Deploy Windows Software with Filesets

Deliver one Windows test item

Start with one enrolled Windows computer and one harmless file or approved MSI. This lesson takes you from creating the Fileset to checking the result on that computer. You do not need to complete every packaging method below.

The native FileWave Client delivers this content. Windows MDM enrollment, Group Policy distribution of the Client, and IVS imaging are separate workflows. Finish Windows Enrollment first and confirm the test computer's identity, Client version, recent communication and initial inventory.

Choose your first item:

Item	When to choose it	Device-side success
A small, uniquely named PDF containing only evaluation text	You want a file-delivery result without installing software. Use the file-level route below.	The PDF is at the intended Desktop destination and opens with the expected contents.
One trusted vendor MSI	The organization has approved the application, installation and uninstall behavior. Use the MSI route below.	The intended version is installed and the application opens.

When you create the Fileset, keep it in an unassigned evaluation Fileset group. Adding it to an already deployed group can target more devices than you intend. Review the test computer's existing assignments and arrange cleanup with its owner. Installers and scripts normally run with elevated privileges; a small PDF deliberately avoids that execution risk.

Option A: deliver a small PDF

Give the PDF a name such as FileWave-Evaluation-Readme.pdf and include only a sentence identifying it as test content. Confirm that no file with this name already exists at the destination. Use a lab computer where it is acceptable to deliver the file to user Desktops: Users > All Users > Desktop is not limited to the person currently signed in. The Deployment will still target just one computer.

1. In Central Filesets, select New Desktop Fileset > Empty and give the Fileset a recognizable evaluation name.
2. Open Fileset Contents. Clear Hide unused folders if necessary, navigate to Users > All Users > Desktop, and add only the test PDF.
3. Select the PDF and open Get Info > Verification. Choose Download If Missing for this exercise. It restores a missing file during verification without replacing an edited copy. Removing its Deployment also removes the managed file, so do not use it as a working document.
4. Review the destination and the options that control overwriting files during initial delivery. Use the collision-free filename rather than assuming a default protects an existing file. Check Fileset properties for unexpected scripts, extra content or restart requirements.
5. Select Apply, close the editors and wait for upload to finish. A Modified marker means pending changes need review and publication; it does not mean the device has received the file.
6. Continue to Target, publish and verify below. If you consult the linked reference lesson, do not create a second Deployment.

Choose file verification behavior deliberately

These options apply to managed file-level content, not arbitrary files created by a third-party installer. Set them per file in Get Info > Verification or review Fileset-wide verification settings in its properties. Confirm the configured verification schedule with the owner rather than assuming a fixed interval. Manual Verify can process other manifest work; it is not a passive refresh.

Verification option	During verification	When this file-level Deployment is removed
Self-Healing	Restores the packaged file if it is changed or missing.	Removes the managed file.
Download If Missing	Restores a missing file; leaves an edited copy alone.	Removes the managed file.
Ignore at Verify (Left Behind)	Does not repair or re-download the file.	Leaves the file behind.

Self-Healing can conflict with an application's own updater by restoring packaged files over an update. Evaluate that interaction before applying file verification to software.

The older images show file-level and Fileset-wide verification controls, followed by the Desktop destination. They select Self Healing; choose Download If Missing for this exercise instead. Their checklist file, timestamps and other settings are examples, not content or defaults to copy.

Option B: create an MSI Fileset

Use one MSI from a trusted vendor source, approved for the test computer's OS and architecture. Confirm its silent-install behavior, prerequisites, disk-space needs, licensing, restart requirements and uninstall method. Do not deploy a new Client enrollment MSI as an application test on an already enrolled computer.

An MSI Fileset uses Windows Installer behavior, including the application's supported uninstall process. FileWave file-level Self-Healing does not repair the contents installed by an MSI. Uninstall behavior and leftover app data still need a separate check.

1. In Central, open Filesets and select New Desktop Fileset > MSI / PKG. Choose the approved MSI. Dragging the MSI into Filesets is an alternative import method, not an additional step.
2. Give the item a clear evaluation name and wait for its upload to complete. During upload, Central can show the Fileset in red and report progress in the bottom bar.
3. Inspect the Fileset and its installation settings. Stop if the upload is incomplete, validation fails, an unexpected prompt appears or a restart requirement has not been approved.
4. Continue to Target, publish and verify. Neither the Modified marker nor upload completion proves that the application is installed.

Older FileWave Admin example: an MSI Fileset upload is in progress. The application version, inventory counts and historical Associations toolbar are not instructions for this test.

Target, publish and verify

This sequence uses FileWave Central 16.4.x's Deployment editor. Fileset Creation and Deployment explains the controls, shared review and troubleshooting in more detail; use it as a reference, not as another deployment exercise. For an older interface, ask your SE for the matching assignment controls.

