Could not load file or assembly 'Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions' on ASP.NET Core only on Windows PC

27
votes

This ASP.NET Core 2.1 Project runs fine on my Mac OS. However it throws this exception when I run it from Windows PC. I tried to run this from two Windows machines using the same version of .NET Core SDK.

I tried reinstalling .NET Core SDK 2.1.302, also tried upgrading to 2.1.401. Appreciate any help.

The error is

System.IO.FileLoadException: Could not load file or assembly 'Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions, Version=2.1.3.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=adb9793829ddae60'. The located assembly's manifest definition does not match the assembly reference. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80131040)

Used Nuget Packages in .csproj file

<PackageReference Include="HangFire" Version="1.6.19" />
<PackageReference Include="Hangfire.LiteDB" Version="0.1.0" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.ApplicationInsights.AspNetCore" Version="2.3.0" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.SignalR" Version="1.0.1" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.WebSockets" Version="2.1.1" />
<PackageReference Include="LiteDB" Version="4.1.4" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.All" Version="2.1.0" />

Full stack trace

> dotnet run

Using launch settings from C:\Source\repos\src\Properties\launchSettings.json...
Application startup exception: System.Reflection.TargetInvocationException: Exception has been thrown by the target of an invocation. ---> System.IO.FileLoadException: Could not load file or assembly 'Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions, Version=2.1.3.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=adb9793829ddae60'. The located assembly's manifest definition does not match the assembly reference. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80131040)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServerOptions..ctor()
   --- End of inner exception stack trace ---
   at System.RuntimeTypeHandle.CreateInstance(RuntimeType type, Boolean publicOnly, Boolean wrapExceptions, Boolean& canBeCached, RuntimeMethodHandleInternal& ctor)
   at System.RuntimeType.CreateInstanceSlow(Boolean publicOnly, Boolean wrapExceptions, Boolean skipCheckThis, Boolean fillCache)
   at System.Activator.CreateInstance[T]()
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsFactory`1.Create(String name)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.<>c__DisplayClass5_0.<Get>b__0()
   at System.Lazy`1.ViaFactory(LazyThreadSafetyMode mode)
   at System.Lazy`1.ExecutionAndPublication(LazyHelper executionAndPublication, Boolean useDefaultConstructor)
   at System.Lazy`1.CreateValue()
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsCache`1.GetOrAdd(String name, Func`1 createOptions)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.Get(String name)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.get_Value()
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServer.CreateServiceContext(IOptions`1 options, ILoggerFactory loggerFactory)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServer..ctor(IOptions`1 options, ITransportFactory transportFactory, ILoggerFactory loggerFactory)
--- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown ---
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitConstructor(ConstructorCallSite constructorCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteVisitor`2.VisitCallSite(IServiceCallSite callSite, TArgument argument)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitScoped(ScopedCallSite scopedCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitSingleton(SingletonCallSite singletonCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteVisitor`2.VisitCallSite(IServiceCallSite callSite, TArgument argument)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.DynamicServiceProviderEngine.<>c__DisplayClass1_0.<RealizeService>b__0(ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.ServiceProviderEngine.GetService(Type serviceType, ServiceProviderEngineScope serviceProviderEngineScope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.ServiceProviderEngine.GetService(Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProvider.GetService(Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProviderServiceExtensions.GetRequiredService(IServiceProvider provider, Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProviderServiceExtensions.GetRequiredService[T](IServiceProvider provider)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost.EnsureServer()
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost.BuildApplication()
crit: Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost[6]
      Application startup exception
System.Reflection.TargetInvocationException: Exception has been thrown by the target of an invocation. ---> System.IO.FileLoadException: Could not load file or assembly 'Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions, Version=2.1.3.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=adb9793829ddae60'. The located assembly's manifest definition does not match the assembly reference. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80131040)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServerOptions..ctor()
   --- End of inner exception stack trace ---
   at System.RuntimeTypeHandle.CreateInstance(RuntimeType type, Boolean publicOnly, Boolean wrapExceptions, Boolean& canBeCached, RuntimeMethodHandleInternal& ctor)
   at System.RuntimeType.CreateInstanceSlow(Boolean publicOnly, Boolean wrapExceptions, Boolean skipCheckThis, Boolean fillCache)
   at System.Activator.CreateInstance[T]()
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsFactory`1.Create(String name)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.<>c__DisplayClass5_0.<Get>b__0()
   at System.Lazy`1.ViaFactory(LazyThreadSafetyMode mode)
   at System.Lazy`1.ExecutionAndPublication(LazyHelper executionAndPublication, Boolean useDefaultConstructor)
   at System.Lazy`1.CreateValue()
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsCache`1.GetOrAdd(String name, Func`1 createOptions)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.Get(String name)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.get_Value()
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServer.CreateServiceContext(IOptions`1 options, ILoggerFactory loggerFactory)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServer..ctor(IOptions`1 options, ITransportFactory transportFactory, ILoggerFactory loggerFactory)
--- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown ---
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitConstructor(ConstructorCallSite constructorCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteVisitor`2.VisitCallSite(IServiceCallSite callSite, TArgument argument)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitScoped(ScopedCallSite scopedCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitSingleton(SingletonCallSite singletonCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteVisitor`2.VisitCallSite(IServiceCallSite callSite, TArgument argument)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.DynamicServiceProviderEngine.<>c__DisplayClass1_0.<RealizeService>b__0(ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.ServiceProviderEngine.GetService(Type serviceType, ServiceProviderEngineScope serviceProviderEngineScope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.ServiceProviderEngine.GetService(Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProvider.GetService(Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProviderServiceExtensions.GetRequiredService(IServiceProvider provider, Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProviderServiceExtensions.GetRequiredService[T](IServiceProvider provider)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost.EnsureServer()
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost.BuildApplication()

