How to unblock installation of the .NET Framework 4 beta 1 on Windows XP Media Center and Tablet PC Editions
Question:
I tried to install the .NET Framework 4 beta 1 and Visual Studio 2010 beta 1 on my Windows XP Media Center system. It fails to install with an error like the following:
Microsoft .NET Framework 4 Beta 1 cannot be installed because an incompatible version of .NET Framework (v1.0) is installed on the machine. For more information, see https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=91126.
I don’t see any useful information in that link, and I don’t see an option to uninstall the .NET Framework 1.0 in the Add/Remove Programs control panel on my system, so I’m stuck.
Is there any way I can install the .NET Framework 4 beta 1 and VS 2010 beta 1 on my Windows XP Media Center system?
Answer:
Officially, the .NET Framework 4 beta 1 (and therefore VS 2010 beta 1) is not supported on Windows XP Media Center Edition or Windows XP Tablet PC Edition. However, the wording in the readme is a bit vague. Item 2.1.1.1 in the .NET Framework 4 beta 1 readme says the following:
Note: You cannot install the .NET Framework 4 Beta 1 on operating systems that have the .NET Framework 1.0 built in.
As I previously wrote in this blog post, the .NET Framework 1.0 is installed as an OS component on Windows XP Media Center Edition and Windows XP Tablet PC Edition, and it cannot be uninstalled on those versions of Windows XP.
If you are running Windows XP Media Center Edition or Windows XP Tablet PC Edition and want to be able to install the .NET Framework 4 beta 1 and VS 2010 beta 1, you can manually rename the following registry value:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\.NETFramework\policy\v1.0]
If you do this, there are a few important caveats to keep in mind:
Renaming this registry key will cause the .NET Framework 1.0 to not function correctly in some cases. This is why I suggest renaming the key instead of deleting it. If you rename it, you can restore it in the future. You can rename it back immediately after installing the .NET Framework 4 beta 1, but this key will also prevent you from uninstalling the .NET Framework 4 beta 1, so if you do that, you will need to rename it again prior to uninstalling this beta.
Renaming this registry key was not officially tested by the Visual Studio and .NET Framework teams, so if you decide to do this, you do so at your own risk and you may run into unforeseen problems.
If you delete the above registry key and find that you need to restore it later in order to fix functional problems with the .NET Framework 1.0, you can use the steps in this blog post to repair the version of the .NET Framework 1.0 that is installed as an OS component on Windows XP Media Center Edition and Windows XP Tablet PC Edition. Alternatively, you can manually re-create the following registry key that is listed in this blog post:
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\.NETFramework\Policy\v1.0]
3705 = 3321-3705
Comments
Anonymous
June 02, 2009
既に Visual Studio 2010 Beta1 および .NET Framework 4.0 Beta 1 英語版がダウンロードセンターからご利用頂けるようになりました。日本語版も間もなく提供開始される予定です。Anonymous
June 09, 2009
Hey I am running Windows XP Tablet PC Edition and tried to both manually rename the registry value and deleting the key. Both resulted in the "The .NET Framework version 4 cannot be installed because the .NET Framework version 1.0 is already installed on your computer. For more information, see the <A HREF="http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=135490">Readme file</A>. " Anymore ideas?Anonymous
June 09, 2009
Hi Dschu012 - I found the registry key that I listed in this blog post by looking at the installer for the .NET Framework 4 beta. I don't know what else would cause this block to occur if you deleted the correct registry value. One thing to check is that if you've got a 64-bit OS, you'll need to also rename/delete the following value: [HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESOFTWAREWow6432NodeMicrosoft.NETFrameworkpolicyv1.0] If you still get blocked after double-checking that both of the above keys are not on your system, then can you please gather and post your log files to a file server and reply back here with a link to them so I can take a further look? You can find a tool for gathering these log files in the blog post at http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/archive/2009/05/22/updated-log-collection-utility-available-for-visual-studio-2010-and-net-4-0-beta-1.aspx.Anonymous
June 11, 2009
For some reason it just work right now even though I didn't make any changes to my registry, besides the ones I did previously. Thanks for the help and the info.Anonymous
July 13, 2009
Thank You! I have the XP Media Center. http://connect.microsoft.com/VisualStudio/feedback/ViewFeedback.aspx?FeedbackID=453248 mentions no solution. I thought all hope was out for me to able to try the net framework 4.0 unless I bought a new computer. Regards, FredrikAnonymous
December 11, 2009
The comment has been removedAnonymous
December 12, 2009
Hi O3devildog - If this is the only application giving you problems, then your best bet is to contact the manufacturer of the program. It sounds like you've already tried that though, so I'm not sure what else to suggest. If you are seeing similar problems with multiple programs, then it is more likely being caused by something else on your system like the .NET Framework. If that is the case, I'd suggest making sure you have the latest version of the .NET Framework installed (which is 3.5 SP1, and can be downloaded from http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=AB99342F-5D1A-413D-8319-81DA479AB0D7) to see if that helps at all in this case.Anonymous
December 05, 2011
The comment has been removedAnonymous
December 05, 2011
Hi Sandra - What exact program are you trying to download, and what is the exact error message that you are seeing when you try to download it currently?Anonymous
January 07, 2012
If only the teams would actually FIX the problem instead of telling us not to install .NET Framework 4.0 if we still want Media Center to work, especially with it now being required to use any application built on the XNA 4.0 framework...Anonymous
January 07, 2012
Hi KyL416 - This blog post contains information that was only applicable to beta versions of the .NET Framework 4. You should be able to successfully install the final version of the .NET Framework 4 on a computer that is running Windows XP Media Center Edition. The only restriction that still exists in the final version of the .NET Framework 4 is that you cannot install the .NET Framework 1.0 after you install the .NET Framework 4. Instead, you have to install the .NET Framework 1.0 before installing the .NET Framework 4. Since the .NET Framework 1.0 comes pre-installed as a part of the OS on Windows XP Media Center Edition, you will be OK because you will have to install the .NET Framework 4 afterwards anyways.Anonymous
October 19, 2012
please unblock my emails how to send and receiveAnonymous
October 19, 2012
Hi Sharifa - I'm not sure I understand your scenario, and it doesn't sound related to the contents of this blog post. What is the exact problem that you're facing, and are the exact error message(s) that you see?Anonymous
June 16, 2016
hii i running .net framework 4.6.1 but not (Blocked issuse) msg how to install my pv windows 7 ultimate 8gb ram i5 proccer but i have problem plz help me- Anonymous
June 17, 2016
Hi shahbaz Ansari - I'm sorry, but I'm not sure I understand the problem that you're describing. Are you seeing an error when trying to install the .NET Framework? If so, can you please use the tool described at http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/11/21/6458047.aspx to collect all of your setup log files, upload the file named %temp%\vslogs.cab that this tool will create to a file server (such as http://onedrive.live.com), and then reply back here and provide a link that I can use to download your log files and take a closer look?
- Anonymous