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Marking Applications on Windows Vista Using Manifests

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I am copying the text from the article https://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa480150.aspx with respect to changes that one needs to make in a manifest file if they want to run the applications on vista  

Note:When you compile the application using Visual Studio 2005 on Vista it will not by default add the below changes (Atleast for the time being).

You need to create a manifest file with the below setting and specify it under the

Project Properties->Configuration Properties->Manifest Tool->Input and Ouput->Additional Manifest Files

 

Marking Applications on Windows Vista Using Manifests

In Windows Vista, the correct way to mark your applications is to embed an application manifest within your program that tells the operating system what the application needs. In the Windows Vista release, there are provisions to allow non-manifested or unsigned code to run with administrative privileges. In future releases, the ONLY way to run an application elevated will be to have a signed manifest that identifies the privilege level the application needs.

Application Manifest Schema

Application manifests are not new to the Windows Vista release. Manifests were used in Windows XP to help application developers identify such things as which versions of DLLs the application was tested with. Providing the execution level is an extension to that existing manifest schema.

The Windows Vista application manifest has been enhanced with attributes that permit developers to mark their applications with a requested execution level. The following is the format for this.

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 <requestedExecutionLevel
   level="asInvoker|highestAvailable|requireAdministrator"
   uiAccess="true|false"/>

level

  • asInvoker—The application runs with the same token as the parent process.

    Important note   For Windows Vista Beta-1, the term used for this level is leastPrivilege. Developers wishing to mark their code for this level on Windows Vista Beta-1 should use leastPrivilege. Developers will need to update their manifest to use the term asInvoker in subsequent versions of Windows.

  • highestAvailable—The application runs with the highest privileges the current user can obtain.

  • requireAdministrator—The application runs only for administrators and requires that the application be launched with the full token of an administrator.

uiAccess

  • false—The application does not need to drive input to the UI of another window on the desktop. Applications that are not providing accessibility should set this flag to false. Applications that are required to drive input to other windows on the desktop (on-screen keyboard, for example) should set this value to true.
  • true—The application is allowed to bypass UI protection levels to drive input to higher privilege windows on the desktop. This setting should only be used for UI Accessibility applications.

Comments

  • Anonymous
    January 26, 2007
    Good Post. It’s the same idea that ClickOnce deployment: you need a manifest file signed which defines the privilege level that application needs.

  • Anonymous
    January 26, 2007
    Can we add manifest using Visual Studio 6.0 ???

  • Anonymous
    January 26, 2007
    Can we add manifests using Visual Studio 6.0?

  • Anonymous
    March 21, 2007
    hmm, thanks for the updated manifest issues with VS2K5.. kirann

  • Anonymous
    July 27, 2007
    The comment has been removed