Installing AppFabric on Windows Server 2012
Here is the step by step guide to installing AppFabric on Windows Server 2012. If you were to install the executable straightaway, it will fail as there are some dependencies
This is what you will see when you simply install AppFabric on a clean install of Windows Server
To properly setup AppFabric, you need to install the pre-requisites (IIS and ASP.NET 3.5) as well as enable automatic windows update.
IF you want high availability, you will need to install on Enterprise and above versions of windows server
- Start up Server Manager and click Add roles and features
- Install Web Server (IIS)
- Install ASP.NET 3.5. You will need the windows server DVD mounted in the dvd drive or else use the alternative path and point to the sources\sxs folder of the windows server dvd
- Enable Windows Update
- Download Windows Server AppFabric here
- Double click the downloaded executable and click next to everything, you might want to install the whole suite just to play safe
- Installation should be successful and you will be greeted with the following screen
- If you see the exclamation mark (as shown in the image), goto windows update and do a windows update
- Ensure Remote Registry is enabled
Set Remote Registry to Automatic
Search for Caching Administrator, Right click and run as administrator
Get-CacheStatistics [cachename]
Size : 470016
ItemCount : 1
RegionCount : 1
RequestCount : 37
ReadRequestCount : 7
WriteRequestCount : 7
MissCount : 1
IncomingBandwidth : 1671031
OutgoingBandwidth : 1202058
Musings on Education and Technology 
I have problems with installing this on Windows Server 2012 R2. Happens exactly what you showed. Even after installing IIS and .NET 3.5 i still get same failure.
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Error Setup AppFabric installation failed because installer MSI returned with error code : 1603
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Error Setup
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Core.SetupException: AppFabric installation failed because installer MSI returned with error code : 1603
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.WindowsInstallerProxy.GenerateAndThrowSetupException(Int32 exitCode, LogEventSource logEventSource)
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.WindowsInstallerProxy.Invoke(LogEventSource logEventSource, InstallMode installMode, String packageIdentity, List`1 updateList, List`1 customArguments)
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.MsiInstaller.InstallSelectedFeatures()
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.MsiInstaller.Install()
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Client.ProgressPage.StartAction()
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup === Summary of Actions ===
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Required Windows components : Completed Successfully
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup IIS Management Console : Completed Successfully
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Microsoft CCR and DSS Runtime 2008 R3 : Completed Successfully
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup AppFabric 1.1 for Windows Server : Failed
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Hosting Services : Failed
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Caching Services : Failed
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Cache Client : Failed
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Hosting Administration : Failed
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Cache Administration : Failed
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Microsoft Update : Skipped
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup Microsoft Update : Skipped
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup
2014-03-26 15:05:50, Information Setup ===== Logging stopped: 2014-03-26 15:05:50+01:00 =====
Hi, are you sure u have installed 3.5? Win2012r2 needs you to put in the DVD before that works..
I’ve the same issue. But, I’m working in Server 2012 R2 Datacenter. I did all the steps until #6. But the window ends with errors.
– NET 3.5 installed from DVD
– Windows Update and Remote Registry enabled
-Server restarted
-Again the ERRORS…
Help.
hmm let me see if i can do a screencast for this, appfabric is a rather tricky beast to install, the best bet is actually to start afresh.
fraballi, if you are using datacentre, you will also need to install CU4 after a successful installation
What is CU4 : cumulative update 4? where could be downloaded?
Hi fraballi, yes i’m referring to cumulative update 4. You can find it at http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2800726
This update is for AFTER installing Appfabric.
It doesnt seem to work with 2012R2 at all.
Hi, i need to understand something, how AppFabric relates to Azure Pack, should i install both, wich releases ? i mean AppFabric for Azure or for Windows Server?
Thanks
Hi
AppFabric is used to cache objects (e.g application cache or session state), whereas azure pack is used to manage your servers like how windows azure is doing it
Both are quite different in what they do or provide…
this worked for me…
http://aseempandit.wordpress.com/2014/09/03/appfabric-installation-issue/
Ah yes you will need to do this if you have a prior failed installation of AppFabric because the installation will create these groups
Hi,
Thanks to you, I am able to install appfabric successfuly. Also, I am trying to automate the configuration of appfabric using XML as caching service configuration provider, Is there a way I could automate this? Could you please let me know If its possible to automate it?
