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Steps to Install.CAB file in windows 7 or 8 Question: How to install.cab file? It is just a compressed archive file containing files inside it. It cannot be executed directly. We can extract the contents from the.cab file but how to install it?
CAB or Cabinet files are compressed files that store data related to various system based installations on a Windows PC. These can also be related to the updates to the OS as well as a driver update. The compression here is based on lossless compression. These .CAB files are also referred to as Diamond Files. They behave in a similar way to .ZIP files. The reason behind this is that they both use Quantum, LZX or DEFLATE compression algorithms to compress the contents inside them. It can hold up to 65,535 CAB folders. It is usually executed by an installer built into Windows 10. This installer extracts they files stored in the Cabinet Archive and executes them one by one. The main recognition of these authentic Cabinet files lies in the first 4 bytes. If you open any authentic CAB file as a text file with your text editors like Notepad or Visual Studio Code, you will see MSCF being the first four letters.
We have earlier seen how to extract CAB File using command line tools, now let us see how to how to create or install Cabinet files on Windows 10.
How to create a CAB File in Windows 10
Creating a CAB file in Windows 10 is not much of a task. There is a program that comes with Windows 10 called as makecab.exe. Now, when you enter commands like,
in the Windows 10 Command Prompt, you will be able to take advantage of the makecab.exe.
With the command given above, the JPG Image stored inside C:files is moved inside of a file called program.cab inside the same path.
How to install a CAB file on Windows 10
There are two methods by which one can install CAB files on Windows 10. The first one uses using the context menus and the second one involves the usage of Command Prompt.
1: Using the Context Menus
This method is fairly simple.
Install Windows Cab File Windows 2012 Key
All you need to do is Select the Cabinet File and then Right click on it.
When you see the context menu popping out, just click on Install which is the second option from the top.
Follow the prompts on the screen and you are done.
2: Using the Command Prompt
Start by opening the Command Prompt with Administrator level rights.
Install Windows Cab File Windows 2012 Key
Now, type in the following command,
Here, replace <PATH> with the original path of the file.
For example, C:UsersAyushDownloadsCABnew.cab
Now, hit Enter.
If prompted, Reboot your computer by entering Y and then hitting Enter again.
Now, your Cabinet File is executed.
If curious, you can learn more about the Microsoft Cabinet Format at the Microsoft Cabinet Format documentation on MSDN.
TIP: Learn how to to add Install CAB item to the Context Menu.
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One of the frequently asked questions by Winaero readers is how do you install an offline (downloaded) update in Windows 10? Usually, with Windows 10 version update announcements, I try to provide direct links to update files. Cumulative standalone updates for Windows 10 have the MSU format. Here is how you can install an update which comes as a CAB or MSU file.
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If you manually downloaded updates for Windows 10, for example, the recently released Windows 10 build 10586.494, you get a file named Windows10.0-kb3172985-x64_006b20fc4c418499afa25248edacff2ef7dab963.msu
Let's assume that you moved it to the folder C:updates.
To apply this update to the installed and running operating system, do the following:
How to install an MSU update in Windows 10
- Open an elevated command prompt.
- Type the following command:Correct the path to the update to match your file location.
How to install a CAB update in Windows 10
If your update comes as a file with the CAB extension, you need to use another command to install it.
Before you continue, you might be interested in reading the following article:
- Open an elevated command prompt.
- Type the following command:Again, correct the path to the update to match your file location.
These command line methods are useful for batch files, that is, when you want to install a group of updates at once. Normally, if your file associations are not messed up, MSU files can be double clicked and installed easily but the command line method allows automating the process. With WUSA.exe, you can also use switches like /quiet, /norestart etc.
Note: MUI (langauge packs) often have the CAB format. But you should not use the DISM command to install them. Instead, run the built-in lpksetup.exe tool and follow the wizard's instructions.
You can learn in detail how to use lpksetup.exe from the following article: How to install an MUI language CAB file in Windows 10.
You can learn in detail how to use lpksetup.exe from the following article: How to install an MUI language CAB file in Windows 10.
That's it.
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