Visual Studio Setup Forum FAQs

Question

This thread  covers some of the most common FAQs in Visual Studio setup forum.

For .NET Framework setup issues, please visit .NET Framework Setup forum and refer to .NET Framework Setup Forum FAQs

1. Visual Studio:
   
   1.1 What are the differences between Visual Studio editions?
   
   1.2 What are the best practices for installing Visual Studio?
   
   1.3 How can I uninstall Pre-RTM Visual Studio versions (CTPs or Betas)?
   
   1.4 What should I do to remove Visual Studio?
   
   1.5 What can be done if Visual Studio IDE encounters unexpected problems?
   
   1.6 Where to find Visual Studio administrator deployment guide?
   
   1.7 Where to get Visual Studio and .NET Framework setup log files?
   
   

   VS2005:

   1.8 How to troubleshoot the installation of Visual Studio 2005?
   
   1.9 What are the known issues with Visual Studio 2005 Service Pack 1 installation?
   
   1.10 What are the known issues with Visual Studio 2005 on Windows Vista?
   
   VS2008:
   
   1.11 What are the new features in Visual Studio 2008?
   
   1.12 What are the common steps to troubleshoot Visual Studio 2008 setup problems?
   
   1.13 How to diagnose Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 setup issues with setup Logs?
   
   
2. General setup troubleshooting:
   
   2.1 How to resolve Common "Windows Installer" Problems?
   
   2.2  What are other useful setup related and troubleshooting tools?

 

Answer 1

1.1  What are the differences between Visual Studio editions?   [ go to catalog ]

You can refer to the following documents:

Visual Studio 2005 Product Line Overview
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vstudio/aa700921.aspx
Visual Studio 2005 Team Editions Comparison
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/teamsystem/aa718806.aspx
Visual Studio 2008 Product Comparison
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vsts2008/products/cc149003.aspx
Update: Here are some downloadable versions (DOCX/XPS/PDF): Visual Studio 2008 Product Comparison downloads .

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1.2 What are the best practices for installing Visual Studio?   [ go to catalog ]

There are some general tips for Visual Studio installation in the following post: http://forums.msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/vssetup/thread/60f71a54-506e-4c70-be98-e993ce6d1ddf/

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1.3  How can I uninstall Pre-RTM Visual Studio versions (CTPs or Betas)?   [ go to catalog ]

The following thread is a forum compiling of a list of resources on how to uninstall different pre-release versions of Visual Studio 2005:
http://forums.msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/vssetup/thread/94f227ba-0e88-437f-936a-afffd5236b8c/

Here are some official suggestions from MSDN:
Uninstalling previous versions of Visual Studio 2005
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/express/aa718405.aspx
Uninstalling previous versions of Visual Studio 2008
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/bb964521.aspx

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1.4 What should I do to remove Visual Studio?   [ go to catalog ]

The following link provides an automated tool as well as the manual steps for removing Visual Studio 2008:
Uninstalling Visual Studio 2008 (NOTE: this tool does not remove .NET Framework 3.5):
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/bb968856.aspx

 

For Visual Studio 2005, you can refer to the following documents:
How to uninstall Visual Studio (2005)
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms246604(VS.80).aspx
How to remove Visual Studio 2005
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/907965

For earlier versions:
How to remove Visual Studio .NET 2003
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/824642
How to manually remove Visual Studio .NET 2002 components
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/320114

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1.5 What can be done if Visual Studio IDE encounters unexpected problems?    [ go to catalog ]

When unexpected problems occurs, the key point is trying to isolate potential causes. So it’s good to make the situation as simple as possible.

There are a few things we can try if Visual Studio IDE is not working as expected:

a)     Try to run devenv /ResetSettings (in command prompt) to eliminate the related potential settings problem.

b)     Try disabling Add-ins (e.g. “Tools” | “Add-in Manager”) or run “devenv.exe /SafeMode”.This can eliminate the possibility that third party Add-ins or packages are causing problems. (For more detailed VS command line switches information, see: http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/xee0c8y7.aspx )

c)     Try creating a new project. Sometimes corrupted project settings can cause problems. These are project specific.

d)     Make sure that we have the latest service pack applied.
For example, Visual Studio 2005, please refer to Microsoft® Visual Studio® 2005 Team Suite Service Pack 1 http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=BB4A75AB-E2D4-4C96-B39D-37BAF6B5B1DC (This download installs Service Pack 1 for Microsoft® Visual Studio® 2005 Standard, Professional, Team Editions) or Microsoft® Visual Studio® 2005 Express Editions Service Pack 1 http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=7B0B0339-613A-46E6-AB4D-080D4D4A8C4E (This download installs Service Pack 1 for Microsoft® Visual Studio® 2005 Express Editions)

e)     Try to reboot the operating system to safe mode. This can help to isolate whether any other applications are interfering with Visual Studio. Note that some features (like IIS) are not available under safe mode. Please check whether this can be applied or not. In addition to safe mode, we can also try “clean boot”: How to configure Windows XP to start in a "clean boot" state http://support.microsoft.com/kb/310353 .

f)      Try to create a new user account. This can help isolate user profile corruption related causes.

