Versions: 2010 SP 1

When it comes time to install Visual Studio 2010 Service Pack 1 you may want to take advantage of some setup switches that are available. I won’t explore all the options but you can get a list yourself by running the Setup.EXE file from the service pack with /? as I have done here:

/log

By default the log file goes in the process temporary folder but you may find it useful to have it in another location for easy retrieval.

/norestart

This one is confusing for people. It will not prompt for a restart when setup is complete but that doesn’t mean a restart isn’t needed just that you will not have a dialog prompting you for a restart. You will almost always need to restart the system for setup to complete at some point.

/passive and /showfinalerror

Frequently used together the /passive switch will show the install but not require user interaction. Additionally, the /showfinalerror switch will show the error(s) if the install fails.

/q

If you want a completely unobtrusive install then /q will suppress any dialogs and output. This can be combined with other switches to achieve the desired result.