Mailbag: How can I determine what beta products need to be removed before installing .NET Framework 2.0?

Question

I noticed that the .NET Framework 2.0 is being offered on Windows Update the last time I checked for optional updates, so I tried to install it. However, it failed with error code 4113. I found your previous blog post with a list of error codes for the .NET Framework 2.0, and this error code means "Beta components have been detected on the machine that must be uninstalled before installation can proceed."

I did have a previous beta of Visual Basic 2005 Express on my system, but I uninstalled it from Add/Remove Programs and I still get this error code when I try to install the .NET Framework 2.0 from Windows Update. How can I figure out what needs to be uninstalled so I can proceed with installation of .NET 2.0?

Answer

Windows Update launches the .NET Framework 2.0 setup in silent mode, which suppresses all setup UI. You can download and run .NET Framework 2.0 setup directly from this link and the setup UI will list the exact beta products that it has detected on your system that need to be removed before installation can proceed.

Alsternatively, there is a log file created during .NET Framework 2.0 setup named %temp%\dd_netfx20ui*.txt (where * is a randomly generated ending). That log file will contain a list of the beta products that need to be uninstalled. Each product will be listed as a separate log string and will contain the phrase BETA CHECK: Found <product name>