When installing update packages for operating systems or when installing new software, sometimes it is necessary to download files for the .NET Framework, but in some cases failures occur. Let's try to figure out what kind of component it is and how to update the .NET Framework so that everything works like a clock.
What is the Microsoft .NET Framework?
The platform itself is present on any Windows system. Initially, it was developed by Microsoft specialists to create programs and applications, use secure communications and much more.
However, over time, it has become a universal tool to ensure compatibility of programs written in different programming languages. Roughly speaking, if a particular application is not designed to operate in a Windows environment, when using the platform as a kind of intermediary or bridge, the program will be able to start and work in full-featured mode.
As for update issues, by default the .NET Framework can only be updated manually, because even with the system update turned on, packages for this platform are not installed, and the updates themselves concern mainly the security and safety systems. How to do this will be shown below.
Service Pack Composition
An update to the Microsoft .NET Framework can update not only program modules, but also the main components of the development environment. In this case, in the case of new opportunities or support for additional structures, their installation will also be made.
In the list of updates, most often you can observe the improvement of the following components:
- CLR (increased performance of multi-core processors, recognition of new file types and numerical data, easy debugging in mixed mode, including dumps and mini-dumps).
- Visual Basic and C + / ++ (work with implicit line extensions, new operators, dynamic dispatch).
- Simulation and simplified data access (WCF services and the Entity Framework).
- ASP.NET extensions (HTML and CSS identifier management, dynamic data components, templates, filters, web forms based on the AJAX library).
- Composite WFP modules (multi-touch input, flexible scalability, SDK support, visual presentation).
- Windows Workflow (tracking processes and projects, modeling styles).
- WCF (correlation-based action programming, workflow performance).
- Parallel programming (TPL library, PLINQ queries), etc.
A complete list can be found on the official website of the corporation.
How to upgrade the .NET Framework to 4.0: initial conditions
Now directly about the update. The Microsoft .NET Framework can only be updated if the system is fully compliant with some initial conditions. It must have a Windows installer version of at least 3.1, as well as Internet Explorer version 5.01 and higher.
In the event that there are no such components in the system, it is first of all necessary to update them, and only after that install updates for the entire platform as a whole. In addition, a prerequisite is the presence of the latest updates and service packs installed for the operating systems themselves.
If for some reason they were not installed automatically, in the "Update Center" you should specify a manual search, and integrate the found components into the system.
How to update .NET Framework 4.5: system requirements
When installing updates, you should also pay attention to the system configuration and the availability of free disk space.
Supported operating systems from XP to 10 and architecture x86, x64 and ia64 (some components are not available or are not supported). The minimum configuration should include a processor with a clock frequency of 1 GHz or higher, RAM 512 MB or more, as well as about 850 MB of free disk space for 32-bit systems (or 2 GB for 64-bit architecture).
Update process
Sometimes during the installation process of some applications a message is displayed that for their correct operation it is necessary to update the .NET Framework (Windows 7 is used or any other supported system, it doesn’t matter). And here it is worth paying attention to one interesting fact. The fact is that installing the new version has no relation to the update process as such. It simply installs the new version of the platform. In this case, the installer first removes the old modification, and only then starts the installation of the new version.
Sometimes before installing the latest version, it may be necessary to manually remove the previous modification (this mainly applies to Windows XP).
You can only update the .NET Framework if you download the installation distribution kit from the official Microsoft website (it’s better not to take it from other sources, as this may be a modification that is incomplete in functionality, and also is infected with viruses and malicious codes). In an extreme case, before starting the installer or unpacking the archive containing it, the files must be checked with an anti-virus scanner.
After downloading the file, it remains to run it as an administrator and wait for the installation process to complete.
Possible problems during the upgrade and methods for solving them
However, despite the simplicity of the update process, installation can also cause problems. Most often this applies to version 4.0. The installer displays a message that the installation was not completed.
You can, of course, reboot the computer system and try to install again, but in most cases the effect is zero. Therefore, the .NET Framework can be updated with troubleshooting as follows.
Launch the command line (cmd) from the Run menu (Win + R), set the net stop WuAuServ in the console. After that, we find the Software Distribution folder in the root directory of the system (C: \ Windows) and rename it, for example, to SDold.
After that, at the command prompt, enter net WuAuServ start and repeat the installation. In 99.9% of cases, this technique completely eliminates the problem.
Instead of a total
As you can see, there is nothing complicated in updating the .NET Framework. The main thing is to take into account the system requirements for computers to function correctly, install the latest updates for the “OS” itself and pay attention to the installed version if the package was downloaded not from an official resource, but from another source. In the event of errors or malfunctions, the described technique gives an almost 100% guarantee of correcting the situation.