How to Create Applications in Configuration Manager

To start the Create Application Wizard

1. In the Configuration Manager console, click Software Library.

2. In the Software Library workspace, expand Application Management, and then click Applications.

3. On the Home tab, in the Create group, click Create Application.

To automatically detect application information

1. On the General page of the Create Application Wizard, select the Automatically detect information about this application from installation files check box.

2. In the Type drop-down list, select the application installation file type that you want to use to detect application information. For information about the available installation types, see Deployment Types Supported by Configuration Manager in this topic.

3. In the Location field, specify the UNC path in the form \\<server>\<share>\<filename> or the store link for the application installation file that you want to use to detect application information. Alternatively, click Browse to browse to the installation file.

   Important

   When you select Windows Installer (Native) (Configuration Manager with no service pack) or Windows Installer (*.msi file) (Configuration Manager Service Pack 1 [SP1]) as an application type, all of the files in the folder that you specify will be imported with the application and will be sent to distribution points. Ensure that only the files that are necessary to install the application are in the folder that you specify. Configuration Manager is tested to support up to 20,000 application files in the application package. If your application contains more files, consider creating multiple applications that have a smaller number of files.

   Note

   You must have access to the UNC path that contains the application and any subfolders that contain application content.

4. Click Next.

5. On the Import Information page of the Create Application Wizard, review the information that was imported, and then click Next. If necessary, you can click Previous to go back and correct any errors.

6. On the General Information page of the Create Application Wizard, specify the following information:

   Note

   Some of this information might already be populated if it was automatically obtained from the application installation files. Additionally, the displayed options might be different depending on the application type that you create.

   - Provide general information about the application, such as the application name, comments, version, and an optional reference to help you reference the application in the Configuration Manager console.
   
   - **Installation program**: Specify the installation program and any required properties that are needed to install the application deployment type.
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!NOTE]
     > <P>If the installation program does not appear, click <STRONG>Browse</STRONG> and browse to the installation program location.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
   - **Install behavior**: Specify whether the application deployment type will be installed for the currently logged-on user only or for all users. You can also specify that the deployment type will be installed for all users if it is deployed to a device or only to a specific user if it is deployed to a user.
   
   - For System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager and later: **Use an automatic VPN connection (if configured)**: If a VPN profile has been deployed to the device on which the app is launched, launch the VPN connection when the app starts (Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 only).
   
     On Windows Phone 8.1 devices, automatic VPN connections are not supported if more than one VPN profile has been deployed to the device.
   
     For more information about VPN profiles, see [VPN Profiles in Configuration Manager](dn261217\(v=technet.10\).md).
   

7. Click Next, review the application information on the Summary page, and then complete the Create Application Wizard.

8. The new application appears in the Applications node of the Configuration Manager console, and you have completed the process of creating an application. If you want to add more deployment types to the application, see Steps to Create a Deployment Type in this topic.

To manually define application information

1. On the General page of the Create Application Wizard, select Manually specify the application information, and then click Next.

2. Specify general information about the application, such as the application name, comments, version, and an optional reference to help you find the application in the Configuration Manager console.

3. Click Next.

4. On the Application Catalog page of the Create Application Wizard, specify the following information:

   - **Selected language**: In the drop-down list, select the language version of the application that you want to configure. Click **Add/Remove** to configure more languages for this application.
   
   - **Localized application name**: Specify the application name in the language that you selected in the **Selected language** drop-down list.
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!IMPORTANT]
     > <P>You must specify a localized application name for each language version that you configure.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
   - **User categories**: Click **Edit** to specify application categories in the language that you selected in the **Selected Language** drop-down list. Users of the Application Catalog can use these selected categories to help filter and sort the available applications.
   
   - **User documentation**: Click **Browse** to specify the URL to, or the UNC path and file name of, a file that users of the Application Catalog can read to get more information about this application.
   
   - **Link text**: Specify the text that will appear in place of the URL to the application.
   
   - **Application Privacy URL**: Specify a URL that links to the privacy statement for the application.
   
   - **Localized description**: Enter a description for this application in the language that you selected in the **Selected Language** drop-down list.
   
   - **Keywords**: Enter a list of keywords in the language that you selected in the **Selected Language** drop-down list. These keywords will help users of the Application Catalog search for the application.
   
