Re: Programmatic method to determine currently installed Windows PostrgreSQL version - Mailing list pgsql-general

From Will Wright
Subject Re: Programmatic method to determine currently installed Windows PostrgreSQL version
Date
Msg-id 20051107203457.53432.qmail@web60711.mail.yahoo.com
Whole thread Raw
In response to Re: Programmatic method to determine currently installed Windows PostrgreSQL version  ("Magnus Hagander" <mha@sollentuna.net>)
Responses Re: Programmatic method to determine currently installed  (Richard Huxton <dev@archonet.com>)
List pgsql-general
--- Magnus Hagander <mha@sollentuna.net> wrote:
> > Hi,
> >
> > I'm in the process of creating an Windows
> installation
> > package for a product that uses PostgreSQL.
> >
> > During the installation I would like to check if
> PostgreSQL
> > is installed and if it is, which version.
> >
> > I think that I can infer that PostgreSQL is
> installed by
> > searching for the
> \HKLM\SOFTWARE\PostgreSQL\Services or
> > HLKM\SOFTWARE\PostrgreSQL\Installations registry
> keys.
> >  However I am not so sure about the version number
> identification.
> >
> > I note that with v8.0.x the following ValueName
> > exists:
> >
>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\PostgreSQL\Installations\{5AA3FA26
> > -72A2-4D06-9BFE-98E650A37B6D}
> > "Version"="8.0"
> >
> > And with 8.1 beta the following:
> >
>
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\PostgreSQL\Installations\{317D0ED1
> > -8845-40DD-A028-0A3EB8E24F2E}
> > "Version"="8.1-beta4"
> >
> > So it looks like the version number is underneath
> a key that
> > changes with every new version (new Product
> number).  And I
> > am therefore not sure if I can use this knowledge
> to identify
> > the installed version.
>
> It changes once for each major version, meaning
> there is one for 8.0 and
> 8.1. The whole 8.0.x series share the same id, as
> will the whole 8.1
> series (at least that's the plan). It basically
> changes when initdb is
> required to upgrade, which is why it also changes
> between betas.
>
> You can safely rely on these once you've seen the
> ones for a release.
> For example, don't use the beta4 one, wait for the
> 8.1 release one.
>
>
> > Does anyone have a better idea for a more reliable
>
> > identification method?
>
> Using these registry keys will reliably identify any
> PostgreSQL
> installations done using the MSI installer - it
> won't pick up any other
> install methods. For those, you could either search
> the filesystem, or
> attempt a connect to the default port etc - but I
> think those would
> either be too slow or a lot less reliable.

Hi Magnus, thanks for the quick response.
Unfortunately I still have an issue with this regsitry
identification method because I'd like to code my
installer so that it can also identify the postreSQL
versions that were not available at the time I
authored my install check, i.e. future versions.

In essence I know that my product works with
PostrgeSQL 8.0 and 8.1 and it my guees is that it will
continue to work with future PostgreSQL versions.  So
I'd like my installer to be able to check that 8.0 or
above is installed.

Is this possible, given the method the PostrgeSQL
installer uses to record it's version number in the
registry?

Thanks,
Will



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