PowerShell script to return versions of .NET Framework on a machine?

If you're going to use the registry you have to recurse in order to get the full version for the 4.x Framework. The earlier answers both return the root number on my system for .NET 3.0 (where the WCF and WPF numbers, which are nested under 3.0, are higher -- I can't explain that), and fail to return anything for 4.0 ...

EDIT: For .Net 4.5 and up, this changed slightly again, so there's now a nice MSDN article here explaining how to convert the Release value to a .Net version number, it's a total train wreck :-(

This looks right to me (note that it outputs separate version numbers for WCF & WPF on 3.0. I don't know what that's about). It also outputs both Client and Full on 4.0 (if you have them both installed):

Get-ChildItem 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP' -recurse |
Get-ItemProperty -name Version,Release -EA 0 |
Where { $_.PSChildName -match '^(?!S)\p{L}'} |
Select PSChildName, Version, Release

Based on the MSDN article, you could build a lookup table and return the marketing product version number for releases after 4.5:

$Lookup = @{
    378389 = [version]'4.5'
    378675 = [version]'4.5.1'
    378758 = [version]'4.5.1'
    379893 = [version]'4.5.2'
    393295 = [version]'4.6'
    393297 = [version]'4.6'
    394254 = [version]'4.6.1'
    394271 = [version]'4.6.1'
    394802 = [version]'4.6.2'
    394806 = [version]'4.6.2'
    460798 = [version]'4.7'
    460805 = [version]'4.7'
    461308 = [version]'4.7.1'
    461310 = [version]'4.7.1'
    461808 = [version]'4.7.2'
    461814 = [version]'4.7.2'
    528040 = [version]'4.8'
    528049 = [version]'4.8'
}

# For One True framework (latest .NET 4x), change the Where-Object match 
# to PSChildName -eq "Full":
Get-ChildItem 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP' -Recurse |
  Get-ItemProperty -name Version, Release -EA 0 |
  Where-Object { $_.PSChildName -match '^(?!S)\p{L}'} |
  Select-Object @{name = ".NET Framework"; expression = {$_.PSChildName}}, 
@{name = "Product"; expression = {$Lookup[$_.Release]}}, 
Version, Release

In fact, since I keep having to update this answer, here's a script to generate the script above (with a little extra) from the markdown source for that web page. This will probably break at some point, so I'm keeping the current copy above.

# Get the text from github
$url = "https://raw.githubusercontent.com/dotnet/docs/master/docs/framework/migration-guide/how-to-determine-which-versions-are-installed.md"
$md = Invoke-WebRequest $url -UseBasicParsing
$OFS = "`n"
# Replace the weird text in the tables, and the padding
# Then trim the | off the front and end of lines
$map = $md -split "`n" -replace " installed [^|]+" -replace "\s+\|" -replace "\|$" |
    # Then we can build the table by looking for unique lines that start with ".NET Framework"
    Select-String "^.NET" | Select-Object -Unique |
    # And flip it so it's key = value
    # And convert ".NET FRAMEWORK 4.5.2" to  [version]4.5.2
    ForEach-Object { 
        [version]$v, [int]$k = $_ -replace "\.NET Framework " -split "\|"
        "    $k = [version]'$v'"
    }

# And output the whole script
@"
`$Lookup = @{
$map
}

# For extra effect we could get the Windows 10 OS version and build release id:
try {
    `$WinRelease, `$WinVer = Get-ItemPropertyValue "HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows NT\CurrentVersion" ReleaseId, CurrentMajorVersionNumber, CurrentMinorVersionNumber, CurrentBuildNumber, UBR
    `$WindowsVersion = "`$(`$WinVer -join '.') (`$WinRelease)"
} catch {
    `$WindowsVersion = [System.Environment]::OSVersion.Version
}

Get-ChildItem 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP' -Recurse |
    Get-ItemProperty -name Version, Release -EA 0 |
    # For The One True framework (latest .NET 4x), change match to PSChildName -eq "Full":
    Where-Object { `$_.PSChildName -match '^(?!S)\p{L}'} |
    Select-Object @{name = ".NET Framework"; expression = {`$_.PSChildName}}, 
                @{name = "Product"; expression = {`$Lookup[`$_.Release]}}, 
                Version, Release,
    # Some OPTIONAL extra output: PSComputerName and WindowsVersion
    # The Computer name, so output from local machines will match remote machines:
    @{ name = "PSComputerName"; expression = {`$Env:Computername}},
    # The Windows Version (works on Windows 10, at least):
    @{ name = "WindowsVersion"; expression = { `$WindowsVersion }}
"@

---

Added v4.8 support to the script:

