How can I detect whether .NET Framework 4.6.1 or higher is installed in WiX?

How about:

<PropertyRef Id="WIX_IS_NETFRAMEWORK_461_OR_LATER_INSTALLED" />
<Condition Message="$(var.ProductName) requires .NET Framework 4.6.1 or higher.">
  <![CDATA[Installed OR WIX_IS_NETFRAMEWORK_461_OR_LATER_INSTALLED]]>
</Condition>

Update: The current stable version of WiX now has this integrated; this answer may be of interest if, for some reason, you're using an older version (e.g. 3.10.3, which was latest when this was originally written)


The current release version of WiX (3.10.3) doesn't support this property, nor does the current 3.10.x nightly build (3.10.3.3007) - it does look like the 3.11.0.960 does support it, but that build isn't labeled as production ready so it's not an option for my scenario.

What I ended up doing was grabbing the source for NetFx461.wxs (here), and adding it to my 3.10 release project after modifying it slightly (see below). After that I was able to use the property. You could do similar changes for 4.6.2 if needed.

Here's the file:

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="utf-8"?>
<!--
  <copyright file="NetFx461.wxs" company="Outercurve Foundation">
    Copyright (c) 2004, Outercurve Foundation.
    This software is released under Microsoft Reciprocal License (MS-RL).
    The license and further copyright text can be found in the file
    LICENSE.TXT at the root directory of the distribution.
  </copyright>
-->
<!--<Wix xmlns="http://wixtoolset.org/schemas/v4/wxs" xmlns:util="http://wixtoolset.org/schemas/v4/wxs/util">-->
<Wix xmlns="http://schemas.microsoft.com/wix/2006/wi" xmlns:util="http://schemas.microsoft.com/wix/UtilExtension" xmlns:wxs="http://wixtoolset.org/schemas/v4/wxs">


  <!--
        .NET Framework installation state properties

        Official documentation can be found at the following location:

           .NET Framework 4.5/4.5.1/4.5.2/4.6/4.6.1 - http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/w0x726c2(v=vs.110).aspx
    -->

  <?define NetFx461MinRelease = 394254 ?>
  <?define NetFx461WebLink = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=671728 ?>
  <?define NetFx461RedistLink = http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=671743 ?>

  <Fragment>
    <PropertyRef Id="WIXNETFX4RELEASEINSTALLED" />
    <Property Id="WIX_IS_NETFRAMEWORK_461_OR_LATER_INSTALLED" Secure="yes" />
    <SetProperty Id="WIX_IS_NETFRAMEWORK_461_OR_LATER_INSTALLED" Value="1" After="AppSearch">
      WIXNETFX4RELEASEINSTALLED >= "#$(var.NetFx461MinRelease)"
    </SetProperty>
  </Fragment>

  <Fragment>
    <util:RegistrySearchRef Id="NETFRAMEWORK45"/>

    <WixVariable Id="NetFx461WebDetectCondition" Value="NETFRAMEWORK45 &gt;= $(var.NetFx461MinRelease)" Overridable="yes" />
    <WixVariable Id="NetFx461WebInstallCondition" Value="" Overridable="yes" />
    <WixVariable Id="NetFx461WebPackageDirectory" Value="redist\" Overridable="yes" />

    <PackageGroup Id="NetFx461Web">
      <ExePackage
          InstallCommand="/q /norestart /ChainingPackage &quot;[WixBundleName]&quot; /log &quot;[NetFx461FullLog].html&quot;"
          RepairCommand="/q /norestart /repair /ChainingPackage &quot;[WixBundleName]&quot; /log &quot;[NetFx461FullLog].html&quot;"
          UninstallCommand="/uninstall /q /norestart /ChainingPackage &quot;[WixBundleName]&quot; /log &quot;[NetFx461FullLog].html&quot;"
          PerMachine="yes"
          DetectCondition="!(wix.NetFx461WebDetectCondition)"
          InstallCondition="!(wix.NetFx461WebInstallCondition)"
          Id="NetFx461Web"
          Vital="yes"
          Permanent="yes"
          Protocol="netfx4"
          DownloadUrl="$(var.NetFx461WebLink)"
          LogPathVariable="NetFx461FullLog"
          Compressed="no"
          Name="!(wix.NetFx461WebPackageDirectory)NDP461-KB3102438-Web.exe">
        <RemotePayload 
          CertificatePublicKey="52868DFCA6E3AF2632389E6C1EE7D0468D3797D0" 
          CertificateThumbprint="3BDA323E552DB1FDE5F4FBEE75D6D5B2B187EEDC" 
          Description="Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1 Setup" 
          Hash="EE88B05232F43B517D4A368F7EE5065CDE7F67FA" 
          ProductName="Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1" 
          Size="1424328" 
          Version="4.6.1055.0" />
      </ExePackage>
    </PackageGroup>
  </Fragment>

