.NET Framework 1.1 Redistributable Prerequisites for Installing GADS NxL Software Applications

The following text describes the required or recommended programs for using GADS NxL software applications and the Microsoft .NET Framework, as well as the rationale behind their installation. GADS NxL software applications do not impose any additional requirements or supporting components beyond that required by the Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1.

Note: Following is an explanation of the reasons behind the prerequisites for the redistributed .NET Framework and some of the platform limitations. However, it is recommended that you meet the minimum requirements. Failure to meet minimum requirements results in a non-supported deployment. We highly recommend that you install the latest service packs and patches for all installed programs on the computer, including operating system service packs.

All of the prerequisite software, including the Microsoft .NET Framework 1.1, can be installed directly from the GADS NxL software installation CD. Note that while the CD contains current Microsoft service packs for Windows 98, Windows NT, and Windows 2000, it does not include IIS or any copies of the Microsoft licensed desktop or server Windows operating systems. Windows updates can be obtained directly from Microsoft.

 

Basic Requirements

Following are the basic requirements for the .NET Framework and GADS NxL software applications categorized by server and client machines:

  • Server Definition – A computer—running Windows Server 2003, Windows XP Professional, or Windows 2000—that hosts a distributed application. In many cases, these computers are application servers hosting the GADS NxL Windows UI applications or Web servers running GADS NxL Web UI applications.
  • Client Definition – A computer—running Windows XP Professional, Windows XP Home, Windows 2000, Windows NT 4.0, Windows ME or Windows 98SE—that runs the GADS NxL Windows UI applications from a shared or mapped network drive, or runs the Windows UI applications installed locally on the user’s machine. This computer retrieves and processes GADS data from a local or remote database. For users who access the GADS NxL Web UI installed on a web server using a web browser, the installation references to the .NET Framework and MDAC for the client machine are not applicable.

Software

Version

Client

Server

Internet Explorer

5.01

Required

Required

MDAC

2.7 SP 1

Required for data access

Required for data access

Windows Installer

2.0

Required

Required

IIS

5.0 (Windows 2000)

Unnecessary

Required

IIS

5.1 (Windows XP)

Unnecessary

Required

 

Detailed Requirements

A number of elements of the .NET Framework and underlying Common Language Runtime (CLR) rely on technologies that are delivered in optional software products or products that are not installed as part of the operating system. The following table represents the products or operating system features that the .NET Framework requires for full functionality. Because these requirements are generally enforced during the installation of the .NET Framework, the Setup Action column indicates whether setup warns or blocks the user if a requirement is not found upon installation.

 

Requirement

Platform

Setup Action

Comments

IE

    

   

Minimum of IE 5.01

Windows 98

Block

  

Minimum of IE 5.01

Windows 98 SE

Block

  

Minimum of IE 5.01

Windows NT 4.0

Block

  

Minimum of IE 5.01

Windows ME

n/a

IE 5.50 is already installed

Minimum of IE 5.01

Windows 2000

n/a

IE 5.01 is already installed

Minimum of IE 5.01

Windows XP

n/a

IE 6.00 is already installed

MDAC

      

MDAC

Windows 98

None

  

MDAC

Windows 98 SE

None

  

MDAC

Windows ME

None

  

MDAC 2.7

Windows NT 4.0

None

  

MDAC 2.7

Windows 2000

None

  

Service Packs

      

NT4 SP6a

Windows NT 4.0

Block

  

SP1 – SP4

Windows 2000

None

SPs 1-4 are not required (SP 4 is highly recommended)

IIS

      

IIS 4

Windows NT 4.0

None

ASP.NET does not support Windows NT 4.0

IIS 5

Windows 2000

None

  

IIS 5.1

Windows XP

None

  

IIS 6.0

Windows Server 2003

None

  

 

.NET Framework Requirements for Internet Explorer 5.01

A number of elements of the .NET Framework and underlying CLR rely on technology that is part of a version of Internet Explorer. Refer to the following table for more details on the exact Internet Explorer dependencies across the .NET Framework.

 

Dependency

Operating System

Minimum IE Version Requirement

Area

Code Download

Windows 98 and Millennium

5.01

common language runtime

Code Download

Windows NT 4.0

5.00

common language runtime

Code Download

Windows 2000

5.01

common language runtime

Furthermore, it is useful to understand the versions of Internet Explorer that ship with each operating system because many users run the version of Internet Explorer that came with the operating system.

 

Operating System

IE Version Installed

Windows NT 4.0

4.01

Windows 98

4.01

Windows 98 SE

5.00

Windows 2000

5.01

Windows Millennium

5.50

Windows XP

6.00

 

Other Dependencies for the .NET Framework

Depending on your deployment of the GADS NxL software, you may need to ensure that Microsoft Data Access Components (MDAC) is installed on the client computers, the business servers, the Web servers, or the database servers. MDAC 2.7 SP1 is the minimum requirement and MDAC 2.7 SP1 or above is recommended for servers.

Note: You must install MDAC on the computer to which you are distributing or running the applications.

If your solution includes GADS NxL Web UI, you must ensure that IIS and the latest security patches are installed on your target servers; it is not required for the client machines since they will be accessing the Web UI using a standard Web browser. IIS can be installed from the operating system installation CD or DVD, and the latest security patches can be downloaded and installed from the Windows Update Web site.

 

FAQ

Question: Why is MDAC 2.7 SP1 required when the Framework 1.1 only requires MDAC 2.6?

Answer:  Visual Studio .NET 2003 ships with MDAC 2.7, so our developers have developed and tested with that version. If you subsequently deploy the GADS NxL applications to computers where MDAC 2.6 is installed rather than MDAC 2.7, you run the risk of encountering unforeseen problems.

(The .NET Framework 1.1 System.Data namespace requires MDAC 2.6 as the minimum version. If you have a version lower than MDAC 2.7 SP1 and are installing the .NET Framework on Windows 2000 or Windows XP, you receive a warning message during Setup. At runtime, the classes in System.Data verify that the MDAC version is at least MDAC 2.6.6526. If it is not installed, they will throw an exception.)

 

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