How to Upgrade a Virtual Application Package (App-V 4.6)

Use the following procedure to upgrade an existing virtual application by using the Application Virtualization (App-V) Sequencer. You can also use the App-V Sequencer Console to make changes to an existing virtual application without performing an upgrade, but you cannot make modifications to the virtual application’s file system by using this method because the App-V Sequencer does not actually decode the associated .sft file. For more information about editing an existing package, see How to Modify a Virtual Application Package (App-V 4.6).

To upgrade an existing virtual application

  1. To start the App-V Sequencer Console, on the computer running the App-V Sequencer, select Start / Programs / Microsoft Application Virtualization / Microsoft Application Virtualization Sequencer.

  2. To open the existing virtual application package and start the Sequencing Wizard, select Upgrade a Package. Locate the package you want to upgrade, and click Open. In the Browse For Folder dialog box, specify the location where the upgraded version of the package will be placed. This location specified must be located on the drive specified as the application virtualization drive, which is typically the Q:\ drive. To create a new folder, select Make New Folder.

    Warning   You must specify the root folder of the existing virtual application. Do not manually create a subfolder or the upgrade will fail.

  3. On the Package Information page, specify the Package Name that will be assigned to the updated package. The package name is required for generating the associated Windows Installer file. You should also add an optional comment that will be assigned to the package and that provides detailed information about the virtual application—for example, a version number. To display the Advanced Options page, select Show Advanced Monitoring Options and click Next; otherwise, proceed to step 5.

  4. On the Advanced Options page, to allow Microsoft Update to update the application as it is being sequenced, select Allow Microsoft Update to run during monitoring. If you select this option, Microsoft Updates are allowed to be installed during the monitoring phase and you will need to accept the associated updates for them to be installed. To remap the supported dynamic-link library (.dll) files so that they use a contiguous space of RAM, select Rebase DLLs. Selecting this option can conserve memory and help improve performance. Click Next.

  5. On the Monitor Installation page, when you are ready to update the application, click Begin Monitoring.

    When the updates to the application have been applied, click Stop Monitoring. Click Next.

  6. On the Configure Applications page, if necessary, configure the shortcuts and file type associations that will be associated with the virtual application. To add a new file type association or shortcut, click Add, and in the Add Application dialog box, specify the new element. To remove an existing shortcut or file type association, click Remove. To edit an existing element, select the element you want to modify, and then click Edit. Specify the configurations in the Edit Application dialog box. Click Save. Click Next.

  7. On the Launch Applications page, to start the application to ensure that the package has been installed correctly and is optimized for streaming, select the package and click Launch. This step is useful for configuring how the application initially runs on target computers and for accepting any associated license agreements before the package is made available to App-V clients. If multiple applications are associated with this package, you can select Launch All to open all of the applications. To sequence the package, click Next.

  8. To close the Sequencing Wizard, click Finish. To save the updated package, in the Sequencer Console, select File / Save.

    If you plan to deploy the updated package by using a Windows Installer file (.msi), you must create new one as follows: in the Sequencer Console, select Tools / Create MSI. The new Windows Installer file will be created and saved in the directory where the updated virtual application package is saved.

How to Sequence a New Application (App-V 4.6)