Thanks guys. This server was installed by me about a year ago. It's pretty stock except for setting up a domain. It's not some enterprise environment where I'd have SRP, policies at all set up, etc. It could be a DEP thing, but I would think others would have the same issue, since I haven't changed my DEP settings from default. I will probably try disabling DEP just to check.
BUT, I ran into something very interesting today. I noticed there is an "C:\Program Files\GPSoftware\Directory Opus\x86" folder where apparently a copy of the 32-bit copy was installed, but the beta installer I guess? Well, the 32-bit version of the beta RAN! It's running right now! Funny thing is, any 32-bit installer from GPSoftware doesn't all you to install it. It says I must install the 64-bit version, which doesn't work for me. Now, why would the 32-bit version work, but not the 64-bit? Again, I have 64-bit software that runs fine on this machine. And then, why was there a 32-bit version installed? Surely this is being done for a good reason. I just wish someone had mentioned trying it before.
The 32-bit copy is put there so you can export a 32-bit (or dual bitness) copy to a USB stick if needed.
Compared to 64-bit processes, 32-bit are subject to different DLLs being injected into them (usually just the same DLLs but their 32-bit counterparts, but also potentially entirely different DLLs as the system may be configured to autoload a DLL into 64-bit processes but not 32-bit ones, and things like shell extensions are also independently registered for 32-bit and 64-bit processes).
A different binary may also be treated differently by all the other things that might kill a process (antivirus, DEP, EMET (if installed), etc.).
So knowing that the 32-bit version works doesn't tell us much, as it's not really different to the fact that one program works but 64-bit dopus.exe doesn't.
What it does do is confirm even more that the issue is not something Opus itself is doing, and that it is something external to Opus on your system. The 32-bit and 64-bit code and DLL dependencies they explicitly request (on all systems, vs things registered on your system which Opus is subject to but did not request itself) are virtually identical, other than how they are compiled.
I know you believe the machine's configuration is "stock" but it simply can't be. You have another machine that works fine as proof, along with confirmations (and no other reports of this problem) from other 2008 R2 users that Opus works on their machines. It has to be something on the machine.
Right, I understand 64-bit is radically different than 32-bit apps, using all kinds of different DLLs, etc.
Well, it's "stock" in that I haven't added or changed policies, except making IE actually work by disabling it's protection, not added ANY kind of anti-virus (using built-in Microsoft Essentials), no SRP, etc. I do have a number of apps installed, and it has a lot of USB connections, 5 internal drives, etc., but nothing I can think of that would cause this issue specifically in 64-bit Opus and no other program. I'll accept there's something that must be different about the machine, but you have to admit that we're almost at the limit of being able to make the 64-bit version work. I've tried everything short of spending hundreds of hours combing two 2008 server installs and trying to find out why a single 64-bit app doesn't run while many others do. Now if other 64-bit apps simply didn't run, I'd be like "ok, I need to figure out what's going on", but they all work. All software on that machine works. Some times you have to know when to quit.
This whole thing has been me wanting to use Opus on my server so I could buy it for $129 + upgrades later. While I don't have the awesome 64-bit version working, the 32-bit works just fine. I have a lot of 32-bit software that runs fine. If you either allowed me to install the 32-bit version on 64-bit Windows, or keep the 32-bit version as part of the 64-bit install, I could work with that for now. I don't care if the 64-bit version doesn't work, as long as I'm able to run the 32-bit version on a 64-bit machine. Is there maybe an option I could use on the 32-bit installer that would skip the 64-bit OS check?
That's too bad. I don't know what to do then. I'd hate to not be able to use the best file management software in the world just because the 32-bit version works just fine on a 64-bit system while the 64-bit version does not, and installing the 32-bit version on a 64-bit system is forbidden. I can see why you'd disallow the 64-bit version from installing on a 32-bit system. But ok, I guess I'll just decide what to do and that's it then. Thanks for your help.
Maybe we should wind this back a bit and verify some basic fundamentals... I know you've installed a few versions of Opus a few times now, but does anyone know of a good way (without Opus) to list an entire directory hierarchies list of files with checksums (md5, whatever)? Make sure first that (even with multiple installs of different versions of Opus) all the binaries are in fact intact? Maybe eve An first just the checksums on the installer packages?
Other than that, I think you mentioned having looked at event logs and not finding anything useful. But have you searched ALL event logs for any mention at all about dopus.exe? Any worth in in tsalling the package (installer exe) under admin privs (NOT saying to run dopus.exe in admin mode, but launching installer as such). Anything interesting about permissions to the Opus folders?
Apologies if you see this steje. I sort of gave up there for a while because I needed to do other things. I've pretty much tried all of that. I've downloaded the installer a few times, including the latest v11, which wasn't out in January. Nothing in the event logs, no UAC, nothing weird about permissions, installer is always launched as admin because I'm logged in as one. But thank you!
I broke down the other day and decided to buy the 2+laptop license, because it is a great program and I really need a good file manager, but also the 32-bit version (included in the v11 64-bit package) works for me on my main 2008 R2 server. I hope the 32-bit version stays included or they start allowing the 32-bit version to install on a 64-bit OS (even with a warning), because to this day I still can't run the 64-bit EXE. I can run every other 64-bit EXE (other software, not Opus), just not this one. Now that I'm a bonafide customer, maybe I'll try that Priority Support if I ever get time.
BTW, I was around during the Amiga days of Directory Opus. That means I'm old!
