Difficulty Installing Updates

[BadwolfRJ]

When I turn on the program it checks for updates. It locates updates, and asks if I want to download them. I click yes/ok and it shows it downloading. The Download bar completes and the program turns off but never comes back on again. When I turn it back on manually it still claims those updates still need to be downloaded even after 2-hours 5 minutes waiting for the program to come back on.

What is going wrong and how do I fix without trashing program and re-installing?

I do not want to lose my army lists if it can be helped. A 10,000 point Tyranid army takes a long time to enter, and so does a 6,000 point Orc and Goblin army.

BadwolfRJ

 

[rob]

This is an issue with security restrictions under recent releases of Windows. When security settings are high, Army Builder tells Windows to launch the newly downloaded installer and Windows simply ignores the request. No error is returned that we can respond to appropriately. Windows tells the product that everything was completed properly when in fact it was completely ignored. This results in you being thoroughly confused and frustrated. We think we've figured out a solution to this that is incorporated into the recent V3.2b update, but it's still a problem within the older version you are trying to update from.

The easiest solution is to run AB with Administrator privileges, which will ensure Windows handles things properly. Locate the shortcut you usually use to launch AB (probably within the Start menu). Instead of the usual left-click to launch AB, right-click on it instead. When the menu appears, select the "Run as Administrator" option. Then go through the update download process again. This time, the new version should install properly, since sufficient privileges will be enabled.

If you want to always run AB with Administrator privileges and avoid issues like this, repeat the above process. However, select the "Properties" option from the menu instead. Then click on the Compatibility tab and check the box labeled "Run as Administrator". Save the changes. Thereafter, AB will always be launched with Administrator privileges.

Please note that the above solution (Administrator privileges) will also be necessary if you choose to install Army Builder beneath the "Program Files" folder on your computer. Windows does some counter-intuitive things when that occurs that can sometimes (but not always) cause problems for you with Army Builder. We're working to address this issue in a future update, but it could be an issue for you with the V3.2b release if you install AB under "Program Files" (i.e. not the default location suggested).

Hope this helps....

 

[BadwolfRJ]

Thanks

It worked. I understand about the ridiculous nature of anything Microsoft. I can't stand Windows or anything Microsoft because their quality control sucks. Unfortunately, there aren't any real choices because most programs only work with Microsoft.

 

[Mr_Rose]

Whoa there sparky. This is Microsoft getting things (almost) right for once; they have finally after decades of badgering from security analysts decided to enforce the very sensible restriction that program code needs separate authentication to alter, whilst user data does not.
The precise implementation of this is slightly ham-fisted, but then MS is not known for subtlety.

What I want to know is how come AB doesn't put its stuff in the appropriate user directories.

 

[rob]

What I want to know is how come AB doesn't put its stuff in the appropriate user directories.

Allow me to explain...

The methods AB uses for where everything is placed were first established 12 years ago. That's a *long* time before Microsoft ever instituted *any* formal rules or restrictions. One of the things on our todo list for about 5 years now has been to revamp everything to be compliant with new rules that Microsoft set forth back in the days of Vista. The reason we haven't done it yet is simply that I could count on one hand the number of people who were actually impacted by this issue and contacted support about it in years past.

Since we have a *long* todo list for all of our products, we go through the list every time we map out plans for a new release. The enhancements/changes that actually get scheduled for a given release are those that we believe provide the most value to the largest number of users. Needless to say, when an issue affects only a handful of users and can be readily worked around, it ends up not making the short list. That's what has happened with this particular issue.

With the release of Windows 7 a few months ago, this problem has suddenly become more of an issue for users. Since October, we probably get 3-4 users a month with this problem now, but this change occurred well after we released V3.2 in July. Colen and I have already bumped this issue up to the high priority list for the next big feature update of AB. Until then, the workaround outlined above should keep everyone running.

Every new release, we take our best guess regarding everything on the todo list. Sometimes, we guess wrong or don't see something coming down the pipeline. This is one of those times. :-(

 

[Mr_Rose]

Thanks for clarifying that rob. I know all too well about altering priorities on software products.