1. In Deployments, create a clearly named evaluation Deployment.
2. Use + beside Clients to add only the known test computer. Confirm its identity and a resulting count of one; review exclusions and existing assignments.
3. Use + beside Filesets to add only the PDF or MSI Fileset you prepared. Do not include both just to complete this page.
4. Expand Options, choose Direct Installation, leave optional scheduling unset and select OK to save.
5. Review content, target and all administrators' pending work before Update Model. Targeting one device does not limit the model commit to your changes. The Update Server Model dialog confirms the commit; it does not preview the changes. Confirm Update Model and record the resulting model number.
6. Keep the computer online. In Client Info > Filesets Status, inspect this Fileset's state, timestamps and errors. Then check the endpoint: open the PDF and read its contents, or confirm the intended application's version and launch it. Record the computer identity, observation time and actual result.

A new model number proves publication, not receipt. Active is FileWave's reported Fileset state; a recorded script Success is not an independent current application-health check. A recent Client Last Connect is also different from inventory Last Connected. Do not press Verify/Refresh Inventory merely to view the result: it can process installation, removal and repair work.

If the result is missing: check the exact target and exclusions, upload completion, saved Deployment, Model Update, Client communication, destination or installer requirements, and the specific reported error. An offline device must reconnect. Do not broaden the target, recreate content repeatedly or disable security controls to make the exercise succeed.

Finish this test safely

Record the Fileset, Deployment, model number, observed file path or application version, and any unresolved issue. You can keep the approved item for the evaluation. If you do, record that cleanup is still untested.

For the disposable PDF using Download If Missing, confirm that it has not become user work, remove this test Deployment from the computer, review shared changes and commit the required Model Update. Wait for Client processing and check that the file disappears from the intended destination. If the computer is offline, cleanup is pending rather than complete.

For an MSI, use the vendor-appropriate removal procedure agreed before installation and verify the application state afterward. Removing an assignment is not a universal undo for installers or app-created data. Do not delete a shared Fileset or uninstall the FileWave Client to remove a test item. Continue to Inventory Reports to review the available data; a file-only exercise does not require an application inventory row.

Optional: an EXE installer

Use this route after the first result, when the vendor does not provide an appropriate MSI. Confirm supported silent arguments, execution context, exit codes, timeout, restart behavior and uninstall method with the vendor and test them on an approved lab computer. Background execution alone does not make an interactive installer silent. If no supported unattended method is available, stop and plan the package with your SE rather than capturing the installation automatically.

1. Create New Desktop Fileset > Empty, name it, and open Fileset Contents.
2. Clear Hide unused folders if needed. Under ProgramData, create an approved staging folder such as fwEXE and add the installer. Protect the staged executable from modification by ordinary users; this is an installer location, not the application's final install path.
3. Select the EXE and open Get Info > Executable. For the validated unattended installer, select Execute once when activated, Non-interactive (background) and Wait for executable to finish. Use a wait limit validated for that installer, not a universal 15-minute value.
4. Add the vendor's exact silent Launch Arguments with +. Do not copy another application's arguments or put secrets in ordinary launch arguments.
5. Select Apply, close the editors and inspect the completed upload. Create a separate one-device pilot using the review, publication and endpoint checks above. Verify the installed application and its supported removal behavior, not merely that the staged EXE arrived.

File verification of the staged EXE does not provide Self-Healing for the software it installs. The older images illustrate ProgramData > fwEXE and the Executable controls. Their VirtualBox/7-Zip versions, argument and 15-minute wait are examples for those packages, not recommended values for yours.

Optional: plan a Fileset Magic capture

Fileset Magic compares snapshots to capture file and registry changes from a customized installation. Do not use Fileset Magic simply because an installer prompts for input. Prefer the vendor's supported MSI or unattended installer when available, and confirm that repackaging and redistribution are permitted by its license.

Use a clean, disposable build computer or VM and a separate test target. Before opening Assistants > Fileset Magic, agree on a release-appropriate procedure with your SE, the application owner and the Windows administrator. Define the scan scope from the application's documented installation locations; do not scan an entire daily-use computer because the locations are unknown.

The plan should cover the baseline snapshot, installation and customization, comparison of file and registry changes, and import of only the required differences. Minimize unrelated background activity. Exclude credentials, private keys, personal files, machine-bound licenses and unrelated Windows changes before importing a Fileset. Review the completed contents and test installation, launch, updates and removal on the separate target. A captured snapshot does not establish that a package is portable or supported.

Optional: Windows Driver Filesets for imaging

Windows Driver Filesets belong to Windows imaging, not ordinary Client enrollment or this app/file test. They accept .CAB and .INF drivers and supply them during imaging, before Windows boots into its hardware-detection setup. They are not a general post-install driver-update method.

For an approved imaging lab using an expendable device, use Filesets > New Imaging Fileset > Windows Drivers, select the folder of approved drivers and add the resulting Driver Fileset to the intended Windows image association. Validate drivers against the target hardware and Windows release first. Follow IVS setup and the imaging workflow's separate identity, backup, firmware and data-loss checks before any PXE boot. Skip this section if imaging is not part of your evaluation.