Framework won't install on Windows 98

[Conrad Albrecht]

I need to test my .NET app on Windows 98, so I found
dotnetfx.exe on my MSDN DVD Disc 2214 (June 2003) (in
\ENGLISH\NET_FRAMEWORK_SDK\DOTNETREDIST) and ran it on my
Windows 98 machine. dotnetfx.exe said it was extracting
some files, and then displayed the message:

"Microsoft .NET Framework Setup needs to update the
Microsoft Windows Installer components before Setup can
continue. Proceed with installation?"

I said Yes. Then dotnetfx.exe said:

"Setup cannot access Windows Installer components. Setup
cannot continue."

I attempted to work around this by installing Windows
Installer myself. I found instmsi.exe on Disc 2085 (May
2003) (in \ENGLISH\PLATSDK_FEB2003\SETUP\MSI\WIN95) and
ran it. It said:

[Message box title] "Error"

"The specified service already exists."

I then attempted to run dotnetfx.exe again, with the same
failure as before.

I hope there's a solution to this problem so I can debug a
user-reported, apparently Windows-98-specific problem in
my .NET app.

 

[Magnus Persson]

I have never had any problems installing .NET on Windows 98 (.NET do not
work properly on 98/Me but that's another story).

Make sure you have the latest .NET 1.1 redist and the latest MSI redist.

You can download the .NET 1.1 redist from the below link:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...E3-F589-4842-8157-034D1E7CF3A3&displaylang=en

....and the msi redist...
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/...d8-c094-4255-b702-de3bb768148f&displaylang=en

You can also try the localized versions in case you are not running an
english version of Win98.

 

[Conrad Albrecht]

Magnus' suggestion actually worked, thanks! (At first I
wrote it off as just "generic" advice.) It turns out that
the instmsiA.exe from Magnus' URL below is different than
the instmsi.exe I found on the May 2003 DVD (even though
the download page says the file was issued in 2001). And
the downloaded instmsiA.exe successfully installed Windows
Installer on my Windows 98 machine, after which the
dotnetfx.exe from the DVD (mentioned in my original post
below) successfully installed the .NET Framework.

Perhaps I had found the "wrong" instmsi.exe on my MSDN
DVD, but the MSDN Library doc saying where to find the
Windows Installer redist in my DVDs was vague, so I had to
guess. Broadband Internet access isn't practical at my
site so I use my MSDN DVDs by preference.

-Conrad

-----Original Message-----
I have never had any problems installing .NET on Windows 98 (.NET do not
work properly on 98/Me but that's another story).

Make sure you have the latest .NET 1.1 redist and the latest MSI redist.

You can download the .NET 1.1 redist from the below link:
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx? FamilyId=262D25E3-F589-4842-8157-
034D1E7CF3A3&displaylang=en

....and the msi redist...
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx? FamilyID=cebbacd8-c094-4255-b702-
de3bb768148f&displaylang=en

You can also try the localized versions in case you are not running an
english version of Win98.

I need to test my .NET app on Windows 98, so I found
dotnetfx.exe on my MSDN DVD Disc 2214 (June 2003) (in
\ENGLISH\NET_FRAMEWORK_SDK\DOTNETREDIST) and ran it on my
Windows 98 machine. dotnetfx.exe said it was extracting
some files, and then displayed the message:

"Microsoft .NET Framework Setup needs to update the
Microsoft Windows Installer components before Setup can
continue. Proceed with installation?"

I said Yes. Then dotnetfx.exe said:

"Setup cannot access Windows Installer components. Setup
cannot continue."

I attempted to work around this by installing Windows
Installer myself. I found instmsi.exe on Disc 2085 (May
2003) (in \ENGLISH\PLATSDK_FEB2003\SETUP\MSI\WIN95) and
ran it. It said:

[Message box title] "Error"

"The specified service already exists."

I then attempted to run dotnetfx.exe again, with the same
failure as before.

I hope there's a solution to this problem so I can debug a
user-reported, apparently Windows-98-specific problem in
my .NET app.

.