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HL 4.2c update failed, then program refuses to patch

B

Basara549

Member
I went through the three recommended things, and nothing fixed it. (Though, I was able to still get on and use the software). Find updates would just run on and on (for hours if I left it)

I tried reinstalling, but now I can't access HL on that computer (I have my licenses on my desktop and laptop, and it's the laptop that's messing up). It keeps telling me I've not activated, but when I try to activate it tells me it can't reach the server. My desktop's version is working fine.

If I get to the game selection window on the laptop, all I'm offered are "Download" options, and clicking on theme tells me that there are no new files. Clicking on Find Updates gets me a "Please verify your internet connection is active" and "unexpected response" error message.

The Laptop's connection is working fine for everything BUT HL. I've eliminated the firewall and security software as an issue - even deactivated them to try to get an update. I've tried updating from a different wireless location (my game store) and even tried bypassing the router and hooking directly into my modem with a CAT5 cable. Still no luck.

Could there be something corrupted in the program's registry entries?

(problem is submitted to tech support as Case 29873 - I was hoping that maybe someone here had an issue like this before that might be able to help get my back functional before we play again this week, quicker than tech support).
 
Problem solved - a truly weird one

This might be a good idea to stick into the things to check before contacting support.

The reason why Hero Lab stopped recognizing that I was connected to the internet was that....

Somehow, Internet Explorer was changed to "Work Offline" mode.

Seriously.

I don't even USE IE except to check for optional software updates.

The question now is, what cased IE to change that setting? Was it changed by the patch failure, or did someone come along after the patch failed and open IE while the store network was flaking out (my players occasionally check stuff online, like the baseball playoff scores, using whichever of our machines is turned on at the time, and the failed patch was during a game session for a game not yet in HL (Fringeworthy). I don't remember the latter, but can't rule it out either.


But, that still comes back to the issue.

Why was HL's ability to connect to the servers compromised by someone putting IE8 (on an XP machine) in "Work Offline" mode in the first place?
 
If you took your computer on a plane, turning it to airplane mode might have triggered a change without notifying you.

The reason Hero Lab and IE are connected is that Hero Lab's update mechanisms are using the default web handling mechanics built into Windows, and I'm sure Microsoft connects IE more closely to those than they allow other browsers to connect to them (and/or they have IE try to sieze back things that other browsers try to claim ownership of). So, there's probably some deep connection in Windows between the internet connectivity and the "work offline" mode setting in IE.
 
Nothing like that - I'm in the middle of rural Appalachia. I've never even HEARD of "airplane mode" - is that something introduced Vista or later?

I'd only been using it at two spots - home and the game store, and there hadn't been an issue going back or forth between them in the months I've had Hero Lab.

Still, I think "the 3 things to check before contacting support" should be expanded to 4, to include "Check to see if IE is set to 'Work Offline', and if so, uncheck it."

After all, it would be such an easy thing to have happen (In my experience before changing to better browsers, all it took was starting IE without a connection present to put you into "work Offline", whether you wanted it to or not).
 
I've had "offline mode" be turned on in the past when my internet was down briefly - IE discovered it couldn't connect to the internet, and so put itself into "offline mode" to help. I only noticed later, and had to turn it back myself. :(

Basara, thanks for flagging this issue to us - we'll definitely get it added to our technical support steps, as I suspect this may be the reason we've been having a lot of these reports lately!
 
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