Product(s):	WaterGEMS, WaterCAD, HAMMER, SewerGEMS, SewerCAD, StormCAD, CivilStorm
Version(s):	CONNECT Edition
Area:	Installation

Problem

The Microsoft Visual C++ Runtime Redistributable versions 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, and 2015 are currently installed as prerequisites with the above OpenFlows software. Some of these Microsoft products are reaching the end of their Support plan.  Will the OpenFlows products work without having these Visual C++ products installed?

Solution

The Microsoft Visual C++ Runtime Redistributables are required to be installed in order for the OpenFlows software to work properly. If you uninstall them, the software will not work properly.

The OpenFlows products themselves are currently built on Visual Studio 2013 or later, but they do use some 3^rd party libraries that require older versions of C++ runtimes to be installed on the computer (this applies to all OpenFlows products currently available for download and supported per the Bentley Lifecycle Policy, as of this writing.) Even the Update 4 (10.04.xx.xx) versions of Water and Sewer products depend on these older C++ runtimes being installed.  

As of June, 2023, we plan to remove our reliance on the older, unsupported C++ redistributables in the next version, to be released after the CONNECT Edition Update 4. Please contact Technical Support for details or see: How to receive alerts on new version availability. This article will be updated accordingly after the release.

We do recognize that some organizations may flag these older C++ runtimes due to the fact that they are not supported by Microsoft any longer. However, please note that Bentley follows recommendations from our strict Security Team audit and as of this writing they have determined that these particular components are safe. 

Visual Studio version	Lifecycle Stage	Supported Baseline	End of Support
Visual Studio 2017	Mainstream	version 15.9	April 2027
Visual Studio 2015	Extended	Update 3 including KB3165756	October 2025
Visual Studio 2013	Extended	Update 5	April 2024
Visual Studio 2012	Extended	Update 5	January 2023
Visual Studio 2010 and earlier	Out of Support

Note: 2013, 2015 are still supported (2012 is as well, but goes out of support soon).