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1.6  Where to find Visual Studio administrator deployment guide?   [ go to catalog ]

Visual Studio 2008 Administrator Deployment Readme, please visit http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=101063 .
For a Microsoft Visual Studio 2005 version, see http://support.microsoft.com/kb/907759 .
For a Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2003 version, see http://support.microsoft.com/kb/327792 .
For a Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2002 version, see http://support.microsoft.com/kb/309657 .

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1.7 Where to get Visual Studio and .NET Framework setup log files?   [ go to catalog ]

The following articles are talking about what and where the setup log files are:

Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 setup log files
http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/07/31/4156781.aspx

.NET Framework 3.0 setup log files
http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2006/10/30/net-framework-3-0-setup-log-files.aspx

Visual Studio 2005 and .NET Framework v2.0 log files
http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/articles/447012.aspx

Visual Studio .NET 2003 and .NET Framework v1.1 log files
http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/articles/447004.aspx

Visual Studio .NET 2002 and .NET Framework v1.0 log files
http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/articles/447001.aspx

Answer 2

1.8 How to troubleshoot the installation of Visual Studio 2005?  [go to catalog]

Aaron Stebner has provided a great troubleshooting guide in his blog:
Visual Studio 2005 and .NET Framework 2.0 Setup Troubleshooting Guide
http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/articles/492809.aspx

You can also find some useful information from the KB article below:
How to troubleshoot the installation of Visual Studio 2005
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/904732

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1.9 What are the known issues with Visual Studio 2005 Service Pack 1 installation?  [go to catalog]

Heath Stewart has written some known issues about VS 2005 SP1 installation in his blog:
http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/archive/2007/01/11/known-issues-with-visual-studio-2005-service-pack-1.aspx
He uses tags a lot, so you can find the VS 2005 SP1 related articles collection below:
http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/archive/tags/VS+2005+SP1/default.aspx

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1.10 What are the known issues with Visual Studio 2005 on Windows Vista?  [go to catalog]

You can find the known issues listed below:
Visual Studio 2005 on Windows Vista Issue List
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vstudio/aa964140.aspx

Answer 3

1.11 What are the new features in Visual Studio 2008?  [go to catalog]

Feature Specifications for Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vstudio/aa948851.aspx

There are some other blog articles talking about the new features:

New Features of Visual Studio 2008 and Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5
http://weblogs.asp.net/scottgu/archive/2007/11/19/visual-studio-2008-and-net-3-5-released.aspx
New Features of Visual Studio 2008 and Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5
http://blogs.msdn.com/dougste/archive/2007/11/02/new-features-of-visual-studio-2008-and-microsoft-net-framework-3-5.aspx

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1.12 What are the tips for troubleshooting Visual Studio 2008 setup problems?  [go to catalog]

1.    Ensure that all of the pre-release(Beta or CTP versions) components on your machine have been removed:
Uninstalling Previous Versions of Visual Studio 2008:
http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vs2008/bb964521.aspx

2.    Install the latest Windows updates from the Windows Update site: http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com/

3.    Check if there are any anti-virus or antispyware applications running. Make sure they are turned off during installation.

4.    Make sure that the installation media is healthy. If the installation from disc drive is not working well, you can try copying the contents of the disc to the hard disk and installing from the hard disk.

5.    Complete or dismiss Windows Update before installation (but turn on Windows Update service).

6.    If the installation fails, you can collect the setup log file and analyze them.
Clean up the temporary folder (Open the menu “Start” | “Run” and run “%TEMP%” without quotation marks) and reproduce installation failure. The log files will be generated in the temporary folder.

You can utilize the collect tool from here:
http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/attachment/8483493.ashx
NOTE: After running the tool, you can go to your %TEMP% folder to find the file vslogs.cab by clicking on the “Start” menu, choosing Run and running “%TEMP%” (without quotation marks). It may take some time for the tool to collect log files on your machine. Please be patient.

For more information, see: Visual Studio and .NET Log Collection Utility
http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/archive/2008/05/09/visual-studio-and-net-log-collection-utility.aspx

7.    Try using Process Monitor to track whether there is any file/registry access related issue.
Process Monitor:
http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/ProcessesAndThreads/processmonitor.mspx
The log can be large and you can make use of “Filter” feature to filter the result.

