How to: Determine which .NET Framework versions are installed

• 02/03/2020
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Users can install and run multiple versions of the .NET Framework on their computers. When you develop or deploy your app, you might need to know which .NET Framework versions are installed on the user’s computer. The registry contains a list of the .NET Framework versions installed on a computer.

The .NET Framework consists of two main components, which are versioned separately:

• A set of assemblies, which are collections of types and resources that provide the functionality for your apps. The .NET Framework and assemblies share the same version number. For example, .NET Framework versions include 4.5, 4.6.1, and 4.7.2.

• The common language runtime (CLR), which manages and executes your app's code. A single CLR version typically supports multiple .NET Framework versions. For example, CLR version 4.0.30319.xxxxx where xxxxx is less than 42000, supports .NET Framework versions 4 through 4.5.2. CLR version greater than or equal to 4.0.30319.42000 supports .NET Framework versions starting with .NET Framework 4.6.

Community-maintained tools are available to help detect which .NET Framework versions are installed:

• https://github.com/jmalarcon/DotNetVersions

  A .NET 2.0 command-line tool.

• https://github.com/EliteLoser/DotNetVersionLister

  A PowerShell 2.0 module.

For information about detecting the installed updates for each version of the .NET Framework, see How to: Determine which .NET Framework updates are installed.

Detect .NET Framework 4.5 and later versions

The version of .NET Framework (4.5 and later) installed on a machine is listed in the registry at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full. If the Full subkey is missing, then .NET Framework 4.5 or above isn't installed.

The Release REG_DWORD value in the registry represents the version of .NET Framework installed.

Minimum version

To determine whether a minimum version of the .NET Framework is present, use the smallest Release REG_DWORD value for that version from the previous table.

For example, if your application runs under .NET Framework 4.8 or a later version, test for a Release REG_DWORD value that is greater than or equal to 528040.

Use Registry Editor

1. From the Start menu, choose Run, enter regedit, and then select OK.

   You must have administrative credentials to run regedit.

2. In the Registry Editor, open the following subkey: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full. If the Full subkey isn't present, then you don't have the .NET Framework 4.5 or later installed.

3. Check for a REG_DWORD entry named Release. If it exists, then you have .NET Framework 4.5 or later installed. Its value corresponds to a particular version of the .NET Framework. In the following figure, for example, the value of the Release entry is 528040, which is the release key for .NET Framework 4.8.

   

Use PowerShell to check for a minimum version

Use PowerShell commands to check the value of the Release entry of the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full subkey.

The following examples check the value of the Release entry to determine whether the .NET Framework 4.6.2 or later is installed. This code returns True if it's installed and False otherwise.

(Get-ItemProperty "HKLM:SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full").Release -ge 394802

Query the registry using code

1. Use the RegistryKey.OpenBaseKey and RegistryKey.OpenSubKey methods to access the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full subkey in the Windows registry.

   Important

   If the app you're running is 32-bit and running in 64-bit Windows, the registry paths will be different than previously listed. The 64-bit registry is available in the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\ subkey. For example, the registry subkey for .NET Framework 4.5 is HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full.

2. Check the Release REG_DWORD value to determine the installed version. To be forward-compatible, check for a value greater than or equal to the value listed in the .NET Framework version table.

The following example checks the value of the Release entry in the registry to find the .NET Framework 4.5 and later versions that are installed:

using System;using Microsoft.Win32;public class GetDotNetVersion{   public static void Main()   {      Get45PlusFromRegistry();   }   private static void Get45PlusFromRegistry()   {      const string subkey = @"SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full\";      using (var ndpKey = RegistryKey.OpenBaseKey(RegistryHive.LocalMachine, RegistryView.Registry32).OpenSubKey(subkey))      {        if (ndpKey != null && ndpKey.GetValue("Release") != null) {            Console.WriteLine($".NET Framework Version: {CheckFor45PlusVersion((int) ndpKey.GetValue("Release"))}");        }         else {            Console.WriteLine(".NET Framework Version 4.5 or later is not detected.");         }      }      // Checking the version using >= enables forward compatibility.      string CheckFor45PlusVersion(int releaseKey)      {         if (releaseKey >= 528040)            return "4.8 or later";         if (releaseKey >= 461808)            return "4.7.2";         if (releaseKey >= 461308)            return "4.7.1";         if (releaseKey >= 460798)            return "4.7";         if (releaseKey >= 394802)            return "4.6.2";         if (releaseKey >= 394254)            return "4.6.1";         if (releaseKey >= 393295)            return "4.6";         if (releaseKey >= 379893)            return "4.5.2";         if (releaseKey >= 378675)            return "4.5.1";         if (releaseKey >= 378389)            return "4.5";         // This code should never execute. A non-null release key should mean         // that 4.5 or later is installed.         return "No 4.5 or later version detected";      }   }}// This example displays output like the following://       .NET Framework Version: 4.6.1

