Okay, here's my setup.
I have a c# app working perfectly on all 32-bit Windows XP-Vista-7 machine. I already have a verisign PFX to support the ClickOnce deployment and is using Atalasoft DotTwain 8.0 as the 3rd party scanner helper.
When I publish my application, I choose "Any CPU" as the Platform target. When I try to make it run on a Windows 7 64-bit Home Premium, my application crashes after the installation.
I tried re-publishing the work on a specific x64 platform but still failed.
Any ideas on what i'm doing wrong here? thanks so much~!
Choose 'x86' and I'll bet it will work;
You most likely have an 'x86' (32-bit) reference in your project, for example DotTwain. 'Any CPU' means that the .NET framework will run it as 'x64' because you've told it anything is OK. Then it tries to load a reference, finds it's 32-bit and gives a 'BadImageFormatException' (usually).
And so, you'd need a version of DotTwain that's not been 'ngen-ed', has a CPU reference of 'Any' too, or release a separate 64-bit version where all of your references are definitely not set to 'x86' (you'd want 'any' or 'x64').
(Experience this problem all the time; have several apps out there that run on 32-bit, 64-bit, and use DotTwain and other Atalasoft components)
Hope that helps!
Related
I've got a VS2013 solution with several projects (a C# WPF application plus class libraries). Each project's "Platform Target" is set to "Any CPU". I was under the impression that the resulting EXE would run as a 64-bit application on a 64-bit PC, and a 32-bit application on a 32-bit PC. Is this correct? My dev PC is 64-bit, but when I run the application (either standalone or via VS debugging), it appears in task manager as "foo.exe *32". What's going on here?
We have a junior developer with a 32-bit machine. Will he still be able to open the solution and run it in VS?
Also, some of the projects reference a 3rd-party DLL. The vendor provides both a 32- and 64-bit version - which one should the projects be referencing? If I reference the 32-bit DLL will this prevent the application from running as a 64-bit application? And if I reference the 64-bit version, will this cause problems for the 32-bit developer? And what about end-users - will my installer need to check the OS version and copy across the appropriate DLL?
Finally, what about DLLs referenced via NuGet? Does NuGet install 32- or 64-bit versions of DLLs? How do I deal with 32- or 64-bit end-user installation?
I'm going to try to answer some of your questions since you've bundled so many into a single one..
We have a junior developer with a 32-bit machine. Will he still be able to open the solution and run it in VS?
Yes, as long as all projects are set to build for Any CPU and there are no external dependencies on 64bit assemblies or native DLLs.
If I reference the 32-bit DLL will this prevent the application from running as a 64-bit application?
Yes, if any of the assemblies, or COM components linked was specifically built against the 32bit CLR then it will require the whole project to run as a 32bit process. You always have to be careful about native code that your project may be dependant on.
And if I reference the 64-bit version, will this cause problems for the 32-bit developer?
Yes, the 32bit developer will not be able to run the project on his machine, if there are any 64bit assemblies.
As a final thought I'd like to add that it is very important whether the final executable project is built as Any CPU, or for a specific 32bit or 64bit target platform.
Usually I found that having the final executable built as Any CPU can cause all sorts of problems at runtime (of the Bad Image runtime exception variety) unless all assemblies linked are also targeted for Any CPU and there are no external, native, dependencies. This latter requirement is the hardest to ensure.
On the other hand, a final executable built for an explicitly specified 32bit or 64bit platform can happily incorporate other assemblies built for Any CPU
We have a junior developer with a 32-bit machine. Will he still be able to open the solution and run it in VS?
Yes, He can run.
If I reference the 32-bit DLL/ 64-bit will this prevent the application from running as a 64-bit/32-bit application?
The manual edition of the .csproj file(s). You also need separate directories for the different binaries, ideally siblings of each other, and with the same name as the platform you are targeting.
Refer Conditionally use 32/64 bit reference when building in Visual Studio
what about end-users - will my installer need to check the OS version and copy across the appropriate DLL?
