WiX4 - Multiple services installed from one MSI, must filenames be unique?

[MarkStega]

I am installing 9 Windows services from one WiX4 built installer. Each of the services has a file called 'nlog.config'. When I run the installer MSI, I get the services installed properly in the desired directories, but the nlog.config that is placed in each service directory is the nlog.config from the first service.

It would be easy for me to give a unique name to each nlog.config and if that is the preferred route it isn't an issue, just a couple minutes of very minor code changes.

1. But, before I go that route, is there anything I can do using the WiX4 toolset that would install the service appropriate nlog.config in the installed service directory?

2. How are filenames resolved and is it possible that adding a real guid in the harvest output could change the behavior that I am observing?

[robmen]

We'll need more specifics about how the files are laid out exactly. Of course, you can't install the same filename to the same directory, but it isn't clear what your code is now or what you are trying to accomplish otherwise (I could make a few different guesses).

[MarkStega]

I start by harvesting each service:

  <PropertyGroup>
    <HarvestDirectorySuppressCom>true</HarvestDirectorySuppressCom>
    <HarvestDirectorySuppressRegistry>true</HarvestDirectorySuppressRegistry>
    <HarvestDirectorySuppressRootDirectory>true</HarvestDirectorySuppressRootDirectory>
    <HarvestDirectoryTransforms>$(ProjectDir)Filter.xslt</HarvestDirectoryTransforms>
  </PropertyGroup>
  <ItemGroup>
    <HarvestDirectory Include="$(SolutionDir)CommunicationService\$(OutputPathFragmentNet)">
      <ComponentGroupName>CommunicationService</ComponentGroupName>
      <DirectoryRefId>ApplicationRootDirectoryCS</DirectoryRefId>
    </HarvestDirectory>
    <HarvestDirectory Include="$(SolutionDir)DataServices\$(OutputPathFragmentNet)">
      <ComponentGroupName>DataServices</ComponentGroupName>
      <DirectoryRefId>ApplicationRootDirectoryDS</DirectoryRefId>
    </HarvestDirectory>
... repeated 7 more times for the additional services

I then create a directory structure:

		<StandardDirectory Id="ProgramFiles6432Folder">
			<!-- Create a folder inside program files called Optimium Health -->
			<Directory Id="ROOTDIRECTORY" Name="$(var.Manufacturer)">
				<!-- Create a folder inside Optimium Health for each service -->
				<Directory Id="ApplicationRootDirectoryCS" Name="$(var.ServiceNameCS)" />
				<Directory Id="ApplicationRootDirectoryDS" Name="$(var.ServiceNameDS)" />
                                 ... 7 more entries, each service is in its own directory
			</Directory>
		</StandardDirectory>

I then create the services:

		<DirectoryRef Id="ApplicationRootDirectoryCS">
			<Component Id="ComponentIdCS"
					   Guid="{19CD5363-7065-4CB4-A863-D4CC6B82362B}">
				<File Id="ServiceTargetFileNameCS"
					  Name="$(var.ServiceTargetFileNameCS)"
					  Source="$(var.ServiceQualifiedTargetFileNameCS)" />
				<ServiceInstall Id="ServiceInstallerCS"
								Type="ownProcess"
								Name="$(var.ServiceNameCS)"
								DisplayName="$(var.ServiceNameCS)"
								Description="$(var.ServiceDescriptorCS)"
								Start="demand"
								Account="LocalSystem"
								ErrorControl="normal" />
				<ServiceControl Id="StartControlCS"
								Stop="both"
								Remove="both"
								Name="$(var.ServiceNameCS)"
								Wait="yes" />
			</Component>
		</DirectoryRef>
... repeats 8 more times

And I install the services:

		<Feature Id="ServiceIdCS" Title="$(var.ServiceNameCS)" Level="1">
			<ComponentRef Id="ComponentIdCS" />
			<ComponentGroupRef Id="CommunicationService" />
		</Feature>
... repeats 8 more times

The services end up in "Program Files\Optimium Health\CommunicationService" with a distinct directory for each service.
Everything is functional except the fact that the nlog.config in the 9 output directories is the file from the first service.

[robmen]

Ahh. Something is probably awry in the harvesting. Maybe the XSLT or maybe a bind path not being specialized. Not clear to me exactly what is wrong, but 75% sure it'll be in that space.