Get-ChildItem 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP' -recurse |
Get-ItemProperty -name Version,Release -EA 0 |
Where { $_.PSChildName -match '^(?![SW])\p{L}'} |
Select PSChildName, Version, Release, @{
  name="Product"
  expression={
      switch -regex ($_.Release) {
        "378389" { [Version]"4.5" }
        "378675|378758" { [Version]"4.5.1" }
        "379893" { [Version]"4.5.2" }
        "393295|393297" { [Version]"4.6" }
        "394254|394271" { [Version]"4.6.1" }
        "394802|394806" { [Version]"4.6.2" }
        "460798|460805" { [Version]"4.7" }
        "461308|461310" { [Version]"4.7.1" }
        "461808|461814" { [Version]"4.7.2" }
        "528040|528049" { [Version]"4.8" }
        {$_ -gt 528049} { [Version]"Undocumented version (> 4.8), please update script" }
      }
    }
}

---

gci 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP' |
sort pschildname -des                                  |
select -fi 1 -exp pschildname

This answer doesn't return 4.5 if that is installed. The answer below from @Jaykul and using recurse does.

---

[environment]::Version

Gives you an instance of Version for the CLR the current copy of PSH is using (as documented here).

---

Correct syntax:

[System.Runtime.InteropServices.RuntimeEnvironment]::GetSystemVersion()
#or
$PSVersionTable.CLRVersion

The GetSystemVersion function returns a string like this:

v2.0.50727        #PowerShell v2.0 in Win 7 SP1

or like this

v4.0.30319        #PowerShell v3.0 (Windows Management Framework 3.0) in Win 7 SP1

$PSVersionTable is a read-only object. The CLRVersion property is a structured version number like this:

Major  Minor  Build  Revision
-----  -----  -----  --------
4      0      30319  18444   

---

I found this through tab completion in powershell for osx:

[System.Runtime.InteropServices.RuntimeInformation]::get_FrameworkDescription() .NET Core 4.6.25009.03

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There's no reliable way to do this for all platforms and architectures using a simple script. If you want to learn how to do it reliably, start at the blog post Updated sample .NET Framework detection code that does more in-depth checking.

---

Nice solution

Try using the downloadable DotNetVersionLister module (based on registry infos and some version-to-marketing-version lookup table).

Which would be used like this:

PS> Get-DotNetVersion -LocalHost -nosummary


ComputerName : localhost
>=4.x        : 4.5.2
v4\Client    : Installed
v4\Full      : Installed
v3.5         : Installed
v3.0         : Installed
v2.0.50727   : Installed
v1.1.4322    : Not installed (no key)
Ping         : True
Error        :

Or like this if you just want to test it for some .NET framework >= 4.*:

PS> (Get-DotNetVersion -LocalHost -nosummary).">=4.x"
4.5.2

But it will not work (install/import) e.g. with PS v2.0 (Win 7, Win Server 2010 standard) due to incompatibility...

Motivation for "legacy" functions below

(You could skip reading this and use code below)

We had to work with PS 2.0 on some machines and could not install/import the above DotNetVersionLister.
On other machines we wanted to update (from PS 2.0) to PS 5.1 (which in turn needs .NET Framework >= 4.5) with the help of two company-custom Install-DotnetLatestCompany and Install-PSLatestCompany.
To guide admins nicely through the install/update process we would have to determine the .NET version in these functions on all machines and PS versions existing.
Thus we used also the below functions to determine them more safely in all environments...

Functions for legacy PS environments (e.g. PS v2.0)

So the following code and below (extracted) usage examples are useful here (based on other answers here):

function Get-DotNetVersionByFs {
  <#
    .SYNOPSIS
      NOT RECOMMENDED - try using instead:
        Get-DotNetVersion 
          from DotNetVersionLister module (https://github.com/EliteLoser/DotNetVersionLister), 
          but it is not usable/importable in PowerShell 2.0 
        Get-DotNetVersionByReg
          reg(istry) based: (available herin as well) but it may return some wrong version or may not work reliably for versions > 4.5 
          (works in PSv2.0)
      Get-DotNetVersionByFs (this):  
        f(ile) s(ystem) based: determines the latest installed .NET version based on $Env:windir\Microsoft.NET\Framework content
        this is unreliable, e.g. if 4.0* is already installed some 4.5 update will overwrite content there without
        renaming the folder
        (works in PSv2.0)
    .EXAMPLE
      PS> Get-DotnetVersionByFs
      4.0.30319
    .EXAMPLE
      PS> Get-DotnetVersionByFs -All
      1.0.3705
      1.1.4322
      2.0.50727
      3.0
      3.5
      4.0.30319
    .NOTES
      from https://stackoverflow.com/a/52078523/1915920
  #>
    [cmdletbinding()]
  param(
    [Switch]$All  ## do not return only latest, but all installed
  )
  $list = ls $Env:windir\Microsoft.NET\Framework |
    ?{ $_.PSIsContainer -and $_.Name -match '^v\d.[\d\.]+' } |
    %{ $_.Name.TrimStart('v') }
  if ($All) { $list } else { $list | select -last 1 }
}