Related Thread: http://forums.msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/vssetup/thread/ecb1403a-a343-43d9-92c6-a50f5bee3cf6/

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1.13 How to diagnose Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 setup issues with setup Logs?  [go to catalog]

Here are some tips to check Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 setup logs (some common steps can be also applied to other versions).

You can learn what and where the logs are located from the following article:
Visual Studio 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5 setup log files http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/07/31/4156781.aspx

And you can use the collect.exe utility to collect the setup logs: http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/attachment/8483493.ashx

1.     Download collect.exe from the link above.
2.     You may choose to save the tool for later use, or to run directly.
3.     The utility creates a compressed cabinet of all the VS and .NET logs to %TEMP%\vslogs.cab.

More information about the tool, see: http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/archive/2008/05/09/visual-studio-and-net-log-collection-utility.aspx

Time stamp in the VS setup log or .NET Framework setup log can be helpful to diagnose the problem, you can see what happened in order during the installation and what occurred just before the error or exception arose.

For example, in Vista x86 you see the line (in dd_dotnetfx35error.txt)

[12/21/07,18:51:15] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): [2] Error: Installation failed for component Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS). MSI returned error code 34

Then you can check what happens before 18:51:15 in dd_dotnetfx35install.txt

For example we see some clues from the following:

[12/21/07,18:42:42] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): "C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe" "c:\34415d89092dd9f6afb19de1dd\wcu\dotNetFramework\dotnetmsp\x86\NetFX2.0-KB110806-v6000-x86.msu" /quiet /norestart
[12/21/07,18:42:42] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): CBSComponent Action: CreateProcess launched with cmd line : C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe "C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe" "c:\34415d89092dd9f6afb19de1dd\wcu\dotNetFramework\dotnetmsp\x86\NetFX2.0-KB110806-v6000-x86.msu" /quiet /norestart
[12/21/07,18:42:42] BWaitForMSI(): Verifying we're the only installation currently in progress.
[12/21/07,18:42:42] BWaitForMSI(): Ready to proceed with installation.  Continuing...
[12/21/07,18:45:13] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe exited with return value 34
[12/21/07,18:45:13] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): Installation failed, attempting to retry
[12/21/07,18:45:13] InstallRetryAttempted: GFN_MID NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS)
[12/21/07,18:46:13] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): retrying...
[12/21/07,18:46:13] BWaitForMSI(): Verifying we're the only installation currently in progress.
[12/21/07,18:46:13] BWaitForMSI(): Ready to proceed with installation.  Continuing...
[12/21/07,18:47:12] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe exited with return value 34
[12/21/07,18:47:12] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): Installation failed, attempting to retry
[12/21/07,18:47:12] InstallRetryAttempted: GFN_MID NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS)
[12/21/07,18:48:12] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): retrying...
[12/21/07,18:48:12] BWaitForMSI(): Verifying we're the only installation currently in progress.
[12/21/07,18:48:12] BWaitForMSI(): Ready to proceed with installation.  Continuing...
[12/21/07,18:49:11] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe exited with return value 34
[12/21/07,18:49:11] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): Installation failed, attempting to retry
[12/21/07,18:49:11] InstallRetryAttempted: GFN_MID NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS)
[12/21/07,18:50:11] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): retrying...
[12/21/07,18:50:11] BWaitForMSI(): Verifying we're the only installation currently in progress.
[12/21/07,18:50:11] BWaitForMSI(): Ready to proceed with installation.  Continuing...
[12/21/07,18:51:15] Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0SP1 (CBS): C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe exited with return value 34

So the problem is narrowed down to the highlighted part… (Error return code 34 usually means reboot is required)

It’s suggested to directly install the highlighted part from installation source (\wcu\dotNetFramework\dotnetmsp\x86\NetFX2.0-KB110806-v6000-x86.msu) and reboot the machine, and then run the Visual Studio 2008 setup again. (Sometimes to cleanup .NET Framework by .NET Framework cleanup tool before this method is also necessary in order to remove the remnants left by previously installation)

Since the actual cases can differ and trend to be complicated, there is no solid solution for a specific error code.
However, some common error codes information along with some corresponding potential solutions is listed below:

a)     MSI returned error code 34
—    Potential Solution: Machine needs rebooting.

b)     Error Code 6015
—    Potential Solution:
Error message when you try to install a hotfix on a Windows Vista-based computer in a domain: "Installer encountered an error: 0x8007177f. This machine is disabled for file encryption" http://support.microsoft.com/kb/933595 
There can be a domain policy in effect that prevents file encryption using the Encrypting File System (EFS) from working.

