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I tried to load an "old" VB.Net project I wrote in 2023.
The form/designer won't load. I can see the code, but not the form. When I try to load it, I get the message:
"Loading Designer." but nothing ever loads. At the bottom of the screen it says:
"Restoring NuGet packages..."
...for about a minute before it finally times out with the following error:
"Timed out while connecting to named pipe."
A search online on how to fix this returned nothing helpful. I don't know what "NuGet" is, and if it's going to cause problems like this, I'd prefer to just get rid of it, but I'll reinstall whatever it is if necessary to get my project back.
Any ideas? TIA
PS: Even the old ".exe" of the project in the "debug" folder won't load.
(I get the following error upon opening my project. I did as it says and it made no difference.)
NuGet is a package manager -- An introduction to NuGet.
If the project was originally written to use .Net 6 then it needs to be upgraded. .Net 6 is no longer supported. I haven't used the tool myself, but maybe Upgrade projects with .NET Upgrade Assistant will be helpful.
Thx for the reply. Unfortunately, it didn't work.
I followed the steps but after "conversion" the result was the same. The form does not load (supposedly, b/c it used "a version of .Net... 6.0.0... that is no longer supported.)
Updating dotnet 6.0.x to the x64 version didn't help. I also tried using the x86 version but that had the same result.
I tried the different "Project Upgrade" options at the link you provided, but the end result is always the same (no form loads or displays.)
I tried loading ALL of my old projects (some much older than this one) and they all load just fine. This particular project is the only one where the form(s) refuse to load.
This makes no sense. It's not a complicated project (just two forms.) Even the original .exe (that now refuses to load) is only 131K.
Assuming you are using VS2022 you can install .Net 8 with the visual studio installer. And since VS2022 is a 64-bit application you'll probably get better results if you target your project for Any CPU or x64
Thx. I'm am indeed using VS2022 with .Net 8.0 installed.
But the old project used 6.0.0, and even the "Upgrade" option failed to fix the problem.
I might have to try "recreating" the form by copying form objects/positions/details by hand directly from the Designer code and pasting the text in a blank form added to the project.
I can't think of any other option at this point. Totally nuts.
MORE INFO:
I tried to add a new form to the project and it too refused to appear, resulting in the same error. I tried adding a form to another old project and it worked just fine. Weird.
Maybe you could manually edit the project file to set it to use .Net 8.
What would I edit to change the default .Net version by hand?
TIA
I don't have any .Net 6 projects so I'm giving you my best guess.
Before doing anything I would (with Visual Studio closed) make a backup copy of the solution/projects.
I would then delete the .vs folder, and the .obj and .bin folders.
A vanilla .Net8 Windows Forms project file looks like this -
<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">
<PropertyGroup>
<OutputType>WinExe</OutputType>
<TargetFramework>net8.0-windows</TargetFramework>
<StartupObject>Sub Main</StartupObject>
<UseWindowsForms>true</UseWindowsForms>
<MyType>WindowsForms</MyType>
</PropertyGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<Import Include="System.Data" />
<Import Include="System.Drawing" />
<Import Include="System.Windows.Forms" />
</ItemGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<Compile Update="My Project\Application.Designer.vb">
<DesignTime>True</DesignTime>
<AutoGen>True</AutoGen>
<DependentUpon>Application.myapp</DependentUpon>
</Compile>
</ItemGroup>
<ItemGroup>
<None Update="My Project\Application.myapp">
<Generator>MyApplicationCodeGenerator</Generator>
<LastGenOutput>Application.Designer.vb</LastGenOutput>
</None>
</ItemGroup>
</Project>
So maybe you just need to change the TargetFramework property.
Hmm. I checked the Project Properties and it appears the "conversion" process you first recommended converted the project to ".Net 9.0" (it also appears to have created a Net 9.0 version of the .exe so I can... at least... run the compiled app again.
But I still can't load the form to make changes, run the program from VS, or add forms.
Note: The "startup object" lists a form that is NOT in my project (it should be "frmMain.vb") and there's no other forms listed in the drop-down to change it. I don't know if this is an issue or not. Hmm.
Note: The "startup object" lists a form that is NOT in my project (it should be "frmMain.vb") and there's no other forms listed in the drop-down to change it. I don't know if this is an issue or not. Hmm.
Neither do I.
You could change the Target Framework to .Net 8 and see if it makes a difference.
Ughh!
I fixed the problem and I don't know how!
I somehow pulled up a tab labeled "Application Designer" (I was looking for a way to correct the erroneous "Startup" form) and there was a redlined bit of code setting the "Startup form" to something like "Global.something.Form1.MyProject.frmMain" (or something clearly wrong & obscure.)
I deleted the erroneous assignment and recreated it, allowing the editor to build the assignment (Typing "Global." and letting the editor provide valid options.)
With the line no longer in error, I was able to run the app again, as well as reopen the form.
Now I just need to figure out what brought up the "Application Designer" tab so I can report whatever the fix was.
...AND... I lost is again. I tried to figure out how I pulled up the "Application Designer" tab, and now I can't load the form or run the app anymore. Geez.
Ughh!
I fixed the problem and I don't know how!
I somehow pulled up a tab labeled "Application Designer" and there was a redlined bit of code setting the "Startup form" to something like "**Global.***something.Form1.MyProject.*frmMain" (or something clearly wrong & obscure.)
I deleted the erroneous assignment and recreated it, allowing the editor to build the assignment (Typing "Global**.**" and letting the editor provide valid options.)
With the line no longer in error, I was able to run the app again, as well as reopen the form.
Now I just need to figure out what brought up the "Application Designer" tab so I can report whatever the fix was.
More info: Searching the "Entire solution" for "Global." found the "Application Designer" script.The erroneous code-block was located inside:
<Global.System.Diagnostics.DebuggerStepThroughAttribute()> _
Protected Overrides Sub OnCreateMainForm()
**Me.MainForm = Global.PoseRenumber.frmMain** ' This is the CORRECTED line that "fixed" the app a few minutes ago but now no longer works.
End Sub
If know the filename containing this code, I can find a cashed older copy to see what it was before.
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If you have an older NET 6 project then you'd need to install the NET 6 SDK to get it to load. That is what the error dialog is offering to do for you. But upgrading to NET 8 would be the easier route. To do that all you need to do is open your .vbproj file in a text editor (or simply click on the project in Solution Explorer if it will load far enough) and then find the <TargetFramework> element. Change net6.0 to net8.0 and it is "upgraded".
But your project is relying on third party packages, like all of NET since NET Core came out, and so some of your dependencies (visible in the Dependencies node of Solution Explorer) will likely need to be updated as well. You can do that by right clicking the solution and selecting Manage NuGet Packages for Solution. Once the package manager loads there is an Update tab that will show you the packages that need to be updated. Switch to that tab, select all the packages and click Update. In general this just works but some packages may fail in more complex projects.
After that rebuild your solution. If there are any errors and your form relies on either custom controls inside the project or third party controls provided from external packages then it may fail to load but it should tell you why.
If that still doesn't work then post your .vbproj and we can update it for you. Still won't guarantee that your form will load in the designer since the form itself may have something wrong with it but it'll at least get you past the framework issue.