Unhandled Exception: System.Reflection.TargetInvocationException: Exception has been thrown by the target of an invocation. ---> System.IO.FileLoadException: Could not load file or assembly 'Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions, Version=2.1.3.0, Culture=neutral, PublicKeyToken=adb9793829ddae60'. The located assembly's manifest definition does not match the assembly reference. (Exception from HRESULT: 0x80131040)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServerOptions..ctor()
   --- End of inner exception stack trace ---
   at System.RuntimeTypeHandle.CreateInstance(RuntimeType type, Boolean publicOnly, Boolean wrapExceptions, Boolean& canBeCached, RuntimeMethodHandleInternal& ctor)
   at System.RuntimeType.CreateInstanceSlow(Boolean publicOnly, Boolean wrapExceptions, Boolean skipCheckThis, Boolean fillCache)
   at System.Activator.CreateInstance[T]()
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsFactory`1.Create(String name)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.<>c__DisplayClass5_0.<Get>b__0()
   at System.Lazy`1.ViaFactory(LazyThreadSafetyMode mode)
   at System.Lazy`1.ExecutionAndPublication(LazyHelper executionAndPublication, Boolean useDefaultConstructor)
   at System.Lazy`1.CreateValue()
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsCache`1.GetOrAdd(String name, Func`1 createOptions)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.Get(String name)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.Options.OptionsManager`1.get_Value()
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServer.CreateServiceContext(IOptions`1 options, ILoggerFactory loggerFactory)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Server.Kestrel.Core.KestrelServer..ctor(IOptions`1 options, ITransportFactory transportFactory, ILoggerFactory loggerFactory)
--- End of stack trace from previous location where exception was thrown ---
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitConstructor(ConstructorCallSite constructorCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteVisitor`2.VisitCallSite(IServiceCallSite callSite, TArgument argument)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitScoped(ScopedCallSite scopedCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteRuntimeResolver.VisitSingleton(SingletonCallSite singletonCallSite, ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.CallSiteVisitor`2.VisitCallSite(IServiceCallSite callSite, TArgument argument)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.DynamicServiceProviderEngine.<>c__DisplayClass1_0.<RealizeService>b__0(ServiceProviderEngineScope scope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.ServiceProviderEngine.GetService(Type serviceType, ServiceProviderEngineScope serviceProviderEngineScope)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceLookup.ServiceProviderEngine.GetService(Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProvider.GetService(Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProviderServiceExtensions.GetRequiredService(IServiceProvider provider, Type serviceType)
   at Microsoft.Extensions.DependencyInjection.ServiceProviderServiceExtensions.GetRequiredService[T](IServiceProvider provider)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost.EnsureServer()
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost.BuildApplication()
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.Internal.WebHost.StartAsync(CancellationToken cancellationToken)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.WebHostExtensions.RunAsync(IWebHost host, CancellationToken token, String shutdownMessage)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.WebHostExtensions.RunAsync(IWebHost host, CancellationToken token)
   at Microsoft.AspNetCore.Hosting.WebHostExtensions.Run(IWebHost host)
   at JustALink.Program.Main(String[] args) in C:\Source\repos\src\Program.cs:line 10
5
asp.net-core.net-core
Is it possible that you have an invalid reference to Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions rather than a nuget reference? Just an idea but that would explain why the assembly can be loaded on your mac (where I figured you develop on) and won't run on windows. Try installing it via nuget on that project. When you compile the application the dll must be included within the output folder. - alsami
Hi @alsami I do not have any direct reference to Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions - I reckon it's a dependency of one of the packages I have used. I have updated the question with the list of nuget packages I am using in the .csproj file. I will try installing it via nuget as per your suggestion. - undefined
Just curious, did you try running dotnet restore before using dotnet run? Also try changing the version of Microsoft.AspNetCore.All from 2.1.0 to 2.1.3 since it is trying to use 2.1.3 for the connection package. - alsami
@alsami yes I did dotnet restore. Success! the problem was fixed by upgrading Microsoft.AspNetCore.All from 2.1.0 -> 2.1.3. Adding a reference to Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions didn't do much. Still don't have a clue why this was working on Mac but not on Windows. - undefined
Glad it helped! - alsami

