[mark_melvin]

Has anyone else had problems installing the v1.7 plugin for Solidworks? I have downloaded it twice now and the Visual C++ runtime installer always fails with the logfile indicating a bad hash.

I am trying to install the 32bit version.

Mark.

[Eric Lagman]

Has anyone else had problems installing the v1.7 plugin for Solidworks? I have downloaded it twice now and the Visual C++ runtime installer always fails with the logfile indicating a bad hash.

I am trying to install the 32bit version.

Mark.

Mark sure you extract the zip file first then run setup. I tried dragging the files out of the zip folder and this was causing problems when I tried to install. Doing an extract to here or extracting somewhere else on your hard drive might help.

[mark_melvin]

Thanks for the response. Yeah - I was extracting to a folder. I even tried running the installers separately to no avail.
I have never had an issue before. I'll try downloading it one more time.

M.

[mark_melvin]

It is still failing. I think I misread the log before - the file hash is OK I think. Anyway, the error message I am getting is this:

Component Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86) has failed to install with the following error message:
"A failure occurred attempting to install Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)."

The following components failed to install:
- Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)

See the setup log file located at 'C:\DOCUME~1\Mark\LOCALS~1\Temp\VSD958.tmp\install.log' for more information.

And this is the contents of install.log:

The following properties have been set:
Property: [AdminUser] = true {boolean}
Property: [ProcessorArchitecture] = Intel {string}
Property: [VersionNT] = 5.1.2 {version}
Running checks for package '.NET Framework 2.0 (x86)', phase BuildList
Running external check with command line "C:\DOCUME~1\Mark\LOCALS~1\Temp\VSD958.tmp\CoversantDotNetFxIntel\dotnetchk.exe"
Process exited with code 1
Setting value '1 {int}' for property 'DotNetInstalled'
Reading value 'Version' of registry key 'HKLM\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer'
Read string value '7.0.5730.11'
Setting value '7.0.5730.11 {string}' for property 'IEVersion'
The following properties have been set for package '.NET Framework 2.0 (x86)':
Property: [DotNetInstalled] = 1 {int}
Property: [IEVersion] = 7.0.5730.11 {string}
Running checks for command 'CoversantDotNetFxIntel\instmsia.exe'
Result of running operator 'ValueNotEqualTo' on property 'ProcessorArchitecture' and value 'Intel': false
Result of running operator 'ValueExists' on property 'VersionNT': true
Result of checks for command 'CoversantDotNetFxIntel\instmsia.exe' is 'Bypass'
Running checks for command 'CoversantDotNetFxIntel\WindowsInstaller-KB893803-v2-x86.exe'
Result of running operator 'ValueNotEqualTo' on property 'ProcessorArchitecture' and value 'Intel': false
Result of running operator 'ValueExists' on property 'Version9x': false
Result of running operator 'VersionLessThan' on property 'VersionNT' and value '5.0.3': false
Result of running operator 'VersionGreaterThanOrEqualTo' on property 'VersionMsi' and value '3.0': true
Result of checks for command 'CoversantDotNetFxIntel\WindowsInstaller-KB893803-v2-x86.exe' is 'Bypass'
Running checks for command 'CoversantDotNetFxIntel\dotnetfx.exe'
Result of running operator 'ValueNotEqualTo' on property 'DotNetInstalled' and value '0': true
Result of checks for command 'CoversantDotNetFxIntel\dotnetfx.exe' is 'Bypass'
'.NET Framework 2.0 (x86)' RunCheck result: No Install Needed
Running checks for package 'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)', phase BuildList
Running MsiProductCheck with ProductCode '{A49F249F-0C91-497F-86DF-B2585E8E76B7}'
MsiQueryProductState returned '-1'
Setting value '-1 {int}' for property 'VCRedistInstalled'
The following properties have been set for package 'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)':
Property: [VCRedistInstalled] = -1 {int}
Running checks for command 'vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe'
Result of running operator 'ValueGreaterThanEqualTo' on property 'VCRedistInstalled' and value '3': false
Result of running operator 'ValueEqualTo' on property 'AdminUser' and value 'false': false
Skipping FailIf because Property 'Version9X' was not defined
Result of running operator 'VersionLessThan' on property 'VersionNT' and value '5.00': false
Result of checks for command 'vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe' is 'Install'
'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)' RunCheck result: Install Needed
Running checks for package 'Windows Installer 3.1', phase BuildList
The following properties have been set for package 'Windows Installer 3.1':
Running checks for command 'WindowsInstaller3_1\WindowsInstaller-KB893803-v2-x86.exe'
Result of running operator 'VersionGreaterThanOrEqualTo' on property 'VersionMsi' and value '3.1': true
Result of checks for command 'WindowsInstaller3_1\WindowsInstaller-KB893803-v2-x86.exe' is 'Bypass'
'Windows Installer 3.1' RunCheck result: No Install Needed
Installation of components 'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)' was accepted.
Copying files to temporary directory "C:\DOCUME~1\Mark\LOCALS~1\Temp\VSD958.tmp\"
Copying from 'C:\Programs\maxwell\v1.7\Maxwell for SolidWorks 1.7.0 (x86)\setup\vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe' to 'C:\DOCUME~1\Mark\LOCALS~1\Temp\VSD958.tmp\vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe'
Running checks for package 'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)', phase BeforePackage
Running MsiProductCheck with ProductCode '{A49F249F-0C91-497F-86DF-B2585E8E76B7}'
MsiQueryProductState returned '-1'
Setting value '-1 {int}' for property 'VCRedistInstalled'
The following properties have been set for package 'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)':
Property: [VCRedistInstalled] = -1 {int}
Running checks for command 'vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe'
Result of running operator 'ValueGreaterThanEqualTo' on property 'VCRedistInstalled' and value '3': false
Result of running operator 'ValueEqualTo' on property 'AdminUser' and value 'false': false
Skipping FailIf because Property 'Version9X' was not defined
Result of running operator 'VersionLessThan' on property 'VersionNT' and value '5.00': false
Result of checks for command 'vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe' is 'Install'
'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)' RunCheck result: Install Needed
Verifying file integrity of C:\DOCUME~1\Mark\LOCALS~1\Temp\VSD958.tmp\vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe
Verifying file hash
Installing using command line '"C:\DOCUME~1\Mark\LOCALS~1\Temp\VSD958.tmp\vcredist_x86\vcredist_x86.exe" /q:a '
Process exited with code -1073741819
Status of package 'Visual C++ Runtime Libraries (x86)' after install is 'InstallFailed'

