How to test PS1, EXE, MSI installer in Windows Sandbox

How to test PS1, EXE, MSI installer in Windows Sandbox

Windows Sandbox is a security function Windows 10, which allows you to test applications and scripts securely. This feature allows users to run untrusted applications in an isolated secure environment. Applications in Sandbox cannot access the actual hardware, memory and storage in Sandbox. In this article, I will share how you can test the installers PS1, EXE, MSI in Windows Sandbox.

Testing the PS1, EXE and MSI installer in Windows Sandbox

You can use this method both on your computer for personal use or before deploying applications to the professional environment using tools such as Deployment Toolkit. Before continuing, you must:

  1. Activate Windows Sandbox from Windows Features
  2. Add context menu for Sandbox (third party)
  3. Test scripts and applications in Sandbox

The context menu in third part is developed by Damien Van Robaeys and works well.

1]Activate Windows Sandbox from Windows Features

We have written a comprehensive guide on how you can activate Windows sandbox, and if you are using Windows 10 Home, you can also activate the feature on this version. Sandbox is supported on Vmware or Virtual Box. Finally, you can use the Sandbox Configuration Manager to manage this functionality.

2]Add context menu for Sandbox (third party)

The context menu allows you to open applications and scripts directly in Sandbox using the context menu. You can download it from here. It works on Windows 10 v1903 and higher. Once downloaded, run the script and the context menu of the sandbox will become available after that.

The context menu adds two options:

  1. Run in Sandbox and
  2. Run in Sandbox with parameters.

3]Test scripts and installers in Sandbox

The settings section allows you to perform silent installations in the sandbox. You can also use it to install custom applications that require parameters during installations.

Depending on the file type, when you right-click, the options change. If you right click on a PS script, you must run PS1 in Sandbox, and when you do the same on an MSI file, you will have Run MSI in Sandbox or Run MASI in Sandbox with options.

To install the application in silent mode, use / S as a switch. You will get an input box to add your parameters. When you run with options, a sandbox configuration file will be generated on the desktop. The Sandbox will launch automatically with the specific configuration. It is a WSB file with a start command to execute the particular file.

It’s a great tool that helps you get things done faster with the Windows Sandbox. You can read more on systanddeploy.com.

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