fix: the MSI package can add the mrdocs bin/ directory to the PATH

[gennaroprota]

Installing MrDocs from the MSI didn't add mrdocs to the PATH, so it couldn't be run by name. This PR makes the MSI offer to add it. It also fixes a related problem: each MSI had a new upgrade code, so a newer MSI didn't replace the install already there. This means that entries for both old and new installations would be added to PATH.

Changes

• Build:
  • The MSI has a fixed upgrade code, so installing a newer one replaces the previous install.
  • A new dialog in the installer asks, with a checkbox checked by default, whether to add the installation's bin/ directory to the system PATH. The checkbox selects a hidden feature that holds the PATH entry, so:
    • Uninstalling removes the entry;
    • Change can add or remove it later;
    • A silent install can leave it out with REMOVE=AddToPath.
  • The dialog is added by a CPack patch file, utils/cmake/wix-patch.xml.in, on top of CPack's standard installer UI.
  • Only a per-machine install may change the system PATH, so the MSI now declares that scope. It declared none before.

Testing

Built the MSI locally with CPack and WiX 3.14, and checked its tables:

• The upgrade code is fixed, and the install is per-machine.
• The PATH entry is appended to the system PATH on install and removed on uninstall.
• The installer's buttons lead through the new dialog for a first install and for Change, and bypass it for Repair and Remove.

WiX's validation passes, with only the ICE61 warning, which comes from CPack's own MSI template. CI builds the MSI on every Windows build.

Documentation

The Windows tip on the Install page says that the MSI adds bin\ to the PATH, and how to add it later.

Closes #1018.

[github-actions]

🧾 Changes by Scope

Scope	Lines Δ%	Lines Δ	Lines +	Lines -	Files Δ	Files +	Files ~	Files ↔	Files -
🧰 Tooling	96%	110	110	-	2	1	1	-	-
📄 Docs	4%	4	3	1	1	-	1	-	-
Total	100%	114	113	1	3	1	2	-	-

Legend: Files + (added), Files ~ (modified), Files ↔ (renamed), Files - (removed)

🔝 Top Files

• utils/cmake/wix-patch.xml.in (Tooling): 96 lines Δ (+96 / -0)
• utils/cmake/install.cmake (Tooling): 14 lines Δ (+14 / -0)
• docs/modules/ROOT/pages/install.adoc (Docs): 4 lines Δ (+3 / -1)

Generated by 🚫 dangerJS against ec8f18a

[codecov]

Codecov Report

✅ All modified and coverable lines are covered by tests.
✅ Project coverage is 83.12%. Comparing base (adc6242) to head (ec8f18a).

Additional details and impacted files

@@           Coverage Diff            @@
##           develop    #1324   +/-   ##
========================================
  Coverage    83.12%   83.12%           
========================================
  Files           35       35           
  Lines         3662     3662           
  Branches       844      844           
========================================
  Hits          3044     3044           
  Misses         410      410           
  Partials       208      208           

Flag	Coverage Δ
bootstrap	83.12% <ø> (ø)

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[cppalliance-bot]

An automated preview of the documentation is available at https://1324.mrdocs.prtest2.cppalliance.org/index.html

If more commits are pushed to the pull request, the docs will rebuild at the same URL.

2026-09-25 16:02:22 UTC