Geoff Chappell - Software Analyst
Only in the NT versions of Windows is ADVAPI32.DLL fully functional. Each new Windows package brings at least a change of the minor version number. (Yes, that should be unremarkable, but compare with DLLs from the Windows Shell, some of which are stuck on the one version number for Windows XP, Windows Server 2003 and Windows Vista.)
| File Version | Distribution |
|---|---|
| 3.51 | Windows NT 3.51 |
| 4.0 | Windows NT 4.0 |
| 5.0 | Windows 2000 |
| 5.1 | Windows XP |
| 5.2 | Windows Server 2003 |
| 6.0 | Windows Vista Windows Server 2008 |
| 6.1 | Windows 7 Windows Server 2008 R2 |
For the versions of Windows that run on MS-DOS, ADVAPI32 is significantly smaller, much less capable, has a (mostly) different sequence of version numbers, and might more usefully be considered a different executable.
| File Version | Distribution |
|---|---|
| 4.0 | Windows 95 |
| 4.70 | Windows 95 OSR2 |
| 4.80 | Windows 98 |
| 4.90 | Windows Me |
The following builds have been inspected for these notes. Most are from MSDN discs. Some, especially since Microsoft greatly reduced its shipment of operating systems on MSDN discs, are from service packs downloaded (typically as self-extracting executables) from a Microsoft website.
Builds are arranged in increasing order of the file version as recorded in the executable’s resources. This version number is readily visible using Windows Explorer either in a so-called infotip for the file or by accessing the Version tab in the Properties dialog for the file. Programmers know this version number as coming from the so-called root block of the version-information resource, specifically from the dwFileVersionMS and dwFileVersionLS members of a VS_FIXEDFILEINFO structure.
The date stamp shown for each version is more obscure. File dates are easily modified after the executable is built and are anyway liable to be shown differently when read from different time zones. However, there is in each executable’s header a date stamp which is set when the executable is built and which is not commonly changed afterwards. It is readily accessible to anyone with programming knowledge and appropriate tools, e.g., Microsoft’s own DUMPBIN utility.
| File Version | File Header Date Stamp | File Size | Package |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3.51.1016.1 | 2FB911B6 (17th May 1995) | 177,920 | Windows NT 3.51 |
| 3.51.1057.6 | 322751E0 (31st August 1996) | 181,504 | Windows NT 3.51 SP5 |
| 4.0.0.950 | 2FF383BF (30th June 1995) | 13,824 | Windows 95 |
| 4.0.1371.1 | 31F91A37 (27th July 1996) | 246,032 | Windows NT 4.0 |
| 4.0.1381.4 | 334EC81B (12th April 1997) | 246,544 | Windows NT 4.0 SP3 |
| 4.0.1381.121 | 36115C05 (30th September 1998) | 247,056 | Windows NT 4.0 SP4 |
| 4.0.1381.203 | 371CCA7E (21st April 1999) | 247,056 | Windows NT 4.0 SP5 |
| 4.0.1381.281 | 37584510 (5th June 1999) | 247,056 | Windows NT 4.0 SP6 |
| 4.70.0.1155 | 320D0358 (11th August 1996) | 43,008 | Windows 95 OSR2 |
| 4.80.0.1675 | 35474F62 (30th April 1998) 3720A1CD (24th April 1999) |
65,536 | Windows 98 Windows 98 SE |
| 4.90.0.3000 | 39403BE1 (9th June 2000) | 65,536 | Windows Me |
| 5.0.2191.1 | 3844D034 (1st December 1999) | 357,648 | Windows 2000 |
| 5.0.2195.1600 | 394193D2 (10th June 2000) | 357,648 | Windows 2000 SP1 |
| 5.0.2195.4453 | 3C1FE610 (19th December 2001) | 364,816 | Windows 2000 SP2 |
| 5.0.2195.5385 | 3D3D020A (23rd July 2002) | 367,376 | Windows 2000 SP3 |
| 5.0.2195.6710 | 3EF274DC (20th June 2003) | 387,344 | Windows 2000 SP4 |
| 5.1.2600.0 | 3B7DFE0E (18th August 2001) | 549,888 | Windows XP |
| 5.1.2600.1106 | 3D6DFA28 (29th August 2002) | 558,080 | Windows XP SP1 |
| 5.1.2600.2180 | 411096A7 (4th August 2004) | 616,960 | Windows XP SP2 |
| 5.1.2600.5512 | 4802A0B2 (14th April 2008) | 617,472 | Windows XP SP3 |
| 5.2.3790.0 | 3E802495 (25th March 2003) | 572,928 | Windows Server 2003 |
| 5.2.3790.1830 | 424377B4 (25th March 2005) | 620,032 | Windows Server 2003 SP1 |
| 5.2.3790.3959 | 45D70A26 (17th February 2007) | 618,496 | Windows Server 2003 SP2 |
| 6.0.6000.16386 | 4549BCD2 (2nd November 2006) | 770,048 | Windows Vista |
| 6.0.6001.18000 | 4791A64B (19th January 2008) | 798,720 | Windows Vista SP1 Windows Server 2008 |
| 6.0.6002.18005 | 49E03717 (11th April 2009) | 800,768 | Windows Vista SP2 |
| 6.1.7600.16385 | 4A5BD97E (14th July 2009) | 640,000 | Windows 7 |
The Windows 98 versions (original and SE) differ only from rebasing, including to change the file header’s date stamp and checksum.
The executables for Windows Vista SP1 and Windows Server 2008 are exactly identical.
| File Version | File Header Date Stamp | File Size | Package |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.2.3790.1830 | 42438B4B (25th March 2005) | 1,051,136 | Windows Server 2003 SP1 |
| 5.2.3790.3959 | 45D6CBF1 (17th February 2007) | 1,051,648 | Windows Server 2003 SP2 |
| 6.0.6000.16386 | 4549D267 (2nd November 2006) | 1,031,680 | Windows Vista |
| 6.0.6001.18000 | 4791AC8C (19th January 2008) | 1,062,400 | Windows Vista SP1 Windows Server 2008 |
| 6.0.6002.18005 | 49E040CB (11th April 2009) | 1,065,472 | Windows Vista SP2 |
| 6.1.7600.16385 | 4A5BDE6B (14th July 2009) | 877,056 | Windows 7 Windows Server 2008 R2 |
Again, where two packages are shown for the same build, the executables are identical.