The complexity index value is calculated based upon an extensive package property analysis. Working on packages with high complexity usually takes more time and requires more precise fine-tuning than working on those with a lower index value. As soon as a packaging project is defined, the complexity reflects changes in real-time, allowing packagers not only to make estimations on the specific workload, but actually to monitor how their treatments take effect.
The current Package Complexity Index value is visible within PackDesigner's Your Project view. The screenshot above shows a package with a PCI of 78.
Understanding the Index
The index is based on several internal factors. In order to see which factors affected the current calculation, go to the Plugins tab and highlight the Complexity item in the left panel.
The list shows sub-indexes and their relevance for all factors that were included in the calculation. For example, the screenshot above shows that Custom Actions contributed 8.7 to the overall value of 78. If any item has a value of 0.0 it may mean that either its priority is low and / or that the package is not affected by it (for example - the picture above shows 0.0 for ODBC entries, because the package does not contain them). Additionally, the color of bullet next to each item denotes its status:
•Gray color - Low complexity
•Red color - High complexity
•Orange color - Medium complexity
The last item in the list are extra points added by RayPack for at least a single hit of High or Medium complexity for any of the sub-items. This way, a package that has relatively low values in all categories and one especially complex gets extra points to stress its importance and overall complexity. In the above example, the overall complexity (as a sum of all sub-indexes) is 48. However, at least one item has been reported as of High complexity (custom actions, executable custom actions and conditional resources) and so the package got an extra 30 points, with a final result of 78.
Customizing the Complexity Index
In order to configure how the index is calculated, modify the settings of the Complexity plugin. More information can be found in the advanced topic Configuring the Complexity Index.