Sources of IVI Problems
Common Problems Opening IVI Files
Microsoft Visual Studio Isn't There
If you attempt to load your IVI file, you experience a message such as "Can't Open IVI Files". If this is the case, it's usually due to the fact that you do not have Microsoft Visual Studio for %%os%% installed on your computer. The OS won't know what to do with your IVI file, so double-clicking to load the file doesn't work.
Tip: When you have another program installed that you know will open your IVI, you can select it from the other programs listed (see "Show Apps").
Obsolete Version of Microsoft Visual Studio
It is possible that your version of Microsoft Visual Studio isn't able to open your MSDN InfoViewer Topic Data file due to incompatibility. If you do not have the proper version Microsoft Visual Studio (or any of the other programs listed above), you may need to try downloading a different version of it, or one of the other software applications listed above. Most of the time your MSDN InfoViewer Topic Data file was created by a newer Microsoft Visual Studio than what you have installed.
Tip: You can sometimes get hints about the right program version by right-clicking on the IVI file, selecting "Properties", and looking at the version information.
Ultimately, most of the difficulties opening IVI files are due to having the wrong version of Microsoft Visual Studio installed.
Other Causes of IVI File Opening Problems
You can still experience errors opening IVI files even with the latest version of Microsoft Visual Studio installed on your PC. If you are still having problems opening IVI files, there may be other issues that are preventing you from opening these files. Additional factors include:
- Windows Registry IVI file paths that are incorrect
- Corruption of the IVI file description inside the Registry
- Invalid installation of a IVI-associated program (eg. Microsoft Visual Studio)
- Something has caused file corruption of your IVI
- IVI file integrity has been compromised by malware
- Hardware associated with IVI has outdated drivers
- Insufficient system resources to successfully open MSDN InfoViewer Topic Data files
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