Thanks,
Hmm if you are referring to file share, then just a common shared path would do fine
Yea this doesn’t work. Fresh install of 2012 R2, no dice.
Alternatively you can find the easier version at https://jefferytay.wordpress.com/2015/02/12/setting-up-appfabric-on-windows-2012r2/
Which includes details such as the one you mentioned later
It appears that if you have tried, and failed, to install AppFab then you must remove the AS_Administrators and AS_Observers group first, using the Local Users and Groups MMC. Don’t worry, the AppFab install will recreate them.
Delete the AS_Observers group in local user accounts
I hope you all made to get Appfabric installed. I am still facing issues. I have followed so many instructions tot get it fixed but nothing worked for me so far. Now I am running out ofoptions to fix it. Can anyone guide me?
Hi,
in case you are not aware, AppFabric is not going to be supported in the near future, refer to http://blogs.msdn.com/b/appfabric/archive/2015/06/19/appfabric-1-1-for-windows-server-support-lifecycle-extension-4-11-2017.aspx
Otherwise, the other fixes that you can look into is to remove the AS_Administrators and AS_Observers group inside compmgmt.msc
Hallo kwanann, thanks for your quick reply. I really appreciate that. I have looked into the Local Users and Groups but dit not find the AS_… groups.At tjis moment I am building a complete new Windows 2012R2 environment with SP2013 Enterprise. Sofar things seems to go well. If I am facing issues with this I hope you do not mind to come back to you. Anyhow I let you know my progress.Thanks for letting me know that AppFabric is not supported in the near future. Kind regards, Jos.
Do be aware that appfabric for SP works differently from “normal” appfabric. it would be wise to refer to sharepoint guides in your case
Hallo kwanann, thanks for your advice. I will have a look at the SP guides.
Kind regards, Jos,.
I’m stuck at install Appfabric,
Powershell with :
PS E:\> .\prerequisiteinstaller.exe “C:\Users\LongNX\Downloads\WindowsServerAppFabricSetup_x64.exe”
—
end up with:
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Processor architecture is (9)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Reading the following string value/name…
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Common Startup
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – from the following registry location…
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Shell Folders
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – The value is…
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Trying to remove the startup task if there is any.
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Startup\SharePointServerPreparationToolStartup_0FF1CE14-0000-0000-0000-000000000000.cmd
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Error: Startup task doesn’t exist. This is not a continuation after a restart.
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Analyzing the following command line argument:
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – C:\Users\LongNX\Downloads\WindowsServerAppFabricSetup_x64.exe
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Error: Unrecognized command line option
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Details of the current operating system:
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Major version number of the operating system: (6)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Minor version number of the operating system: (2)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Build number of the operating system: (0X23F0=9200)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Major version number of the latest Service Pack: (0)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Minor version number of the latest Service Pack: (0)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Platform ID of the operating system: (2)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Product suites available on the operating system: (0X190=400)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Product type of the operating system: VER_NT_SERVER
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Product type: (8)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – OS type: (0)
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Configuring the application’s property sheet…
2016-01-03 20:38:11 – Cannot retry
2016-01-03 20:38:14 – Launching Help Content Url
2016-01-03 20:38:14 – Opened action for user
2016-01-03 20:38:14 – http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=230806
2016-01-03 20:40:12 – Launching Help Content Url
2016-01-03 20:40:12 – Opened action for user
2016-01-03 20:40:12 – http://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkID=230806
2016-01-03 20:40:15 – Opening log file
2016-01-03 20:40:15 – Opened action for user
2016-01-03 20:40:15 – C:\Users\LongNX\AppData\Local\Temp\prerequisiteinstaller.2016.01.03-20.38.11.log
—–
tried with ms links, no help at all,
If you have some spare time, can you give me some advices?
