Windows server installation issue - the bigfix client setup could not find a valid masthead

Usage and Config Platform
1

In one area of server, puppet is used to install agents like BigFix. Everything was fine using .exes, mastheads, and slient installs from 9.5.13 - 10.0.4. Now when the same puppet script is trying to install 10.0.7 or 10.0.10, instead of being silent the installation UI appears. Click next a few times and it errors out saying that “the bigfix client setup could not find a valid masthead”.

We verified the files both exist in the same folder C:\Windows\Temp

We can run the silent installation command in powershell after the puppet script errors out, and it works silently (and just fine).

Snippet of verbose logging from puppet

Debug: /Stage[main]/Pg_bigfix::Install/Pg_file_from_storage[C:\Windows\Temp\BigFix-BES-Client-10.0.7.52.exe]/Exec[download C:\Windows\Temp\BigFix-BES-Client-10.0.7.52.exe]: 'try {[Net.ServicePointManager]::SecurityProtocol = [Net.SecurityProtocolType]::Tls12; Invoke-WebRequest -OutFile C:\Windows\Temp\BigFix-BES-Client-10.0.7.52.exe -Uri https://<redacted host>/binaries/binaries/cloud/windows/BigFix/BigFix-BES-Client-10.0.7.52.exe?sv=2020-08-04&st=2022-09-02T15%3A51%3A49Z&se=2027-09-30T15%3A51%3A00Z&sr=c&sp=rl&sig=37xhHNTcyM3wQwmQKRd49oUKv0PIhkreJ2e9s4lnUTw%3D} catch { exit 1 }' won't be executed because of failed check 'unless'
Debug: Executing: 'C:\Windows\Temp\BigFix-BES-Client-10.0.7.52.exe /S /v /qn'
Error: Failed to install:  User cancelled installation.
Error: /Stage[main]/Pg_bigfix::Install/Package[BigFix Client]/ensure: change from 'absent' to 'present' failed: Failed to install:  User cancelled installation.

Any ideas or similar experiences? Someone else on our team is checking with puppet.

2

I may be barking up the wrong tree, but my habit for a silent install is to not have a space in ‘/v /qn’

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3

Agree on no space between /v /qn. I’d double-check whether your Powershell script is sending that parameter the same way.

Also, since the interface Puppet is spawning is visible to your logged-on user account, I wonder whether Puppet is launching the .EXE in your user context…and whether your user account has access to the masthead file at c:\Windows\Temp

Another thing I’d suggest is to not launch these files directly from C:\Windows\Temp, instead create a new subdirectory containing only the installer and the masthead. Just concerned that some other file, or a corrupt copy of the masthead, or something like that might be present at C:\Windows\Temp and interfere with the installer.

4

Just posting the official documentation for installation with the EXE - https://help.hcltechsw.com/bigfix/10.0/platform/Platform/Installation/c_installing_client_setup_exe.html

For Silent Install:
setup.exe /s /v"SETUPEXE=1 REBOOT=ReallySuppress MSIRESTARTMANAGERCONTROL=Disable /qn"
Of course, the setup should have the masthead.afxm and clientsettings.cfg (if needed) on the same folder and the WorkingDir of the Script will be on that same folder

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