   - **Icon**: Click **Browse** to select an icon for this application from the available icons. If you do not specify an icon, a default icon will be used for this application.
   
   - **Display this as a featured app and highlight it in the company portal**: Select this option to display the app prominently in the company portal.
   

5. Click Next.

6. On the Deployment Types page of the Create Application Wizard, click Add to create a new deployment type.

   Note

   For information about how to create a deployment type, see Steps to Create a Deployment Type in this topic.

7. Click Next, review the application information on the Summary page, and then complete the Create Application Wizard.

8. The new application appears in the Applications node of the Configuration Manager console.

1. In the Configuration Manager console, click Software Library.

2. In the Software Library workspace, expand Application Management, and then click Applications.

3. Select an application and then, on the Home tab, in the Application group, click Create Deployment Type to create a new deployment type for this application.

   Note

   You can also start the Create Deployment Type Wizard from the Create Application Wizard and from the Deployment Types tab of the <application name>  Properties dialog box.

To automatically detect the deployment type information

1. On the General page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, select the Automatically identify information about this deployment type from installation files check box.

   Note

   If you want to define this application information manually, go to the procedure.

2. In the Type field, select the application installation file type that you want to use to detect the deployment type information.

3. In the Location field, specify the UNC path in the form \\<server>\<share>\<file_name> or the store link to the application installation files and the content that you want to use to detect the deployment type information, or click Browse to browse to the installation file.

   Note

   You must have access to the UNC path that contains the application and any subfolders that contain the application content.

4. Click Next.

5. On the Import Information page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, review the information that was imported, and then click Next. You can also click Previous to go back and correct any errors.

6. On the General Information page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, specify the following information:

   Note

   Some of the deployment type information might already be present if it was read from the application installation files. Additionally, the displayed options might differ depending on the deployment type that you are creating.

   - Specify general information about the deployment type, such as the name, administrator comments, and available languages.
   
   - **Installation program**: Specify the installation program and any properties that you require to install the deployment type.
   
   - **Install behavior**: Specify whether to install the deployment type for the currently logged-on user or for all users. You can also specify whether to install the deployment type for all users if it is deployed to a device, or whether to install the deployment type to a user only if it is deployed to a user.
   
   - For System Center 2012 R2 Configuration Manager and later: **Use an automatic VPN connection (if configured)**: If a VPN profile has been deployed to the device on which the app is launched, launch the VPN connection when the app starts (Windows 8.1 and Windows Phone 8.1 only). If multiple VPN profiles have been deployed to a Windows 8.1 device, the first deployed VPN profile is used by default.
   
     On Windows Phone 8.1 devices, automatic VPN connections are not supported if more than one VPN profile has been deployed to the device.
   
     For more information about VPN profiles, see [VPN Profiles in Configuration Manager](dn261217\(v=technet.10\).md).
   

7. Click Next, and then continue to the procedure Step 3: Specify Content Options for the Deployment Type.

To manually define the deployment type information

1. On the General page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, select Manually specify the deployment type information.

   Note

   If you want to automatically retrieve the deployment type information, go to the procedure in Step 2: Specify whether you want to Automatically Detect Deployment Type Information or Manually Define the Information.

2. In the Type field, choose the application installation file type that you want to use to detect the deployment type information. You can choose the same installation types that you would use when you automatically detect the deployment type information, and you can additionally specify a script to install the deployment type.

3. Click Next.

4. On the General Information page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, specify a name for the deployment type, an optional description, and the languages in which you want to make this deployment type available, and then click Next.

5. Continue to Step 3: Specify Content Options for the Deployment Type.

To specify content options for the deployment type

1. On the Content page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, specify the following information:

   - **Content location**: Specify the location of the content for this deployment type, or click **Browse** to choose the deployment type content folder.
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!IMPORTANT]
     > <P>The <STRONG>System</STRONG> account of the site server computer must have permissions to the content location that you specify.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
   - **Persist content in the client cache**: Select this option to specify whether the content should be retained in the cache on the client computer indefinitely, even if it has already been run. Although this option can be useful with some deployments, such as Windows Installer–based software that requires a local source copy to be available for applying updates, it will reduce the available cache space. If you select this option, it might cause a large deployment to fail at a later point if the cache does not have sufficient available space.
   
