Jase's Place

Have you ever tried to use the Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 Configuration tool when you have only installed the .NET 2.0 Runtime?

Well, Microsoft in their infinite wisdom took this tool out of the runtime.

So if you need to modify the .NET 2.0 configuration on a box that only has the runtime, you are out of luck, unless you find a way around it. Keep in mind, this worked for me, and I will not be responsible if you use my methods, and cause an issue with your system.

I downloaded the .NET 2.0 SDK (which includes the config tool), and installed it on my machine.

I exported the following registry keys to a single .reg file, and made some changes to them.
HKCR\CLSID\{A22B5BA1-D8CF-4db6-BC91-CFC1A04E2469}
HKCR\CLSID\{D8FE614D-4851-4a72-998D-D1F2E750A050}
HKLM\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MMC\SnapIns\{A22B5BA1-D8CF-4db6-BC91-CFC1A04E2469}

I updated the paths from "C:\Program Files\Microsoft.NET\SDK\v2.0\Bin" to point to "C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727" instead.

I then copied the following files from my C:\Program Files\Microsoft.NET\SDK\v2.0\Bin folder to a Windows 2003 box with only the .NET 2.0 Runtime installed on it.
gacutil.exe
mscorcfg.dll
mscorcfg.msc
mscormmc.dll
mscormmc11.cfg
The destination directory on the 2003 box was "C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727"

I then imported the modified reg to my Windows 2003 box.

And then imported the mscorcfg.dll into the Global Assembly Cache, using this command:
"C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\gacutil.exe" /i "C:\WINDOWS\Microsoft.NET\Framework\v2.0.50727\mscorcfg.dll"

I also copied the .NET Framework 2.0 Configuration shortcut from my "Administrative Tools" to the "Administrative Tools" on the 2003 box, and updated the paths.

What do you know, I've now got the .NET Framework 2.0 Configuration tool on my 2003 box without having to install the entire .NET 2.0 SDK.

Not sure why Microsoft didn't include this in the redistributable, as it is necessary if you want to make .NET 2.0 config changes.

Labels: .NET