Custom Installation

IT administrators can use the standard Model Vista Windows MSI with an optional deployment profile ZIP. The profile supplies shared library locations, default settings, and optionally local models or backgrounds for multiple PCs.

You only need to include the items you want to customise. Omitted settings use the application defaults. Existing users keep their saved settings; the profile supplies defaults when a user’s settings file is missing.

Create A Profile From A Reference PC

1. Open Model Vista on a Windows PC and configure the libraries and settings you want to deploy. For shared libraries, use UNC paths such as \\NAS\ModelVista\Models rather than mapped drive letters.
2. Open the library settings and click Export Deployment Profile….
3. Save the ZIP as profile.zip.
4. If you only want to customise libraries, remove the app, camera, and turntable settings files from the ZIP. Keep DefaultSettings/ModelVistaLibraries.json.
5. Copy the ZIP and the MSI to the deployment location on each target PC.

The export includes the displayed library configuration, including unsaved library edits, and the current app, camera, and turntable settings. Library content is referenced rather than copied. Review exported paths to ensure that each target user can access them. Personal display identity, the last opened background, webcam device names, authentication, and licensing data are not exported.

Install With The Profile

For interactive installation:

1. Run the MSI and choose the installation directory.
2. On Organisation Configuration, click Browse… and select profile.zip.
3. Click Next. If validation reports a problem, correct the ZIP and select it again.
4. Choose whether to install the bundled backgrounds and sample models on Optional Content, then complete setup.

Leave the profile field empty for a normal installation. On an upgrade or repair, leaving it empty retains any previously installed customer profile.

For an unattended installation, run this command from Command Prompt or PowerShell with administrator permissions:

msiexec /i "C:\Deployment\ModelVista.msi" /qn /norestart MV_DEPLOYMENT_PROFILE="C:\Deployment\profile.zip"

Replace the MSI filename with the supplied installer filename. Use an absolute path to the ZIP. For deployment as SYSTEM, stage the ZIP locally so that the installer can read it.

To omit the bundled samples and backgrounds, add these optional properties:

msiexec /i "C:\Deployment\ModelVista.msi" /qn /norestart MV_DEPLOYMENT_PROFILE="C:\Deployment\profile.zip" INSTALL_SAMPLE_MODELS=0 INSTALL_BACKGROUNDS=0

Use 1 instead of 0 to request a bundled pack. Explicit command-line choices override any bundled-content choices in the profile. The target PC requires .NET Framework 4.7.2 or later.

Profile Contents

Place the following entries directly at the ZIP root, without a wrapping profile folder. Every entry is optional, including profile.json.

profile.zip
  profile.json
  DefaultSettings/
    ModelVistaLibraries.json
    ModelVistaAppSettings.json
    ModelVistaCameraSettings.json
    ModelVistaTurntableSettings.json
  Models/
    CustomerSample.glb
  Backgrounds/
    CustomerEnvironment.hdr

Only these four settings filenames are accepted by the profile importer. Other files listed in Runtime Settings Files cannot be included as profile settings. Export from the app to obtain settings with the correct field names and version. Unsupported fields, incorrect types, and unsupported versions are rejected.

An optional profile.json can set bundled-content defaults:

{
  "schemaVersion": 1,
  "installBundledModels": false,
  "installBundledBackgrounds": false
}

If you include this file, schemaVersion must be 1. Otherwise, omit it; no profile ID or revision is required.

Shared NAS Libraries

A NAS-only profile can contain just DefaultSettings/ModelVistaLibraries.json:

{
  "version": 3,
  "libraries": [
    {
      "name": "Company Models",
      "path": "\\\\NAS\\ModelVista\\Models",
      "sourceType": "local",
      "useStreamingAssets": false,
      "searchSubdirectories": true
    }
  ],
  "backgrounds": [
    {
      "name": "Company Backgrounds",
      "path": "\\\\NAS\\ModelVista\\Backgrounds",
      "sourceType": "local",
      "useStreamingAssets": false,
      "searchSubdirectories": true
    }
  ]
}

Replace the server and share names with your own. Backslashes are doubled inside JSON; the actual model path in this example is \\NAS\ModelVista\Models.

Save this file in a local DefaultSettings folder and create the ZIP from its parent folder:

Compress-Archive -Path .\DefaultSettings -DestinationPath .\profile.zip

NAS files stay on the share. Setup does not require the NAS to be online, but users must have the required share permissions when running Model Vista.