I tried removing the existing C++ 2005 runtime using the control panel and got the same error. The only thing that springs to mind that is different on my system is a recent install of Silverlight 2.0. Perhaps I'll try removing that...

Mark.

[mark_melvin]

Nothing I have tried appears to work. I can't even install the vcredist_x86.exe runtime by itself - it just fails with no message. I shouldn't even need it because I have Visual C++ installed anyway - but whatever.

The maxwell plugin installer also fails silently when trying to execute it directly. Something obviously is hosed on my Windows XP install. <sigh> I'm not sure where to go next. Windows Update is offering me SP3, but I'm not sure I am prepared to go there just yet. This has never been an issue before so I think I need to figure out what the heck has gone a-muck with my system.

Any pointers would be greatly appreciated.

Mark.

[JDHill]

I'm trying to look through that text and I don't see anything obvious yet, and I've not been able to find what that exit code means. Do you have any anti-virus software running? Also, have you tried just installing it from the desktop or my documents?

[mark_melvin]

I do have PC-Cillin running, but I have installed at least two previous versions of the plugin with this PC configuration (with antivirus running) with no issues.

I have tried running the installers from a few different locations with no luck. I'm guessing something has changed (drivers, an application installing some rogue .dll) on my PC that has caused a problem since the last time I upgraded Maxwell. I can install and run Maxwell BTW - it is just the plugin and Visual C++ runtime that are an issue.