function Get-DotNetVersionByReg {
  <#
    .SYNOPSIS
      NOT RECOMMENDED - try using instead:
        Get-DotNetVersion
          From DotNetVersionLister module (https://github.com/EliteLoser/DotNetVersionLister), 
          but it is not usable/importable in PowerShell 2.0. 
          Determines the latest installed .NET version based on registry infos under 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP'
    .EXAMPLE
        PS> Get-DotnetVersionByReg
        4.5.51209
    .EXAMPLE
        PS> Get-DotnetVersionByReg -AllDetailed
        PSChildName                                          Version                                             Release
        -----------                                          -------                                             -------
        v2.0.50727                                           2.0.50727.5420
        v3.0                                                 3.0.30729.5420
        Windows Communication Foundation                     3.0.4506.5420
        Windows Presentation Foundation                      3.0.6920.5011
        v3.5                                                 3.5.30729.5420
        Client                                               4.0.0.0
        Client                                               4.5.51209                                           379893
        Full                                                 4.5.51209                                           379893
    .NOTES
      from https://stackoverflow.com/a/52078523/1915920
  #>
    [cmdletbinding()]
    param(
        [Switch]$AllDetailed  ## do not return only latest, but all installed with more details
    )
    $Lookup = @{
        378389 = [version]'4.5'
        378675 = [version]'4.5.1'
        378758 = [version]'4.5.1'
        379893 = [version]'4.5.2'
        393295 = [version]'4.6'
        393297 = [version]'4.6'
        394254 = [version]'4.6.1'
        394271 = [version]'4.6.1'
        394802 = [version]'4.6.2'
        394806 = [version]'4.6.2'
        460798 = [version]'4.7'
        460805 = [version]'4.7'
        461308 = [version]'4.7.1'
        461310 = [version]'4.7.1'
        461808 = [version]'4.7.2'
        461814 = [version]'4.7.2'
    }
    $list = Get-ChildItem 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP' -Recurse |
        Get-ItemProperty -name Version, Release -EA 0 |
        # For One True framework (latest .NET 4x), change match to PSChildName -eq "Full":
        Where-Object { $_.PSChildName -match '^(?!S)\p{L}'} |
        Select-Object `
           @{
               name = ".NET Framework" ; 
               expression = {$_.PSChildName}}, 
           @{  name = "Product" ; 
               expression = {$Lookup[$_.Release]}}, 
           Version, Release
    if ($AllDetailed) { $list | sort version } else { $list | sort version | select -last 1 | %{ $_.version } }
}

Example usage:

PS> Get-DotNetVersionByFs
4.0.30319

PS> Get-DotNetVersionByFs -All
1.0.3705
1.1.4322
2.0.50727
3.0
3.5
4.0.30319

PS> Get-DotNetVersionByReg
4.5.51209

PS> Get-DotNetVersionByReg -AllDetailed

.NET Framework                   Product Version        Release
--------------                   ------- -------        -------
v2.0.50727                               2.0.50727.5420
v3.0                                     3.0.30729.5420
Windows Communication Foundation         3.0.4506.5420
Windows Presentation Foundation          3.0.6920.5011
v3.5                                     3.5.30729.5420
Client                                   4.0.0.0
Client                           4.5.2   4.5.51209      379893
Full                             4.5.2   4.5.51209      379893

---

Refer to the page Script for finding which .NET versions are installed on remote workstations.

The script there might be useful to find the .NET version for multiple machines on a network.

---

Not pretty. Definitely not pretty:

ls $Env:windir\Microsoft.NET\Framework | ? { $_.PSIsContainer } | select -exp Name -l 1

This may or may not work. But as far as the latest version is concerned this should be pretty reliable, as there are essentially empty folders for old versions (1.0, 1.1) but not newer ones – those only appear once the appropriate framework is installed.

Still, I suspect there must be a better way.