Yes, you need to manage build process scripts to create specific version for different architecture..
References:
What does the Visual Studio "Any CPU" target mean?
As title suggests I am compiling C# app using VS 2012 on a 64-bit machine. I would like the program being built to run on a 32-bit machine.
Right now the only help I found online was for:
Menu>Build>Configuration>
Active Solution Platform defaulted to Any CPU, and I tried that but didn't work on 32-bit machine (unless I did something wrong)
Tried Add a new one to the Debug configuration for platform x86 with build checked
Compiled and ran the app on 32-bit machine getting error A.exe is not a valid Win32 application.
My above was similar to what was done here: Link to Stack Overflow Similar Question
UPDATE 1:
The target OS is WinXP SP3 but we dont believe it has .NET 4.5 on it. I will be testing to see if compiling earlier ver of the app in .NET 4.0 will solve the problem and fix the problem. The problem may not be what the error message is displaying.
Setting your project to target AnyCPU should allow it to run on a 32bit machine, provided you aren't using a library which loads 64bit native code. If you have any dependencies, you'll need to make sure to use AnyCPU or 32-bit versions of those dependencies, as well. Also, make sure you have the proper .NET Framework installed on the 32bit machine (.NET 4.5 by default, if you're using VS 2012 with a new project).
Note that the default in VS 2012 for new projects is AnyCPU, with the Prefer 32 Bit option checked. This will cause it to always run as a 32bit application, even on your 64bit OS.
Note that, since your friend is running XP sp3, you can't use .NET 4.5. .NET 4.5 is not supported on Windows XP. You will need to change your application to target .NET 4.0, which will then work on the XP machine (if he installs the 4.0 framework).
That error is the Win32 error ERROR_BAD_EXE_FORMAT. It's generated by the loader and is what happens when you try to run a 64 bit process on a 32 bit operating system. There are other ways to see that error, but this is by far the most common reason for it to occur on a .exe file.
To compile a 32 bit process you need to target x86 in your project configuration. Another alternative would be to target AnyCPU. That will result in a 32 bit process when executed on a 32 bit OS, and a 64 bit process when executed on a 64 bit OS. It would appear that your build targets x64.
The Platform name (shown on the top of the properties, page "Build") is only a name. The same for "Active Solution Platform" in configuration editor. This is a bit confusing.
You have to make sure that the "Target platform" setting is really set to "AnyCPU" or "x86".
I had same problem. I strugle with it. and the and I found a solution.
The solution is :
Firstly choose platform target "x86". After that build your project as "release mode" not "Debug mode". finally you can run on any platform (32 bit or 64 bit).
If none of the solutions presented above helped you, then try the following:
Open the project properties and click General in the left column.
Change Platform Toolset to the one with Windows XP in it.
For example, in Visual Studio 2015 it will default be set to "Visual Studio 2015 (v140)". To be able to run on Windows XP, you have to change this to "Visual Studio 2015 - Windows XP (v140_xp)".
Now do a full rebuild, and the exe should work on Windows XP.
I have a server console application that I've designed to run as console app if you specify the /CONSOLE command line, but at the same time allows itself to be installed as a Windows Service using InstallUtil.
My problem is when I run as a console app it correctly starts up as an x86 process and everything works great. But as soon as I install it as a Windows Service it starts up as a x64 process and consequently certain x86 dependant functions fail.
My project configuration is set to x86 and all referenced components are set to build as x86. The actual project itself has it's configuration set to x86 and its target set to x86. Does anyone else have a suggestion as to what could be causing this?
Thanks,
Gary
Make sure you are using the correct version (X86) of InstallUtil. See here for an explanation of differences between x86 and x64 versions.
For Googlers: Why would a .NET EXE, compiled as x86, run as x64? helped me fix my problem like this.
Also, you can use dumpbin /headers program.exe to see what it says in the headers. Look for 14c machine (x86) or 8664 machine (x64).
I have made a .Net win-forms application in C#, on a 32 bit OS (Windows 7).
