Deploying the .NET Framework 1.

1 Using Active Directory (Windows 2000 Server) Page 1 of 5

©2007 Microsoft Corporation. All

rights reserved.

.NET Framework Deployment

Deploying the .NET Framework 1.1 Using Active Directory
(Windows 2000 Server)
June 2003

Active Directory allows you to deploy software with administrative privileges across a network. This
section describes the specific procedures for using Active Directory to deploy the Windows Installer
setup package for Dotnetfx.exe across a network. For additional Active Directory product information
and documentation, see the Active Directory Home Page
[ http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/technologies/directory/ad/ ] .

To deploy the .NET Framework redistributable package, Dotnetfx.exe, with administrator privileges, you
must extract the Windows Installer file, netfx.msi, from the Dotnetfx.exe file. Netfx.msi is the file you
will use to deploy the .NET Framework.

Before you can install a Windows Installer setup package on an Active Directory client computer, the
client computer must have the Windows Installer installation service installed. The procedure described
in this section assumes that Windows Installer 2.0 is installed on all client computers prior to the
deployment of Dotnetfx.exe. Windows Installer 2.0 is available for download from the Microsoft
Download Center [ http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/release.asp?releaseid=32832&newlist=1 ] .
Note that these installer files are not designed for deployment using Active Directory. They must either
be installed on each computer individually or electronically using Systems Management Server.

In addition, there are minimum configuration requirements that must be met in order to install the .NET
Framework on a computer. For specific software and hardware requirements and recommendations, see
Minimum Configuration Requirements in the article Redistributing the .NET Framework 1.1
[ http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/ms994402.aspx ] . After the network administrator has
ensured that all networked computers on which Dotnetfx.exe will be installed meet the minimum
configuration requirements, perform the following tasks and their individual procedures in the order
presented.

First, extract the Dotnetfx.exe file that you will use to deploy the .NET Framework.

To extract the Dotnetfx.exe file to deploy the .NET Framework

1. Download Dotnetfx.exe to the root directory of the C:\ drive on your local computer.

2. Open a command prompt.

3. Change the directory to the root of the C:\ drive.

4. Type mkdir dotnetfx at the command prompt to create a directory in which to copy
Dotnetfx.exe.

5. Type dotnetfx.exe /q /c:"msiexec /qb /a netfx.msi TARGETDIR=c:\dotnetfx" at the

command prompt to extract the files to the dotnetfx directory.

6. Close the command prompt window.

7. Navigate to the C:\dotnetfx folder in Windows Explorer and verify that the files were extracted.

8. Move the dotnetfx folder and all its contents to the server that you will use for deployment.

After you have moved the dotnetfx folder to the proper location for deployment, the next step is to
create an Active Directory package for the .NET Framework.

To create a .NET Framework package in Active Directory

1. Click the Start button, point to Programs, and then point to Administrative Tools. Click
Active Directory Users and Computers. The Active Directory Users and Computers tree is
displayed.

2. Right-click the domain node at the top of the tree. Click Properties on the shortcut menu. The
Properties dialog box is displayed.

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Deploying the .NET Framework 1.1 Using Active Directory (Windows 2000 Server) Page 2 of 5

3. Click the Group Policy tab.

4. Click the Edit button. A window is displayed with the Default Domain Policy tree.

5. There are two alternatives when choosing how the software will be assigned. You can select the
Computer Configuration node in Group Policy to set policies that are applied to computers,
regardless of who logs on to them. Alternatively, you can select the User Configuration node in
Group Policy to set policies that apply to users, regardless of the logon computer. For the
purpose of the example, select and expand the User Configuration node. Expand the Software
Settings folder located under the User Configuration node.

Note Ensure that you map to the shared location on the Active Directory server;
otherwise, it will not let you create a package for installation.

6. Right-click Software installation. Point to New, and then click Package on the shortcut
menu.

7. A dialog box is displayed that prompts you for the path to the Windows Installer file (.msi) for
the package. Browse to the location where you copied the dotnetfx folder, and click the
netfx.msi file.

8. Choose the Advanced Published or Assigned selection and click the OK button.

9. A window is displayed where you can choose to auto install or publish the software. If you
choose Auto Install, the software will be installed automatically on every computer in the
domain. If you choose Publish, the software is added to the list of available products, but is not
installed unless a user chooses to install it. After you have modified all necessary items, click the
OK button.

10. Exit the Active Directory Users and Computers console.

Alternatively, if you selected the User Configuration node in Group Policy to set policies that apply to
users, regardless of the logon computer, follow these steps:

1. Right-click Software installation. Point to New, and then click Package on the shortcut
menu.

2. A dialog box is displayed that prompts you for the path to the Windows Installer file (.msi) for
the package. Browse to the location where you copied the dotnetfx folder, and click the
netfx.msi file.

3. Select Advanced Published or Assigned and click OK.

4. A window is displayed where you can choose to auto install or publish the software. If you
choose Auto Install, the software will be installed automatically on every computer in the

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domain. If you choose Publish, the software is added to the list of available products, but is not
installed unless a user chooses to install it. After you have modified all necessary items, click
OK.

