Window Service Cannot load Oracle.DataAccess.dll

Question

I have a Window service which uses "Oracle.DataAccess.dll" (file version 2.112.0) to connect to the Oracle DB. When I deployed this service on to the server, I get the following error "Could not load file/assembly Oracle.DataAccess version=2.112.00.. ".
I noticed on the server, that C:\Windows\Assembly shows Oracle.DataAccess with the version 2.111.00 but not 2.112. Is this causing the problem?

a. Can I make my Window service to use the 2.111 version?
b. Should I install latest version of Oracle client on the server to have the 2.112 version?
c. or What is the best solution for my problem?

Answer 1

The best solution is to install the same version of the Oracle.DataAccess.dll on the server that you have in your development environment. Even if there is another version of the dll in your GAC it won't work; you need to have the exact same version.

If for whatever reason you cannot install the 2.112.00 version on your server then you need to add the 2.111.00 version as a reference to your project and drop the 2.112.00 version.