  <Fragment>
    <util:RegistrySearchRef Id="NETFRAMEWORK45"/>

    <WixVariable Id="NetFx461RedistDetectCondition" Value="NETFRAMEWORK45 &gt;= $(var.NetFx461MinRelease)" Overridable="yes" />
    <WixVariable Id="NetFx461RedistInstallCondition" Value="" Overridable="yes" />
    <WixVariable Id="NetFx461RedistPackageDirectory" Value="redist\" Overridable="yes" />

    <PackageGroup Id="NetFx461Redist">
      <ExePackage
          InstallCommand="/q /norestart /ChainingPackage &quot;[WixBundleName]&quot; /log &quot;[NetFx461FullLog].html&quot;"
          RepairCommand="/q /norestart /repair /ChainingPackage &quot;[WixBundleName]&quot; /log &quot;[NetFx461FullLog].html&quot;"
          UninstallCommand="/uninstall /q /norestart /ChainingPackage &quot;[WixBundleName]&quot; /log &quot;[NetFx461FullLog].html&quot;"
          PerMachine="yes"
          DetectCondition="!(wix.NetFx461RedistDetectCondition)"
          InstallCondition="!(wix.NetFx461RedistInstallCondition)"
          Id="NetFx461Redist"
          Vital="yes"
          Permanent="yes"
          Protocol="netfx4"
          DownloadUrl="$(var.NetFx461RedistLink)"
          LogPathVariable="NetFx461FullLog"
          Compressed="no"
          Name="!(wix.NetFx461RedistPackageDirectory)NDP461-KB3102436-x86-x64-AllOS-ENU.exe">
        <RemotePayload
          CertificatePublicKey="52868DFCA6E3AF2632389E6C1EE7D0468D3797D0" 
          CertificateThumbprint="3BDA323E552DB1FDE5F4FBEE75D6D5B2B187EEDC" 
          Description="Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1 Setup" 
          Hash="83D048D171FF44A3CAD9B422137656F585295866" 
          ProductName="Microsoft .NET Framework 4.6.1" 
          Size="67681000" 
          Version="4.6.1055.0" />
      </ExePackage>
    </PackageGroup>
  </Fragment>
</Wix>

Add that (say as NetFx461.wxs) to your WiX installer project and you'll have access to the desired properties.


I'm afraid none of the above worked for me. Or perhaps I didn't quite understand how to implement the suggestions.

What worked for me however was my previous check for .Net Framework 4.5.1 requirement similar to your check for 4.5.

Simply changing the version to the target .Net Framework version number to the required one, found here: https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh925568(v=vs.110).aspx, worked for me.

I ended up with this:

<PropertyRef Id="NETFRAMEWORK45"/>
<Condition Message="This application requires .NET Framework 4.6.1. Please install the .NET Framework then run this installer again.">
    <![CDATA[Installed OR (NETFRAMEWORK45 >= "#394254")]]>
</Condition>

P.S. I implemented the change today, so the next few days of testing will reveal to me whether it works or not. Will update my comment when I have some results to share.

P.P.S. Testing has succeeded my side. The installer successfully fails on environments which do not have .Net Framework 4.6.1 installed and installs successfully on those which do. (Also: Thanks @RamenChef, for editing my post :+1:)