激活SmartAssembly 6.8时提示“The Server is not Operational”求助

I’ve dealt with similar COM-related activation issues for Red Gate tools on isolated machines before, so let’s walk through targeted fixes to get this sorted for you:

1. Re-register Critical COM Components #

SmartAssembly’s activation flow depends on registered COM libraries, which might have failed to register properly during installation (even if the install seemed successful). Here’s how to fix that:

• Open an Administrator Command Prompt
• Navigate to your SmartAssembly 6.8 install folder (typically C:\Program Files (x86)\Red Gate\SmartAssembly 6.8)
• Run these commands to re-register the licensing-related COM files:

  regsvr32.exe "RedGate.SmartAssembly.Licensing.dll"
  regsvr32.exe "RedGate.Licensing.Client.dll"
  

• Restart SmartAssembly and try activating again.

2. Bypass the Broken In-App Dialog with Command-Line Activation #

The error dialog itself might be corrupted, so let’s use the command line to handle offline activation manually:

1. On your isolated machine, open Command Prompt (admin or regular user works) and navigate to the SmartAssembly install directory
2. Generate an activation request file with your serial number:

   SmartAssembly.exe /generateactivationrequest "YOUR_SERIAL_NUMBER" "C:\SmartAssembly_Activation_Request.xml"
   

3. Transfer this XML file to a machine with internet access, use Red Gate’s offline activation system to generate the response file
4. Copy the response XML back to your isolated machine, then run:

   SmartAssembly.exe /activate "C:\SmartAssembly_Activation_Response.xml"
   

3. Repair the SmartAssembly Installation #

Corrupted install files can cause random COM exceptions. Let’s repair it:

• Go to Control Panel > Programs and Features
• Find SmartAssembly 6.8, right-click it, and select Change
• Choose the Repair option and follow the prompts
• Restart your PC after the repair finishes, then retry activation.

4. Ensure .NET Framework 4.0 is Installed #

Even though you have 4.5.x and 4.6.1, SmartAssembly 6.8 relies on the full .NET 4.0 profile (later versions don’t always fully replace it for legacy COM interactions):

• Download and install .NET Framework 4.0 Full from Microsoft’s official site
• Restart your machine and test activation again.

5. Check Local Firewall/Policy Blocks (Yes, Even Without Network) #

Oddly, local Windows Firewall rules can block internal COM communication even on a network-isolated machine:

• Open Windows Defender Firewall > Allow an app or feature through Windows Defender Firewall
• Click Change Settings, then Allow another app to add SmartAssembly.exe from your install folder
• Tick both Private and Public boxes for it, then save changes
• Retry activation (you can also temporarily disable the firewall for testing if this doesn’t work).

内容的提问来源于stack exchange，提问作者lardymonkey