Windows Installer 4.5

Microsoft released latest version of Windows Installer 4.5

Download: Windows Installer 4.5

ThinApp 4 by VMWare

(Application Packaging )

ThinApp 4 (formerly called Thininstall) is a Application Virtualization Suite,
now part of VMWare.

ThinApp does not require any pre-installed software on physical or virtual PCs and even does not require any new deployment infrastructure. Packagers can use ThinApp to generate application packages in .MSI or .EXE formats.

Features or advantages of ThinApp 4

Application Sync : This feature streams byte-level updates to users’ critical applications inside and outside the enterprise using HTTP/HTTPS, and on managed and non-managed PCs running virtualized applications.
Application Link : This feature allows interdependent applications to communicate with one another.
Conflict-free applications: Applications are isolated from the underlying OS, allowing different versions of an application to run side by side
Package once, deploy anywhere

MSI Studio for SCCM

Application Packaging (MSI)

ScriptLogic released its latest version of MSI Studio compatible and Microsoft SCCM and has many new features.

- Importing and exporting MSI packages in the WIX format
- Importing and exporting Industry standard XML file format that was developed by Microsoft and is now widely used in the open source software community
- Support for Windows Server® 2008.

For more information: Visit MSI Studio

Windows Vista : New Elevation PowerToys

Windows Vista with UAC is a blocker installing software or executing scripts which need administrator access.

In Windows Vista we miss the RunAs command for executing the scripts in System Context.

I found a very good and use-ful article in Mircosoft Technet, hope it will be useful for you also

Link : New Elevation PowerToys for Windows Vista