OFFXP: "Setup.ini Is Missing..." Error Message When You Run Setup.exe from a Web Server (286396)


The information in this article applies to:

  • Microsoft Office XP Professional
  • Microsoft Office XP Small Business
  • Microsoft Office XP Standard
  • Microsoft Office XP Students and Teachers
  • Microsoft Office XP Developer
  • Microsoft Access 2002
  • Microsoft Excel 2002
  • Microsoft FrontPage 2002
  • Microsoft Outlook 2002
  • Microsoft PowerPoint 2002
  • Microsoft Word 2002
This article was previously published under Q286396

SYMPTOMS

When you run Setup for Office, you receive an error message similar to the following:
Settings file C:\WINDOWS\DESKTOP\FILES\SETUP\SETUP.INI is missing or invalid. Please ensure this file exists and is accessible.
NOTE: The path to Setup.ini may vary.

CAUSE

This error message can occur if the following conditions are all true:
  • You are running Setup from a Web URL; for example, http, https, or ftp.
  • You select the Save this program to disk option in the File Download dialog box.
  • You are running Setup by using the downloaded copy of Setup.exe.

RESOLUTION

To prevent this error message from appearing, use either of the following methods.

Method 1: Run Setup.exe from the Web URL Location

Instead of running Setup.exe from your hard disk, run it directly from the Web server.

NOTE: This method only works if you are installing Office XP from a non-secure Web server.
  1. Click the link for Setup.exe on your Web server.
  2. In the File Download dialog box. select the Run this program from its current location option, and then click OK.
  3. If the Security Warning dialog box appears, click Yes to install and run Microsoft Office XP.
  4. Complete the remaining steps for the Office installation as if you were installing from a CD-ROM or a network administrative installation.

Method 2: Use the /Webinstall Command-Line Switch

If you want to use the downloaded copy of Setup.exe, you must use the /Webinstall command-line switch. To do this, follow these steps:
  1. Click the link for Setup.exe on your Web server.
  2. In the File Download dialog box, select the Save this program to disk option, and then click OK.
  3. In the Save As dialog box, select a download location, and then click Save.
  4. Click OK when the download is completed.
  5. Click Start and then click Run.
  6. In the Open box, type a command line similar to the following, and then click OK.

    local path\Setup.exe /Webinstall Web URL path to Office files

    NOTE: Local path is the path to the downloaded copy of Setup.exe; for example, C:\Windows\Desktop\Setup.exe. Also, Web URL path to Office files is the full Web URL to the root of the Office administrative installation on your Web server; for example, http://server/OfficeXP.

  7. Complete the remaining steps for the Office installation as if you were installing from CD-ROM or a network administrative installation.NOTE: Microsoft does not recommend that you perform an HTTP installation of Office XP from a Web server under certain scenarios. For additional information about this recommendation, click the article number below to view the article in the Microsoft Knowledge Base:

    328748 OFFXP: Microsoft Does Not Recommend Installing Office XP from a Web Server

MORE INFORMATION

You can also receive the error message in the "Symptoms" section in either of the following scenarios:

Microsoft Internet Explorer Version 3.0 or Later Is Not Installed

If all of the following conditions are true, you must upgrade Internet Explorer to version 3.0 or later, to prevent this problem:
  • You are running Setup from a Web URL; for example, http, https, or ftp.
  • You select the Run this program from its current location option in the File Download dialog box.
  • You do not have Internet Explorer 3.0 or later installed.
Installation from a Web URL requires you to have the Wininet.dll and Urlmon.dll files installed. Internet Explorer version 3.0 or later installs these files.

-or-

A Copy of Setup.exe Is in the \Temporary Internet Files Folder

If all of the following conditions are true, you must remove Setup.exe from the \Temporary Internet Files folder to prevent this problem:
  • You are running Setup from a Web URL; for example, http, https, or ftp.
  • You select the Run this program from its current location option in the File Download dialog box.
  • There is a copy of Setup.exe (previously downloaded from the Office XP administrative installation) in your \Temporary Internet Files folder but there is no copy of Setup.ini in your \Temporary Internet Files folder.

REFERENCES

For more information about the Microsoft Office XP Resource Kit, visit the following Microsoft Web site:

http://www.microsoft.com/office/ork/

Modification Type:MinorLast Reviewed:2/16/2006
Keywords:kberrmsg kbprb KB286396
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