Summary

Information about build errors.

Symptoms

Error 1501 occurs when building a compressed release for an InstallShield project in the InstallShield interface or the command line. The error is displayed in the following format:

Error -1501: Could not compress '%1' into '%2'.

NOTE: %1 is the name of a file that cannot be found, and %2 is the name of a .cab file that the build is trying to compress the file into.

Cause

This error occurs when trying to do a compressed build, and the build cannot find one or more source files listed in the File table that need to be compressed into a cabinet file. The following are possible causes:

1. A path variable that is being used to link a file into the project within the Files section of a component is not defined properly. The 'Link To' column of the Files Section of the component indicates whether a path variable is being used. Path variables will be surrounded with <>. Ex. <VARIABLE1>. The build engine cannot compress a file into the release because a file cannot be found at the source location specified by the path variable.
2. A file(s) has been deleted from its source location making current links to it within the Files section of a component in the project invalid. If a file link is broken then the modified column for the file in the Component's File section will say ***File not Found*** . The build engine cannot compress a file into the release because the file cannot be found at the source location specified due to the file being deleted or moved to a new source location.
3. A build is being done from the command line, and all files in the project are linked correctly in the Files section of each component, but the build still cannot find the files.
4. There is not enough space on the build drive to build the release.
5. There are merge modules included in the project that are causing the error. To determine if or which module is causing the error, merge modules may need to be deselected while rebuilding the setup to help determine the merge module causing the error.

Resolution

Solution for Cause 1

1. Find the component in the project under the Components or Setup Design section that contains the file mentioned in the error message.
2. Navigate to the component's file section.
3. If it is linked in the Files section with a path variable, navigate to the path variables section of the InstallShield interface.
4. Verify that the 'Current Value' column of the path variable has been defined properly in the Path Variables section and the path variable links to an existing folder that contains the file.

Solution for Cause 2

1. Find the component in the project under the Components or Setup Design section that contains the file mentioned in the error message.
2. Navigate to the component's file section.
3. Verify that the files linked within the Files section have not been deleted or moved from the original source location.
4. If files have been deleted or removed from the original source location, files must be placed back in their original source location or the files must be relinked. To relink a file:
   1. Left-click the file in question within the Files section of the component.
   2. Right-click the file, and choose Delete.
   3. Right-click in the files section, and choose Add.
   4. Browse to the file, and add it back into the file section.

Solution for Cause 3

Find IsCmdBld.exe on the build machine. This file may be in different locations depending on what InstallShield products have been installed on the build machine. The easiest way to find the file is by going to Start | Find on the Windows menu and searching for IsCmdBld.exe. Once found, make a copy of the file, and place it in the same location as the file(s) listed in the error message. Launch IsCmdBld.exe from that location. This solution can only be used if building from the command line.

Solution to Cause 4

Free up some disk space and rebuild the release.

Solution to Cause 5

If the issue is caused by a merge module, the merge module's components should be analyzed to determine if the files linked in the merge module are valid. Refer to the other causes and solutions in this article for reasons on why the error may be caused by the merge module.

In some cases a file may be locked by another process. Restarting the machine may resolve the unexpected build error.

Related KB Articles

Build Errors Caused by Windows Installer CAB File Format Limitations