tech·nic·al·ly agile

Could not load file or assembly while configuring Build vNext Agent

Encountering ‘Could not load file or assembly’ errors while configuring the Build vNext Agent? Discover solutions and tips to resolve this issue effectively.

Published on
2 minute read
Image
https://nkdagility.com/resources/zd3C3XiE0H4

If you are using Windows Server 2012 R2 to test out the new vNext build agent then you may run into an error where it could not load file or assembly while configuring Build vNext Agent.

Download Team Foundation Server 2015 today

Microsoft has released a CTP of TFS 2015 that includes the vNext build system. You can download TFS 2015  and try it out today. Remember that this is not a go-live version and you should not install it in production.

I have been playing around with the new Build vNext Agent that Microsoft has been developing and I found that I was not able to register the Agent on Windows Server 2012 R2 when I had Visual Studio 2015 Preview installed. Before I installed Visual Studio I had no issues, but once on I got a “Could not load file or assembly” when trying to run the registration.

Could not load file or assembly while configuring Build vNext Agent

It looks like there is a version mismatch on the DLL.

Unhandled Exception: System.IO.FileLoadException: Could not load file or assembly 'Microsoft.VisualStudio.Services.Client, Version=14.0.0.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=b03f5f7f11d50a3a' or one of its dependencies. Strong name validation failed. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x8013141A) ---> System.Security.SecurityException: Strong name validation failed. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x8013141A)

--- End of inner exception stack trace ---

at VsoAgent.Program.Main(String[] args)

WARNING: UnConfigure agent finish with Error, you can check logs under _diag folder, determine whether you can ignore the error.

I am fairly sure that this is a time limited error and once VS 2015 comes out of Preview, or the DLL versions settle down this will not be an issue, however to fix it for now we need to turn of Strong Naming for .NET at the command prompt.

Could not load file or assembly while configuring Build vNext Agent

You need to run “sn -Vr *,*” on the server to disable strong signing. This should only be the case as part of the current preview program. I would expect this issue to go away with the next release, at least on Server 2012 R2.

This is only required when you are running Visual Studio 2015 Preview on the Build vNext Agent.

Windows Troubleshooting Install and Configuration Software Development System Configuration Practical Techniques and Tooling Azure Pipelines
Comments

Related blog posts

Related videos

Connect with Martin Hinshelwood

If you've made it this far, it's worth connecting with our principal consultant and coach, Martin Hinshelwood, for a 30-minute 'ask me anything' call.

Our Happy Clients​

We partner with businesses across diverse industries, including finance, insurance, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, technology, engineering, transportation, hospitality, entertainment, legal, government, and military sectors.​

Teleplan Logo
Slicedbread Logo
ProgramUtvikling Logo
Higher Education Statistics Agency Logo
Philips Logo
Akaditi Logo
Healthgrades Logo
Freadom Logo
Big Data for Humans Logo
Alignment Healthcare Logo
Kongsberg Maritime Logo
Illumina Logo

NIT A/S

Lean SA Logo
MacDonald Humfrey (Automation) Ltd. Logo
SuperControl Logo
Xceptor - Process and Data Automation Logo
Jack Links Logo
Ghana Police Service Logo
Washington Department of Enterprise Services Logo
Washington Department of Transport Logo
Nottingham County Council Logo
Department of Work and Pensions (UK) Logo
Royal Air Force Logo
Hubtel Ghana Logo
ProgramUtvikling Logo
ALS Life Sciences Logo
Brandes Investment Partners L.P. Logo
Trayport Logo
Emerson Process Management Logo