Imports Microsoft.Win32Public Module GetDotNetVersion    Public Sub Main()        Get45PlusFromRegistry()    End Sub    Private Sub Get45PlusFromRegistry()        Const subkey As String = "SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full\"        Using ndpKey As RegistryKey = RegistryKey.OpenBaseKey(RegistryHive.LocalMachine, RegistryView.Registry32).OpenSubKey(subkey)            If ndpKey IsNot Nothing AndAlso ndpKey.GetValue("Release") IsNot Nothing                 Console.WriteLine($".NET Framework Version: {CheckFor45PlusVersion(ndpKey.GetValue("Release"))}")            Else                 Console.WriteLine(".NET Framework Version 4.5 or later is not detected.")            End If         End Using    End Sub    ' Checking the version using >= will enable forward compatibility.    Private Function CheckFor45PlusVersion(releaseKey As Integer) As String        If releaseKey >= 528040 Then            Return "4.8 or later"        Else If releaseKey >= 461808 Then            Return "4.7.2"         Else If releaseKey >= 461308 Then            Return "4.7.1"        Else If releaseKey >= 460798 Then            Return "4.7"        Else If releaseKey >= 394802 Then            Return "4.6.2"        Else If releaseKey >= 394254 Then             Return "4.6.1"        Else If releaseKey >= 393295 Then            Return "4.6"        Else If releaseKey >= 379893 Then            Return "4.5.2"        Else If releaseKey >= 378675 Then            Return "4.5.1"        Else If releaseKey >= 378389 Then            Return "4.5"        End If        ' This code should never execute. A non-null release key should mean        ' that 4.5 or later is installed.        Return "No 4.5 or later version detected"    End FunctionEnd Module' The example displays output like the following:'       .NET Framework Version: 4.6.1

This example follows the recommended practice for version checking:

• It checks whether the value of the Release entry is greater than or equal to the value of the known release keys.
• It checks in order from most recent version to earliest version.

Detect .NET Framework 1.0 through 4.0

Each version of .NET Framework from 1.1 to 4.0 is listed as a subkey at HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP. The following table lists the path to each .NET Framework version. For most versions, there's a Install REG_DWORD value of 1 to indicate this version is installed. In these subkeys, there's also a Version REG_SZ value that contains a version string.

Notice that the registry path to the .NET Framework 1.0 subkey is different from the others.

Use Registry Editor (older framework versions)

1. From the Start menu, choose Run, enter regedit, and then select OK.

   You must have administrative credentials to run regedit.

2. Open the subkey that matches the version you want to check. Use the table in the Detect .NET Framework 1.0 through 4.0 section.

   The following figure shows the subkey and its Version value for .NET Framework 3.5.

   

Query the registry using code (older framework versions)

Use the Microsoft.Win32.RegistryKey class to access the HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP subkey in the Windows registry.

The following example finds the .NET Framework 1 through 4 versions that are installed:

using Microsoft.Win32;using System;public static class VersionTest{    public static void Main()    {        GetVersionFromRegistry();    }    private static void GetVersionFromRegistry()    {        // Opens the registry key for the .NET Framework entry.        using (RegistryKey ndpKey =                RegistryKey.OpenBaseKey(RegistryHive.LocalMachine, RegistryView.Registry32).                OpenSubKey(@"SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\"))        {            foreach (var versionKeyName in ndpKey.GetSubKeyNames())            {                // Skip .NET Framework 4.5 version information.                if (versionKeyName == "v4")                {                    continue;                }                if (versionKeyName.StartsWith("v"))                {                    RegistryKey versionKey = ndpKey.OpenSubKey(versionKeyName);                    // Get the .NET Framework version value.                    var name = (string)versionKey.GetValue("Version", "");                    // Get the service pack (SP) number.                    var sp = versionKey.GetValue("SP", "").ToString();                    // Get the installation flag, or an empty string if there is none.                    var install = versionKey.GetValue("Install", "").ToString();                    if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(install)) // No install info; it must be in a child subkey.                    {                        Console.WriteLine($"{versionKeyName}  {name}");                    }                    else                    {                        if (!(string.IsNullOrEmpty(sp)) && install == "1")                        {                            Console.WriteLine($"{versionKeyName}  {name}  SP{sp}");                        }                    }                    if (! string.IsNullOrEmpty(name))                    {                        continue;                    }                    foreach (var subKeyName in versionKey.GetSubKeyNames())                    {                        RegistryKey subKey = versionKey.OpenSubKey(subKeyName);                        name = (string)subKey.GetValue("Version", "");                        if (! string.IsNullOrEmpty(name))                            sp = subKey.GetValue("SP", "").ToString();                        install = subKey.GetValue("Install", "").ToString();                        if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(install)) //No install info; it must be later.                        {                            Console.WriteLine($"{versionKeyName}  {name}");                        }                        else                        {                            if (!(string.IsNullOrEmpty(sp )) && install == "1")                            {                                Console.WriteLine($"{subKeyName}  {name}  SP{sp}");                            }                            else if (install == "1")                            {                                Console.WriteLine($"  {subKeyName}  {name}");                            }                        }                    }                }            }        }    }}// The example displays output similar to the following://        v2.0.50727  2.0.50727.4927  SP2//        v3.0  3.0.30729.4926  SP2//        v3.5  3.5.30729.4926  SP1//        v4.0//        Client  4.0.0.0

