX build to your Visual Studio solution
  • Run EXE as administrator or in compatibility mode
  • Create a .NET Custom Action using Advanced Installer Extension for Visual Studio.
  • 'Save as Template' feature
  • Creating Suite Installations
  • Creating Modern Suite Installations
• Samples
• How-tos
• FAQs
• Windows Installer
• Deployment Technologies
• IT Pro
• MSIX
• Video Tutorials
• Advanced Installer Blog
• Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Registration
• Using Advanced Installer
• Features and Functionality
• Tutorials
  • Simple Installation
  • Professional Installation
  • How to create a package using the command line interface
  • Enterprise Installation
  • Major upgrade tutorial
  • Creating transforms
  • Professional Installation using PowerShell commands
  • SharePoint Solution Installers
  • Other Languages
  • New Language
  • Java Product Installation
  • Java Service Installation
  • Setup package for a Tomcat web application
  • Mac OS X package for a Java application
  • IntelliJ IDEA import
  • Patch Authoring
  • Debug Desktop Bridge Apps
  • Deploying Updates
  • Using the Dialog Editor
  • Using SQL Databases
  • App-V Tutorials
  • Visual Studio Tutorials
    • Importing/Converting a Visual Studio Setup Project
    • Visual Studio Application Import
    • Create installers from Visual Studio
    • Add an MSIX build to your Visual Studio solution
    • Create VSIX Installers
    • Azure DevOps
  • Creating a new VM
  • RAD Tools Integration
  • MSI Import
  • WISE Import
  • Create MSIX
  • Import MSIX
  • Import Desktop Bridge AppX Package
  • IIS Tutorial
  • Deploy an MSI through GPO
  • Add trial support to your VB application
  • Multiple Builds
  • XML Locator Search
  • MSM with parameters for custom actions
  • Edit MSI packages through CLI
  • Create a package to deploy an Office Add-In developed in Visual Studio
  • Running scripts inside MSIX
  • How to import and convert an MSI to an MSIX without repackaging it?
  • How to install a Windows service through an MSIX package.
  • Configure Auto Updates for Your Application with Advanced Updater
  • Integrating licensing support in electron application
  • Deploy an MSIX package along with non-MSIX prerequisites
  • Install Dependencies and Runtimes using MSIX
  • Install Visual C++ Runtime
  • MSI Package Validation Using a .CUB File
  • Create an MSIX App Attach Image
  • How to package a Node.js application and deploy it to users
  • Add an MSIX build to your Visual Studio solution
  • Run EXE as administrator or in compatibility mode
  • Create a .NET Custom Action using Advanced Installer Extension for Visual Studio.
  • 'Save as Template' feature
  • Creating Suite Installations
  • Creating Modern Suite Installations
• Samples
• How-tos
• FAQs
• Windows Installer
• Deployment Technologies
• IT Pro
• MSIX
• Video Tutorials
• Advanced Installer Blog
• Table of Contents

Create an installer from Microsoft Visual Studio

The following article uses options that are available starting with the Freeware edition and project type.

This tutorial will show you how to create installers for your Visual Studio solutions using Visual Studio 2026. For other versions of Microsoft Visual Studio, please make sure you first download the corresponding Advanced Installer extension from the Visual Studio Marketplace.

We will start by adding an Advanced Installer Project to an existing solution, editing it and creating a package. Afterwards, we will include and a new Visual Studio project to the solution and build both projects in a single package.

• 1. Open the Visual Studio solution
• 2. Add an Advanced Installer Project to the solution
• 3. Create the first Visual Studio installer
• 4. Edit the installer project
• 5. Add another Visual Studio Project to the solution
• 6. Create the final install package
• 7. Automatically import .VDPROJ files (optional)
• 8. Add project output of a .NET core project to your setup project (optional)
• 9. Video tutorial
• 10. See also

1. Open the Visual Studio solution

Open the solution for which you want to create the Visual Studio install package.

