Sentrido Discovery Installer fails to install on Windows with an exception error

Modified on Sat, 15 Feb at 8:53 PM

Symptom

Installation of the Sentrido Discovery ClickOnce application on Windows fails with an exception error "Value does not fall within the expected range."

Typical error details are:

ERROR DETAILS
  Following errors were detected during this operation.
  * [YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS] System.ArgumentException
    - Value does not fall within the expected range.
    - Source: System.Deployment
    - Stack trace:
      at System.Deployment.Application.NativeMethods.CorLaunchApplication(UInt32 hostType, String applicationFullName, Int32 manifestPathsCount, String[] manifestPaths, Int32 activationDataCount, String[] activationData, PROCESS_INFORMATION processInformation)
      at System.Deployment.Application.ComponentStore.ActivateApplication(DefinitionAppId appId, String activationParameter, Boolean useActivationParameter)
      at System.Deployment.Application.SubscriptionStore.ActivateApplication(DefinitionAppId appId, String activationParameter, Boolean useActivationParameter)
      at System.Deployment.Application.ApplicationActivator.Activate(DefinitionAppId appId, AssemblyManifest appManifest, String activationParameter, Boolean useActivationParameter)
      at System.Deployment.Application.ApplicationActivator.PerformDeploymentActivation(Uri activationUri, Boolean isShortcut, String textualSubId, String deploymentProviderUrlFromExtension, BrowserSettings browserSettings, String& errorPageUrl, Uri& deploymentUri)
      at System.Deployment.Application.ApplicationActivator.PerformDeploymentActivationWithRetry(Uri activationUri, Boolean isShortcut, String textualSubId, String deploymentProviderUrlFromExtension, BrowserSettings browserSettings, String& errorPageUrl)
--- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown ---
      at System.Runtime.ExceptionServices.ExceptionDispatchInfo.Throw()
      at System.Deployment.Application.ApplicationActivator.PerformDeploymentActivationWithRetry(Uri activationUri, Boolean isShortcut, String textualSubId, String deploymentProviderUrlFromExtension, BrowserSettings browserSettings, String& errorPageUrl)
      at System.Deployment.Application.ApplicationActivator.ActivateDeploymentWorker(Object state)

Reason

The error "value does not fall within expected range" happens when the previous version of the Sentrido Discovery Installer did not uninstall correctly and Windows has references to two different versions of the same assembly.

Solution

A manual clean-up of the previous version installation is required. Follow the steps below.

⚠ Warning: Manually deleting application files or editing the registry can cause system instability, data loss, or prevent Windows from booting if not done correctly - proceed with caution and back up your system first.

Step 1: Clear ClickOnce Application Cache

The ClickOnce deployment cache might contain references to multiple or outdated versions of the same assembly. Clear it as follows:

Open the Run dialog (Win + R) and execute:

rundll32 dfshim CleanOnlineAppCache

Step 2: Clean up Residual Assemblies

The application references assemblies may be left over from prior installations. To locate and delete folders associated with the application open the Run dialog (Win + R) and execute:

%LocalAppData%\Apps\2.0

Search for folders associated with Sentrido Discovery Installer application and its dependencies. The folder names start with "sent.." and contain files related to Sentrido application. Delete these folders to remove all residual files

Step 3. Clean up Windows Registry

The application package references mat be left over in the Windows registry. To locate and delete registry keys associated with the Sentrido application open the Run dialog (Win + R) and execute:

regedit

Navigate to the following registry key:

Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Classes\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Deployment\SideBySide\2.0\PackageMetadata\

Search for registry keys starting with "sent.." and will contain application identifier (appid) of Sentrido (see illustration below). Delete the keys associated with Sentrido.

Sentrido Discovery Installer application registry keys.

Conclusion

After completing the steps above the installation of Sentrido Discovery will complete without errors.