Include Local Models Or Backgrounds

Add customer content under Models/ or Backgrounds/ in the ZIP, preserving companion files and subfolders. In ModelVistaLibraries.json, use {DeploymentRoot}/Models or {DeploymentRoot}/Backgrounds as the corresponding library path, with sourceType: "local" and useStreamingAssets: false.

Content folders do not automatically become library entries. Include the matching library configuration so that Model Vista displays them. Add {AppRoot}/Models or {AppRoot}/Backgrounds as additional library entries if you also want to show bundled content.

Imported content is readable by ordinary users and writable by administrators. Users can use Save As to save changes to a writable library.

Defaults, Updates, And Existing Users

For a missing supported user settings file, the order is customer profile defaults, shipped defaults, then built-in defaults. A supplied settings file is selected as a whole; it is not merged field by field with the shipped file.

For ModelVistaLibraries.json, omitting libraries or backgrounds inherits the normal defaults for that category. An explicit empty array ([]) intentionally configures no libraries in that category.

Profiles are stored at %ProgramData%\INNOWORKS\Model Vista\Deployment.

• Supplying a new ZIP replaces the previous customer profile in full. Omitted categories revert to normal defaults for future settings seeding.
• Upgrading or repairing without a ZIP retains the installed profile and does not require the original ZIP.
• Existing user settings are preserved. To test first-launch defaults with an existing account, close Model Vista and back up/remove only the relevant user settings files before reopening it. Use Settings Folder to locate them.
• Libraries Reset Default uses the installed customer library defaults. Other settings reset actions retain their normal behaviour.
• An empty valid ZIP clears the machine’s customer overrides for future settings seeding; it does not delete existing user settings or uninstall bundled packs.
• Uninstall keeps saved data by default. Interactive uninstall offers to remove both the uninstalling user’s saved app data and the machine deployment profile, with No (keep data) selected by default. NAS files are never removed by the installer.

Clear Saved Data During Uninstall

Close Model Vista and back up any files you want to keep. During interactive uninstall, choose Yes when asked whether to permanently delete all saved Model Vista data. The same choice removes both:

• Your %USERPROFILE%\AppData\LocalLow\INNOWORKS\Model Vista folder, including settings, caches, logs, and other files stored there.
• The machine’s %ProgramData%\INNOWORKS\Model Vista\Deployment folder, including shared customer defaults and any models/backgrounds imported from the profile ZIP. This profile is used by all Windows users.

Choose No to keep both folders for a future installation. The question appears if either folder exists. After clearing both, reinstalling without a new profile uses normal app defaults instead of restoring the previous customer libraries.

Silent uninstall keeps both folders by default. To request cleanup of both, run as the Windows user whose personal data should be removed:

msiexec.exe /x "C:\Deployment\ModelVista.msi" /qn MV_CLEAR_USER_DATA=1 /l*v "C:\Deployment\ModelVista-uninstall.log"

Use MV_CLEAR_USER_DATA=0 to explicitly keep both folders and suppress the question. Personal data cleanup targets only the account running uninstall; SYSTEM and service accounts cannot select it. Shared deployment profile cleanup runs elevated. Other Windows users’ personal data and external libraries remain available.

Cleanup runs only after uninstall succeeds. Upgrades, repairs, and cancelled or failed uninstall preserve both folders. Selected cleanup requires Windows Installer rollback to be enabled. Locked files, access restrictions, junctions, or symbolic links can prevent deletion; uninstall still completes and records a user data cleanup did not complete or deployment profile cleanup did not complete warning in the MSI log. Close the app and inspect any remaining folder before removing it manually.

Troubleshooting

• Setup rejects the ZIP: check that there is no wrapping folder, settings filenames match the supported list, and JSON includes the correct version. Exporting a fresh profile is the easiest way to obtain valid settings.
• Libraries do not change for an existing user: the user’s saved settings take precedence. Test with a new Windows user, or back up/remove the relevant settings file as described above.
• NAS content is missing: check the UNC path and share access using the account running Model Vista.
• Local content is missing: check both the ZIP’s content folders and the corresponding {DeploymentRoot} library paths.
• Silent installation fails: add /l*v "C:\Deployment\ModelVista-install.log" to capture the installer log. Ensure that the log folder exists and is writable.