Imports Microsoft.Win32Public Module VersionTest    Public Sub Main()        GetVersionFromRegistry()    End Sub        Private Sub GetVersionFromRegistry()        ' Opens the registry key for the .NET Framework entry.        Using ndpKey As RegistryKey = RegistryKey.OpenBaseKey(RegistryHive.LocalMachine, RegistryView.Registry32).             OpenSubKey("SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\")            For Each versionKeyName In ndpKey.GetSubKeyNames()                ' Skip .NET Framework 4.5 and later.                If versionKeyName = "v4" Then Continue For                If versionKeyName.StartsWith("v") Then                    Dim versionKey As RegistryKey = ndpKey.OpenSubKey(versionKeyName)                    ' Get the .NET Framework version value.                    Dim name = DirectCast(versionKey.GetValue("Version", ""), String)                    ' Get the service pack (SP) number.                    Dim sp = versionKey.GetValue("SP", "").ToString()                                       Dim install = versionKey.GetValue("Install", "").ToString()                    If String.IsNullOrEmpty(install) Then  ' No install info; it must be in a child subkey.                        Console.WriteLine($"{versionKeyName}  {name}")                    Else                        If Not String.IsNullOrEmpty(sp) AndAlso install = "1" Then                            Console.WriteLine($"{versionKeyName}  {name}  SP{sp}")                        End If                    End If                    If Not String.IsNullOrEmpty(name) Then                        Continue For                    End If                    For Each subKeyName In versionKey.GetSubKeyNames()                        Dim subKey As RegistryKey = versionKey.OpenSubKey(subKeyName)                        name = DirectCast(subKey.GetValue("Version", ""), String)                        If Not String.IsNullOrEmpty(name) Then                            sp = subKey.GetValue("SP", "").ToString()                        End If                        install = subKey.GetValue("Install", "").ToString()                        If String.IsNullOrEmpty(install) Then  ' No install info; it must be later.                            Console.WriteLine($"{versionKeyName}  {name}")                        Else                            If Not String.IsNullOrEmpty(sp) AndAlso install = "1" Then                                Console.WriteLine($"{subKeyName}  {name}  SP{sp}")                            ElseIf install = "1" Then                                Console.WriteLine($"  {subKeyName}  {name}")                            End If                        End If                    Next                End If            Next        End Using    End SubEnd Module' The example displays output similar to the following:'        v2.0.50727  2.0.50727.4927  SP2'        v3.0  3.0.30729.4926  SP2'        v3.5  3.5.30729.4926  SP1'        v4.0'        Client  4.0.0.0

Find CLR versions

The .NET Framework CLR installed with .NET Framework is versioned separately. There are two ways to detect the version of the .NET Framework CLR:

• The Clrver.exe tool

  Use the CLR Version tool (Clrver.exe) to determine which versions of the CLR are installed on a computer. Open the Developer Command Prompt for Visual Studio and enter clrver.

  Sample output:

  Versions installed on the machine:v2.0.50727v4.0.30319

• The Environment class

  Important

  For .NET Framework 4.5 and later versions, don't use the Environment.Version property to detect the version of the CLR. Instead, query the registry as described in Detect .NET Framework 4.5 and later versions.

  1. Query the Environment.Version property to retrieve a Version object.

     The returned System.Version object identifies the version of the runtime that's currently executing the code. It doesn't return assembly versions or other versions of the runtime that may have been installed on the computer.

     For .NET Framework versions 4, 4.5, 4.5.1, and 4.5.2, the string representation of the returned Version object has the form 4.0.30319.xxxxx, where xxxxx is less than 42000. For .NET Framework 4.6 and later versions, it has the form 4.0.30319.42000.

  2. After you have the Version object, query it as follows:

     • For the major release identifier (for example, 4 for version 4.0), use the Version.Major property.

     • For the minor release identifier (for example, 0 for version 4.0), use the Version.Minor property.

     • For the entire version string (for example, 4.0.30319.18010), use the Version.ToString method. This method returns a single value that reflects the version of the runtime that's executing the code. It doesn't return assembly versions or other runtime versions that may be installed on the computer.

  The following example uses the Environment.Version property to retrieve CLR version information:

  using System;public class VersionTest{    public static void Main()    {        Console.WriteLine($"Version: {Environment.Version}");    }}// The example displays output similar to the following:'//    Version: 4.0.30319.18010

  Imports Microsoft.Win32Public Module VersionTest   Public Sub Main()      GetVersionFromEnvironment()   End Sub       Private Sub GetVersionFromEnvironment()        Console.WriteLine($"Version: {Environment.Version}")    End SubEnd Module' The example displays output similiar to the following:''    Version: 4.0.30319.18010

See also

• How to: Determine which .NET Framework updates are installed
• Install the .NET Framework for developers
• .NET Framework versions and dependencies