But it is late and I am packing it in for tonight with no joy. Perhaps tomorrow night I'll tackle it again. Thanks for the responses.

Mark.

[mark_melvin]

OMFG - *that* was the most frustrating computer-related experience I have had in years...

OK, so after trying everything I can think of I finally broke down and installed Windows XP SP3. No luck. I then started removing everything I could think of trying the installation after each item - including .NET 3.0 as well as .NET 2.0. After removing .NET 2.0 the installer looked like it might actually succeed because it started downloading and installing .NET 2.0 again. Well, after awhile it bailed with the same failure, except now the message indicated .NET 2.0 succeeded but the vcredist_x86.exe install failed in exactly the same way. I even tried running msiexec in verbose logging mode on both the unpacked vcredist MSI file as well as the Maxwell plugin MSI file and absolutely nothing was logged except for one line indicatiing msiexec started.

So next I tried various debugging methods - DebugView, FileMon, ProcMon, etc. etc. with absolutely no light at the end of the tunnel. Then, for kicks I ran the vcredist_x86.exe as Administrator (I am a local administrator BTW, and I have always installed it as me before) and all of a sudden it installed. WTF?

OK, so now I run the maxwel Solidworks plugin as Administrator and it proceeds to install vcredist_x86.exe yet again, but this time it succeeds and the plugin installer runs and completes with no issues.

So now I am completely baffled. This makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. *But* I think I may have a pretty good idea of what it is about my particular system that tweaks this bug. When I originally installed XP, I added my username (as an administrator) with no password associated with it and used it for quite some time that way (I installed a couple versions of Maxwell in this configuration as well). At some point a looong time ago I wanted to either share a drive or perhaps it was that I wanted to use remote desktop - I can't remember. Anyway, one of these requires that your username have a password, so I changed my user profile to have a password associated with it, and probably changed the permissions on all the files when prompted (I am running an NTFS filesystem by the way).

At any rate - being a software developer myself as my day job - I have a warm fuzzy feeling that this is totally the root cause of this issue. I'll bet if you test installing an older version with a user that is a local admin with no password on their account, then change that account profile to use a password (thus changing permissions on a whole pile of stuff), I think an installation of a newer version of the plugin as that same user will then fail. I'm not sure if this is a feature of the maxwell plugin installer, or the vcredist_x86.exe installer, or windows installer itself.

Anyway, thank <insert diety here> I am done fighting with this bug! Hopefully this helps someone in the future... Thanks again to those who responded.

Mark.

[JDHill]

I'll try to decode all of that info at some point.

Just fyi, the Maxwell installer is NSIS-based, I think, and it has had it's own share of issues getting vcredist to run successfully in the past. The plugin installer is just a regular no-fuss .msi installer - there is nothing really exotic about it. It has to add some registry stuff so that SW can find the plugin (why they don't also have a manual addin-load facility in SW I'll never know). Besides that, it just puts some stuff in the .Net Global Assembly Cache - this is a well-known location on the machine, so all told, the plugin's installer doesn't concern itself with any actual paths at all. The setup.exe bootstrapper is built by VS2005 and it's first job is to elevate the permissions to a level where vcredist will be allowed to run. Then it checks for prerequisites, including the SP1 VC++ 8.0 runtime. vcredist_x86.exe is just the standard installer, no different than what you would download if you went to the Microsoft website. Finally, setup.exe runs the plugin's .msi installer.

I like how the install failure log is so verbose, but unfortunately it does not really seem to indicate what the problem actually was. I tried to find the meaning of that error code, but it must be something internal to MS.

JD

[mark_melvin]

Yeah - I guess since I could not install vcredist_x86.exe by itself (even the one I downloaded from Microsoft - which was, as you said - identical) then this must be a Microsoft issue. Whether it has anything to do with Windows installer or not (vcredist_x86.exe actually expands into an .msi and a .cab file) remains to be seen...
At any rate - I could not find anything about this on the Microsoft website or knowledge base so it must be pretty obscure.