Did try to install manually, failed also 😦
this is log:
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup ===== Logging started: 2016-01-03 21:00:46+07:00 =====
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup File: c:\15d380dbcdedbc0800b8798bb0ff\setup.exe
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup InternalName: Setup.exe
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup OriginalFilename: Setup.exe
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup FileVersion: 1.1.2106.32
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup FileDescription: Setup.exe
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Product: Microsoft(R) Windows(R) Server AppFabric
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup ProductVersion: 1.1.2106.32
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Debug: False
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Patched: False
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup PreRelease: False
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup PrivateBuild: False
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup SpecialBuild: False
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Language: Language Neutral
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup OS Name: Windows Server 2012 R2 Datacenter
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup OS Edition: ServerDatacenter
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup OSVersion: Microsoft Windows NT 6.2.9200.0
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup CurrentCulture: en-US
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Processor Architecture: AMD64
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Event Registration Source : AppFabric_Setup
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Upgrade.V1UpgradeSetupModule : Initiating V1.0 Upgrade module.
2016-01-03 21:00:46, Information Setup Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Upgrade.V1UpgradeSetupModule : V1.0 is not installed.
2016-01-03 21:01:00, Information Setup Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Upgrade.V1UpgradeSetupModule : Initiating V1 Upgrade pre-install.
2016-01-03 21:01:00, Information Setup Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Upgrade.V1UpgradeSetupModule : V1.0 is not installed, not taking backup.
2016-01-03 21:01:00, Information Setup Executing C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\aspnet_regiis.exe with commandline -iru.
2016-01-03 21:01:01, Information Setup Return code from aspnet_regiis.exe is 0
2016-01-03 21:01:01, Information Setup Process.Start: C:\Windows\system32\msiexec.exe /quiet /norestart /i “c:\15d380dbcdedbc0800b8798bb0ff\Microsoft CCR and DSS Runtime 2008 R3.msi” /l*vx “C:\Users\LongNX\AppData\Local\Temp\AppServerSetup1_1(2016-01-03 21-01-01).log”
2016-01-03 21:01:01, Information Setup Process.ExitCode: 0x00000000
2016-01-03 21:01:01, Information Setup Windows features successfully enabled.
2016-01-03 21:01:01, Information Setup Process.Start: C:\Windows\system32\msiexec.exe /quiet /norestart /i “c:\15d380dbcdedbc0800b8798bb0ff\Packages\AppFabric-1.1-for-Windows-Server-64.msi” ADDDEFAULT=Worker,WorkerAdmin,CacheService,CacheClient,CacheAdmin,Setup /l*vx “C:\Users\LongNX\AppData\Local\Temp\AppServerSetup1_1(2016-01-03 21-01-01).log” LOGFILE=”C:\Users\LongNX\AppData\Local\Temp\AppServerSetup1_1_CustomActions(2016-01-03 21-01-01).log” INSTALLDIR=”C:\Program Files\AppFabric 1.1 for Windows Server” LANGID=en-US
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Process.ExitCode: 0x00000643
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Error Setup AppFabric installation failed because installer MSI returned with error code : 1603
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Error Setup
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Error Setup AppFabric installation failed because installer MSI returned with error code : 1603
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Error Setup
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Core.SetupException: AppFabric installation failed because installer MSI returned with error code : 1603
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.WindowsInstallerProxy.GenerateAndThrowSetupException(Int32 exitCode, LogEventSource logEventSource)
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.WindowsInstallerProxy.Invoke(LogEventSource logEventSource, InstallMode installMode, String packageIdentity, List`1 updateList, List`1 customArguments)
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.MsiInstaller.InstallSelectedFeatures()
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Installer.MsiInstaller.Install()
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup at Microsoft.ApplicationServer.Setup.Client.ProgressPage.StartAction()
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup === Summary of Actions ===
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Required Windows components : Completed Successfully
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup IIS Management Console : Completed Successfully
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Microsoft CCR and DSS Runtime 2008 R3 : Completed Successfully
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup AppFabric 1.1 for Windows Server : Failed
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Hosting Services : Failed
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Caching Services : Failed
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Cache Client : Failed
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Hosting Administration : Failed
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Cache Administration : Failed
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Microsoft Update : Skipped
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup Microsoft Update : Skipped
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup
2016-01-03 21:02:19, Information Setup ===== Logging stopped: 2016-01-03 21:02:19+07:00 =====
FYI,
after some more tries, I find the answer here
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/11205927/appfabric-installation-failed-because-installer-msi-returned-with-error-code-1
Perfect, thank you!
http://serverfault.com/questions/583641/error-when-installing-appfabric-1-1-on-server-2012-64bit