Silverlight 5.1.20125.0 plugin for Firefox needs a disc?

[WildWilly]

Before posting this, I searched on what I thought was relevant keywords & found nothing relevant in the way of answers among the 129 results I got. So I hope this isn't a duplicate or something that will end up being answered with a response like, "Oh, go look at this Tutorial at http://whatever." I hate when that happens.

So Firefox pushed out version 20.0.1 a few hours ago. I decided to get Firefox to check my Add-ons for updates to my existing plugins. One that was flagged was Silverlight. So I downloaded it & started to execute it. It started bopping along & it came to a screen demanding a Silverlight disc. A disc? Are you serious? Silverlight has its own disc? When did that happen? Of course, I've never heard of such a thing so I had to just cancel the install.

Well, I suppose Silverlight is a rather low-priority plugin & I can probably live with the "faulty" one I've got now. Or live without the feature entirely. But I'd sure like to know where such a disc can be procured. For free, of course. Failing that, how can I trick the install into finding what it needs already on my hard drive? Like just about every other bit of maintenance I've ever done.

I vacillated between posting this in this Forum & in the Browser Forum. I hope I made the right choice.

 

[roboticarm]

Did you update the plugin or download a seperate installer? Try the installer from MS instead of updating it through FF.

Get Silverlight | Microsoft Silverlight

 

[WildWilly]

Thanks for responding, Robo.

I tried the link you posted. It looks the same as the one I got going through Firefox's own process for checking for updated plugins. I downloaded the .exe offered there. I think it was the same one as I grabbed the other day but I got it again anyway.

Same problem. I closed all my browser windows then executed the .exe I just downloaded. It shows me a screen saying the feature I want is on a CD-ROM or some other removable device. It does offer a Browse button for selecting something off my hard drive but I don't have the faintest idea what to choose.

Any more ideas out there?

 

[roboticarm]

Hi again.

I understood your situation. You certainly have some Windows component missing, I suppose. Can you post a screenshot of the dialog box that demands the disc please?

Press Win+R, type "sfc /scannow" and hit Enter. This should put back any missing component and do provide the Windows DVD if demanded during this process.

Report back.

 

[WildWilly]

Hey Robo. Thanks for keeping an eye on this.

I ran sfc /verifyonly because there's something . . . I think it's the Start Menu icon . . . that I modified that makes some sort of allegedly corrupting update to EXPLORER.EXE that sfc would reverse if I let it. So I ran /verifyonly and then

findstr /c:"[SR]" blah blah blah

The ONLY thing it flagged was EXPLORER.EXE, which means there is nothing missing on my system.

Unfortunately, I do not have a Windows 7 Install CD handy. I may have to rustle one of those up. Meanwhile, I still contend that this process should not require either that CD or any other. I don't recall needing a CD to install Silverlight the first time.

 

[roboticarm]

Hmmm...That's strange!

Found a possible fix:

• Open Windows Registry Editor.
• Browse for
  

  HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/installer/products/D7314F9862C648A4DB8BE2A5B47BE100

• Right click on it and click to ‘Export’ to save a copy of that key to your hard drive.
• Now right click on that key and select ‘Delete’.

Note: If you do not find it at that location, click on "Computer" at the top of left pane, then press Ctrl+F and enter "D7314F9862C648A4DB8BE2A5B47BE100", search for it and delete all its instances.

   Warning

Backup your registry before doing any change

Try running the installer again.

Source

 

[WildWilly]

OK Robo. I am officially now surrendering. I am not messing with this any further. This tail has wagged this dog quite long enough. I hardly ever encounter a use for Silverlight. I thought I would keep it up to date since the new Firefox was flagging it. But I am officially now mentally exhausted by this effort. Silverlight can stay at my current antique release level for eternity or until Microsoft figures out a way to make their update work without my spending countless hours debugging their faulty software for them. I used to be in that biz. I've retired from it. I'm not going back there. It's the been there done that syndrome in play.

But I do appreciate your efforts. Thanks greatly.

 

[roboticarm]

OK Robo. I am officially now surrendering. I am not messing with this any further. This tail has wagged this dog quite long enough. I hardly ever encounter a use for Silverlight. I thought I would keep it up to date since the new Firefox was flagging it. But I am officially now mentally exhausted by this effort. Silverlight can stay at my current antique release level for eternity or until Microsoft figures out a way to make their update work without my spending countless hours debugging their faulty software for them. I used to be in that biz. I've retired from it. I'm not going back there. It's the been there done that syndrome in play.

But I do appreciate your efforts. Thanks greatly.

If you are scared to do the above, you may just try to remove only the following key (and please ignore the "Note" that I wrote):

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/installer/products/D7314F9862C648A4DB8BE2A5B47BE100

This won't mess things up.

 

[WildWilly]

Scared? Oh I've done much scarier things than this. No, I am, as I said, tired of chasing this. It has gone beyond the point of diminishing returns for me. It's like system updates that don't work. If they don't work, I hide them and move on. I just don't care to debug other people's software for them. I thought I'd ask about Silverlight but it turns out it's just another of those errors that shouldn't occur. But it does. Like I said, Microsoft may some day come up with an update that actually works. Some day. Until then, Silverlight will languish unused in my system, as it has languished unused for about as long as I can remember. Or if by some miraculous accident I stumble across some site that uses it, which would be a first in at least 2 years for me, then it can use the old plugin I have or I will just close that web page & move on.

Again, thanks anyway.

 

[roboticarm]

Not a problem brother!