Major WB 6.1 Problems...(maybe)
Sunday, June 8, 2008 by GooberPeas | Discussion: WindowBlinds
I've been a long time user of WB but I've been taking a break from using it for a few months. I just wanted the plain old Vista style for a while. Well, the night before last I decided to re-install WB having just renewed my Object Desktop subscription for another year. I completed the install of WB 6.1 and got an error message that disappeared too fast to make out. I went to apply the skin that I wanted and as it tried to do it's job I started getting tons of errors. They were popping up almost faster than I could close them. Finally Vista crashed on me. I went to restart and I found that I couldn't boot. I tried starting in safe mode...no dice. I tried starting in safe mode with a command prompt...no dice. I put my Vista disk in and booted from it in a vain attempt to repair my installation...no dice. After much Googling on my notebook and no solutions that worked I finally bit the bullet and reinstalled Vista. Now I've got days and days of getting my system back to the point it was at. All my data is backed up and is on another drive anyway so that's not a problem. Anyway, I'm not sure what caused this problem. It happened immediately after installing WB 6.1 so I've got to assume that it's related. The error messages popped up too fast to keep track of so I can't even offer those up for help. I really hope this was a fluke because I really want to use WB but now I'm a bit gun shy.
Lantec
Reply #2 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 6:46 AM
Reply #2 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 6:46 AM
First off...welcome back 
Probably a good idea to post your system specs including video card and driver version.
Did you install from Impulse or SDC?
When you installed, did you have anti-virus or firewall running at the time?
Did you install with administrator's rights?
Did you have the trial installed previous to installing the full version?
I can't think of anything WB might do that would effect booting into safe mode...especially command prompt. Did you install any other software from another vendor or even Stardock?
Probably a good idea to post your system specs including video card and driver version.
Did you install from Impulse or SDC?
When you installed, did you have anti-virus or firewall running at the time?
Did you install with administrator's rights?
Did you have the trial installed previous to installing the full version?
I can't think of anything WB might do that would effect booting into safe mode...especially command prompt. Did you install any other software from another vendor or even Stardock?
GooberPeas
Reply #3 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 9:53 AM
Reply #3 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 9:53 AM
Thanks!
My system specs:
Vista SP1 32 bit
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 45nm (not overclocked)
Gigabyte EP35C-DS3R Motherboard
4GB OCZ Reaper Ram
NVidia Geforce 7950GT (Driver version: 7.15.11.7516)
I had the full legal version installed until a few months ago when I uninstalled it.
I re-installed WB from Stardock Central. I had Windows Live Onecare running while installing. I'm always logged in as an administrator but I installed through SDC so I didn't have the option of specifically installing with Administrator rights.
I wish I could recall the error messages but I don't. My bad. They were literally popping up so fast I couldn't keep track and then it totally crashed. It was like watching a traffic accident happen. You just stare at it slack-jawed and when it 's all over you say "Oh boy, that was bad." When trying to reboot into Safe Mode my system halted on CRCDISK.SYS. Nothing I did could get it past that point. While I've found lots of people that have had a similar boot up problem, I couldn't find anyone that really had a solution to the problem.
As much as I absolutely hate having to reload all the stuff I've accumulated over the last year or so, it's kind of a refreshing experience. My system sure boots faster now that all the garbage is gone.
One other odd thing: I had NO system restore points. Now, that is just wrong. I've used System Restore numerous times in the past. I have no idea why all my restore points would have been deleted. In fact, there should have been a new point created when I went to install WB. Something is fishy here.
It's a bit late for help on this problem but I'd still like to know what went on.
My system specs:
Vista SP1 32 bit
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 45nm (not overclocked)
Gigabyte EP35C-DS3R Motherboard
4GB OCZ Reaper Ram
NVidia Geforce 7950GT (Driver version: 7.15.11.7516)
I had the full legal version installed until a few months ago when I uninstalled it.
I re-installed WB from Stardock Central. I had Windows Live Onecare running while installing. I'm always logged in as an administrator but I installed through SDC so I didn't have the option of specifically installing with Administrator rights.
I wish I could recall the error messages but I don't. My bad. They were literally popping up so fast I couldn't keep track and then it totally crashed. It was like watching a traffic accident happen. You just stare at it slack-jawed and when it 's all over you say "Oh boy, that was bad." When trying to reboot into Safe Mode my system halted on CRCDISK.SYS. Nothing I did could get it past that point. While I've found lots of people that have had a similar boot up problem, I couldn't find anyone that really had a solution to the problem.
As much as I absolutely hate having to reload all the stuff I've accumulated over the last year or so, it's kind of a refreshing experience. My system sure boots faster now that all the garbage is gone.
One other odd thing: I had NO system restore points. Now, that is just wrong. I've used System Restore numerous times in the past. I have no idea why all my restore points would have been deleted. In fact, there should have been a new point created when I went to install WB. Something is fishy here.
It's a bit late for help on this problem but I'd still like to know what went on.
Lantec
Reply #4 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 11:01 AM
Reply #4 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 11:01 AM
Sounds like some sort of disk error. If you try again (I would do a full backup first) install Impulse and use it instead of SDC.
VistaCustomizer
Reply #5 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 11:40 AM
Reply #5 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 11:40 AM
Could it have been a virus maybe? It sounds like it may have been if the restore points disappeared, but then again a disk error could do that as well.
Neil Banfield
Reply #6 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 12:25 PM
Reply #6 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 12:25 PM
The description does not sound like something WB (or Impulse) could cause.
WB doesn't start up in safe mode or in command prompt mode.
I would say it was probably a file system corruption issue possibly caused by a hardware issue. It would probably be worthwhile using a HD checker to see if there are any signs your HD is failing.
GooberPeas
Reply #7 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 8:44 PM
Reply #7 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 8:44 PM
I seriously doubt it was a hardware problem seeing as everything is pretty much brand spanking new and it's been working perfectly since I reinstalled Vista. I suppose I can't rule that out for sure, however. I run antivirus so I doubt it was a virus but, then again, stranger things have happened. I have a feeling I'll never know what really happened. For all I know there could have been a buggy Windows patch that reared it's ugly head at just that time. Or, like Lantec implied, possibly my antivirus didn't like what was going on but that's never been a problem in past. Whatever the case, like a bunny in the middle of the road about to be run down by a truck, I just gave up and did the reinstall. I'll wait a few weeks until I get everything reinstalled and back up to speed and then give it another shot. I WILL, however, create a ghost of the drive just in case. Thanks for everyone's input.
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Reply #1 Tuesday, June 10, 2008 5:21 AM