PowerBuilder applications have some dependencies on third-party components that are installed with PowerBuilder. Most of these components are not installed with the PowerBuilder Runtime Packager. You may redistribute some of these components with your application, but others must be obtained from the vendor.
For information about components that can be freely downloaded, see the free download terms document. A copy of this document is located on the Appeon website at https://docs.appeon.com/policies/PowerBuilder_and_InfoMaker_Installer_2025_FreeDownloadTerms.pdf.
Visual C++ runtime and GDI+ libraries
When you deploy the core PowerBuilder runtime files, you must ensure that the Microsoft Visual C++ runtime libraries are present on the user's computer or server.
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For 32-bit: vcruntime140.dll, concrt140.dll, msvcp140.dll
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For 64-bit: vcruntime140.dll, vcruntime140_1.dll, concrt140.dll, and msvcp140.dll
The PowerBuilder runtime files have a runtime dependency on these files and they are required for all applications and components that require the PowerBuilder runtime. You can obtain these DLL files from the "%systemdrive%\Program Files (x86)\Appeon\Common\PowerBuilder\Runtime [version]\" (for 32-bit) or "%systemdrive%\Program Files (x86)\Appeon\Common\PowerBuilder\Runtime [version]\x64" (for 64-bit) folder, or from the DLL archive website. Make sure you obtain the same version (32-bit or 64-bit) of these DLL files as the version (32-bit or 64-bit) of the PowerBuilder application executable.
The PowerBuilder runtime files also have a runtime dependency on Microsoft Windows GDI+ (gdiplus.dll). The GDI+ graphics design interface is included by default in the system paths of all Windows platforms currently supported by PowerBuilder.
MSI or MSM file dependencies
Files installed by the MSI or MSM file generated by the PowerBuilder Runtime Packager may have dependencies on some other files. Make sure these files are on the target computer before you run the MSI or MSM file.
.NET Desktop Runtime
NET Desktop Runtime 8.0 must be installed to the client if your application uses any of the following features:
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ADO.NET database interface
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.NET assembly calls
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DataWindow blob control (XPS blob)
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MS Excel12
You will need to manually package and distribute .NET Desktop Runtime 8.0 as the runtime packager will not include these files; and you can manually install the latest security patch of .NET Desktop Runtime 8.0 once available.
Make sure the platform (32-bit or 64-bit) of .NET Desktop Runtime matches that of the application executable file.
Ink picture libraries
Microsoft.Ink, Microsoft.Ink.dll, and Microsoft.Ink.Resources.dll are required if your application uses InkEdit and InkPicture controls. These files are part of the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 and later, and are available at C:\Windows\winsxs and its sub-folders after .NET framework is installed.
DirectX runtime
PowerBuilder applications can use DirectX 3D rendering to display 3D graphs (Pie3D, Bar3D, Column3D, Line3D, and Area3D) with a more sophisticated look. You can use data item or series transparency with the DirectX graph styles to improve the presentation of data.
The DirectX 3D rendering depends on the DirectX 9 runtime. The first time you select the Render3D check box on the General tab of the Properties view for a 3D graph, PowerBuilder launches the DirectX installer. If you opt out of the installation, the Render3D property is ignored. End users of PowerBuilder applications must also have the DirectX 9 runtime installed on their computers to view the DirectX graph styles. You can download a redistributable package containing the DirectX 9 runtime from the Microsoft website.
Note
DirectX 12 will be supported by PowerBuilder in the near future. DirectX 12 runtime is included in Windows 10 & 11 by default.
For computers with older graphics drivers, you can check whether DirectX is supported by running dxdiag.exe. This file is typically installed in the Windows\System32 directory. The Display tab of the DirectX Diagnostic Tool that opens when you run dxdiag.exe indicates whether Direct3D is enabled.
Besides installing DirectX 9 runtime on end user's computer, you will also need to distribute pbd3dchart.dll & pbd3dhlpr.dll with the PowerBuilder application. You can copy these two files from their default location C:\Program Files (x86)\Appeon\PowerBuilder [version]\IDE.
You may redistribute Apache files included with PowerBuilder to your users. Any use or distribution of the Apache code included with PowerBuilder 2017 and later must comply with the terms of the Apache License which is located in the free download terms document for PowerBuilder 2017 and later.
The Apache Xerces file xerces-c is required for XML Web DataWindow support, XML support for DataWindows and DataStores, and PBDOM. For more information about Xerces, see the Xerces C++ Parser website at http://xerces.apache.org/xerces-c/.
