IT Administrator

Installation Guide

Everything you need to deploy ExamPad+ across your school — locally, via PDQ Deploy, or through Microsoft Intune.

1 System Requirements

Before deploying ExamPad+, ensure target machines meet the following minimum requirements.

Operating System
Windows 10 / 11
Architecture
64-bit only
RAM
4 GB minimum
Disk Space
500 MB free
Permissions
Local Administrator (install only)
Network
No Network Access is required to run the app, but is for installation (depending on method)

2 Configuration

📄 settings.ini

ExamPad+ stores its configuration in a settings.ini file located in the shared ProgramData directory. This file is created automatically on first launch and can be replaced to tailor installs.

📁
Configuration file location C:\ProgramData\ExamPadPlus\settings.ini

Because this path is under ProgramData, the configuration is shared across all user accounts on the machine — ideal for managed deployments where student accounts have limited permissions.

A typical settings.ini file looks like this:

C:\ProgramData\ExamPadPlus\settings.ini
; ============================================================
; ExamPad+ - IT Admin Configuration File
; Version: 1.0
; ============================================================

[mode]
mode = exam          ; exam | classroom | exam_officer

[candidate]
; Leave blank for normal use — pre-fill only for bespoke/dedicated machines
default_candidate_name =
; Leave blank for normal use — pre-fill only for bespoke/dedicated machines
default_candidate_number =

[institution]
name = Examination Centre
centre_number =

[compliance]
jcq_compliance = true
word_count_enabled = true
spellcheck_default = false
grammarcheck_default = false
autocorrect_default = false
thesaurus_default = false
find_replace_enabled = true
show_compliance_reminder = true

[access_arrangements]
dyslexia_fonts_enabled = true
overlays_enabled = true
font_size_adjustment_enabled = true
allow_large_font = true
line_spacing_enabled = true
high_contrast_enabled = true
reader_toolbar_enabled = true

[defaults]
default_font = Arial
default_font_size = 14
default_line_spacing = 1.5
default_overlay = none
default_margin = normal
default_portrait_mode = true
lock_page_layout = false

[fonts]
available_fonts = Arial, Verdana, Tahoma, Comic Sans MS, Century Gothic, Trebuchet MS, Calibri, OpenDyslexic
font_size_min = 10
font_size_max = 36
font_size_step = 2

[overlays]
overlay_colours = Yellow:#FFF9C4, Blue:#BBDEFB, Green:#C8E6C9, Pink:#F8BBD0, Orange:#FFE0B2, Lavender:#E1BEE7, Grey:#F5F5F5, Cream:#FFF8E1, Aqua:#B2EBF2
overlay_opacity = 0.35

[tts]
tts_voice =
tts_rate = 0
tts_volume = 100

[autosave]
autosave_enabled = true
autosave_main_interval = 120         ; seconds between saves to the candidate's main file
autosave_recovery_interval = 30      ; seconds between saves to the encrypted recovery backup
autosave_notify = true
autosave_retention_days = 0          ; delete recovery sessions older than X days (0 = keep forever)

[print]
print_enabled = true
force_print_header = true
allow_landscape = false

[licence]
licence_key =                ; paste your ExamPad+ licence key from the portal (Admin Panel → Licence)

[features]
insert_images_enabled = false
insert_symbols_enabled = true
insert_tables_enabled = true
insert_page_break_enabled = true
lists_enabled = true
text_colour_enabled = true
strikethrough_enabled = true
highlight_enabled = true

[security]
lock_accessibility_settings = false
admin_passcode =
disable_context_menu = true

[logging]
activity_logging = false
show_session_timer = true

You can pre-create this file via your deployment tool (PDQ, Intune, Group Policy, etc.) so settings are in place before the application first launches.

🔑 Admin Password

The default administrator password for ExamPad+ is: ExamPad+

⚠️
Default admin password: ExamPad+ You should change this after deployment. The admin password can be updated by editing the AdminPassword value in settings.ini.

To change it, update the AdminPassword line in settings.ini on each managed machine, or include your preferred password in a pre-staged config file as part of your deployment.

3 Local Installation

Use this method to install ExamPad+ on a single machine manually.