5. Exit the Active Directory Users and Computers console.

After you complete the setup of the .NET Framework package in Active Directory, the next step is to
verify that the package is available for installation.

Setting the elevated privileges via Group Policy

Since .NET Framework package (like most packages) allows only local administrators of the machine to
install the package, you should use elevated privileges to advertise the package per-machine in Group
Policy.

As an administrator you can create policies for one user, one computer, or a group of users. See the
System Policy Editor Help for more information on creating special policy profiles. Also, see the Group
Policy snap-in Help for more information on configuring policies.

Follow these steps to set this policy for deploying the .NET Framework:

1. On the Start menu, point to Programs, then Administrative Tools, and then click Active
Directory Users and Computers.

2. In the console tree, right-click the domain or organizational unit for which you want to set the
policy.

3. Click Properties, and then click the Group Policy tab.

4. Select a Group Policy Object in the Group Policy Objects Links box and click Edit.

5. Open the Local Computer Policy\Administrative Templates\Windows Component\Windows

Installer folder.

6. In the details pane, double-click the Always install with elevated privileges policy.

7. In the Group Policy Property dialog box, enable the policy, select the check box to turn the
setting on, and then click OK.

8. Open the User Configuration\Administrative Templates\Windows Component\Windows Installer

folder and repeat Steps 6 and 7.

You can use the System Policy Editor and Windows Installer policy to set the Always install with
elevated privileges policy.

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Verification that package is ready to be assigned to machines

After you complete the setup of the .NET Framework package in Group Policy, the next step is to verify
that package is available for installation. To follow are instructions on how administrators need to
modify settings for the newly created package within Active Directory.

General tab

Once you have assigned the .NET Framework package, relevant information about the package is
automatically displayed on the General tab.

Deployment tab

On the Deployment tab, you can specify whether to publish or assign .NET Framework. Note that if an
administrator chooses to open the snap-in under Computer Configuration, the Published option is
unavailable.

Under Deployment options, select check boxes to specify when and how the .NET Framework is
installed on users' computers. You can set any of the following options:

Install the .NET Framework automatically when users open a file associated with a .NET
Framework application. This setting is turned on by default.
For other options please check for details in the Group Policy Help and ensure we provide
coverage on those areas.

Under Installation user interface options, you can specify how much of the .NET Framework Setup
is displayed to users during the installation process. The recommended setting (and the default) is
Basic, which installs Redist quietly and requires no user interaction. (The Basic setting corresponds to
the /qb- command-line option.)

To set additional deployment options, click Advanced. In the Advanced Deployment Options dialog
box, you can:

Specify that Windows 2000 or .NET Server should install Redist even if the Redist installation
language differs from the Windows 2000 or .NET Server's installation language.
Remove unmanaged Redist installations when you deploy Redist through Group Policy software

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installation and maintenance.

Upgrades tab

If you are already managing a .NET Framework installation, you can use the Upgrades tab to deploy a
new version of the product.

Categories tab

Associating the .NET Framework with a category can make the .NET Framework appear in
Add/Remove Programs in Control Panel when using publishing.

Modifications tab

Use the Modifications tab to apply a transform (.mst file) to your .NET Framework (if any). Click Add,
select your transform, and then click Open to add it to the Modifications tab.

Note that you can add multiple transforms, but you can apply only one transform to a given .NET
Framework installation, and you can apply the transform only when you assign the .NET Framework.

Security tab

The Security tab displays standard Windows-based security options. You can fine-tune your .NET
Framework deployment by filtering the Group Policy software installation settings through ACLs.

To verify an Active Directory package

1. Log on to any computer that is a part of the domain. Click the Start button, point to Control
Panel, and then click Add or Remove Programs.

2. Click the Add New Programs button. The .NET Framework installation package should appear
in the list of available software.

3. If the .NET Framework installation package does not appear in the list of available software, the
package is incorrectly configured in Active Directory. Return to the Active Directory Users and
Computers console and double-click the package to reconfigure it.

If the network administrator chooses the Publish option when creating the .NET Framework package in
Active Directory, the package is added to the list of software available to computers in the domain.
Users who want to install the package can follow these procedures on a client computer.

To install the .NET Framework package

1. Click the Start button, point to Control Panel, and then click Add or Remove Programs.

2. Click the Add New Programs button.

3. In the list of available software, select the .NET Framework package and click the Add button.
This will launch Microsoft .NET Framework Setup.

Note Windows Installer 2.0 must be installed on the client computer prior to
launching Microsoft .NET Framework Setup. Setup will fail if Windows Installer 2.0
is not installed.

4. When the installer displays the Microsoft .NET Framework Setup window, click the Next button.

5. To proceed with installation, click the Accept option button, and then click the Next button. The
installer will begin to copy files and update the system.

6. When installation is complete, the installer displays a dialog box. Click the OK button.

Note To properly uninstall the .NET Framework package, you should also use the
Windows Add or Remove Programs option.

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