5 Answers

34
votes

This problem is a known issue in .NET Core 2.1.x that was fixed in .NET Core 2.1.5 and newer. See https://github.com/dotnet/core-setup/issues/4512.

If you are getting failures due to "System.IO.FileLoadException" after updating the .NET Core SDK, you are probably running into https://github.com/dotnet/core-setup/issues/4376.

The best fix is to upgrade to .NET Core 2.1.5 or newer.

If you can't upgrade, another workaround is to update the project to

<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.All" Version="2.1.3" />

The cause of this issue, as described in https://github.com/dotnet/core-setup/issues/4376, is unintentionally upgrading out of the shared framework. For example:

<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.All" Version="2.1.0" />
<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.SignalR" Version="1.0.1" />

Microsoft.AspNetCore.All 2.1.0 depends on Microsoft.AspNetCore.SignalR 1.0.0, but your project has upgrade to Microsoft.AspNetCore.SignalR 1.0.1. When you dotnet publish, you get Microsoft.AspNetCore.SignalR 1.0.1 AND ⚠️ its transitive dependencies in your publish folder. This is the publish trimming pitfall described in https://natemcmaster.com/blog/2018/08/29/netcore-primitives-2/.

This results in the following

+=================+===============================+================================+============================+
| AspNetCore.All  |  M.A.Connections.Abstractions |  M.A.Connections.Abstractions  |  Which M.A.C.Abstractions  |
|                 |  (in shared framework)        | (in publish dir)               |  should load               |
+=================+===============================+================================+============================+
| 2.1.0           |  2.1.0                        |  2.1.1                         |  publish dir               |
+-----------------+-------------------------------+--------------------------------+----------------------------+
| 2.1.3           |  2.1.3                        |  2.1.1                         |  shared framework*         |
+-----------------+-------------------------------+--------------------------------+----------------------------+

* This is bug, and https://github.com/dotnet/core-setup/issues/4512 tracks getting a fix in a future 2.1.x update.

8
votes

If you don't have Microsoft.AspNetCore.All, you can use Microsoft.AspNetCore.App and set its version to 2.1.3. They are quite the same:

<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.App" Version="2.1.3"/>
3
votes

My Web API Core project file didn't contain Microsoft.AspNetCore.All. I manually added it to the item group and it fixed it for me.

2
votes

I solved the problem by upgrading Microsoft.AspNetCore.All from 2.1.0 -> 2.1.3 (upgraded SDK to 2.1.401)

Still don't have a clue why this was working on Mac but not on Windows.

0
votes

You can add manually Connection.Abstractions dll

<PackageReference Include="Microsoft.AspNetCore.Connections.Abstractions" Version="2.1.3" />