Hi Robbie, What you describe as wanting is actually how it works.  There is no need to record N number of response files to account for N number of permutations of system requisites that will be installed.  This is why using record/playback capabilities in the SAS Deployment Wizard is a more robust solution as opposed to creating static MSIs based upon the state of one hosting environment (unless as noted previously it is known that all hosting environments are identical). A response file can be recorded for the same product mix and installed on different systems with different updates needed and the SAS Deployment Wizard will handle this dynamically during the silent playback.  Keeping up with N number of response files wouldn't be much better than keeping up with N number of MSI distributions custom built for each unique hosting environment. Cheers, -Jason ... View more

Hi, Repackaging in MSI can be problematic because in order to be successful all systems in the deployment must be identical.  A SAS deployment introduces a few Microsoft redistributables into the hosting environment based on the product mix being deployed and the state of the hosting environment.  If repackaging in MSI is done on a hosting environment that is different than a hosting environment on which the MSI will subsequently be deployed, certain system updates may be missing which will cause runtime errors.  Some organizations have a strict requirement for MSI based deployment.  If that is the case in your organization the key to success is to ensure that the system on which the package is created is identical the systems on which the MSI will be deployed.  If MSI is not a strict requirement then I recommend using the SAS Deployment Wizard's record and playback capabilities documented in Chapter 3 of the SDW user's guide. http://support.sas.com/documentation/installcenter/en/ikdeploywizug/64204/PDF/default/user.pdf This will yeild predictable results more so than repackaging because the SAS Deployment Wizard has all the knowledge about what updates to apply and when based on the product mix chosen and the hosting environment. Cheers, -Jason ... View more