PatchBee docs
Package and publish an app
This is the core PatchBee workflow: turn a catalog app into a deployed Intune app. The example running through this page is 7-Zip, exactly as the plan engine generates it.
1. Open the package plan
From an app in the App Library, select Package latest (or open a specific version and select Create package plan). PatchBee has already worked out:
- which installer fits best when an app ships several,
- the install and uninstall commands,
- how Intune will detect the app is installed,
- expected return codes.
Review it: for most apps the defaults are all you need. Any concerns show up as warnings on the plan.
Example: the generated plan for 7-Zip 26.02
Installer picked: 7z2602-x64.msi (the app ships 6 installers; the Auto selectors picked the x64 MSI, machine scope; changing a selector re-runs the preview). Minimum Windows release 1607, runs as system, installer verified by SHA-256.
Install command
msiexec /i "7z2602-x64.msi" /qn /norestart
Uninstall command
msiexec /x "{23170F69-40C1-2702-2602-000001000000}" /qn /norestartDetection rule
MSI product code {23170F69-40C1-2702-2602-000001000000} with a version check of ≥ 26.02, so repairs and newer versions are not treated as missing.
Return codes
0 and 1707 success, 3010 soft reboot, 1641 hard reboot, 1618 retry.
None of the above was typed by hand. If you have packaged apps manually, this is the part PatchBee removes.
2. Optional extras
You can turn on advanced options before packaging:
- Requirement rules: only install on devices that meet minimums (disk, memory, and so on).
- Pre / post-install scripts: run your own scripts around the install (Windows).
- App icon: set a custom icon.
- Close conflicting apps: warn, auto-close, or defer if the app is running.
- Disable the app's self-updater for Chrome, Edge, Firefox, or Zoom, so Intune controls updates instead of the app updating itself underneath you.
3. Package, or package and deploy
At the bottom of the plan you pick one of two actions:
- Create package: build the Intune package without deploying it. No extra steps.
- Package and deploy: build it and publish it to an Intune tenant, through a short three-step wizard.
The three wizard steps
- Intune tenant. Pick the connection to publish through.
- Assignments. Who gets the app: one or more Entra groups (search by name or paste a group ID; picked groups show as chips), all users, or all devices, with include and exclude filters. Intent is Required (installs automatically) or Available (users pick it in Company Portal). Selecting several groups on one row creates one assignment per group. Leaving the step empty publishes without an assignment.
- Way of publishing. For a Windows app that is already deployed, how the new version treats the current one:
Option What it does Supersede & replace Recommended. The new version supersedes the current one, so devices update to it. Deploy alongside Publish without replacing; both versions remain available. Good for pilots. Supersede & remove old version Replace, then delete the replaced version's app from Intune to keep the app list clean. Deleting from Intune does not uninstall it from devices that already have it.
Example: assigning 7-Zip to a pilot ring first
In the Assignments step, search for your pilot group, for example IT team, choose intent Required, and finish the wizard with Supersede & replace. Once the pilot proves out, either edit the assignments from Deployed Apps to add All Company, or set up rollout rings so the widening happens automatically for every future version.
4. Watch the job
Either way PatchBee downloads the installer, verifies it, and builds the Intune package, and, when deploying, uploads, publishes and assigns it too. Track progress under Jobs: each step shows its logs, and Retry resumes at the failed step if anything goes wrong. A small app is typically live in about a minute.