Jeff wants to know if he can delete the older .NET Framework versions from his computer
In a recent issue you had advice about Net framework and a tool to download to check the installations of it.
My question is: do you need to have all the versions of net Framework loaded on one’s computer, starting from the earliest to the current version loaded on the computer, including service packs, for it to work properly? Or, could one uninstall the old versions and just have the latest version installed for it to work?
It always bugs me to see how much stuff one has to download with all the different updates with Windows OS and security programs. There must be a limit to how much one’s computer can handle. )-:
Thank you for all you are with your help and GOOD GUIDANCE (Yes, my CapsLock key squawked, see!) to the running of our computers. Best regards, Jeff.
Our answer
Thanks very much, Jeff.
.NET Framework 2.0/3.0/3.5 are all ONE framework. 2.0 is the base, full, framework. 3.0 and 3.5 are extensions to 2.0, and cannot exist without 2.0 … so you cannot keep versions 3.0 and 3.5 if you don’t have version 2.0 installed. Lost yet? 🙂
Why do you need all the NET Frameworks on your computer? Because software developers design software to work with a specific .NET Framework version,. So if a developer designed software to work with .NET Framework 2.0, it won’t work without version 2.0 installed. No matter you have versions 3/3.5/ and 4.0 installed. These versions will not support software designed to work specifically with 2.0.
So it’s not like Version 4.0 replaces all previous versions — and I think this is what is commonly thought because that’s usually how software works; IE 9 replaces IE 8 and IE8 replaces IE7 and so on. Not so with .NET Framework. Each .NET Framework version contains its own assemblies that programmers rely on to make their program run on Windows. If you remove a specific .NET Framework and a program you use needs it to run, the program won’t work anymore if you remove the .NET Framework version on which it depends.
Our advice Leave all versions of .NET Framework installed. Newer versions of .NET Framework will always be coming but you will never know on which version of .NET Framework software you use depends. So leave them all, Jeff.
Thank you for asking this question, Jeff. It’s a question I’ve wondered about every time I look at the list of programs from RevoUninstaller. I close that program and then keep forgetting to ask about all those .NET FrameWork versions.
As always, the answers we get here are great ones. Thanks, TC.
Muriel
My win-xp pc is much slower now. Shall I reinstall the older version back into the window sysyem ?
No. It’s not secure the way it is, downgrading to SERVICE PACK 2 would make you even less safe.