How to install .NET 2.0 SP2 without .NET 3.5 SP1 on Vista

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The .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 was released last fall along with Visual Studio 2008 SP1. The .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 installs the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 and the .NET Framework 3.0 SP2 behind the scenes as prerequisites. Initially, the only way to get the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 was to install the full .NET Framework 3.5 SP1 package.

A standalone installer package for the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 was posted on the Microsoft Download Center. There are x86, x64 and ia64 versions of this package, and the package allows you to install the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 on Windows 2000, Windows XP and Windows Server 2003 without needing to install any .NET Framework 3.0 or 3.5 packages.

There are a couple of important notes to keep in mind before downloading the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 using the links below:

1. There is not a standalone package for the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 for Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008. In order to install the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 on those operating systems, you will still have to install the .NET Framework 3.5 SP1.

2. The .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 is a slipstream package. This means it will install the .NET Framework 2.0 and the SP2 updates in a single package. It will also automatically uninstall the .NET Framework 2.0 or 2.0 SP1 if you already have them installed. If your system does not yet have the .NET Framework 2.0 at all, you can directly install the .NET Framework 2.0 SP2 without installing any other .NET Framework 2.0 packages.