Connecting an USB device opens new windows for each file

Help & Support
1

I love directory opus, its a true help.
I have one issue, I canot solve.
When i connect my ditation recorder (USB) opus directory opens as many windows, as I have files dictated in the USB device folder, which are often more than 40 :slight_smile: This slows down the system.

The prefered behavior is, that do comes to forefground, when i connecvt the device and opens one tab with the device folder in it.

I read every thread (another user wrote about the same issue, in a german forum), and every help, nothing worked.

Please, of course "open in new tab instead of new window is checked:

explorer_repl
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I treid to check off "replace explorer" that did not change anything.

To disable "autorun" and "autoplay" in windows did not change anything. As soon as I open DO it opens as many windows, as there are files in on the sd card of the USB device, when I connect it.

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startup_sttings974×741 185 KB

Do I miss a setting? How do I have to configure DO to just open one new tab in the foreground lister / window, when connecting my usb device?

2

How are you launching Opus?

Do you mean the windows open when Opus is launched, or when the SD card is inserted?

What happens if you do things in the reverse order (e.g. use File > Exit Directory Opus, then plug in the SD card, then launch Opus)?

When the windows open, which folder do they point to?

Do they only open if the SD card is present?

Opus only opens new windows when something tells it to. That's usually Windows or another program asking for a folder to be opened, but could also happen as a result of scripts.

3

Hi Leo,
many thanks at first for your fast reply.
I tried (launch on machine startup, launch on connect the usb device (autoplay / autorun), and disable autorun.
When DO runs, and i than connect the device, it opens as many windows as there are files in the USB device folder. Equal if started manually or by setting at start or connection.
When it does not run it opens, it depends of course:
If chosen "autoplay" it opens and starts as many windows as ... with autoplay disabled, it stays closed, when i connect the device. In case i open it, when the device is connected it opens on intance.

In case the device is already connected, and I copy several files on it, DO opens as many windows, as files copied.
This happens when autorun is disabled and when enabled.

DO points to the folder of the USB device.

Yes they only open when the device is connected.

there is no "ini" file on the device.
There is no setting in windows, that changes this behavior.

I uninstalled DO and used the custom settings. All the same.
I changed the sd card in the device (a Philips DPM dictation microphone). All teh same.
Explorer (when enabled, only opens once, same with other fileexplores, when i try them.

I prefer DO the most. I assume, its a matter of DO settings ore behavior.
What i would like to achieve:

when I connect the device:
DO starts if closed
it it runs in background it comes to foreground
if it is in foreground, it stays there

on all cases
it takes he existing tab of the device (fixed drive "p") to foreground in the (standard) lister

the first three behaviors work
but than it opens x windows with the standard listers and all standard tabs (registers) which slows the system

4

In one of the windows that opens, hover the mouse over the (i) icon in the status bar. It should tell you why the window opened. What does it say?

Which folder(s) are those windows pointing to?

5

it says ( I translate by myself, as the system is on german) "Program starts after a restart"
There is no restart. Autoplay in windows is disabled ("no action").

the folders in the tabs are the ones i saved as "standard" tabs. It shows my standars listers.

6

After the windows open, close all of them and then use File > Exit Directory Opus, and finally restart it.

That might fix it if they're old windows Opus remembered from the past, but got "stuck" re-opening until the device was inserted. (Not sure how that could happen, but it's possible if the device driver does something unusual, perhaps.)

If the windows still open, go to Preferences / Launching Opus / Startup and choose one of the options that isn't Open the Listers that were open when the program was last closed and see if they still appear. Also check if Opus seems to close and re-open other windows when the device is inserted, which may mean something is causing the process to crash and restart itself.

7

I tried the first (File< Exit) it did not make a difference.
"Open the Listers that were open when the program was last closed" was not checked (see screenshot above). I changed the setting although it doesnt change anything.

There is no hint, that DO tries to interact with different apps or windows

8

It seems something very strange is happening on your system in that case. I don't think we have ever had any similar reports.

If you want us to investigate in more detail, please link your account.

9

I would be glad to.
What do I have to do , to "link my account"?

--edit--
Sorry I see the link, wait:

10

Thanks!

If you open Task Manager, go to the Details tab, and make sure the PID column is showing, does the PID number for dopus.exe change when (or just before) the windows all open?

That will tell us if the process is being restarted for some reason, which could explain why windows open saying they were remembered from a previous launch.

1 Like
11

Hi Leo,

most appreciated!

the dopusrt.exe helper Application is running once as long as DO is on idle

As soon as I connect the device, the dopusrt.exe is running as often as there are files in the device and at the end (when all windows are opened) there are/stay two instances of the dopusrt.exe. They stay in taskmanager whenI close the windows one by one, down even to one window left.
When i close the last window, the second dopusrt.exe closes in taskmanager and only one dopusrt.exe keeps running.

and yes, the dopus.exe changes the ID in taskmanager, when i connect the device.

12

What about dopus.exe? (no rt on the end)

13

I mentioned it in the last chapter and answered your question :grinning: with a „yes, the ID changes“

14

Sorry, I missed that part.

That means something is crashing Opus when you access that device. If any crash logs are created, please send them to us:

15

The crash log report is empty.
It has not been my impact, that DO crashes, as all windows (included the first initially open one) stay open and react. There are just tens of open DO windows, fuor every file in the folder.

16

Sorry for reminding, do you think, that there is a solution for this issue?
To me ther are two issues:

  1. DO does not open the new folder in a new tab (what it should do according to my settings shown above) but in a new window
  2. it starts a new window for each file in folder (even a new tab would be wrong)

Explorer does not show this behavior, when set as standard file manager.

In the german support forum https://www.directory-opus.de/forum/viewtopic.php?t=40 I saw that another user once had the same problem, at least as far as the "new window instead of tab is concerned.

No solution there,

I would be glad If somenone can help me

17

This doesn’t seem to be an issue caused by Opus settings unless a script that reacts to the new drive is running.

Could some dictation software treat Opus as an audio player and try to add all files to a playlist?