  1. Log in to the ExamPad+ Dashboard at exampadplus.co.uk/dashboard and navigate to the Downloads tab.
  2. Download ExamPadPlusV1.zip and save it to the target machine.
  3. Right-click the ZIP file and select Extract All. Extract to a temporary location such as C:\Temp\ExamPadPlus.
  4. Run the .MSI installer inside the extracted folder.
  5. If Windows SmartScreen appears, click More info then Run anyway.
  6. Follow the install wizard. The application will install to C:\Program Files\ExamPad+\ExamPad+\ by default.
  7. Copy your bespokeSettings.INI to C:\ProgramData\ExamPadPlus\
💡
Pre-stage the configuration Create a bespoke settings.ini with your preffered settings and licence key to specifiy settings before first-run

4.1 PDQ Deploy (Premium)

PDQ Deploy allows you to push ExamPad+ silently to multiple machines simultaneously. The steps below create a multi-step package that copies the config file and then runs the installer. This requires a premium version of PDQ, if you have the free version, skip to the next step (4.2).

Step 1 — Prepare your files

Create a deployment folder on your PDQ server (e.g. \\server\PDQ\ExamPadPlus\) containing:

  • The extracted ExamPad+ installer .MSI
  • A pre-configured settings.ini file

Step 2 — Create a new Package

  1. Open PDQ Deploy and click New Package.
  2. Name it ExamPad+ v1.0 and click Add Step → Install.

Step 3 — Add a File Copy step

  1. Click Add Step → File Copy.
  2. Set Source to your settings.ini in the deployment folder.
  3. Set Destination to:
C:\ProgramData\ExamPadPlus\settings.ini
💡
Place this File Copy step before the Install step so the config is ready before the application launches for the first time.

Step 4 — Configure the Install step

  1. Select your Install step and set Install File to the ExamPad+ installer .MSI
  2. No Parameters are required, PDQ will add these. The Command line should look like:
msiexec.exe /i "ExamPad+.msi" ALLUSERS=1 /qn /norestart /log output.log
  • 3. Set Run As to Deploy User (logged on as local system).

    • Step 5 — Deploy

    1. Click Save then Deploy Once.
    2. Select your target computers or an Active Directory group.
    3. Click Deploy Now. PDQ will report success or failure per machine.

    4.2 PDQ Deploy (Free Version)

    PDQ Deploy allows you to push ExamPad+ silently to multiple machines simultaneously. The steps below create a single-step package using powershell that copies the config file and then runs the installer.

    Step 1 — Prepare your files

    Create a deployment folder on your PDQ server (e.g. \\server\PDQ\ExamPadPlus\) containing:

    • The extracted ExamPad+ installer .MSI
    • A pre-configured settings.ini file

    Step 2 — Create Powershell Script

    Create a Powershell script called install.ps1 and place it deployment folder on your PDQ server (above)

    Copy the script below

    Install.ini to go in deployment folder
    # ----------------------------
# CONFIG
# ----------------------------

$msiPath = Join-Path $PSScriptRoot "ExamPad+.msi"
$settingsSource = Join-Path $PSScriptRoot "settings.ini"

$installFolder = "C:\ProgramData\ExamPadPlus"
$settingsDestination = Join-Path $installFolder "settings.ini"

# ----------------------------
# CREATE INSTALL DIRECTORY
# ----------------------------

if (!(Test-Path $installFolder)) {
    New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $installFolder -Force | Out-Null
}

# ----------------------------
# COPY SETTINGS FILE FIRST
# ----------------------------

if (Test-Path $settingsSource) {
    Copy-Item -Path $settingsSource -Destination $settingsDestination -Force
    Write-Output "Settings file copied successfully."
}
else {
    Write-Error "Settings file not found at $settingsSource"
    exit 1
}

# ----------------------------
# INSTALL MSI
# ----------------------------

$process = Start-Process "msiexec.exe" `
    -ArgumentList "/i `"$msiPath`" /qn /norestart" `
    -Wait `
    -PassThru `
    -NoNewWindow

# ----------------------------
# CHECK EXIT CODE
# ----------------------------

if ($process.ExitCode -eq 0) {
    Write-Output "MSI installed successfully."
    exit 0
}
else {
    Write-Error "MSI installation failed with exit code $($process.ExitCode)"
    exit $process.ExitCode
}

    Step 3 — Create a new Package

    1. Open PDQ Deploy and click New Package.
    2. Name it ExamPad+ v1.0 and click Add Step → Install.

    Step 4 — Configure the Install step

    1. Select your Install step and set Install File to the Install.ps1 you have created
    2. Under, Aditional Files check Include Entire Directory ✅
    3. Set Run As to Deploy User (logged on as local system).

    Step 5 — Deploy

    1. Click Save then Deploy Once.
    2. Select your target computers or an Active Directory group.
    3. Click Deploy Now. PDQ will report success or failure per machine.

    5 Microsoft Intune

    Intune requires Win32 apps to be packaged as .intunewin files. Follow the steps below to package and deploy ExamPad+ as a Win32 app.