   - **Allow clients to share content with other clients on the same subnet**: Select this option to reduce load on the network by allowing clients to download content from other local clients on the network that have already downloaded and cached the content. This option utilizes Windows BranchCache technology, and you can use it on computers that run Windows Vista SP2 and later operating systems.
   
   - **Installation program**: Specify the name of the installation program and any required installation parameters, or click **Browse** to browse to the installation file.
   
   - **Installation start in**: Specify the folder that contains the installation program for the deployment type. This folder can be an absolute path on the client, or a path to the distribution point folder that contains the installation files. This field is optional.
   
   - **Uninstall program**: Specify the name of the uninstallation program and any required parameters, or click **Browse** to browse to the location of the uninstallation program. This field is optional.
   
   - **Uninstall start in**: Specify the folder that contains the uninstallation program for the deployment type. This folder can be an absolute path on the client, or a path that is relative to the distribution point folder that contains the package. This field is optional.
   
   - **Run installation and uninstall program as 32-bit process on 64-bit clients**: Use the 32-bit file and registry locations on Windows-based computers to run the installation program for the deployment type.
   

2. Click Next.

To configure a detection method

1. On the Detection Method page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, select Configure rules to detect the presence of this deployment type, and then click Add Clause.

   Note

   You can also select Use a custom script to detect the presence of this deployment type. For more information, see the To use a custom script to determine the presence of a deployment type section in this topic.

2. In the Detection Rule dialog box, in the Setting type drop-down list, select the method that you want to use to detect the presence of the deployment type. You can choose from the following available methods:

   - **File System**: Use this method to detect whether a specified file or folder exists on a client device, thus indicating that the application is installed.
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!NOTE]
     > <P>The <STRONG>File system</STRONG> setting type does not support specifying a UNC path to a network share in the <STRONG>Path</STRONG> field. You can only specify a local path on the client device.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!NOTE]
     > <P>Select the option <STRONG>This file or folder is associated with a 32-bit application on 64-bit systems</STRONG> to check 32-bit file locations for the specified file or folder first. If the file or folder is not found, 64-bit locations will be searched.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
   - **Registry**: You can use this method to detect whether a specified registry key or registry value exists on a client device, thus indicating that the application is installed.
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!NOTE]
     > <P>Select the option <STRONG>This registry key is associated with a 32-bit application on 64-bit systems</STRONG> to check 32-bit registry locations for the specified registry key first. If the registry key is not found, 64-bit locations will be searched.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
   - **Windows Installer**: Use this method to detect whether a specified Windows Installer file exists on a client device, thus indicating that the application is installed.
   

3. Specify details about the item that you want to use to detect whether this deployment type is installed. For example, you can use a file, folder, registry key, registry value, or a Windows Installer product code.

4. Specify details about the value that you want to assess against the item that you use to detect whether the deployment type is installed. For example, if you use a file to determine whether the deployment type is installed, you can select the The file system setting must exist on the target system to indicate presence of this application check box.

5. Click Next to close the Detection Rule dialog box.

To use a custom script to determine the presence of a deployment type

1. On the Detection Method page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, select the Use a custom script to detect the presence of this deployment type check box, and then click Edit.

2. In the Script Editor dialog box, in the Script type drop-down list, select the script language that you want to use to detect the deployment type.

3. In the Script contents field, enter the script that you want to use. You can also paste the contents of an existing script in this field, or click Open to browse to an existing saved script. Configuration Manager determines the results from the script by reading the values that are written to the Standard Out (STDOUT) output stream, the Standard Error (STDERR) output stream, and the exit code from the script. If the exit code is a nonzero value, the script has failed and the application detection status is unknown. If the exit code is zero and STDOUT contains data, the application detection status is Installed.

   Use the following table to determine how you can use the output from a script to determine whether an application is installed.

