Troubleshooting Windows SDK Server 2008 Download/Install


This article applies to the Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 and .NET Framework 3.5.  Read this other post to troubleshoot issues with the Windows SDK Update for Vista and .NET Framework 3.0.  

Running the Windows SDK web setup on some connections can sometimes have issues when downloading the files. We recommend that you clear the %temp%\sdksetup directory and retry your web setup. If that fails, switch over to the ISO setup for the Windows SDK. 

Typical %temp%\sdksetup directory:

On Windows Vista: C:\%user%\AppData\Local\Temp\SDKSetupLog.txt
On Windows XP: C:\Documents and Settings\%User%\Local Settings\SDKSetupLog.txt

About ISO image files

Many products are posted as ISO image files.  An ISO file is an exact representation of a CD or DVD, including the content and the logical format. ISO files end with an .ISO extension.  The most common use of an image file is to write it to a blank CD-R or DVD-R. ISO image files can also be opened and their contents copied to a local folder, much like ZIP files. ISO files may also be virtually mounted and accessed as a device. These two methods of using ISO images are described below.

Copying the contents of ISO files to a drive

The contents of image files can be used as virtual discs using utilities such as ISObuster, Daemon Tools or Virtual CloneDrive for Windows Vista. Using this method you can extract the files from an image file to a temporary folder on your hard drive, then run setup.

Writing ISO files to CD-R or DVD-R

Most CD-R/DVD-R writing software includes a feature to create a disc from an image file. Note: you must use the special "copy image to CD" or "burn image" functionality. See your software’s Help for detailed information. Common utilities for writing ISO file to recordable media such as DVD-R include Nero and Roxio.   After a CD/DVD-R has been written, you should verify that the file was successfully written. Many freeware programs are available for calculating the SDK SHA-1 hash value.  Use an Internet search engine to search for “sha1 hash” to find a freeware program.  Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 ISO verification information:

  • CRC: 0x812A81E3
  • Size: 1394618368

Other Resources

Windows SDK Online Release Notes http://download.microsoft.com/download/9/1/1/911e67d3-f7cc-4035-b76c-67d38e06784c/ReleaseNotes.Htm

Windows SDK blog http://blogs.msdn.com/windowssdk

Windows SDK MSDN Developer Center http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/windowsserver/bb980924.aspx

Windows SDK Developer Forum http://social.msdn.microsoft.com/forums/en-US/windowssdk/threads/

Comments (42)

  1. ndiamond says:

    Excellent timing but I still need help.  Just today I was searching for the appropriate download but neither Google nor Microsoft could find it.

    The two closest matches, found by both Google and Microsoft, are as follows.

    SDK for Vista Japanese.  This doesn’t include APIs that were added in Server 2008, right?

    SDK for Server 2008 English.  This would make a garbled mix of Visual Studio and Windows stuff in Japanese combined with SDK stuff in English, right?

    Can you say how to download the SDK for Server 2008 Japanese?

  2. Brian Cost says:

    The Japanese version of the Windows SDK for Windows Vista does not include the Windows Server 2008 APIs.  The Windows SDK for Windows Server 2008 was not localized into Japanese.

  3. kubs says:

    My installation failed due to "Signature of the file dbg_amd64.msi could not be obtained"

    Any ideas?

  4. kubs says:

    My installation failed due to "Signature of the file dbg_amd64.msi could not be obtained"

    Any ideas? (win7 64)

  5. Nathan says:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Setup could not find the file WinSDKWinSDK_x86.msi at any of the specified source locations E:Setup

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

  6. Peter says:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Installation of the "Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Compilers for x86" product has reported the following error: Signature of the file vc_stdx86.cab could not be obtained. Possible unsigned file.

  7. Edward says:

    Tried to install Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1, but got the following error:

    +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Setup could not find the file WinSDKDocWin32WinSDKDocWin32_x86.msi at any of the specified source locations download.microsoft.com/…/setup

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

    Click the View Log button to review the installation log.

    To exit, click Finish.

    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

  8. Bob says:

    A problem occurred while installing Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 3.5 SP1(ISO) from DVD-R burned  GRMSDK_EN_DVD.iso to WindowsXP SP3.

    Error as follows:

    An error occurred installing the Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Headers and Libraries package. Error: A file that is required cannot be installed because the cabinet file E:SetupWinSDKBuildcab2.cab has an invalid digital signature.  This may indicate that the cabinet file is corrupt.

    What should I do?

  9. stephen says:

    My installation (on win 7) failed with the following error message:

    ===============

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Installation of the "Application Verifier" product has reported the following error: Signature of the file ApplicationVerifier.amd64.msi could not be obtained. Possible unsigned file.

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

    ===============

    Any ideas

  10. Walter says:

    I cannot install Windows SDK on XP Pro sp2.

