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Packaging HERE Core

Deploying HERE software using software deployment tools

Overview​

Enterprise environments prefer to distribute software to managed machines using a software deployment tool such as Microsoft Endpoint Configuration Manager (SCCM), Intune, or similar tools.

HERE standard installer is a per-user .exe that is designed to be run interactively by an end-user. Where packaging is preferred, the same .exe can be delivered through a centrally utilised distribution tool.

We cover

  • Packaging HERE software
  • Supported deployment options
  • Environment considerations

Packaging HERE Core​

Packaging HERE prepares your teams for a controlled, repeatable distribution to your managed devices. The output is usually an MSI — a Windows Installer package that your software deployment tool can deploy, manage, and track.

Important: HERE’s MSI is not a traditional thick-client installer. It does not install an application, and it does not control application upgrades or lifecycle. Its sole purpose is to deliver the HERE Core binaries; the HERE Core (Runtime) and the Runtime Version Manager (RVM), to the target machine.

Once the binaries are in the desired destination folder, the RVM manages:

  • Fetching the application manifest
  • Creating application shortcuts (unless configured otherwise)
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The MSI handles initial delivery. The RVM manages the application lifecycle.

Deployment options​

The right packaging approach depends on whether your Software Deployment Tool deploys software at the user level or the system level.

User-level​

If your software deployment tool can deploy software in the context of the logged-in user — rather than a system account HERE can provide an MSI that includes the application manifest.

In this scenario:

HERE provides: an MSI that bundles the RVM, Runtime, and the application manifest.

  • The MSI can write to user profile paths, fetch the manifest at install, and create shortcuts.
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When requesting a user-level MSI: Contact HERE Support and include your application manifest url, as the manifest is required to be bundled with binaries in the MSI.

System-level​

Software Deployment Tools often deploy software using a system account — a privileged Windows account with no access to user profile directories. Because the standard HERE Core installer writes to %localappdata% (a per-user path), it cannot complete successfully under a system account.

In this scenario:

HERE provides: an MSI that delivers the RVM and Runtime binaries to a system-accessible path (such as C:\Program Files).

Shortcuts must be pushed separately: after the MSI delivers the binaries, packaging teams push a shortcut that points the RVM to the application’s manifest URL.

The shortcut target should follow this format:

%RVMDIRECTORY%\OpenFinRVM.exe --config="<URL of application manifest>"

Note: The RVM default behaviour is to self-copy to %localappdata% and run from this location. If the self copy is allowed the RVM will copy to %localappdata%, read the application manifest and initiate application launch.

If you wish to prevent the self copy please use rvmInstallDirectory registry key and set the value as the location to your desired folder.

Shortcuts and uninstall considerations​

Regardless of deployment approach, packaging teams should be aware of how the RVM handles shortcuts and what a clean uninstall looks like.

RVM shortcut behaviour​

By default, the RVM manages shortcuts based on the application manifest. When shortcuts exist in system-wide locations (as they would when created by a system account), the RVM will attempt to move or duplicate them into the user's profile — putting them outside the reach of your SDT.

To prevent this, enable the disableShortcutCreation group policy or registry setting. This stops the RVM from creating or modifying shortcuts, giving your packaging team full control.

Uninstalling HERE Core​

Keep the following in mind when planning your uninstall strategy:

Recommended

Uninstall by removing the shortcut. Remove the shortcut that points to the application manifest. Without it, end users cannot launch the application. The HERE Core binaries remain in place for any other applications that depend on them.

  • Do not remove the HERE Core binaries. Multiple HERE applications on the same machine may share a single RVM installation. Removing the binaries will break other applications.
  • Keep disableShortcutCreation enabled during uninstall. If this setting is active, the RVM cannot recreate the shortcut after it has been removed — ensuring a clean uninstall.

For system-level deployments, the cleanest approach is to split delivery into 2 packages:

Package 1 — HERE Core binaries​

Deploys: OpenFinRVM.exe to a system-accessible path.

Changes rarely: this package can be shared across multiple HERE applications and only needs updating when a new base RVM version is requested for new packaging.

Do not uninstall: More than 1 application can be utilizing the RVM on the machine, uninstalling can lead to other applications not being able to run.

Package 2 — Application shortcut​

Deploys: a single shortcut pointing to the application manifest URL.

One per application: Packaging teams can version control this package as they see fit and once Package 1 is in place only Package 2 including a shortcut is required to launch an application built on HERE.

Clean uninstall: removing this package removes the shortcut and effectively decommissions the application, without touching the shared binaries.

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Prerequisite This pattern requires disableShortcutCreation to be enabled, so that the RVM cannot recreate the shortcut after it has been removed.

Note to Packagers​

Be advised, your organization may have already packaged and deployed an application utilizing HERE. The HERE RVM is a singleton binary which can run multiple applications at once. Changing the behaviour of the RVM through various properties described in this guide could impact reinstallation of apps already built on HERE and future installs too. HERE recommends checking whether other applications may have been previously deployed before proceeding.

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