The OpenROAD Windows Installer is a Microsoft Software Installer- (MSI-) based technology. The MSI contains the files and encapsulated logic needed to install the OpenROAD product on Windows systems. These instructions are packaged into a file with an .msi extension. For example, the OpenROAD installer files and instructions are packaged into a file called openroad.msi. The Loadnrun installer files and instructions are packaged into a file called loadrun.msi.

The utility setup.exe presents an interactive interface to the person installing OpenROAD. This utility is called a "bootstrapper." The function of the bootstrapper is to prompt the person installing OpenROAD to provide information needed to perform a custom installation. The setup.exe OpenROAD bootstrapper is a 4GL application that is packaged into an executable. The bootstrapper calls a Microsoft utility named msiexec.exe.

The msiexec.exe utility takes the openroad.msi and parameters that the bootstrpper passes to it on the command line and performs the custom installation. The parameters that the bootstrapper passes are called MSI PUBLIC PROPERTIES.

MSI PUBLIC PROPERTIES control the behavior of the installation operation. They can specify which features will be installed, the location the product will be installed, any installation log file location and logging options, and the level of installation feedback desired—from fully interactive, to passive display of progress, to completely silent.

A batch command script named ormsiexec.bat makes installation straightforward by directly calling msiexec.exe and thus bypassing having to call the OpenROAD bootstrapper, setup.exe. The interface to this script is simple. It takes a parameter that is a file name of a file that contains one PUBLIC PROPERTY per line. This file is called the PROPERTIES file.

The ormsiexec.bat script can do installations, upgrades, and uninstallations using the command line. It also has pseudo PUBLIC PROPERTIES that can control logging, display feedback, restart options, and debugging options.