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Setup could not find the file WinSDKDocWin32WinSDKDocWin32_x86.msi at any of the specified source locations download.microsoft.com/…/setup

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

    not install Windows SDK….

  11. oh no says:

    I cannot install Windows SDK on Vista 64Bit AMD:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Installation of the "Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7" product has reported the following error: Signature of the file WinSDK_amd64.msi could not be obtained. Possible unsigned file.

    What to do?

  12. subhra says:

    I am not able to install the sdk on vista 32 bit. whenever i try following error occurs. please help me out..

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Setup could not find the file WinSDKSamplesWinSDKSamples_x86.msi at any of the specified source locations download.microsoft.com/…/setup

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

  13. hey says:

    I bit confused about instructions on download details page.  It says that GRMSDK_EN_DVD.iso is for x86, GRMSDKX_EN_DVD.iso is for AMD and GRMSDKIAI_EN_DVD.iso for Itanium.  The X in the second one seems to be for x86.  Just in the same way the third one shows IAI which is for Itanium IA64.  So the fisrt one should be for the one which is left:AMD.  Maybe there is a TYPOGRAPHICAL ERROR.  Am I right or instructions are correct?.

    Instructions

    The Windows SDK is available as a DVD ISO image file so that you can burn your own DVD. If you do not need to burn a DVD the SDK is also available via web setup. To verify that you are downloading the correct ISO file, please refer to the table below to select a file to download based upon your chip type. Additionally, you can use the CRC and SHA1 to validate that the file you've downloaded is the correct file.

    ================================================

    File Name: GRMSDK_EN_DVD.iso

    Chip: X86

    CRC#: 0xCA4FE79D

    SHA1: 0x8695F5E6810D84153181695DA78850988A923F4E

    ================================================

    File Name: GRMSDKX_EN_DVD.iso

    Chip: AMD64

    CRC#: 0xB417A4F7

    SHA1: 0x3393C98B8468CB3505557854922707510F8B65E1

    ================================================

    File Name: GRMSDKIAI_EN_DVD.iso

    Chip: Itanium

    CRC#: 0x5E0E4BEA

    SHA1: 0xAE454215585A044EBE593E9F71FF1A4BC03D56A8

    ================================================

  14. Murat Tokgozlu says:

    I have tried installing various versions of SDK for XP on my laptop (all the ones claiming to be appropriate for XP SP2 and SP3 both web install and ISO). I keep getting the message expecting path %SystemRoot% to represent a valid system volume. I have also tried adding this variable to environment with no luck and unpleasent results. Any help?

  15. Murat Tokgozlu says:

    Thinking again could the above mentioned %SysRoot% no representing a valid message be caused by the HDD VolumeFormat being FAT32 ?. Is this related to SDK installation? It does not seem likely since it is not mentioned anywhere but I think I better mention it just in case.

  16. GenJerDan says:

    To all the above folks who got the "Setup could not find the file WinSDKDocWin32WinSDKDocWin32_x86.msi at any of the specified source locations download.microsoft.com/…/setup" type of errors…

    Are you mounting the ISO, rather than burning it to disk?  Is it sitting on a network drive when you mount it?

    Mine was.  Moved it to the local hard drive and mounted it from there.  Worked just fine then.

  17. grojo says:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Installation of the "Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 (IA64) Headers and Libraries" product has reported the following error: Signature of the file WinSDKBuild_amd64.msi could not be obtained. Possible unsigned file.

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

    Can somebody help?

  18. Stuck says:

    Setup could not find the file WinSDKWinSDK_x86.msi at any of the specified source locations E:Setup

    Thoughts?

  19. ozwombat says:

    Keep getting this error installing from DVD download :

    Unknown product: {8CB66246-75A7-3829-BD89-F659AC7408CF}

    Parameter name: productCode

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

    Have tried removing all refs to this guid in registry & filesystem & tried CCLeaner – still fails

  20. Eugene Yakovlev says:

    Installation on Windows 7 x64 failed:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Installation of the "Application Verifier" product has reported the following error: Signature of the file ApplicationVerifier.amd64.msi could not be obtained. Possible unsigned file.

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

    Click the View Log button to review the installation log.

    To exit, click Finish.