   Script exit code	Data read from STDOUT	Data read from STDERR	Script result	Application detection state
   0	Empty	Empty	Success	Not installed
   0	Empty	Not empty	Failure	Unknown
   0	Not empty	Empty	Success	Installed
   0	Not empty	Not empty	Success	Installed
   Non-zero value	Empty	Empty	Failure	Unknown
   Non-zero value	Empty	Not empty	Failure	Unknown
   Non-zero value	Not empty	Empty	Failure	Unknown
   Non-zero value	Not empty	Not empty	Failure	Unknown

   The following table contains Microsoft Visual Basic (VB) sample scripts that you can use to write your own application detection scripts.

   Visual Basic sample script	Description
   WScript.Quit(1)	The script returns an exit code that is not zero, which indicates that it failed to run successfully. In this case, the application detection state is unknown.
   WScript.StdErr.Write "Script failed" WScript.Quit(0)	The script returns an exit code of zero, but the value of STDERR is not empty, which indicates that the script failed to run successfully. In this case, the application detection state is unknown.
   WScript.Quit(0)	The script returns an exit code of zero, which indicates that it ran successfully. However, the value for STDOUT is empty, which indicates that the application is not installed.
   WScript.StdOut.Write "The application is installed" WScript.Quit(0)	The script returns an exit code of zero, which indicates that it ran successfully. The value for STDOUT is not empty, which indicates that the application is installed.
   WScript.StdOut.Write "The application is installed" WScript.StdErr.Write "Completed" WScript.Quit(0)	The script returns an exit code of zero, which indicates that it ran successfully. The values for STDOUT and STDERR are not empty, which indicates that the application is installed.

   Note

   The maximum size that you can use for a script is 32 kilobytes (KB).

4. Click OK to close the Script Editor dialog box.

5. Click Next.

To specify user experience options for the deployment type

1. On the User Experience page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, specify the following information:

   - **Installation behavior**: In the drop-down list, select one of the following options:
   
       - **Install for user**: The application is installed only for the user to whom the application is deployed.
   
       - **Install for System**: The application is installed only once, and it is available to all users.
   
       - **Install for System if resource is device; otherwise install as user**: If the application is deployed to a device, it will be installed for all users. If the application is deployed to a user, it will be installed for only that user.
   
   - **Logon requirement**: Specify the logon requirements for this deployment type from the following options:
   
       - **Only when a user is logged on**
   
       - **Whether or not a user is logged on**
   
       - **Only when no user is logged on**
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!NOTE]
     > <P>This option defaults to <STRONG>Only when a user is logged on</STRONG>, and it cannot be changed if you selected <STRONG>Install for user</STRONG> in the <STRONG>Installation behavior</STRONG> drop-down list.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
   - **Installation program visibility**: Specify the mode in which the deployment type will run on client devices. The following options are available:
   
       - **Maximized**: The deployment type runs maximized on client devices. Users will see all installation activity.
   
       - **Normal**: The deployment type runs in the normal mode based on system and program defaults. This is the default mode.
   
       - **Minimized**: The deployment type runs minimized on client devices. Users might see the installation activity in the notification area or taskbar.
   
       - **Hidden**: The deployment type runs hidden on client devices, and users will see no installation activity.
   
   - **Allow users to view and interact with the program installation**: Specify whether a user can interact with the deployment type installation to configure the installation options.
   
     <div class="alert">
   
   
     > [!NOTE]
     > <P>This option is enabled by default if you selected the <STRONG>Install for user</STRONG> option in the <STRONG>Installation behavior</STRONG> drop-down list.</P>
   
   
     </div>
   
   - **Maximum allowed run time (minutes)**: Specify the maximum time that the program is expected to run on the client computer. You can specify this setting as a whole number greater than zero. The default setting is **120** minutes.
   
     This value is used for the following purposes:
   
       - To monitor the results from the deployment type.
   
       - To determine whether a deployment type will be installed when maintenance windows are defined on client devices. When a maintenance window is in place, a program will start only if enough time is available in the maintenance window to accommodate the **Maximum Allowed Run Time** setting.
   
         <div class="alert">
   
   
         > [!IMPORTANT]
         > <P>A conflict might occur if the <STRONG>Maximum allowed run time</STRONG> is longer than the scheduled maintenance window. If the user sets the maximum run time to a period that exceeds the length of any available maintenance window, that deployment type will not be run.</P>
   
   
         </div>
   

2. Estimated installation time (minutes): Specify the estimated time that installation of the deployment type will take. This is displayed to users of the Application Catalog.

