This is part of my series on How to Install Windows Applications Silently.
Microsoft’s .NET Framework 3.0 is now available. You’ll likely need it for compatibility with software that also needs to talk to Microsoft’s Windows Vista. If you deploy lots of applications, you’ll probably want a silent way to install it, which is what this article is about.
You’ll first need to download Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 Redistributable Package from www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?familyid=10CC340B-F857-4A14-83F5-25634C3BF043&displaylang=en. The file is called dotnetfx3setup.exe, and has the following command line switches:
- /q – UI is entirely suppressed
- /remove – Uninstalls product
- /f – Repairs a product. This will repair all components that are installed.
- /norestart – Never restart option. The installer never restarts the computer after the installation. Setup will still return 3010 if a reboot is required.
As of 12pm CST on 12/19/06 there are no Windows Updates for .Net3.
Microsoft notes that “For best results, install on a computer that has not had pre-release versions of Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 installed on it. If your computer has a pre-release version on it, follow the Uninstall Instructions below to uninstall these pre-release bits before installing the Microsoft .NET Framework CTP. You must remove them in the correct order to ensure a clean uninstall.” There is a special download that can remove the beta software for you, see the end of the post for a detailed view of how it works.
Silently Installing .Net3
A silent install of .NET 3 is quite simple. Create a text file called install.bat in the same folder as the dotnetfx3setup.exe file and add the following code to it:
@ECHO OFF
ECHO Installing DotNet 3
start /wait dotnetfx3setup.exe /q /norestart
exit
The batch file is very basic. The first two lines turn off echo, so it doesn’t show every single thing that happens on the screen, and then add the text to tell you what is installing. The next line is of course the main one. The start /wait part tells the script to wait until this part is done before moving on to the next part. Their isn’t a next part at this time, but soon their will be hotfixes for .NET3, and you’ll want to add them to your script, and of course you’ll want the script to wait until each part is finished before proceeding. Finally, the script ends with an exit to tell the window to close.
Here’s the screens you’ll be missing if you run your install silently:
Extra Stuff
When hotfixes become available, you can download them and add them to this script. Simply add the hotfix download to the same directory as the install.bat file, and add the following line before the exit line, but after the line for the main install:
start /wait filename.exe /q
Replace the filename.exe part with the actual name of the file you downloaded (will probably look something like NDP30-KB12345-X86.exe).
Uninstalling Beta and RC Software
If you had a beta or RC version of .NET 3 installed previously, you will need to remove it first (the installer will stop if it detects an older version, as shown in the image below).
Microsoft has instructions on how to do this manually, but they’ve also created an application called Pre-released Microsoft .NET Framework 3.0 Uninstall Tool to do it for you. You can download it at www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=AAE7FC63-D405-4E13-909F-E85AA9E66146&displaylang=envs_uninst_w
The uninstaller (the filename is vs_uninst_winfx.exe) does have command line switches as well, so you could even add that to the beginning of your script to first uninstall the old version, then install the new one:
- /Q – Quiet modes for package
- /T:
– Specifies temporary working folder - /C – Extract files only to the folder when used also with /T
- /C:
– Override install command defined by author
So, if you added start /wait vs_uninst_winfx.exe /Q before the main line in your script, it should uninstall the old version first before installing the new one (I don’t have the old version of the software anymore so I can’t test this).
If you run it normally, here’s the screens you will see:
January 15th, 2007 at 12:43 pm
I just test it and it works great. Thanks a lot!!!
January 18th, 2007 at 7:29 pm
Well, I run the install dotnetfx3setup.exe by double clicking the exe and I get the first screen accepting the license, but I never see anything else again… Task Manager perfomance tab show activity for some time but the nothing. Im on W2K3. If I run it again I get the Repair or Remove dialog, I select repair: same results.
What do I do now?
January 19th, 2007 at 2:45 pm
It sounds as if it’s already installed if it asks to ‘repair or remove’. Not sure if it’s intended for W2K3, you’d have to check the download page to be sure.
February 9th, 2007 at 10:37 am
About how long does the install take if I’m upgrading from 2.0? I’d just like to know how long I can expect my server to be down. Thanks.
February 9th, 2007 at 11:07 am
Technically it’s not an upgrade, you can have .NET 1.1, 2 & 3 all installed at the same time. It’s been a while since I did an install, but I don’t recall it taking more than a few minutes. I would think you could do the install while the server is running, so your only downtime would be for the reboot.
February 15th, 2007 at 10:22 am
You should download dotnetfx3.exe (about 50 MByte) for an offline installation.
February 15th, 2007 at 10:30 am
Do you have a link to where it is available? I just browsed the Microsoft downloads and was unable to locate it.
February 16th, 2007 at 10:55 am
Here is a direct link for the .NET Framework 3.0 Redistributable Package. Both links tested & working.
X86 Redist Package
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=70848
X64 Redist Package
http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=70849
May 8th, 2007 at 12:26 am
oh, thanks alot, this is which i need.
May 17th, 2007 at 11:47 pm
I have installed .Net 3 and its extensions.
But i also want to keep on creating application in .Net 2 .
Is that possible???
‘Coz now its only showing options for WPF and other applications…
June 15th, 2007 at 10:33 pm
how can i have an offline download of .net3 framework?
September 28th, 2007 at 8:50 am
I am trying to install 1.1, 2 & 3 consecutively from the same batch file. a.a & 2 install fine but 3 doesn’t appear. Any ideas?
Here is my batch file:
@ECHO OFF
ECHO ( 1 of 5 ) Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1 is installing..
Start /Wait dotnetfx.exe /Q /C:”install.exe /Q”
start /wait NDP1.1sp1-KB867460-X86.exe /q
start /wait NDP1.1sp1-KB886903-X86.exe /q
ECHO ( 2 of 5 ) Microsoft .NET Framework 2 is installing..
start /wait dotnetfx.exe /q:a /c:”install.exe /q”
start /wait NDP20-KB917283-X86.exe /q
start /wait NDP20-KB922770-X86.exe /q
ECHO ( 3 of 5 ) Microsoft .NET Framework 3 is installing..
start /wait dotnetfx3setup.exe /q /norestart
ECHO ( 4 of 5 ) Microsoft .NET Framework 3 patches installing..
start /wait WindowsXP-KB925720-x86-ENU.exe /q
start /wait msxml6-KB927977-enu-x86.exe /q
ECHO ( 5 of 5 ) Microsoft Updates installing..
start /wait windowsxp-kb892130-enu-x86_7e1189ce89fb0c693cad6432a4c2f982dcea49a0.exe /q
start /wait Windows-KB890830-V1.33.exe /q
exit
Thanks
November 11th, 2007 at 3:38 pm
Jak siÄ™ ma .NET 3.0 do:
- Pakiet zbiorczy aktualizacji programu CardSpace (KB925720)
- Aktualizacja zabezpieczeń Microsoft XML Core Services 6.0 (KB927977)
- Narzędzie Malicious Software Removal Tool (KB890830-V1.33)
- Windows Genuine Advantage Validation Tool (KB892130)
November 30th, 2007 at 12:27 pm
im trying to get rid of .net framework 2.0 and 3.0 ive deleted 1.1 but i cant get rid of the others i keep getting this message : Cannot uninstall .net framework 3.0 because it will effect other installed programs any ideas?