    Step 1 — Prepare the source folder

    Create a source folder (e.g. C:\IntunePackaging\ExamPadPlus\) containing:

    • The ExamPad+ installer executable
    • A pre-configured settings.ini file
    • An install.ps1 wrapper script (see below)

    Create install.ps1 with the following contents:

    install.ps1
    # ----------------------------
# GET SCRIPT DIRECTORY
# ----------------------------

$scriptDirectory = Split-Path -Parent $MyInvocation.MyCommand.Definition

$msiPath = Join-Path $scriptDirectory "ExamPadPlus.msi"
$settingsSource = Join-Path $scriptDirectory "settings.ini"

$installFolder = "C:\ProgramData\ExamPadPlus"
$settingsDestination = Join-Path $installFolder "settings.ini"

# ----------------------------
# CREATE INSTALL DIRECTORY
# ----------------------------

if (!(Test-Path $installFolder)) {
    New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path $installFolder -Force | Out-Null
}

# ----------------------------
# COPY SETTINGS FILE FIRST
# ----------------------------

if (Test-Path $settingsSource) {
    Copy-Item -Path $settingsSource -Destination $settingsDestination -Force
}
else {
    Write-Error "Settings file not found."
    exit 1
}

# ----------------------------
# INSTALL MSI
# ----------------------------

$process = Start-Process "msiexec.exe" `
    -ArgumentList "/i `"$msiPath`" /qn /norestart" `
    -Wait `
    -PassThru

# ----------------------------
# RETURN PROPER EXIT CODE
# ----------------------------

exit $process.ExitCode

    Step 2 — Package with IntuneWinAppUtil

    Download the Microsoft Win32 Content Prep Tool (IntuneWinAppUtil.exe) from the Microsoft GitHub repository, then run:

    IntuneWinAppUtil.exe -c "C:\IntunePackaging\ExamPad+" -s install.ps1 -o "C:\IntuneOutput"

    This produces install.intunewin in your output folder.

    Step 3 — Add the app in Intune

    1. In the Microsoft Intune admin centre, go to Apps → Windows → Add.
    2. Select App type: Windows app (Win32) and click Select.
    3. Upload your install.intunewin file.
    4. Fill in the app details

      5. Name: ExamPad+

      Publisher: ExamPad+

      Description Install ExamPad+ and custom settings.ini file

      Version: 1.0.2 (Or Current Release Number).

    Step 4 — Program settings

    On the Program tab, set the following:

    Install command
    powershell.exe -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -NoProfile -WindowStyle Hidden -File install.ps1
    Uninstall command
    powershell.exe -ExecutionPolicy Bypass -NoProfile -WindowStyle Hidden -Command "Get-Package -Name 'ExamPad+' | Uninstall-Package -Force"

    Set Install behaviour to System and Device restart behaviour to No specific action.

    Step 5 — Detection rule

    On the Detection rules tab, add a rule to confirm successful installation:

    Detection rule — File
    Rule type:  File
Path:       C:\Program Files\ExamPad+
File:       ExamPad+.exe
Detection:  File or folder exists

    Step 6 — Assign and deploy

    1. On the Assignments tab, assign the app to the relevant device group (e.g. All Exam Devices).
    2. Set the assignment type to Required for automatic installation.
    3. Click Review + create then Create.
    4. Intune will deploy the app to target devices at the next check-in (typically within 1–2 hours, or trigger manually via Sync in the Company Portal).
    ℹ️
    Checking deployment status In Intune, go to Apps → Windows → ExamPad+ → Device install status to monitor progress across your estate.

    6 Troubleshooting

    Windows SmartScreen blocks the installer

    ExamPad+ is currently pending extended validation (EV) code signing. Users or admins can bypass SmartScreen by clicking More info → Run anyway. For managed deployments via PDQ or Intune, SmartScreen does not apply as the install runs under the system account.

    settings.ini not being read

    Ensure the file is saved to exactly C:\ProgramData\ExamPadPlus\settings.ini — the folder name and filename are case-sensitive on some configurations. Verify the file is present before launching the application.

    Licence key not accepted

    Your licence key is shown on the Overview tab of your school's Dashboard. Ensure there are no extra spaces when copying it. Each key is tied to a single school account — contact support if you believe your key has been revoked.

    Intune deployment stuck as "Pending"

    Check that the target device is enrolled in Intune and has synced recently. You can force a sync by opening the Company Portal app on the device and clicking Sync. Review deployment logs at C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\IntuneManagementExtension\Logs\.