Multiple failures when installing software

Missing .NET 3.5 on Windows 10


Symptom:

A newly imaged Windows 10 system suffers repeated or incomplete software installations even when using manual installation methods


Cause:

This error can be caused by a missing .NET 3.5 in Windows 10


Confirmation:

To confirm if this is a possible cause, go to Control Panel > Programs > Turn Windows features on or off - in the window that opens, the top most check box will be unmarked if .NET 3.5 is not installed on this system




Resolution (manual):

Note: The normal process to add it will not work since we have Windows updates controlled and it can no longer check online for the applicable update


  1. Determine the Windows version you are working on (1803 in most cases – but it is version specific)
  2. Map a drive (I am using E: for simplicity) to the applicable folder on ladco shares
    1. (e.g. \\ladco\shares\software\Microsoft\Windows 10 Enterprise 1803\SW_DVD5_Win_Pro_Ent_Edu_N_10_1803_64BIT_English_-2_MLF_X21-79647)
    2. reminder - it is version specific
  3. Open a command prompt as administrator
  4. Enter the following at the command prompt…
    1. Dism /online /enable-feature /featurename:NetFX3 /All /Source:E:\sources\sxs /LimitAccess
Note the bold drive letter in the line above…this would be whatever you mapped the drive to be.