Redistributable components that install executable code are provided as Windows Installer packages (.msi files) so that Microsoft can provide updates if they are required to address security vulnerabilities or other critical bugs. Redistributable components that do not install executable code are provided as merge modules or as source code.

Because Windows Installer allows for only one package to install at a time, installing a redistributable package requires that you use a separate executable program that installs several packages sequentially. Such a program is often called a chainer or a bootstrapper.

Important Note:
Nested installation (also known as concurrent installation) is deprecated in Windows Installer because a "nested" product cannot be patched independently, but only by the product that installed it. Because the Visual Studio 2008 SDK redistributable packages install files to shared directories and must support independent patching, they must not be installed by using a nested installation.

The MPF classes for supporting project types and project subtypes are not included in the MPF assemblies that are part of Visual Studio 2008. Instead, they are supplied as C# source files that you can include in your own packages. You can redistribute them in object-code form only. For more information, see Using the Managed Package Framework to Implement a Project Type (C#).

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