It doesn't work on the deployed client-terminal/machine which has a 64 bit OS (Server 2008).
What should I do?
Thank you.
Go to the Build tab of the project's properties and make sure the platform target is set to x86. (This is just my first guess based on the vague information provided. The problem might be caused by something completely else, e.g. the terminal server environment as such.)
You should only change this setting if you need your application to address a large amount of memory or you definitely want to make sure it runs as a 64-bit process.
The AnyCPU setting can hardly be recommended as it may cause you all sorts of pain with respect to native dependencies (I'm not saying it should never be used, but it should be very well considered whether the additional overhead required for deployment and testing is worth the trouble).
Probably you have used some feature that is not available while running the app in x64. Change the build configuration to x86.
If it does work now, you have used some libraries (COM, ActiveX, Office 2007, WinAPI, ...) that does not like to be called from 64 bit.
If it works now, ask yourself: why do I want my app to run using x64 bit? What do I gain? Does it really need to use that much memory?
There is no problem with running a x86 bit app on a x64 bit platform.
If you are using ActiveX controls inside your application or anything else that is not portable to x64, you might have to change the build target to "x86".
If it's a genuine x86 application your x64 environment shouldn't have any problem running it. So make sure all your libraries and your own binary are x86 compatible and don't use x86 exclusive features like specific COM libraries.
You should ensure that you project is being built with the "Any CPU" platform.
The default is sometimes to build for "x86".
Check your build config. I think VS will default to building the app for x86 platforms if you develop in a 32-bit environment. Either change to x64 or AnyCPU, rebuild and try again.
.stompp
Mainly I ask this because I don't want to distribute both versions, and if I need to instal a 64bit .NET on an x64 PC and a 32bit .NET on a 32 bit PC then I would need to make this check in my loader application to download the correct version for the correct PC.
However, if I just do a one for all, it would be easier - and i would just like to know if theree is anything I should know before doing this (ie: any repercussions?) or all good?
Also, when I compile an exe in a 64bit version of VS2010 does it compile a 32bit exe by default or a 64bit? I'm presuming 32, but just wanted to make sure.
Thanks.
If you target AnyCPU for your compilation, the app will run as 64bit on a 64bit OS, and 32bit on a 32bit OS. If you target x86, the app will run as 32bit regardless of the OS. If you target x64, the app will only run on a 64bit OS.
The 64bit version of .Net also includes the 32bit dll's.
If you have to install the runtime from the Internet, then use the web installer. It will take care of downloading and installing the correct version on the client. This way you can target AnyCPU (or x86) and be certain that the app will run regardless of the OS.
If you need to package .Net with your app, download the full file which has both 32/64bit versions included - http://download.microsoft.com/download/9/5/A/95A9616B-7A37-4AF6-BC36-D6EA96C8DAAE/dotNetFx40_Full_x86_x64.exe
Client profile web install
Client profile full install
Silent install can be done with the /q parameter and you might want to add /norestart as well and handle reboot yourself if necessary.
Check out this blog post and the MSDN documentation on what switches are available.
The .NET bootstrapper automatically installs both the 32-bit and the 64-bit versions of the .NET framework on a machine with a 64-bit operating system. Nothing you have to do to tell it to do so. Avoid distributing the .NET framework yourself, you'll have a hard time keeping up with the security updates. Just tick the option in the Setup project's Prerequisites to get the bootstrapper, that will download the latest and greatest during install on the target machine, if necessary. The option is automatically ticked when you create an installer for a managed program.
There is no 64-bit version of VS2010, no need to worry about that.
The Platform Target setting in the Project + Properties, Build tab for your EXE project is relevant. It defaults to x86 in a project that was created from scratch in VS2010. There is no great reason to change it to AnyCPU for the Release build unless you need the extra virtual memory space that a 64-bit process can provide. If you do change it then do make sure to test it thoroughly. I know you've been tinkering with unmanaged COM servers, x86 is probably a hard requirement.