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Command-Line Installation of the Jet Excel add-in using MSI


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Overview

For most installation needs, Jet Reports provides the consolidated installer - a self-contained .EXE file that handles the installation of all components of Jet Reports.  Some organizations have specialized needs and utilize their own installation processes.  Jet Reports makes an MSI installer available for these organizations.

Below are the steps (both required and optional) for using the MSI installer to install the Jet Excel add-in.

MSI Installation Considerations

  1. Download

    Your first step in performing a command-line install of the Jet add-in is to download the MSI installers.

    A zip file containing both the 32-bit and 64-bit MSI file is available here.

    You will need to extract the files contained in the zip file before they can be used.

    msi_extract.png
  2. System Platform

    Once you have downloaded and extracted the MSI files, your next step is to choose the correct installer for your system(s).  Based upon your edition of Microsoft Excel, you'll need to select either the 32-bit or 64-bit installer.

    Please note that your choice is determined by the bit-level of Excel, not the bit level of your version of Windows.  It is common (and sometimes recommended*) to run 32-bit Excel on 64-bit Windows.
    For our customers using Excel 2010 or higher with Microsoft Dynamics NAV 2009 R2 or earlier, Jet Reports recommends the 32-bit editions of MS Office.

    How do I determine which bit-level of Excel I have?

    The examples below denote the 32-bit installer (Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi).  If you have 64-bit Excel, you'll want to use the 64-bit installer (Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x64.msi)

  3. Silent Installation

    Silent installation is a feature that installs the Jet Excel add-in with no user interaction at all. This feature is primarily useful when creating automated installation scripts.

    In order to perform a silent installation of the Jet Excel add-in, you must use the Windows Installer database file Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi with the /qn command-line option:

    C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi /qn
  4. Language

    The language of the installer is set automatically based on the Operating System language.  This determines the language of the Start Menu shortcuts, but the Jet Excel add-in will still be able to support all languages that are currently available.

Command-Line Properties

Properties can be set on the command-line to be passed to the MSI.  These are specified using the following syntax:

C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi PROPERTYNAME=PropertyValue

The name of the property is case-sensitive and must be in all CAPS.  Below is a list of the supported properties and their functions:

  1. ACTIVATIONCODE

    C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi ACTIVATIONCODE=ABCDEF01-2345-6789-ABCD-EF0123456789

    The ACTIVATIONCODE property specifies the activation code that will be used to activate the Jet license the first time the Jet add-In is enabled in Excel.

    NOTE: The activation code is not validated at the time of installation.  If the activation code is invalid for any reason, each individual user will still be prompted to activate.

  2. SERVICEHOST and SERVICEPORT

    The SERVICEHOST property specifies the host name of the Jet Service Tier.

    The SERVICEPORT property specifies the port on which the Jet Service Tier is listening.

    C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi SERVICEHOST=MyServer SERVICEPORT=7090

    When specified, the Jet add-in will attempt to connect to this server/port in order to receive shared data source and license activation information from the Jet Service Tier.

  3. JET_HUB_URL

    The JET_HUB_URL property specifies the URL for the Jet Hub. Note: The Jet Hub URL should end with "/"

    C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi JET_HUB_URL=https://myserver.mydomain.com/
  4. EXCELPLATFORM

    The EXCELPLATFORM property specifies the platform of Microsoft Excel.

    C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi EXCELPLATFORM=x86

    The Jet add-in MSI will attempt to automatically detect the platform of Excel, and perform a validation check that it matches the platform of the current installation.  In some cases the platform of Excel cannot be detected, in which case specifying this property will override the validation check and allow the installation to continue.

    Note: The use of this property is not recommended unless the Excel platform cannot be detected automatically.

  5. AUTHENTICATION_TYPE

    The AUTHENTICATION_TYPE property specifies way the Jet Excel Add-In can connect to the Jet Service Tier and Jet Hub.

    C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddin_x86.msi AUTHENTICATION_TYPE=Office365

    Supported properties: Windows, Office365, Jet
    Windows: Used for Active Directory or Active Directory+Single Sign-On authentication
    Office365: Used for Azure Active Directory authentication
    Jet: Used for Basic authentication

    Note: These options are case sensitive.

Sample command-line:
C:\> Jet.Setup.ExcelAddIn_x86.msi AUTHENTICATION_TYPE=Office365 JET_HUB_URL=https://jetserver.mydomain.com/ EXCELPLATFORM=x86 SERVICEHOST=jetserver.mydomain.com SERVICEPORT=7090 ACTIVATIONCODE=ABCDEF01-2345-6789-ABCD-EF0123456789 /qn

Disclaimer: Please note that Jet Reports Technical Support staff is happy to help you with the installation Jet Reports using the methods described above.  Our analysts are not, however, familiar with all forms of MSI installers or your organization's specific internal processes.
The Jet MSI installers and the information in this article are provided to assist our customers who are already familiar with using MSI installers in their organization.


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