Date: 03/07/06 (SQL Server)    Keywords: software, sql, microsoft

Okay, I give up. I've been beating myself over the head with this all day.

I'm trying to install SQL Server 2005 Standard Edition. I keep getting the error "SQL Server Setup has detected incompatible components from beta versions of Visual Studio, .NET Framework, or SQL Server 2005. Use Add or Remove Programs to remove these components, and then run SQL Server 2005 Setup again." There's another sentence, but it's useless.

I have uninstalled anything and everything listed in add/remove programs that could possibly be causing this error, and I still get it. I got so frustrated I installed VS2005 Standard, hoping that it would overwrite whatever the problem component is, but no help there.

Tell me what lists, files, registry settings, etc. you need to see to be able to tell me what I need to fix to get this to work. Please. And thanks.

EDIT: Running the auto-force-removal tool, not surprisingly, found nothing else to uninstall. Going through the core.log file reveals:
Product "{3BDB182E-8371-46BD-AC39-C14A91D5EEF8}" versioned 9.00.852 is not compatible with current builds of SQL Server.Expected at least version: 9.00.1399.06
The Product Name is "Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Reporting Services Beta 2"
Product "{63A5DC0D-1EDD-4D69-8F31-87FAEB1F7084}" versioned 9.00.852 is not compatible with current builds of SQL Server.Expected at least version: 9.00.1399.06
The Product Name is "Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Notification Services Beta 2"
Product "{E0A41F96-7231-4AE8-A654-EEB34F935462}" versioned 9.00.852 is not compatible with current builds of SQL Server.Expected at least version: 9.00.1399.06
The Product Name is "Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Data Transformation Services Beta 2"
Product "{90032DD0-ABEE-4424-AC1E-B076BDD4E350}" versioned 9.00.852 is not compatible with current builds of SQL Server.Expected at least version: 9.00.1399.06
The Product Name is "Microsoft SQL Server 2005 Tools Beta 2"

The products are not listed in add/remove programs, and the bracketed values are not findable in the computer's registry. I'd rather not just wander around deleting DLLs randomly; if anyone's got any ideas where I might find these keys/files/proggies/what-have-you, I'm all ears.

EDIT2: Solved. Left here in case anyone else has the problem...

there were four registry entries left over from beta software I'd removed months ago. They were in HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT/Installer/Products; anything in there from .NET2 betas, even if those products are long gone, will set off the watchdog.

Source: http://community.livejournal.com/sqlserver/45014.html