c)     Error Code 1
—    Potential Solution:
The package is not applicable on the system, due to beta product or corrupted registry: http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/08/24/4548657.aspx
And related Thread: http://forums.msdn.microsoft.com/en-US/thread/191b3373-f7fa-4d49-b320-b8632ad8d291

d)     Error code 5 or 0x5 or 0x80070005
—    Potential Solution:
Solving setup errors by using the SubInACL tool to repair file and registry permissions http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2006/09/04/739820.aspx

e)     Error code 0x80040154
—    A class is not registered, reference to:
Possible .NET Framework 3.5 installation failure caused by broken MSXML registration http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/11/01/5826719.aspx

f)      0x0013EC (5100)
—    Generic setup block
This error code will be returned in several different scenarios:

i.      The user running setup does not have administrative privileges.
ii.     A previous Beta version is installed (the algorithm is similar to the one for the .NET Framework 2.0 described here, but the product codes are stored in the file named setup.sdb instead of install.ini).
iii.    A later version of the .NET Framework 3.5 is already installed. 
iv.    The OS that setup is being run on is not supported. 
v.     The OS that setup is being run on does not have the minimum service pack installed.

g)     0x002332 (9010)
—    A pending reboot must be completed before setup can run.
This error code is returned if some previous action on the system caused pending file rename operations to be scheduled by adding entries to the following registry value:
Registry root: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Registry key name: Software\Microsoft\Updates\UpdateExeVolatile
Registry value name: Flags -or- Flags_<reboot time>
This error can typically be resolved by rebooting the system.  If the error continues to occur even after a reboot, you can manually delete this Flags value from the registry on your system to work around it.

For more information, see: Return codes for .NET Framework 3.0 setup http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2006/11/28/return-codes-for-net-framework-3-0-setup.aspx

And we can see some other return code error analysis in Aaron’s blog and Heath’s blog.

Answer 4

2.1 How to resolve Common "Windows Installer" Problems?  [go to catalog]

The link below will help you to resolve common Windows Installer problems:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/555175

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2.2 What are other useful setup related and troubleshooting tools?  [go to catalog]

They are listed below:

 

• msiinv.exe :
  http://cid-27e6a35d1a492af7.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/Blog%7C_Tools/msiinv.zip
  This tool (which stands for MSI Inventory) wraps some of the publicly documented MSI APIs to provide information about the state of all Windows Installer products, features and components that Windows Installer thinks are installed on your computer.
  
  For more information, see: http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2005/07/01/using-msiinv-to-gather-information-about-what-is-installed-on-a-computer.aspx
• Windows Installer Cleanup Utility:
  http://download.microsoft.com/download/e/9/d/e9d80355-7ab4-45b8-80e8-983a48d5e1bd/msicuu2.exe
  With the Windows Installer CleanUp Utility, you can remove a program's Windows Installer configuration information. You may want to remove the Windows Installer configuration information for your program if you experience installation (Setup) problems.
  
  For more information, see:
  Description of the Windows Installer CleanUp Utility http://support.microsoft.com/kb/290301

• .NET Framework cleanup tool:
  http://astebner.sts.winisp.net/Tools/dotnetfx_cleanup_tool.zip
  
  It is used to clean up .NET Framework.
  
  For more information, see: http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/12/04/6659905.aspx

• Collect.exe:
  http://go.microsoft.com/?LinkId=8967044 (new)
  http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/attachment/8483493.ashx (old)
  http://astebner.sts.winisp.net/Tools/Collect.zip (old)
  
  It’s used to collect the log information.
  
  It is a Win32 console application, so you can extract it from the zip file and double-click on it to run it.  It will create a file named %temp%\vslogs.cab on your system after it has gathered all of the log files.
  
  Note - after the tool finishes running, you can get to your %temp% folder to find the file vslogs.cab by clicking on the Start menu, choosing Run, typing %temp% and clicking OK.
  (While running the collect tool, it may take some time to collect log files on your machine, please be patient.)
  
  For more information, see:
  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(new)
  http://blogs.msdn.com/heaths/archive/2008/05/09/visual-studio-and-net-log-collection-utility.aspx (old)http://blogs.msdn.com/astebner/archive/2007/08/01/4172276.aspx (old)
  
  

• As for other tools there are more on:
  http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/default.mspx
  Such as Process Explorer, Process Monitor, Register Monitor, Autoruns are very useful.
  
  See:
  Sysinternals Process Utilities: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/cb56073f-62a3-4ed8-9dd6-40c84cb9e2f5.aspx
  Sysinternals File and Disk Utilities: http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb545046.aspx