---

Here's my take on this question following the msft documentation:

$gpParams = @{
    Path        = 'HKLM:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full'
    ErrorAction = 'SilentlyContinue'
}
$release = Get-ItemProperty @gpParams | Select-Object -ExpandProperty Release

".NET Framework$(
    switch ($release) {
        ({ $_ -ge 528040 }) { ' 4.8'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 461808 }) { ' 4.7.2'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 461308 }) { ' 4.7.1'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 460798 }) { ' 4.7'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 394802 }) { ' 4.6.2'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 394254 }) { ' 4.6.1'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 393295 }) { ' 4.6'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 379893 }) { ' 4.5.2'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 378675 }) { ' 4.5.1'; break }
        ({ $_ -ge 378389 }) { ' 4.5'; break }
        default { ': 4.5+ not installed.' }
    }
)"

This example works with all PowerShell versions and will work in perpetuity as 4.8 is the last .NET Framework version.

---

This is purely because I had to spend time making/editing this when it should be widely available, so I'm providing it to everyone else.

The below script will Output a couple of CSV files to TEMP with the versions and vulnerability status of each machine in a selected (in the code) OU. You'll be able to remotely "security audit" an OU of machines.

Powershell 7.0 needed for the connection test line RSAT needed to get the AD module Visual Studio Code needed to get powershell 7.0 (on win7)

By the time you read this, the version list will probably be out of date within the file. Use this website https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/dotnet/framework/migration-guide/versions-and-dependencies to add newer dotnet entries. It's just a bunch of key values in "DotNet4Builds"

If within CompromisedCheck.csv a machine shows as =0, it's had it's security turned off manually, and you should raise whether the supplier did it, or a suspect employee.

I hope this helps someone searching for it for their business.

     <#
        Script Name : Get-DotNetVersions_Tweaked.ps1
        Description : This script reports the various .NET Framework versions installed on the local or a remote set of computers
        Author      : Original by Martin Schvartzman - Edited by Mark Purnell
        Reference   : https://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/hh925568
#>

$ErrorActionPreference = "Continue”
import-module ActiveDirectory
$searchOU = "OU=OU LEVEL 1,OU=OU LEVEL 2,OU=MACHINES,OU=OUR LAPTOPS,DC=PUT,DC=MY,DC=DOMAIN,DC=CONTROLLER,DC=HERE,DC=OK"
$computerList = Get-ADComputer -searchbase $searchOU -Filter *


function Get-DotNetFrameworkVersion($computerList)
{
    $dotNetter = @()
    $compromisedCheck = @()
    
    $dotNetRoot = 'SOFTWARE\Microsoft\.NETFramework'
    $dotNetRegistry  = 'SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP'
    $dotNet4Registry = 'SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full'
    $dotNet4Builds = @{
        '30319'  = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.0'                                                     }
        '378389' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.5'                                                     }
        '378675' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.5.1'   ; Comment = '(8.1/2012R2)'                      }
        '378758' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.5.1'   ; Comment = '(8/7 SP1/Vista SP2)'               }
        '379893' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.5.2'                                                   }
        '380042' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.5'     ; Comment = 'and later with KB3168275 rollup'   }
        '393295' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.6'     ; Comment = '(Windows 10)'                      }
        '393297' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.6'     ; Comment = '(NON Windows 10)'                  }
        '394254' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.6.1'   ; Comment = '(Windows 10)'                      }
        '394271' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.6.1'   ; Comment = '(NON Windows 10)'                  }
        '394802' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.6.2'   ; Comment = '(Windows 10 Anniversary Update)'   }
        '394806' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.6.2'   ; Comment = '(NON Windows 10)'                  }
        '460798' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.7'     ; Comment = '(Windows 10 Creators Update)'      }
        '460805' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.7'     ; Comment = '(NON Windows 10)'                  }
        '461308' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.7.1'   ; Comment = '(Windows 10 Fall Creators Update)' }
        '461310' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.7.1'   ; Comment = '(NON Windows 10)'                  }
        '461808' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.7.2'   ; Comment = '(Windows 10 April & Winserver)'    }
        '461814' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.7.2'   ; Comment = '(NON Windows 10)'                  }
        '528040' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.8'     ; Comment = '(Windows 10 May 2019 Update)'  }
        '528049' = @{ Version = [System.Version]'4.8'     ; Comment = '(NON Windows 10)'  }
    }

    foreach($computerObject in $computerList)
    {
        $computerName = $computerObject.DNSHostName
        write-host("PCName is " + $computerName)

