Running C++ binaries without the runtime redistributable (Server2k3, XPSP3)

Let me revise my answer:

You have a few options:

1) Install the VC++2008 runtime. You can download and installer for them. Merge modules for them are also available.

2) Link against the runtime statically (/MT or C/C++ -> Code Generation -> Runtime Library: Multi-threaded). This will increase the size of your executable, but it won't depend on any Dlls. If you are worried about size, only use the C standard library or only use the Windows API directly.

3) Use an older version of VC++. 2005 and earlier did not require the runtime to be installed. The Dlls could be placed in the same directory as the executable. If you use VC++6.0 the runtimes will be installed on all versions of windows, otherwise you need to install it yourself.

A fuller list of options:

• Rewrite the app so that theres no C/C++ usage at all.
• Switch to Visual Studio 6 or a mingw based toolset like Code::Blocks - these use the already distributed msvcrt.dll as their runtime.
• Build using the /MT switch. This builds the necessary runtime functions into your exe. Which will bloat it. But that bloat (frankly) is less overhead than loading separate dll's.
• Distribute the VS9 runtime as a 'private sxs' install. This entails copying the contents of C:\Program Files\Microsoft Visual Studio 9.0\VC\redist\x86\Microsoft.VC90.CRT into the same folder as your application's exe. If you have applied SP1, then this folder will contain the SP1 runtime, but your application will be asking for the RTM runtime (go figure). Add _BIND_TO_CURRENT_CRT_VERSION to your projects defines, rebuild and that should sort itself out.
• There is apparently a vc_redist.exe that can be obtained for VS9. Find that or figure out the MSI or installer mojo required to actually install the above assembly (being the contents of Microsoft.VC90.CRT) into the shared sxs store.