About Microsoft .NET Framework 5.0

[flavallee]

I heard that Microsoft .NET Framework 5.0 has been released.
But it didn't appear in the "patch Tuesday" updates for Windows 7 and 10 that were installed today.
Does anyone here know anything about it?

 

[Alejandro85]

The .NET Framework 5 doesn't exists.
It's last version as of now is 4.8, and Microsoft already anounced that no further development (beyond bugfixes) will be done to it, in favor of .NET Core.

.NET Core, whose version 5 is still in beta and expected to be fully available soon, is installed fundamentally different from the real .NET Framework, sometimes bundled with its programs and probably will never hit Windows Update.

Besides, since Windows 7 is officially out of support, don't expect many updates, not even bugfixes, except in very particular cases.

 

[billmcct]

Download:
Download .NET 5.0 (Linux, macOS, and Windows)

 

[flavallee]

I heard several months ago that 4.8 would be the LAST version.
That's why I inquired when I saw an article that 5.0 had been released.
When I checked further, it brought me here:
Download .NET (Linux, macOS, and Windows)

 

[Alejandro85]

I heard several months ago that 4.8 would be the LAST version.

It is. At least as of now, Microsoft seems to have no plans of continuing developing the .NET Framework.
".NET 5" is actually the next major version of .NET Core, which is a completely different thing. It's mainly designed to run web pages and simple console programs, and only recently they've added partial GUI support for normal programs.

Unlike the Framework, Core doesn't replaces the previous version, and it isn't backward compatible. Consider it to be a completely different runtime, for which very few programs currently exist, despite the very similar branding.