This means that on a machine which already has run the VS 2005 Gold vcredist, it will look like it already has the runtimes installed but your program was built with VS 2005 SP1 and requires the updated files which it provides.

The problem I have found in the SP1 version of this file is that the check uses the same Product code. That way it can determine if the VC redists are already installed on a machine. For this redist the boostrapper uses a MSI Product check to see if the redist has already been installed. For some good background reading on the issues with this, check out. This redist file is the well known vcredist_x86.exe file. For those who would like to find out more about the Bootstrapper, you might want to check out Chris Smith’s Bootstrapper SDK at Īnyway, the VS 2005 Bootstrapper comes with a number of pre packaged prerequisites including one which will install the VC++ redists. I have also created a number of new perquisites for the Bootstrapper including one for MSXML6 (x86) and MSXML6 (圆4). It seems that this type of program is now the MS recommended route to installing prerequisite requirements for your Windows application. When I was working with my former employer Soft-ex, I was responsible for developing the Bootstrapper which was used to install their various products. One area I have worked quite a lot with is the VS 2005 Bootstrapper which I have used in quite a few projects. This update is currently in beta testing and can be downloaded from. Microsoft still seems to be working on a post SP1 update which will iron out the issues which Visual Studio has with the new UAC features on Windows Vista.

IMHO, the Visual C++ side of VS 2005 was already pretty stable, but there is no harm in applying the SP to make sure you are as up to date as possible. I suppose it helps to have 4GB of physical memory installed on your dev box. The slownewss of the install is meant to be due to the architecture of Windows Installer and how it performs in-memory signature verifications. Some people have reported issues with the install time for the SP, but I have not personally encountered this on the machines I have installed it on. First off, for those who have not installed it yet, you can download it from. Today I thought I would mention some of my experiences of using VS 2005 SP1.

Visual studio 2005 requirements