What version of .NET comes with Windows 10 20H2?

Skip to main content

This browser is no longer supported.

Upgrade to Microsoft Edge to take advantage of the latest features, security updates, and technical support.

Install the .NET Framework on Windows 10 and Windows Server 2016 and later

• Article
• 07/23/2022
• 2 minutes to read

In this article

The .NET Framework is required to run many applications on Windows. The instructions in this article should help you install the .NET Framework versions that you need. The .NET Framework 4.8 is the latest available version.

You may have arrived on this page after trying to run an application and seeing a dialog on your machine similar to the following one:

.NET Framework 4.8

.NET Framework 4.8 is included with:

• Windows 10 May 2021 Update
• Windows 10 October 2020 Update
• Windows 10 May 2020 Update
• Windows 10 November 2019 Update
• Windows 10 May 2019 Update

.NET Framework 4.8 can be used to run applications built for the .NET Framework 4.0 through 4.7.2.

You can install .NET Framework 4.8 on:

• Windows 10 October 2018 Update (version 1809)
• Windows 10 April 2018 Update (version 1803)
• Windows 10 Fall Creators Update (version 1709)
• Windows 10 Creators Update (version 1703)
• Windows 10 Anniversary Update (version 1607)
• Windows Server 2019
• Windows Server, version 1809
• Windows Server, version 1803
• Windows Server 2016

The .NET Framework 4.8 is not supported on:

• Windows 10 1507
• Windows 10 1511

If you're using Windows 10 1507 or 1511 and you want to install .NET Framework 4.8, you first need to upgrade to a later Windows 10 version.

.NET Framework 4.6.2

The .NET Framework 4.6.2 is the latest supported .NET Framework version on Windows 10 1507 and 1511.

The .NET Framework 4.6.2 supports apps built for the .NET Framework 4.0 through 4.6.2.

.NET Framework 3.5

Follow the instructions to install .NET Framework 3.5 on Windows 10.

The .NET Framework 3.5 supports apps built for the .NET Framework 1.0 through 3.5.

Additional information

.NET Framework 4.x versions are in-place updates to earlier versions. That means the following:

• You can only have one version of the .NET Framework 4.x installed on your machine.

• You cannot install an earlier version of the .NET Framework on your machine if a later version is already installed.

• 4.x versions of the .NET Framework can be used to run applications built for the .NET Framework 4.0 through that version. For example, .NET Framework 4.7 can be used to run applications built for the .NET Framework 4.0 through 4.7. The latest version (the .NET Framework 4.8) can be used to run applications built with all versions of the .NET Framework starting with 4.0.

For a list of all the versions of the .NET Framework available to download, see the .NET Downloads page.

Help

If you cannot get the correct version of the .NET Framework installed, you can contact Microsoft for help.

See also

• .NET Downloads
• Troubleshoot blocked .NET Framework installations and uninstallations
• Install the .NET Framework for developers
• Determine which .NET Framework versions are installed

Microsoft has pulled the plug on support for .NET 5 and the Pro and Home versions of Windows 10 20H2.

.NET 5 is not to be confused with the venerable .NET Framework, which will linger on until its parent OS breathes its last.

.NET Framework 3.51 SP1, for example, will carry on until the beginning of 2029 – over 20 years since it first emerged.

Microsoft is keen to move on from such lengthy support periods, so .NET 5 endured a mere 18 months since it came out at the end of 2020. The cross-platform development stack was announced at the company's last in-person Build event, in 2019, and ditched the original "Core" suffix of previous versions as it made the leap from version 3.1 to 5.

The previous version, .NET Core 3.1, remains in support until the end of the year, as it is designated an LTS release. The follow-up, .NET 6, is also an LTS release and so should be good to November 2024, three years after it was first released.

Dubbed "the future of .NET," .NET 5 represented an attempt by Microsoft to unify .NET into a single platform.

The company has since folded Xamarin Forms into .NET MAUI, for which it emitted a Release Candidate in April 2022.

It is now past time to make the jump to .NET 6.

• Microsoft closes Windows LSA hole under active attack
• Jeffrey Snover claims Microsoft demoted him for inventing PowerShell
• Microsoft Security Experts: Humans and automation to fight off cyber threats
• Only Microsoft can give open-source the gift of NTFS. Only Microsoft needs to

Also encouraged to walk into the light of supported releases are users of Windows 10 20H2. At the beginning of 2022, Windows 10 20H2 (released in the latter half of 2020) accounted for more than a quarter of Windows 10 and 11 PCs, according to figures from AdDuplex. Even as recently as February, the OS was at near parity with Microsoft's latest and greatest, Windows 11.

While usage has dwindled (now down to 6.1 per cent), a significant chunk of users remain on 20H2. However, the time has come (for Home and Pro users at least) to take heed of Microsoft's pleas to upgrade. As of May 10, there will be no more security or quality updates. Education, Enterprise, and IoT Enterprise users have another year of support, ending in May 2023.

Windows 10 20H2 represented a shift from the four-digit naming conventions of old while .NET 5 was the basis of a grand plan to win back developer love.

As of May 10, both have reached the end of the line. ®

What version of .NET Framework comes with Windows 10 20H2?

What version of .NET is installed on Windows 10?

Is .NET preinstalled on Windows 10?