Archive Files Overview

Archive files govern the installation and uninstallation of a packaged product (software, data, or parameters). The archive files contain version specific product information. Together with other files, the archive files form a product version that resides in a version directory of the product archive.

In general, archive files have the file extension .sxp, and therefore are also called SXP archive files. Archive files that contain information in a compressed format have the file extension .cmp, and are called CMP files.The mandatory info.sxp archive file is most important. It contains all of the critical information for the product, such as the version, predecessor, root directories, and dependencies.

All other archive files are optional. Some archive files are created automatically during the packaging process. If an archive file is not created automatically you can create it manually, except info.sxp.

There are different types of archive files, each of which is identified by a separate archive file icon. The icon without an image represents other archive files.

Information in the archive files is structured in sections. The first sections in all archive files are the Sign section and the Locale section, which are generated automatically and must not be changed.

You can edit all archive files manually by simply double-clicking the corresponding archive file icon in the Archive file window. In all archive files, parameters will be automatically replaced.

Note: If the files contain language-specific characters, we strongly recommend to use the Packager's editor, to avoid spoiling the character encoding!

The following table provides an overview of the archive files.

Archive file Name	Description
actions.sxp	Specifies the pre-programs and post-programs for installation and uninstallation of the product, and specifies files where parameters should be replaced. Must be created manually.
ascnnnn.sxp	Specifies modifications for an ASCII file. It is generated automatically.
check.sxp	Reserved for internal use.
dirs.sxp	Specifies the directories to be created and removed. It is generated automatically.
files.sxp	Specifies information about the product files and a reference to the files.cmp archive file in which the files are stored in compressed format. It is generated automatically.
filesn.cmp	Compressed archive files (CMP files) that contain the product files in compressed form. They are generated by the reference installation. If the size of one CMP file would exceed 2 GB or a defined number of files for the CMP file is reached, multiple CMP files are created (n=1, 2, ...)
gac.sxp	Contains changes made to the Global Assembly Cache (GAC) during a reference installation.
gina.sxp	(Windows NT Technology only) Specifies information about graphical identification and authentication (GINA). The file is generated automatically. Do not modify!
info.sxp	Specifies general information about a product. This file is required and cannot be generated manually.
ininnnn.sxp	Specifies modifications for an ini file. It is generated automatically.
links.sxp	Specifies the common shortcuts (links) that are to be added, deleted or modified during installation or uninstallation of a product.
original.sxp	Specifies settings for installing and uninstalling products on the target computer by using its original setup and uninstall files. The original.sxp file must be created manually.
permis.sxp	(Windows NT Technology only) Use the permis.sxp file to set access rights for the product's objects (files, directories, and registry keys), for specific users or groups, on NTFS partitions only. The permis.sxp file must be created manually.
services.sxp	(Windows NT Technology only) Specifies the services that are to be installed or uninstalled. It is generated automatically.
sreg.sxp	Specifies system-specific modifications to the registry. It is generated automatically.
sregdel.sxp	Specifies system-specific registry keys or values that are to be deleted during installation of a product. It is generated automatically.
uactions.sxp	Specifies programs belonging to a product, which are supposed to run in a certain user's environment. It must be generated manually.
udirs.sxp	Specifies information for the user-specific directories of a generated product. It is generated automatically.
ufiles.sxp	Specifies information for the user-specific files of a generated product. It is generated automatically.
ufilesn.cmp	Compressed archive files (CMP file) that contain the user-specific files in compressed form. The file is generated by the reference installation. If the size of one CMP file would exceed 2 GB or a defined number of files for the CMP file is reached, multiple CMP files are created (n=1, 2, ...)
uininnnn.sxp	Specifies modifications to user-specific ini files (*.ini). It is generated automatically.
ulinks.sxp	Specifies the user-specific shortcuts (links) that are to be added, deleted or modified during installation or uninstallation of a product. It is generated automatically.
ureg.sxp	Specifies user-specific modifications to the registry. It is generated automatically.
uregdel.sxp	Specifies user-specific registry keys or values that are to be deleted during installation of a product. It is generated automatically.
other	Archive files that belong to a version of a product but do not need a structure specified by the Packager. These files can be text files or binary files.
desktop.sxp	This archive file is obsolete. It is accepted with existing Windows 3.1x and Windows NT 3.51 products. Desktop.sxp specifies desktop modifications to be made for the product.