Create project

With all previous steps completed, let’s start our first project.

Create the folder

From the command-line or file manager of choice:

mkdir my-app && cd my-app

Initialize the project

First time users should stick to interactive mode:

installua init --interactive

Confirm the directory when it asks, then pick everything on the menu – the config files, the stubs your editor reads, the VS Code settings and the .gitignore entries are the recommended defaults for a new project.

Write the installer

installua init names install.lua as the entry file, so that’s what to write next:

attributes {
  name = "MyApp",
  outFile = "MyApp-setup.exe",
  compressor = "lzma",
}

installer {
  installDir = PROGRAMFILES64 .. "/MyApp",

  page.welcome {},
  page.directory {},
  page.instFiles {},
  page.finish {},

  section("Core", function()
    setOutPath(INSTDIR)
    file("myapp.exe")
    writeUninstaller(INSTDIR .. "/uninstall.exe")
  end),
}

uninstaller {
  page.confirm {},
  page.instFiles {},

  section("Uninstall", function()
    delete(INSTDIR .. "/myapp.exe")
    delete(INSTDIR .. "/uninstall.exe")
    rmDir(INSTDIR)
  end),
}

Build it

installua build install.lua

That compiles your program and hands it to makensis, leaving MyApp-setup.exe behind – your first installer.