Silent Installation (Offline/Online)

For this installation type, you will use sam_apply.exe (typically installed in C:\Program Files\SOFiSTiK\common\SOFiSTiK Application Manager (SAM)\sam_apply.exe).

You can choose the source of the installation packages:

1. By default, sam_apply.exe will download and install from SOFiSTiK repository.

2. Alternatively, you can refer to Get Offline Installation Files to install from your own repository.

Use Offline Installation Files

1. Copy the repository directory to a location your clients can access. This location can be one of:

   • Network Share (SMB)

   • Web Server (HTTP/HTTPS)

   • Local Absolute Path (C:\sofistik_mirror)

2. Your repository will contain the newest sam.msi. Make sure to deploy it on your clients and keep it updated.

3. Point the client to your repository via repository registry key in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\SOFiSTiK\SAM (for example, with reg.exe or regedit.exe).

   • Key: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\SOFiSTiK\SAM

   • Name: repository

   • Type: REG_SZ

   • Examples for REG_SZ value:

   • Value: file://C:\local\sofistik_mirror

   • or Value: file://server/sofistik_mirror

   • or Value: http://server/sofistik_mirror

   • or Value: https://server/sofistik_mirror

   

To Start the Installation

1. Make sure that your computer/client is ready for installation. See: Anti-virus, Permissions, Ports, Whitelisting, Proxy Settings

2. On your clients, install SOFiSTiK Application Manager from repository or sam.msi .

3. Download a configuration file sample_install.json and modify it to your needs. This file describes all products and parameters for the installation/update/deinstallation.

4. Make sure that all required platform products are installed on your clients (e.g. SOFiPLUS requires Autodesk AutoCAD).

5. (Optional) Install CodeMeter User Runtime for licensing. The latest setup can be found here: https://www.wibu.com/us/support/user/downloads-user-software.html

6. In an administrative command shell call:

   "C:\Program Files\SOFiSTiK\common\SOFiSTiK Application Manager (SAM)\sam_apply.exe" --cli-input-json "C:\sofistik_mirror\sample_install.json"
   

7. Wait for the installation to complete. A Windows reboot might be necessary to apply all changes afterwards.

Note

Each execution of sam_apply.exe creates a log file (sam_apply_*.log) in the administrative user’s %TEMP% directory. The log files are numbered, the highest number corresponding to the latest execution. This log file can be analysed to track down issues during the installation.

sample_install.json

To download a sample file: sample_install.json For silent installations, because the command line parameters for several options and products can get really long and complicated, we decided to put them in a configuration file. In this *.json file (e.g. sample_install.json) all installation settings can be configured to your likings. A json file is an open-standard file format, comparable with xml or yaml. You can check for syntax errors with online tools when you search for “json validator”.

You can configure the following settings:

Setting	Description
cmdline_to_install	This list field is used to determine wich products will be installed. Per default, the newest service pack available is installed (e.g. “sofiplus_50”). If you know what you do, you can specify the exact service pack with “{product_id}=={servicepack}.{hotfix}” e.g. “sofiplus_50==2.0”. This can make sense if your licenses are too old to use the latest service pack. Each entry is a product identifier. For a full list see List of groups and product identifiers. It is important to use the same version for all related products (within the same group)! Do not mix versions. Version 2023-0 would be ==0.0. This is the first released version, e.g. “sofistik_2023==0.0” Version 2023-1 would be ==1.0. This is the version string for service pack 1. Version 2023-2.1 would be ==2.1. This is the version string for Hotfix 2.1. e.g. “sofistik_2023==2.1”
target_directory	SOFiSTiK root directory for installations.
language	Select the user interface language of the products. Can be en (English) or de (German).
product_msi_parameters	For example, depending on your AutoCAD 2020 version and language, you have to change the registry key CURRENT_AUTOCAD e.g. SOFTWARE\\Autodesk\\AutoCAD\\R22.0\\ACAD-1001:409 and the ACAD_ID to one of those IDs: ACAD_ID Autodesk Product Name ACAD AutoCAD ACA AutoCAD Architecture C3D Civil 3D

Service Pack Updates

1. (Optional) Edit your *.json file if needed as described in sample_install.json.

2. If you have an offline repository, update it and download the latest Serivce Pack as described in Get Offline Installation Files. Then run sam_apply.exe with your correct sample_install.json (usually no == SP restrictions).

3. If you download & install from SOFiSTiK servers, just run sam_apply.exe with your correct sample_install.json (usually no == SP restrictions).