3. Click Next.

1. On the Requirements page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, click Add to open the Create Requirement dialog box, and add a new requirement.

   Note

   You can also add new requirements on the Requirements tab of the <deployment type name> Properties dialog box.

2. In the Category drop-down list, select whether this requirement is for a device or a user, or select Custom to use a previously created global condition. When you select Custom, you can also click Create to create a new global condition. For more information about global conditions, see How to Create Global Conditions in Configuration Manager.

   Important

   If you create a requirement of the category User and the condition Primary Device, and then deploy the application to a device collection, the requirement will be ignored.

3. In the Condition drop-down list, select the condition that you want to use to assess whether the user or device meets the installation requirements. The contents of this list will vary depending on the selected category.

4. In the Operator drop-down list, select the operator that will be used to compare the selected condition to the specified value to assess whether the user or device meets the installation requirements. The available operators will vary depending on the selected condition.

   Important

   The available requirements will differ depending on the device type that the deployment type is for.

5. In the Value field, specify the values that will be used with the selected condition and operator to evaluate whether the user or device meets the installation requirements. The available values will vary depending on the selected condition and the selected operator.

6. Click OK to save the requirement rule and close the Create Requirement dialog box.

7. On the Requirements page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, click Next.

To specify deployment type dependencies

1. On the Dependencies page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, click Add if you want to specify the deployment types that must be installed before this deployment type can be installed.

   Note

   You can also add new dependencies on the Dependencies tab of the <deployment type name> Properties dialog box.

2. In the Add Dependency dialog box, click Add.

3. In the Specify Required Application dialog box, select an existing application and one of the application deployment types to use as a dependency.

   Note

   You can click View to display the properties of the selected application or deployment type.

4. Click OK to close the Specify Required Application dialog box.

5. If you want a dependent application to be automatically installed, select Auto Install next to the dependent application.

   Note

   A dependent application does not need to be deployed to be automatically installed.

6. In the Add Dependency dialog box, in the Dependency group name field, enter a name to refer to this group of application dependencies.

7. Optionally, use the Increase Priority and Decrease Priority buttons to change the order in which each dependency is evaluated.

8. Click OK to close the Add Dependency dialog box.

9. Click Next.

1. On the Summary page of the Create Deployment Type Wizard, review the actions that the wizard will take. Click Next to create the deployment type, or click Previous to go back and change the settings for the deployment type.

2. After the Progress page of the wizard finishes, review the actions that the wizard took, and then click Close to complete the wizard.

3. If you started the Create Deployment Type Wizard from the Create Application Wizard, you will return to the Deployment Types page of the Create Application Wizard.

To configure content options for Application Virtualization (App-V) deployment types

1. In the Configuration Manager console, click Software Library.

2. In the Software Library workspace, click Applications.

3. In the Applications list, select an application that contains an App-V deployment type. Then, on the Home tab, in the Properties group, click Properties.

4. In the Application Name Properties dialog box, on the Deployment Types tab, select an App-V deployment type, and then click Edit.

5. In the Deployment Type Name Properties dialog box, on the Content tab, configure the following options if required:

   - **Persist content in the client cache**: Select this option to ensure that the content for this deployment type is not deleted from the Configuration Manager client cache.
   
   - **Load content into App-V cache before launch**: Select this option to ensure that all content for the virtual application is loaded into the App-V cache before the application starts. Selection of this option also ensures that the application content is not pinned in the cache and can be deleted as required.
   

6. Click OK to close the <Deployment Type Name> Properties dialog box.

7. Click OK to close the <Application Name> Properties dialog box.

To configure publishing options for App-V deployment types

1. In the Configuration Manager console, click Software Library.

2. In the Software Library workspace, click Applications.

3. In the Applications list, select an application that contains an App-V deployment type. Then, on the Home tab, in the Properties group, click Properties.

4. In the <Application Name> Properties dialog box, on the Deployment Types tab, select an App-V deployment type, and then click Edit.

5. In the <Deployment Type Name> Properties dialog box, on the Publishing tab, select the items in the virtual application that you want to publish.

6. Click OK to close the <Deployment Type Name> Properties dialog box.

7. Click OK to close the <Application Name> Properties dialog box.