  21. Kelvin says:

    Not sure if this helps, but i'm downloading the latest version of the SDK in ISO format…

    From here… http://www.microsoft.com/…/details.aspx

  22. Felix says:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Setup could not find the file WinSDK_amd64WinSDK_amd64.msi at any of the specified source locations H:Setup

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

  23. JJ says:

    Installation of Windows SDK for Windows 7 and .NET Framework 4 on Windows Server 2008 R2 Standard (SP1) fails with following:

    ——————————————-

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Unknown product: {4F30BC2B-5441-3149-91D7-FAA2332E2F5F}

    Parameter name: productCode

    ——————————————-

    The log file looks like this:

    ——————————————-

    12:17:38 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: ————————————————————————————————-

    12:17:38 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Begin

    12:17:38 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] SDKSetup Version 7.1.7600.30111

    12:17:38 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] SDKSetupDll_DoTasks: Starting

    12:17:39 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] SDKSetupDll_DoTasksWithGUI: Starting

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_OS_Detect: Operating system installation (detected)

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_MSI_Detect: Windows Installer Setup (detected)

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_Products_DetermineProductState_Begin: Product: Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_Products_DetermineProductState:       Product: Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7;  Installed: Unknown;

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Windows Installer reported no registered source locations for the WinSDKproduct.

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_Products_DetermineProductState_End:   Product: Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_Products_DetermineProductState_Begin: Product: Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Headers and Libraries

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_Products_DetermineProductState:       Product: Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Headers and Libraries;  Installed: Unknown;

    12:17:40 AM Thursday, June 16, 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_Products_DetermineProductState_End:   Product: Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Headers and Libraries

    ——————————————-

    Any help is appreciated!

  24. Mark says:

    Is anyone getting any help with this?  I'm installing on Xeon 64 bit and get an error that setup can't find WinSDK_amd64.msi.  Why would my system look for an AMD related file?

    Is anyone from Microsoft listening???

  25. Teness says:

    Installation of the "Application Verifier" product has reported the following error: Signature of the file ApplicationVerifier.amd64.msi could not be obtained. Possible unsigned file.

    (x64 win7)

    How to fix it?

  26. Alex says:

    the installation failed with a fault on a German language Windows 7 64bit (x86_64).

    i am seeing this ad the end of my log file:

    Property(S): ColorBits = 32

    Property(S): TTCSupport = 1

    Property(S): Time = 15:16:13

    Property(S): Date = 30.07.2011

    Property(S): MsiNetAssemblySupport = 4.0.30319.1

    Property(S): MsiWin32AssemblySupport = 6.1.7601.17514

    Property(S): RedirectedDllSupport = 2

    Property(S): MsiRunningElevated = 1

    Property(S): Privileged = 1

    Property(S): USERNAME = Admin

    Property(S): DATABASE = C:WindowsInstallera64b9c3.msi

    Property(S): OriginalDatabase = E:Setupvc_stdx86vc_stdx86.msi

    Property(S): UILevel = 2

    Property(S): MsiUISourceResOnly = 1

    Property(S): Preselected = 1

    Property(S): ACTION = INSTALL

    === Logging stopped: 2011-07-30  15:16:13 ===

    MSI (s) (AC:B0) [15:16:13:251]: Product: Microsoft Visual C++  Compilers 2010 Standard – enu – x86 — Installation failed.

    MSI (s) (AC:B0) [15:16:13:266]: Das Produkt wurde durch Windows Installer installiert. Produktname: Microsoft Visual C++  Compilers 2010 Standard – enu – x86. Produktversion: 10.0.30319. Produktsprache: 1033. Hersteller: Microsoft Corporation. Erfolg- bzw. Fehlerstatus der Installation: 1603.

    15:16:13 Samstag, 30. Juli 2011: [SDKSetup:Error] Config_Products_Install: Installation of Product Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Compilers for x86 (failed): Schwerwiegender Fehler bei der Installation. Stack:    bei Microsoft.WindowsInstaller.Installer.InstallProduct(String packagePath, String commandLine)   bei SDKSetup.Product.ConfigureNewProduct(ManualResetEvent CancelEvent)

    15:16:13 Samstag, 30. Juli 2011: [SDKSetup:Info] Config_Products_InstallNew: End installation of new product: Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Compilers for x86

    15:16:13 Samstag, 30. Juli 2011: [SDKSetup:Error] Config_Products_Install: Windows SDK Setup (failed): Installation of the "Microsoft Windows SDK for Windows 7 Compilers for x86" product has reported the following error: Schwerwiegender Fehler bei der Installation. Stack:    bei SDKSetup.Product.ConfigureNewProduct(ManualResetEvent CancelEvent)   bei SDKSetup.Product.SetupProduct(TaskMode taskMode, ManualResetEvent CancelEvent)   bei SDKSetup.ProductCollection.SetupProducts(TaskMode taskMode, DownloadManager downloadManager, ManualResetEvent cancelEvent)   bei SDKSetup.ConfigProducts.DoCurrentTask(TaskMode Task)

  27. dclaar says:

    Setup could not find the file WinSDKDebugToolsRedist_amd64WinSDKDebugToolsRedist_amd64.msi at any of the specified source locations download.microsoft.com/…/setup,C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.1,C:Program FilesMicrosoft SDKsWindowsv7.1Setup1033,C:UsersdougAppDataLocalTempSDKSetupWinSDKWinSDK_amd64

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again. If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at go.microsoft.com/fwlink.

