FIX: Error "ASP.NET v1.1 not Installed" while installing Sql Server 2000 Reporting Services

I finally had the chance to rebuild my dev machine with the RTM version of Sql Server 200 Reporting Services [SQL2kRS] and ran into an unusual error.  During the "Check Prerequisites" stage of installation, it said that I didnt have ASP.NET v1.1 installed on my PC.  Considering that I do web-development with VS.NET 2003 on this PC I was a bit perplexed why it said that.

After much digging and exploring, I finally discovered the problem.  A recent install of the new XP version of the Longhorn Command Shell had installed the .NET Framework v2.0.31113.33 and set it as the Root Version of the framework for ASP.NET.

So, the fix is pretty trivial, just update the RootVer registry value to correctly (or temporarily) show v1.1.4322.573.

[\\HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\ASP.NET\RootVer] = "1.1.4322.573"

Strangely enough, this didnt seem to be affecting my ASP.NET applications. *shrug*

None of this was documented in the verbose Help files that shipped with SQL2kRS.  This got me thinking about the nature of help files.   Far too often, I see FAQ's and "Common Issues" under the Troubleshooting section of help files, yet rarely do I have those "common" problems.

I would much prefer a generic section on, "How to troubleshoot", "Where to look for error clues", and provide deep lists of "Why an application or installation might fail".

In this case, I actually did find a good reference in the Help entitled "Log Files Used During Installation".  This section explained how to locate the log files created during installation, and this is how I eventually solved the problem.

For reference, in SQL2kRS there are 3 main places to look for log files;

C:\Program Files\Microsoft SQL Server\80\RS Setup Bootstrap\Log\RSStp_.cab (inside the CAB)

AND

%temp%\rsstp<integer>.log 
(<integer> = number to make filename unique. e.g. rsstp2.log)

AND

%temp%\RSMSI<integer>.log

The latter 2 log files are the same ones that get copied into the CAB file listed above, but its still useful knowledge in case something fails before they get added to the CAB.

5 Comments

  • here are a few fun bits:



    1) I have seen the &quot;asp not installed&quot; error happen when vs.net goes to open a site, but I have been able to just ignore the message and everything was working... wonder if that reg key was the *real* source of that message??

    2) reporting services *REQUIRES* MS DTC to be running.... that information is hidden in a dark corner of the help / install files

    with a vaugue &quot;install will fail&quot; message and when the install does fail it does not tell you that the failure was DTC related at all....

    in my case I found that DTC was crapping out on XP due to some problem with the DTC log files folder and msdtc -resetlogs (I think thats what the command was) fixed it all up.



    just in case anyone sees them there they are....

  • I think the Root Version just pertains to the default .NET Framework on your machine. It's possible to have multiple .NET Frameworks installed, and for ASP.NET web applications you need to use the aspnet_reg command-line tool (or some freeware equivalent GUI) to change the association of of an ASP.NET web application with a .NET Framework other than the default defined by this registry key.

  • I thought the same thing about that aspnet_reg tool, but it doesnt seem to change the Root Version registry value. Moreover, IIS and the ASP.NET WP do not seem to use the Root Version to determine which version of the framework to use.



    Although this registery key seems to be useful for checking the current ASP.NET Version, I would prefer that Sql Reporting Services used whatever IIS and ASP.NET use so we won't have these problems.

  • Note: The fix I posted about above may not be the 100% answer.



    When you install a newer version of .NET Framework, it also sets-up the ASP.NET ISAPI DLL's for ASPX, ASMX, ASHX, etc.



    Check this by going to IIS Manager (MMC plugin) and open properties for your default website, or your &quot;Web Sites&quot; group (under IIS 6)



    Step 1: Select the &quot;ISAPI Filters&quot; tab and look for an entry named &quot;ASP.NET_{version nubmer}&quot;. Edit that entry, and make sure it points to the v1.1 libraries, not the newer ones.



    Example:

    C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v1.1.4322\aspnet_filter.dll





    Step2: Select the &quot;Home Directory&quot; tab and click the &quot;Configuration...&quot; button. Verify that each of the extensions that reference &quot;aspnet_isapi.dll&quot; are pointing to the correct path.



    Example:

    C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v1.1.4322\aspnet_isapi.dll



    Once you have fixed all of these issues, click OK to exit and run the IISRESET command.



    Hope this helps a bit more,



    Lance Hunt

  • Thanks. This probably saved me hours of troubleshooting.

Comments have been disabled for this content.