14 DAY TRIAL // The new .NET Framework 4.7 was released in April as part of the Windows 10 Creators Update, as Microsoft offers it built-in, but now the company has published it online for everyone else, including users of previous Windows versions.
.NET Framework 4.7 works on Windows 10 Creators Update (where it comes pre-installed), but also on Windows 10 Anniversary Update, Windows 8.1, and Windows 7 Service Pack 1. There’s also support for several Windows Server versions, including WS 2016, WS 2012 R2, WS 2012, and WS 2008 R2 SP1.
Obviously, the new version comes with a series of improvements, such as high DPI support for Windows Forms applications on Windows 10, which is one very important change for users who install Microsoft’s most recent operating system.
Version 4.7 improvements
Microsoft has been trying to improve Windows 10 on high DPI displays ever since it launched the OS in July 2015, but because some applications still lack updates from their vendors, blurry fonts and interface are still all over the place. With .NET Framework 4.7, Microsoft is trying to provide developers with more improvements in this regard, so hopefully more programs would look better on high DPI screens soon.
Additionally, version 4.7 introduces touch support for WPF applications on Windows 10, as well as enhanced cryptography support. There are also improvements like support for .NET Standard 1.6 and for C# 7 and VB 15, including ValueTuple.
One important thing about .NET Framework 4.7 is that it uses DirectX 11 components for WPF, so users of older Windows need to install them to be able to update.
“You must install an additional DirectX component in order to install the .NET Framework 4.7 on Windows 7 SP1, Windows 2008 R2 SP1 and Windows 2012. The installation includes a single dll that will get added to your system. It will only be used by WPF applications. It is not possible to install the .NET Framework 4.7 without installing this component,” Microsoft explains.
Users can download .NET Framework 4.7 from Softpedia right now, but make sure you have a look on the requirement sheet to be able to run it.