Installation problems version 6
MSIs are self-contained, in the sense that each MSI has everything required to install itself. But when updating an existing version, the old version must be uninstalled first. The new MSI knows how to determine which (older) versions should it request to uninstall - but the actual uninstallation of the older version is performed using that older version’s MSI. That is always the case with MSI packages (Windows Installer service), not specific to LibreOffice.
Usually, Windows stores a special copy of the installation MSI database in its own cache under Windows folder when installing any software. This allows Windows to uninstall the software later, even if the original MSI is not available anymore. That is what usually happens when updating LibreOffice - thus usually the older version’s MSI is not requested during upgrades. But sometimes the Windows Installer cache gets corrupted, or “cleaned up” (to save space). In these cases, Windows might request you to provide the older version’s MSI when the upgrade has requested its removal.
See this FAQ for troubleshooting general LibreOffice installation issues, including the location of all the released MSIs.
Thank you so much! That is a perfect explanation. I am going to uninstall version 5 using Windows’ built-in installer, then install version 6. Perfect. Thanks! 