Remove desktop icon

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martinbj
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Joined:Thu Oct 27, 2011 4:59 am
Remove desktop icon

Post by martinbj » Thu Oct 27, 2011 5:05 am

Hi I have tested the new 7.01 version of frontmotion Firefox but there is one anoying thing about it.

I have deployed it with software installtion via a gpo and everything works great exept the fact that after everylogin the desktop icon is back on the desktop. we do not want the desktop icon. how do I remove it from comming back everytime a user logs in or out.

Right now I have solved it with an prefrences shortcut delete but there has to be antother way?. If I remove the icon I would not like it to come back after every login.
/Martin

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DraconPern
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Re: Remove desktop icon

Post by DraconPern » Thu Oct 27, 2011 8:39 pm

Do you happen to be using Zenworks?
FrontMotion Lead Developer

ldlx
Posts:10
Joined:Sat Oct 29, 2011 11:23 am

Re: Remove desktop icon

Post by ldlx » Sat Oct 29, 2011 11:26 am

Hi,

you can use Microsoft's free Orca utility to create a transform file for the MSI. With this file you are able to customize the installation, e. g. delete/create/modify shortcuts/files/folders/registry keys, cut out files/components you don't want to be installed and so on.

When you have created the transform file you have to re-deploy the MSI together with the transformation file.

Regards, ldlx

martinbj
Posts:2
Joined:Thu Oct 27, 2011 4:59 am

Re: Remove desktop icon

Post by martinbj » Wed Nov 02, 2011 1:25 am

Thanks
I will take a look at the orca utility then, my users don´t want a destop Icon so hopefully this can fix it :)
/Martin

MHX
Posts:32
Joined:Thu Oct 06, 2011 1:55 am

Re: Remove desktop icon

Post by MHX » Thu Nov 03, 2011 9:58 am

Instead of Orca I recommend InstEd (http://www.instedit.com), also for free (the pro version is not needed). Then you can easily create and modify transform files (*.mst) instead of manipulating the original msi setup file.
If you do not have a transform file, yet, open the msi file with InstEd, choose "Transform" menu / "New Transform", giva a filename and do the changes.
In this case click on the "Shortcut" table on the left side, then in the main window you click on the row with "DesktopFolder" and then press the Delete key (or right click and choose "Delete row(s)"). The background color of the deleted row gets a yellow color, so you know from the color that this is a deleted row, but you could revert your change later if you choose so.
Then press Ctrl+S (or choose File / Save) to save the MST file.

For installation you just add the TRANSFORMS parameter, e.g. if you had: msiexec /i Firefox.msi and maybe/probably some more parameters, you just add the transforms file: msiexec /i Firefox.msi TRANSFORMS="MyFirefoxSettings.mst" and the other parameters you might have. You can give a full path to the mst file if it is not in the same directory. You have to change the file name to the one you chose earlier when you created the transform file with InstEd.

That is how we remove the desktop icon and change directory name...
You don't need a new transform file for a new Firefox.msi version.

- Micha

ldlx
Posts:10
Joined:Sat Oct 29, 2011 11:23 am

Re: Remove desktop icon

Post by ldlx » Tue Nov 08, 2011 12:42 pm

Hi,

sorry to correct you, Micha, but you will need a new transform file for every new version when you *change* a line using a transform file - the icon name includes the version. So if you use an "old" transform file with a newer installer file you'll get a default windows icon instead of the firefox icon.

But just deleting something (the desktop icon for example) using a transform file is fine.

Regards, ldlx

BTW: Of course you can also use Orca to create a transform file the same way InstEdit does.

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