WLM 2012 Started Crashing when Sending Emails

It's all good - I am rarely offended by anyone's comments.

c++ redists get installed when a program is installed that relies on that version; the install package carries the c++ lib it needs and if it's not installed, the pkg will install it. This is one way a 4 month old system can become unstable - some program has a bad or outdated lib. It's rare.

I took the shotgun approach and gave you every single c+ redist lib - both the 32 and 64 bit versions. Without doing a full analysis of the software on your machine (that's not going to happen) this is the best way to ensure a program has the correct lib. Some pgm might need the 32 bit version while another might need the 64 bit version.

It isn't clear if SP1 versions are where you want to start - some say they need a base install others don't mention it. I'm cautious that way, start at the ground and let Windows Update offer what it knows is needed.

msvcrt 2013 is fairly new, it's doubtful that many pgms are using it. I don't see any list of redists other than your laptop (I think it's on your laptop anyway). If 2013 isn't on the desktop now, don't worry about it, many system don't have 2012 on them. Go ahead and clean up the msvcrt installs - install all the versions I referenced - if they're not needed, they won't be called. If a pgm is installed later that needs it, then that version is already on your system. At least for these versions, you know they cam from MS and should be golden.

Many of the versions predate Windows 7, so that cannot be a pre-req for them.

Regarding the reinstall option ... I mentioned a clean install, which is slightly different from using the OEM recovery partition.
Take a read of these tutorials:
Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7
Clean Install Windows 7

I hesitated providing the links before because some people do more than just read - they act even though I state that it's for reference only.

Either path has it's drawbacks, neither is guaranteed. Both require a good amount of time.

I offered a reinstall because when trouble shooting my own systems I have to make the same decision - keep plugging along, or restart fresh. With an issue like the one on your machine, you have to protect the fresh install as much as possible - that means pre-emptively install core tech (.NET, msvcrt ...) and NOT installing anything non-essential for a while. It's a hard discipline - I've been running Win8 f0r 5 months now and I'm just beginning to apply changes that require manual modifications of the registry or files.

Almost forgot, running anything before all msvcrt versions are installed, might force that application to install the version in it's pkg. Worse, the pgm might just crash. Don't run other apps until you get c++ libs up to date (Windows Update is ok to run).

MS has tied .NET to the OS, but depending on the OS, versions can be uninstalled and re-installed. I don't want to get into the details because it's hard to understand and even harder to explain. I cut my teeth on Vista and .NET 3.0 - what a mess!

Bill
.

The good news is that the issue is intermittent and doesn't impact day-to-day operations all that much. It's a nuisance not mission critical.

Slartybart said:

The good news is that the issue is intermittent and doesn't impact day-to-day operations all that much. It's a nuisance not mission critical.

Exactly! Which is why I'm hesitant to do a clean install of the OS. At this point I'd rather continue to try and fix it. I may change my mind later if this continues to drag on.

So I started my practice run on my laptop and ran into the first snag. I've uninstalled all the redists except one. When I select Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Redistributable (x64) in Control Panel-->Uninstall a Program, there is no "Uninstall" button displayed to click on. I'm searching the net now, but if you can tell me how to manually uninstall it, that would be great.

+EDIT

I tried booting in Safe Mode to see if I got the "Uninstall" button. I did not.

I then did a normal boot and installed the same redist from your link. I was hoping it would overwrite the existing install and give me back the "Uninstall" button. That's not what happened. It installed a different version.

Here is a screen shot showing both installs. How do I uninstall the old version from 2010?

FIXED! I was using some different search terms this morning and came across this Microsoft FixIt.

Fix problems that programs cannot be installed or uninstalled

I ran it, selected the redist that wouldn't uninstall and voila! The FixIt says it fixed it and I no longer see any redists listed in Control Panel and also, the msdia80.dll file is gone from C:\

I will now start installing the redists according to your previous instructions. Once I see how it works on the laptop, assuming no more problems, I'll move over to the desktop system.

The uninstall key is also gone from the Registry.

Following your instructions I was able to reinstall all the redists on the laptop so I moved to the desktop.

Here are the results:

2005 x86
2005 x64
KB2538242

2008 x86
2008 x64
KB2538243

2010 x86
2010 x64
KB2467173

2012 x86
2012 x64
The file vcredist_arm.exe was also downloaded but I didn't install it since I don't have ARM hardware.
No updates were found.

This is what it looks like now:

Good work Gary, glad you found the MS Fixit.

You didn't mention it, but I'm guessing you ran Windows Update between msvcrt version (year, not bit depth) installs.

Are the files directly under \ (C:\msdia80.dll) or is there some folder (C:\VC\msdia80.dll)? I used VC as an example, it could be anything - everything I read seems to indicate the files are not in a folder, but I figured I should ask.

See this for an explanation of the mscrt 2005 (x64) files on root
The Msdia80.dll file is installed in the root folder of the boot drive
when you install the Visual C++ 2005 Redistributable Package by
using the Vcredist_x64.exe file or the Vcredist_ia64.exe file

MS said:

You have a computer that is running a 64-bit operating system. You install the Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Redistributable Package on this computer by using the Vcredist_x64.exe file or the Vcredist_ia64.exe file. When you do this, the Msdia80.dll file is installed in the root folder of the boot drive.

Note The correct path of the Msdia80.dll file is

DriveLetter:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\VC.

If the files are not in the path above or the path doesn't exist, let me know before proceeding.
Please provide a list of the files on root and also a list of msdia80.dl?

Open an elevated command prompt
cd \
dir /a > \ListRedist.txt
dir /a /s msdia80.dl? >> \ListRedist.txt
exit

Please attach C:\ListRedist.txt to the next post.

---

If the files are located in the correct path and match the table:
x64-based version of Visual C++ 2005 Service Pack 1 Redistributable Package
in Description of the security update for Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Service Pack 1 Redistributable Package: July 28, 2009
then you should be ok.

It might be easier to install the ATL version from here:
Download Microsoft Visual C++ 2005 Service Pack 1 Redistributable Package ATL Security Update from Official Microsoft Download Center
--> isn't clear if this will remove the errant files, but it should put them in the correct location.

Note: I only looked for information re: msdia80.dll
The list you'll provide will post information on the other files (you said there were many)