EXP Systems Forum: Cannot Install/Use PDF reDirect

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Michel_K17
Moderator Group

Forum Administrator

Joined: 25 Jan 03
Posts: 1673

Topic: Cannot Install/Use PDF reDirect
Posted: 01 Dec 03 at 8:20PM

This applies to users who have Windows NT, 2000 or XP Pro:

TO INSTALL: to install PDF reDirect and/or PDF reDirect Pro, the user must have "administrator" priviledges. This is required in order to install the printer driver and the port monitor necessary to use PDF reDirect.
TO CREATE PDF FILES: the user must have sufficient priviledges to be able to read/write to the following folder: "C:\System32\PDF reDirect".
TO CREATE BATCH PRINTERS: the user must also have sufficient priviledges to install/remove printers.

For corporate users, please contact your IT department for help on installing and using PDF reDirect/PDF reDirect Pro.

Michel Korwin-Szymanowski
EXP Systems LLC

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roope
Newbie
Newbie

Joined: 26 Jan 05
Location: Nauru
Posts: 2

Posted: 26 Jan 05 at 1:11PM

But I am the only user and administrator of my pc (WinXP). The earlier versions have installed without problems, the new versions claim 'You do not have priviledges'.

-- Roope

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Michel_K17
Moderator Group

Forum Administrator

Joined: 25 Jan 03
Posts: 1673

Posted: 26 Jan 05 at 8:44PM

I am sorry to hear about the difficulties you are having. The good news is that the code that installs the PDF "virtual printer" has not changed since the old version. In the installation program, there are 4 "priviledges" errors that may appear. These are:

insufficient priviledges to install/remove Port Monitors.
insufficient priviledges to install/remove printer ports.
insufficient priviledges to install/remove printer drivers.
insufficient priviledges to install/remove printers.

Could you send me a copy of the error log please? It would help me figure out which error was triggered. The error log is created automatically if the installation fails and is called " Installation_Error_Log.txt ". The error log should be located in the same folder where you saved the installation program.

You can send the log to my e-mail address: .

The installation of a printer "the proper way" is done by using various Windows functions that rely on a Windows service called the "print spooler". If that service is "busy", or is not working properly, then it may prevent the proper installation of PDF reDirect. So, here are some things you can do to try to get it to install:

Make sure you have no opened programs. I have found that if I try to install an upgrade to PDF reDirect Pro after I used it with a program (say MS Word), and I forgot to close it beforehand, then the installation sometimes fails. Simply closing the program fixes the problem.
If you used PDF reDirect Pro and then try to upgrade, the "port monitor priviledge" error may appear. Sometimes, if you just try to install a second time, it will work, and sometimes not. A reboot before installing usually fixes that problem, or, if you know what you are doing, you can simply shutdown & restart the spooler service and that fixes the problem (which is faster than rebooting).
If rebooting does not fix the problem: could you try re-installing the old version, and let me know if that still works. I am curious because I have not made any changes to the code.

I have seen two other problems that we managed to resolve. In one, the problem was a conflict with a third party networking software, and the other was for a user that was having problems with the installation of the printer port. I rewrote the code to install the port "manually" by adding the proper registry settings. Microsoft has an article on that method, but it is not the "official" way.

Please let me know how you make out, and we'll try everything we can to fix the problem.

Thanks.

Michel Korwin-Szymanowski
EXP Systems LLC

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roope
Newbie
Newbie

Joined: 26 Jan 05
Location: Nauru
Posts: 2

Posted: 29 Jan 05 at 7:14AM

    * If rebooting does not fix the problem: could you try re-installing the old version, and let me know if that still works. I am curious because I have not made any changes to the code.

The old version was unistalled when I tried to install the new one. When that failed I tried to get the old one working again, but it gave the same error message. So something has changed in my PC since the first time installation. One may be that I began using password when logging in. When I look in the Control Panel User Group, I am clearly stated to be the sole Administrator.
    I am actually visiting London, so I can not yet send the error log, but will do it next week.
-- Roope

Edited by Michel_K17

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Michel_K17
Moderator Group

Forum Administrator

Joined: 25 Jan 03
Posts: 1673

Posted: 29 Jan 05 at 9:48AM

Hello Roope,

London huh? Nice.

Something may have changed, but password protection will not be the reason. I have password protection on all the PC's here - and the installation works fine. PDF reDirect Pro can also be installed on Novell Network machines too - which have an even more aggressive password protection: and they work too.

Please note that the error message is generic: it provides the most common reason why the installation would fail. The error number is the best hint as to what went wrong. Look at the last line of the log: it is the one that contains the error code.

I was recently contacted by e-mail by someone who could not install PDF reDirect (or the Pro version) either. His error was:

DLL Error 193 - ERROR_BAD_EXE_FORMAT - not a valid Win32 application.

His error occured on the following Windows API command: AddPrinterDriver. The log showed that the variables were setup correctly, so there was no explanation why this error would have occured. Microsoft's Developer's Network offered no clue for this error.

There are references on the internet about this error being associated with an over-full temp directory. This can be fixed by a cleanup of the temporary files folder: These files are found in the \Documents and Settings\your username\Local Settings\Temp folder.

I checked mine, and I had 450 MB (!) worth of files, so apparently, it does fill up over time. You can use Windows Explorer to find and delete these files. To be on the safe site though, don't delete files with today's date, these files could still be in use (most probably you'll get an error telling you that a file can't be deleted because it's in use). Alternatively, you can delete the files immediately after rebooting the computer.

I do not know if cleaning up his "Temp" folder fixed the problem or not, and your error code might be completely different. So, when you get back home, let me know what the error code was, and we'll take it from there.

Cheers!

