Due to security upgrades, all new UIU license keys with an expiration date after December 31, 2019 require the use of the new updated software, both the UIU Plug-in Manager — UIUPM.exe (2.2.3) — and the components software — UIUPrep.exe (5.8.1).
The necessary steps to update your UIU license key are, in order, as follows. Details on each step follow this summary.
“Using your current UIU Plug-in Manager, download the latest UIU Components and driver set using the Update Repository function on the Repository Management Screen of the UIU Plug-in Manager.”
Link to User Guide topic
Updating the UIU Repository which contains the software and drivers used during deployments is independent of updating the UIU Plug-in Manager itself and can be performed with any version of the UIU Plug-in Manager.
“Perform or schedule an update for your UIU packages in SCCM. It is important that the latest copy of UIUPrep.exe, version 5.8.1 (or newer), is distributed before updating your license keys.”
UIUPrep.exe version 5.8.1. was released on January 8th of 2019, and you may already be up-to-date if you have performed updates this year. Viewing the Details tab of the File Properties of any copy of UIUPrep.exe will tell you which version it is. Copies of UIUPrep.exe are located in the repository source location under amd64\uiuprep.exe and x86\uiuprep.exe. These should be the same as the copies on your distribution points presuming you have performed an update distribution point operation on the UIU packages since the last time you updated the UIU Repository source location using the UIU Plug-in Manager.
“Wait for package replication to finish.”
This is to emphasize that you must have UIUPrep.exe 5.8.1 distributed before updating your license keys or your deployments that leverage the UIU Deployment Configuration will fail.
“Update your copy of the UIU Plug-in Manager to version 2.2.3, if you have not done so already.”
Only UIU Plug-in Manager version 2.2.3 can support keys with expiration dates after December 31st 2019.
“Follow the procedure to update your license keys here: …”
Now that all the software to support the new license key is in place, you should now proceed with actually updating the license key.
(As of May 18, 2017)
So, you’re sitting at your PC (or a customer/user’s pc) minding your own beeswax, just installing an application, or perhaps uninstalling an application when… BAM! Something awful hits the fan! Now the bloody thing is all locked up and not responding to any key strokes or mouse clicks. It won’t even let you open up Task Manager to see what in the hell it might be up to, even though you’re pretty sure that it’s up to absolutely nothing…
Now, invariably, the user was standing, looking over your shoulder, absolutely clueless about the fact that you’re boned and about the fact that you too are absolutely clueless… (No, I’ve never been in that position!)
If you’ve been working with PCs for any appreciable amount of time, any good troubleshooter knows that sometimes, for one reason or another, an install or uninstall will get “borked” and that usually happens at just the wrong moment, of course. Thank you Murphy, for that little gem of a “law”… What happens during application installation or uninstallation?
Lots of stuff, really: files get copied, registry settings are potentially altered or created, active directory information may be read or altered, schema extensions may be initiated, operating system variables may be set, and Programs and Features registration is typically instantiated. Of course, it varies widely based on application demands and requirements… When, for various reasons, one of the necessary steps for an app install or uninstall doesn’t complete or fails outright, it can leave the app in a state of limbo, inhibiting the required re-installation of the app or, in extreme circumstances, it can inhibit the usefulness of the entire system. At the very least, it leaves administrators with a loss of confidence in the system and a dread that the problem is indicative of future time-consuming troubleshooting.
I’ve personally used many methods in the past including registry/file scraping where I try to find all references to the app and ruthlessly (albeit recklessly) remove all discovered instances, in a subtle homage to Orson Wells. I’ve also tried clearing temp files and have, of course, resorted to the time-tested “restart and see if that helps” method, usually followed immediately by, “Ok, let’s see if a hard boot helps”. What else? I’ve restored from Restore Points, run OS diagnostics; I’ve even run some very questionable, 3rd party applications to “reset” the registry. Basically, I’ve tried everything short of waving chicken bones, drenched in the blood of the vanquished, under a full moon at midnight on a solstice. I’m saving that one for a really critical situation!
Although some of these solutions have worked some of the time, most of them live in the “60% of the time, it works every time” category. Although there are not hard-and-fast, always effective methods, I’ve been made aware of some interesting tools from Microsoft and, so far, have had success with them. I thought others may appreciate knowing about them.
This tool is so simple to execute that I’m having difficulty elaborating, so perhaps for once, I won’t. Suffice it to say that the UI is intuitive.
When the process is complete, you’ll receive a results screen indicating that it was (or was not) able to resolve the problem. It’s that simple.
This tool is a bit more involved and, I presume, a bit more risky — think of “malware detection programs reminding you that removing some discovered items may result in the untimely death of your OS” risky. The tool removes all Windows Installer information for one or more applications on a PC through the clever use of Product Codes. With command line options, you can also elect to remove rollback information, remove the “In-Progress” key, or even change ACL’s to Admin Full Control.
Download MsiZap
As the command line nature of the application can be a bit unwieldy, I’ve included a link to examples of its use as well. Heads-up! You’ll need to be able to determine Product Codes for applications that you’d like to target. Fun!
Syntax Examples:
In summary, we all have our methods; some of those methods are more sound than others or at least more based in actual computer science and we’ll likely continue to employ what we perceive to have worked for us in the past. That’s great. Here are two more for your arsenal. Godspeed, John Glenn!