Which Edition of Microsoft Visual Studio to Use (.NET)

Microsoft Visual Studio is available in multiple versions and editions.

If you are targeting AutoCAD 2015 or AutoCAD 2015-based programs, or AutoCAD 2016 or AutoCAD 2016-based programs, you should use:

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2012
• Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5

If you are targeting AutoCAD 2012 or AutoCAD 2012-based programs through AutoCAD 2014 or AutoCAD 2014-based programs, you should use:

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2010 or Microsoft Visual Studio 2012
• Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0

If you are targeting AutoCAD 2010 or AutoCAD 2010-based programs, or AutoCAD 2011 or AutoCAD 2011-based programs, you should use:

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2008 with Service Pack 1
• Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 with Service Pack 1

If you are targeting AutoCAD 2007 or AutoCAD 2007-based programs through AutoCAD 2009 or AutoCAD 2009-based programs, you should use:

• Microsoft Visual Studio 2005
• Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 or later

Microsoft Visual Studio is offered in multiple editions: for free and for pay. The free products are part of Microsoft Visual Studio Express, while the for pay products vary by name and price due to the different development tools that are incorporated into them. Microsoft Visual Studio Professional provides improved debugging over the Microsoft Visual Studio Express products along with a number of other features. The most common edition of Microsoft Visual Studio used by developers is Microsoft Visual Studio Professional.

Note: While it is possible to use Microsoft Visual Studio Express with the AutoCAD .NET API, this guide assumes you are using one of the other product versions such as Microsoft Visual Studio Professional or Microsoft Visual Studio Ultimate.

There are four main advantages to using Microsoft Visual Studio:

• Robust and accessible development environment that has a modest learning curve.
• VB.NET syntax is similar to VBA, which makes it an ideal environment for those that already know VBA.
• Visually intuitive and extensive dialog box creation tools.
• Projects can be built as a standalone executable or DLL assembly which can then be loaded for execution.

For more information on the different editions of Microsoft Visual Studio, see http://www.microsoft.com/vstudio and http://www.microsoft.com/express.