And unfortunately, unlike with the somewhat similar.NET Framework, Microsoft never consolidated all these older versions into a unified package.Join us as we take a look at what these things are and why there are so many installed on your PC.It was originally a standalone product, but is now included as part of Microsoft Visual Studio.It offers developers a single application in which they can write, edit, test, and debug their code.
The programming environment includes access to a lot of shared code libraries, which let developers use already-developed code for specific procedures instead of having to write their own from scratch. That shared code takes the form of dynamic link libraries (DLLs), a term most Windows users have come across at some point or other. They can bundle those DLLs into the installation of their application, or they can rely on a standard distributable package of shared code. Most choose the latter, and that package is known as a Visual C Redistributable. The packages are made available by Microsoft, who also tests and updates them with bug and security fixes. Redistributables also offer a single installation on a users computer that multiple programs can use at the same time. As you can see in the picture above, Ive already got four versions of the Visual C Redistributable on my system. The specific versions that get installed depend on which version of Windows youre using. Im using Windows 10, which comes with the 2012 and 2013 Visual C Redistributables. Youll also note that Ive also got both the 32-bit (x86) and 64-bit (x64) versions installed. If you have a 32-bit version of Windows, you wont see those 64-bit versions of the redistributable. But if you have a 64-bit version of Windows (which almost all computers are these days), youll see both versions, because a 64-bit Windows can run both 64-bit and 32-bit applications. When a developer codes in a specific version of Visual C, the code libraries for that version must also be present on the users system for the application to run. That means that, for example, if a developer used Visual C 2005 (or Visual Studio 2005) to create a program youre installing, you can expect to see the Visual C 2005 Redistributable installed on your system along with the program. Youll notice this a lot if youre a PC gamer, especially if you get your games through Steam. Typically, this means that the developer has chosen to have the latest package downloaded from Microsoft at installation time. Sometimes, the package is bundled along with the application. For example, you might see multiple versions of the 2008 redistributable. One might indicate that its a service pack, while others might just have slightly different version numbers. So, while it sometimes looks like multiple versions of the same package are installed, they are all subtly different.
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December 2020
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