Michel

Edited by Michel_K17

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Using PDF reDirect
EXP Systems Forum : PDF reDirect : Using PDF reDirect

Author	Message
Michel_K17 Moderator Group Forum Administrator Joined: 25 Jan 03 Posts: 1673	Topic: Cannot Install/Use PDF reDirect Posted: 01 Dec 03 at 8:20PM
	This applies to users who have Windows NT, 2000 or XP Pro: TO INSTALL: to install PDF reDirect and/or PDF reDirect Pro, the user must have "administrator" priviledges. This is required in order to install the printer driver and the port monitor necessary to use PDF reDirect. TO CREATE PDF FILES: the user must have sufficient priviledges to be able to read/write to the following folder: "C:\System32\PDF reDirect". TO CREATE BATCH PRINTERS: the user must also have sufficient priviledges to install/remove printers. For corporate users, please contact your IT department for help on installing and using PDF reDirect/PDF reDirect Pro.
	Michel Korwin-Szymanowski EXP Systems LLC
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roope Newbie Joined: 26 Jan 05 Location: Nauru Posts: 2	Posted: 26 Jan 05 at 1:11PM
	But I am the only user and administrator of my pc (WinXP). The earlier versions have installed without problems, the new versions claim 'You do not have priviledges'. -- Roope
	IP Logged

Michel_K17 Moderator Group Forum Administrator Joined: 25 Jan 03 Posts: 1673	Posted: 26 Jan 05 at 8:44PM
	I am sorry to hear about the difficulties you are having. The good news is that the code that installs the PDF "virtual printer" has not changed since the old version. In the installation program, there are 4 "priviledges" errors that may appear. These are: insufficient priviledges to install/remove Port Monitors. insufficient priviledges to install/remove printer ports. insufficient priviledges to install/remove printer drivers. insufficient priviledges to install/remove printers. Could you send me a copy of the error log please? It would help me figure out which error was triggered. The error log is created automatically if the installation fails and is called " Installation_Error_Log.txt ". The error log should be located in the same folder where you saved the installation program. You can send the log to my e-mail address: . The installation of a printer "the proper way" is done by using various Windows functions that rely on a Windows service called the "print spooler". If that service is "busy", or is not working properly, then it may prevent the proper installation of PDF reDirect. So, here are some things you can do to try to get it to install: Make sure you have no opened programs. I have found that if I try to install an upgrade to PDF reDirect Pro after I used it with a program (say MS Word), and I forgot to close it beforehand, then the installation sometimes fails. Simply closing the program fixes the problem. If you used PDF reDirect Pro and then try to upgrade, the "port monitor priviledge" error may appear. Sometimes, if you just try to install a second time, it will work, and sometimes not. A reboot before installing usually fixes that problem, or, if you know what you are doing, you can simply shutdown & restart the spooler service and that fixes the problem (which is faster than rebooting). If rebooting does not fix the problem: could you try re-installing the old version, and let me know if that still works. I am curious because I have not made any changes to the code. I have seen two other problems that we managed to resolve. In one, the problem was a conflict with a third party networking software, and the other was for a user that was having problems with the installation of the printer port. I rewrote the code to install the port "manually" by adding the proper registry settings. Microsoft has an article on that method, but it is not the "official" way. Please let me know how you make out, and we'll try everything we can to fix the problem. Thanks.
	Michel Korwin-Szymanowski EXP Systems LLC
	IP Logged

roope Newbie Joined: 26 Jan 05 Location: Nauru Posts: 2	Posted: 29 Jan 05 at 7:14AM
	* If rebooting does not fix the problem: could you try re-installing the old version, and let me know if that still works. I am curious because I have not made any changes to the code. The old version was unistalled when I tried to install the new one. When that failed I tried to get the old one working again, but it gave the same error message. So something has changed in my PC since the first time installation. One may be that I began using password when logging in. When I look in the Control Panel User Group, I am clearly stated to be the sole Administrator. I am actually visiting London, so I can not yet send the error log, but will do it next week. -- Roope Edited by Michel_K17
	IP Logged

Michel_K17 Moderator Group Forum Administrator Joined: 25 Jan 03 Posts: 1673	Posted: 29 Jan 05 at 9:48AM
	Hello Roope, London huh? Nice. Something may have changed, but password protection will not be the reason. I have password protection on all the PC's here - and the installation works fine. PDF reDirect Pro can also be installed on Novell Network machines too - which have an even more aggressive password protection: and they work too. Please note that the error message is generic: it provides the most common reason why the installation would fail. The error number is the best hint as to what went wrong. Look at the last line of the log: it is the one that contains the error code. I was recently contacted by e-mail by someone who could not install PDF reDirect (or the Pro version) either. His error was: DLL Error 193 - ERROR_BAD_EXE_FORMAT - not a valid Win32 application. His error occured on the following Windows API command: AddPrinterDriver. The log showed that the variables were setup correctly, so there was no explanation why this error would have occured. Microsoft's Developer's Network offered no clue for this error. There are references on the internet about this error being associated with an over-full temp directory. This can be fixed by a cleanup of the temporary files folder: These files are found in the *\Documents and Settings\your username\Local Settings\Temp* folder. I checked mine, and I had 450 MB (!) worth of files, so apparently, it does fill up over time. You can use Windows Explorer to find and delete these files. To be on the safe site though, don't delete files with today's date, these files could still be in use (most probably you'll get an error telling you that a file can't be deleted because it's in use). Alternatively, you can delete the files immediately after rebooting the computer. I do not know if cleaning up his "Temp" folder fixed the problem or not, and your error code might be completely different. So, when you get back home, let me know what the error code was, and we'll take it from there. Cheers! Michel Edited by Michel_K17
	IP Logged