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I've built my application in VB.NET using Visual Studio 2013.

When I copied it to another computer it did not work until I installed Visual Studio on that computer as well. Is it in fact necessary to install Visual Studio or is there another way to make it work?

Peter Mortensen
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user3429946
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  • `when I copied it` what is "it" - *what* did you copy? Usually you compile the program and copy or publish it. – Ňɏssa Pøngjǣrdenlarp Feb 15 '15 at 21:32
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    *"did not work"* is not a clear problem statement. **How** did it not work? Well... actually I suppose you just don't have the .NET framework installed on that other computer. – Lucas Trzesniewski Feb 15 '15 at 21:33
  • I've copied my exe app in debug folder but it did not work till I installed the whole environment visual studio 2013 – user3429946 Feb 15 '15 at 21:34
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    My guess would be the computer did not have the correct version of the .Net framework. The installation of Visual Studio added it automatically. – Crowcoder Feb 15 '15 at 21:38
  • Tell us the error you got and the type of the application. In general you should have .NET Framework compatible with the version used in the development installed in the target computer as a bare minimum. You never need VS on the target. You can use XCOPY method (copying the .exe, etc.) or create an instaler using VS and get an .msi file to use on the target or even do a click-once-install - See: http://stackoverflow.com/questions/16946173/best-way-to-deploy-visual-studio-application-that-can-run-without-installing and https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/wtzawcsz.aspx – NoChance Feb 15 '15 at 21:40

2 Answers2

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First of all, check the target framework of your project by right clicking on your project (not solution) on the Solution Explorer and see the Target Framework fields value on the application tab.

Let's assume it's .NET Framework 4.5:

You need to make sure it's installed on the target machine. A simple way to do it is to go to your Control Panel / Programs and Features and see if it's there. A more precise but complicated way is described here. Install the framework if it's not there.

The second thing you need to do is to copy your projects-generated binaries and the dependencies to the target machine. The are usually under {ProjectPath}\bin or {ProjectPath}\bin\Debug or {ProjectPath}\bin\Release folder. You need to copy the entire directory to the target machine.

After that, try to run the {ProjectName}.exe on the target machine and see if it works.

Peter Mortensen
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M. Mennan Kara
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You don't need Visual Studio, but you do need the correct version of the .NET Framework. Many computers already have the .NET Framework installed.

Peter Mortensen
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Joel Coehoorn
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  • Not sure why this is downvoted, this is indeed a correct answer. –  Feb 15 '15 at 23:45
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    Please be more explicit, *you do need the correct version*, but on which computer? – A.L Feb 16 '15 at 00:08