        if(test-connection -TargetName $computerName -Quiet -TimeOutSeconds 1 -count 2){
            if($regKey = [Microsoft.Win32.RegistryKey]::OpenRemoteBaseKey('LocalMachine', $computerName))           
            {
                $os = (Get-WMIObject win32_operatingsystem -ComputerName SPL305350).Name
                if(!$?){
                    write-host("wim not available")
                    $dotNetter += New-Object -TypeName PSObject -Property @{
                        'ComputerName' = $computerName
                        'OS' = "WIM not available"
                        'Build' = "WIM not available"
                        'Version' = "WIM not available"
                        'Comment' = "WIM not available"
                    }
                }
                else{
                    if ($netRegKey = $regKey.OpenSubKey("$dotNetRegistry"))
                    {
                        foreach ($versionKeyName in $netRegKey.GetSubKeyNames())
                        {
                            if ($versionKeyName -match '^v[123]') {
                                $versionKey = $netRegKey.OpenSubKey($versionKeyName)
                                $version = [System.Version]($versionKey.GetValue('Version', ''))
                                
                                write-host("adding old dotnet")
                                $dotNetter += New-Object -TypeName PSObject -Property @{
                                        ComputerName = $computerName
                                        OS = $os
                                        Build = $version.Build
                                        Version = $version
                                        Comment = ''
                                }
                            }
                        }
                    }
                    if ($net4RegKey = $regKey.OpenSubKey("$dotNet4Registry"))
                    {
                        if(-not ($net4Release = $net4RegKey.GetValue('Release')))
                        {
                            $net4Release = 30319
                        }
                        
                        write-host("adding new dotnet")
                        $dotNetter += New-Object -TypeName PSObject -Property @{
                                'ComputerName' = $computerName
                                'OS' = $os
                                'Build' = $net4Release
                                'Version' = $dotNet4Builds["$net4Release"].Version
                                'Comment' = $dotNet4Builds["$net4Release"].Comment
                        }
                    }
                    if ($netRegKey = $regKey.OpenSubKey("$dotNetRoot")){
                        write-host("Checking for hacked keys")
                        foreach ($versionKeyName in $netRegKey.GetSubKeyNames())
                        {
                            if ($versionKeyName -match '^v[1234]') {
                                $versionKey = $netRegKey.OpenSubKey($versionKeyName)
                                write-host("versionKeyName is" + $versionKeyName)
                                write-host('ASPNetEnforceViewStateMac = ' + $versionKey.GetValue('ASPNetEnforceViewStateMac', ''))
                                $compromisedCheck += New-Object -TypeName PSObject -Property @{
                                    'ComputerName' = $computerName
                                    'version' = $versionKeyName
                                    'compromisedCheck' = ('ASPNetEnforceViewStateMac = ' + $versionKey.GetValue('ASPNetEnforceViewStateMac', ''))
                                }
                            }
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        }
        else{
            write-host("could not connect to machine")
            $dotNetter += New-Object -TypeName PSObject -Property @{
                    'ComputerName' = $computerName
                    'OS' = $os
                    'Build' = "Could not connect"
                    'Version' = "Could not connect"
                    'Comment' = "Could not connect"
            }
        }
    }
    $dotNetter | export-CSV c:\temp\DotNetVersions.csv
    $compromisedCheck | export-CSV C:\temp\CompromisedCheck.csv
}
get-dotnetframeworkversion($computerList)

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Here's the general idea:

Get child items in the .NET Framework directory that are containers whose names match the pattern v number dot number. Sort them by descending name, take the first object, and return its name property.

Here's the script:

(Get-ChildItem -Path $Env:windir\Microsoft.NET\Framework | Where-Object {$_.PSIsContainer -eq $true } | Where-Object {$_.Name -match 'v\d\.\d'} | Sort-Object -Property Name -Descending | Select-Object -First 1).Name

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I would try this one in PowerShell: Worked for me!

(Get-ItemProperty "HKLM:Software\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\Full").Version

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If you have installed Visual Studio on your machine then open the Visual Studio Developer Command Prompt and type the following command: clrver

It will list all the installed versions of .NET Framework on that machine.

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I'm not up on my PowerShell syntax, but I think you could just call System.Runtime.InteropServices.RuntimeEnvironment.GetSystemVersion(). This will return the version as a string (something like v2.0.50727, I think).

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This is a derivite of previous post, but this gets the latest version of the .net framework 4 in my tests.

get-itemproperty -name version,release "hklm:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\FULL"

Which will allow you to invoke-command to remote machine:

invoke-command -computername server01 -scriptblock {get-itemproperty -name version,release "hklm:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\FULL" | select pscomputername,version,release} 

Which sets up this possibility with ADModule and naming convention prefix:

get-adcomputer -Filter 'name -like "*prefix*"' | % {invoke-command -computername $_.name -scriptblock {get-itemproperty -name version,release "hklm:\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\NET Framework Setup\NDP\v4\FULL" | select pscomputername,version,release}} | ft

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