  28. Art says:

    I am trying to install SDK in a 64-bit Windows 7. I get the following error:

    Setup could not find the file WinSDK_amd64WinSDK_amd64.msi at any of the specified source locations C:SoftwareWindows SDK Win7 .NET 3.5 SP1Setup

    Can anyone help, please?

  29. Eric says:

    I'm trying to install the Windows 7.1 SDK, but I'm getting this error:

    Unknown product: {3156336D-8E44-3671-A6FE-AE51D3D6564E}

    Parameter name: productCode

    The log doesn't show anything of value related to this.  I've seen similar errors posted here, but what it shows after "Unknown product: " is different.  That looks like a registry key, and I've tried searching my registry for that, but it is not found in my registry.  Does anyone know how I can fix this?

  30. Sushil Srivastava says:

    I am trying to install SDK in a 64-bit Windows 7, install fail and there is no clue why it failed.

    Looking from blog so many people are having problem I haven't see any response from Microsoft developer team. So many people are wasting hours worth of productivity. This is a quality Microsoft provides Thanks you.

  31. Install Error for windows 7 and .Net Framework 4 says:

    09/27/11 21:55:31 DDSet_Error: Patch Hooks: Missing required property 'ProductFamily': Setup cannot continue.

    09/27/11 21:55:31 DDSet_Warning: Setup failed while calling 'getDLLName'. System error: Cannot create a file when that file already exists.

  32. Badmadmat says:

    To all with the issue :Setup could not find the file WinSDK_amd64WinSDK_amd64.msi at any of the specified source locations C:SoftwareWindows SDK Win7 .NET 3.5 SP1Setup

    Please make sure to download the accurate version !

    (x64 or x86 )

  33. Overtonesinger says:

    This is weird: everytime I try to install SDK 7.1  I get this error no.1603 here in log:

    MSI (s) (AC:74) ……….. Installation service of Windows system performed installation of product.   Product Name: Microsoft Visual C++  Compilers 2010 Standard – enu – x86. Ver.: 10.0.30319. Language: 1033. State of installation (success or error): 1603.

    How to overcome this?? Thanx.

  34. Joscelyn says:

    I do not have a windows installer on my system. I am trying to replace it. I use Windows 7 home edition. I deleted the MSIEX file from my registry when I was having problems with slow performance following instructions from a help website online. They said once the file was deleted I could go online and reload it. However, there is no standalone file for Windows 7 available. I need to replace the windows installer. This product would not load correctly because it said it could not access the windows installer program.

    Please help,

    Thanks so much…

  35. Apollo says:

    Every time I attempt to install – via web, via ISO, whether I've uninstalled previous versions and rebooted or not, I get the same error.  It just crashes, somewhere mid-installation.  I have the log, but it doesn't tell me much more.  This totally sucks, I'm days late on the project I needed to use xperf for.  Wish I could get xperf as a standalone download.

  36. NirmalJose says:

    My installation failed, due to unable to find the respective file(exe) from your server..

  37. Matt Neerincx (MSFT) says:

    Hello everyone!

    If you have a failed installation experience, send your installation log to wsdkfdb@microsoft.com. The Windows SDK team can help you troubleshoot the issue. The installation log is typically named SDKSetupLog.txt and is typically located in the %userprofile%AppDataLocalTemp folder.

  38. Matt Neerincx (MSFT) says:

    If you just need the debugging tools redist for amd64, you can try downloading this =>

    download.microsoft.com/…/WinSDKDebugToolsRedist_amd64.msi

  39. kesako says:

    Trying to install Microsoft .NET Framework 4 (Web Installer)

    on a Win. 7 machine and got that:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Setup could not find the file WinSDKAppverRedist_amd64WinSDKAppverRedist_amd64.msi at any of the specified source locations

    download.microsoft.com/…/setup

    Please attempt to resolve the problem and then start Windows SDK setup again.

    If you continue to have problems with this issue, please visit the SDK team support page at

    go.microsoft.com/fwlink

    Click the View Log button to review the installation log.

    To exit, click Finish

    Following Badmadmat post, I'm trying the right version (x64) I do beleive.

    What can I do?

    K.

  40. GGK says:

    A problem occurred while installing selected Windows SDK components.

    Installation of the "Application Verifier" product has reported the following error: Signature of the file ApplicationVerifier.amd64.msi could not be obtained. Possible unsigned file.

    can anyone help me with this

  41. Srivista says:

    Microsoft really hung us out to dry with this one.

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