Install a PortableApp from paf in a system with limited privileges. Handle it locally

I have a PC with Win 10. I do not have admin privileges. I can run PortableApps, and use its launcher.

To "install" new apps I can do it from the PortableApps app installation menu.

Now I mean to use Zotero Portable. It is not available from the PortableApps app installation menu. I obtained the .paf.exe file. I cannot install the .paf.exe due to limited privileges, even if trying from within the PortableApps launcher.

It doesn't make too much sense to me that I can do one thing and not the other. I guess internally I should be doing the same thing in both cases. So my questions are:

Why I can do one and not the other?

Is there any way to actually "install" Zotero? The possibility of installing elsewhere and copying is already considered, but I mean to do it locally. I often do not have that resource at hand.

sancho.s Reinstate Monica

Posted 2018-09-22T11:25:41.547

Reputation: 2 404

Try : 7z x -y installation.paf.exe. – harrymc – 2018-09-22T11:37:37.733

@harrymc - I didi it from the 7z GUI. Thanks! – sancho.s Reinstate Monica – 2018-09-22T13:01:43.850

Good. So I added it as an answer. – harrymc – 2018-09-22T13:32:39.200

Answers

To extract the installation, you could use the following command :

7z x -y installation.paf.exe

harrymc

Posted 2018-09-22T11:25:41.547

Reputation: 306 093

I can go to another PC, "install" it, and copy it. If the application is really portable (in my experience, most of the times they are), I would get exactly the same behavior.

This is not specifically a local operation, but in case it is possible, it would do the trick.

sancho.s Reinstate Monica

Posted 2018-09-22T11:25:41.547

Reputation: 2 404

This does not provide an answer to the question. To critique or request clarification from an author, leave a comment below their post. - From Review

– Mureinik – 2018-09-22T12:02:42.840

@Mureinik - I am also the author of the OP. This answer was posted (in addition to the clarification of the OP) to signal answerers more strongly that this is already covered. Often times these answers are posted anyway (and they may be useful for others, so I do not have anything against them, even if I would likely not post such an answer). – sancho.s Reinstate Monica – 2018-09-22T12:54:49.080

As an alternative to the command-line accepted solution, using the 7-zip GUI, one can go to the folder containing the .paf.exe file, right click on it, and Open Inside (or similar, I have the Spanish version). That is similar to exploring a zip file. Copy the contents to the target directory.

sancho.s Reinstate Monica

Posted 2018-09-22T11:25:41.547

Reputation: 2 404