2. Add an Advanced Installer Project to the solution

Once the Visual Studio solution is loaded:

• From the “New Project” dialog select Advanced Installer Project
• In the “Solution” field select Add to solution option
• In the “Name” field you can write a name for your project
• Press [ Create ] to add the project to the solution

By default, when adding an Advanced Installer Project, the build output of the solution will not be automatically added to the installer project, to do this you must:

• Go to the “Files and Folders" section of the Installer Project
• Press "Add Project Output" button
• Select the “Primary Output” and “References”
• Press [ OK ]

The output of each project contained by the solution is automatically synchronized in the Advanced Installer project.

Following these steps, Advanced Installer Extension for Visual Studio adds in the installer project all application references except the Microsoft .NET assemblies.

3. Create the first Visual Studio installer

In Visual Studio select "Build" > "Build Solution" option to start the build.

After the build is completed successfully, it will create two main files: HelloWorld.exe which is the output from the C# project and Installer Project.msi which is the installation package.

4. Edit the installer project

Using the Advanced Installer Project viewer, you can edit basic information about your installer like Product Details, Launch Conditions, Install Parameters, and much more..

Let's suppose we have an Enterprise edition of Advanced Installer. By default, the installer project will be created based on a Freeware license. Since we want to use features from the Enterprise edition, like selecting a theme for the installation dialogs, we will need to upgrade our project type:

• Press the [ Edit in Advanced Installer ] button to open your installer project in Advanced Installer
• From the “Project” menu select “Options...”
• Navigate to the Project Options Dialog and select Enterprise
• Press the [ OK ] button

Now, that we have an Enterprise project we have full access to all the available Advanced Installer Enterprise features.

• Go to Themes Page
• From the right view select the desired theme and variation for your installer dialogs
• Save the project and exit Advanced Installer

Visual Studio will ask you if you want to reload the installer project since it was modified. Press the [ Yes ] button.

5. Add another Visual Studio Project to the solution

If an Advanced Installer Project is added to a solution, it will automatically import the build output and all useful information related to the projects from the solution. If later, the existing projects are modified, or another project is added to the solution the import operation must be redone.

Let's add a new Visual Studio project to the solution:

• From the “New Project” dialog in Visual Studio select "Visual C#" > "WPF App"
• In the “Solution” field select Add to solution option
• Press the [ OK ] button. The new project will be added to the solution
• Rebuild the solution

6. Create the final install package

Include the second project in the installer package:

• Select the Installer Project.aip file from the "Solution Explorer"
• Check that both projects output builds are included in the installer package from the “Files and Folders” page
• Rebuild the solution
• Test the new installation package

The newly created installer will contain all the projects from the solution.

7. Automatically import .VDPROJ files (optional)

If you have solutions that contain old Visual Studio Deployment projects (.vdproj) you can automatically convert them to an Advanced Installer project and have it included in your solution, replacing the old VDPROJ. Just open the solution in Visual Studio, with our Advanced Installer VS extension installed, and VS will prompt you to accept the conversion from VDPROJ to AIPROJ (Advanced Installer VS project).

The new project Advanced Installer project will contain all the resources from the old VDPROJ. If you want to customize it more just use the "Edit in Advanced Installer" button, available when you open the .aip file in Visual Studio.

8. Add project output of a .NET core project to your setup project (optional)

If you have a .NET Core project in your Visual Studio solution, here is how to include its output in the setup project:

Go to the “Files and Folders" section of the Installer Project, click on "Add Project Output" and check "Publish Profile" option:

If there is no publish profile previusly created, you will be asked to create one:

Next, you will be asked where do you want to publish:

Choose "Folder" option in order to publish your application to a local folder.

Then, provide the path to the publish folder:

After publishing the application, go back to "Add Project Output" and select the newly created publish profile:

The final step is to build the Advanced Installer project in order to update the output files.

9. Video tutorial

10. See also

Advanced Installer User Guide