[MarkStega]

@robmen
I don't think it is the xslt as it only removes files from the harvest:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?>
<xsl:stylesheet version="1.0"
                xmlns:xsl="http://www.w3.org/1999/XSL/Transform"
                xmlns:wix="http://wixtoolset.org/schemas/v4/wxs">
	<xsl:output method="xml" indent="yes" />
	<xsl:template match="@*|node()">
		<xsl:copy>
			<xsl:apply-templates select="@*|node()"/>
		</xsl:copy>
	</xsl:template>

	<!-- Match and ignore .pdb files -->
	<xsl:key name="pdb-search" match="wix:Component[contains(wix:File/@Source, '.pdb')]" use="@Id" />
	<xsl:template match="wix:Component[key('pdb-search', @Id)]" />
	<xsl:template match="wix:ComponentRef[key('pdb-search', @Id)]" />

	<!-- Match and ignore .xml files -->
	<xsl:key name="xml-search" match="wix:Component[contains(wix:File/@Source, '.xml')]" use="@Id" />
	<xsl:template match="wix:Component[key('xml-search', @Id)]" />
	<xsl:template match="wix:ComponentRef[key('xml-search', @Id)]" />

	<!-- Match and ignore .exe files -->
	<xsl:key name="exe-search" match="wix:Component[contains(wix:File/@Source, '.exe')]" use="@Id"/>
	<xsl:template match="wix:Component[key('exe-search', @Id)]"/>
	<xsl:template match="wix:ComponentRef[key('exe-search', @Id)]"/>

</xsl:stylesheet>

The first two services have the following harvest entries for nlog.config:

            <Component Id="cmpA3xlcj.ybVAuGrvsyx_YynTOSHc" Guid="*">
                <File Id="fillCgxsakxC2NKNRg5CjKrgEalb4w" KeyPath="yes" Source="SourceDir\nlog.config" />
            </Component>
and
            <Component Id="cmpUI1NjfcBtGbOhMAVwBBg8_5oGQE" Guid="*">
                <File Id="filROfnBHvnu72BC3p.Ne0vEALZR08" KeyPath="yes" Source="SourceDir\nlog.config" />
            </Component>

Does any of this help diagnose what I am seeing?

[nirbar]

Your harvested .wxs files take the files from SourceDir, which goes to the first matching file in current folder or in the unnamed bind paths.
You should add a preprocessor variable to the harvesting item metadata

 <ItemGroup>
    <HarvestDirectory Include="$(SolutionDir)CommunicationService\$(OutputPathFragmentNet)">
       <PreprocessorVariable>var.OutputPathFragmentNet</PreprocessorVariable>
...

and define the preprocessor variable to the compiler:

<PropertyGroup>
<DefineConstants>$(DefineConstants);OutputPathFragmentNet=$(SolutionDir)CommunicationService\$(OutputPathFragmentNet);</DefineConstants>

That of course should be done for each of the harvested fodlers

[MarkStega]

@nirbar
I defined two constants using the format shown:

	<PropertyGroup>
		<DefineConstants>$(DefineConstants);ServiceHeatPreprocessorCS=$(SolutionDir)CommunicationService\$(OutputPathFragmentNet);ServiceHeatPreprocessorSMS=$(SolutionDir)SystemMonitorService\$(OutputPathFragmentNet);</DefineConstants>
	</PropertyGroup>

and then added to the two harvest directives:

		<HarvestDirectory Include="$(SolutionDir)SystemMonitorService\$(OutputPathFragmentNet)">
			<ComponentGroupName>SystemMonitorService</ComponentGroupName>
			<DirectoryRefId>ApplicationRootDirectorySMS</DirectoryRefId>
			<PreprocessorVariable>var.ServiceHeatPreprocessorSMS</PreprocessorVariable>
		</HarvestDirectory>
((showing only one, the other is identical except the name of the var

There is no difference in the generated harvest files and no change in the copied nlog.config.

[MarkStega]

@nirbar
I had to restart my PC for reasons unrelated to WiX. When I returned to Visual Studio the changes that you suggested worked. Simply adding the property to the <HarvestDirectory...> section doesn't become part of the build until you unload/reload the WixProj project.

After I restarted the harvest file indeed had the new references and I can see that the proper files are being installed.