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Author Topic: AHP Lifejacket  (Read 136916 times)

jclarkw

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Re: AHP Lifejacket
« Reply #90 on: February 26, 2020, 03:39:07 AM »

There has been a few cases where AHP Lifejacket doesn't see the current Drive ID.
...Now open the AHP Lifejacket folder and find the OldVolume ID.txt file
edit this file with notepad remove the text that is in the file and replace the drive ID you wrote down...

This has happened to me also.  OldVolume ID.txt contains only "ent volume:" (plus one new line).  With no template to edit back to the old volume ID (which I did copy down), it isn't clear how to perform this edit correctly.

I was hoping to revert the volume ID, uninstall both AHP and Lifejacket, and try to start over.  ("AHP version 3.318", which I incorrectly installed in C:\ as you already know, shows up in my Windows 10 Apps & Features, as do "X10 Hardware(TM)" and "X10nets version 3.318"; but AHP Lifejacket, whose program folder also appears under C:\, does not.)  The hole I've dug just keeps getting deeper and deeper... -- jclarkw
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jclarkw

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Re: AHP Lifejacket
« Reply #91 on: February 26, 2020, 04:01:17 AM »

...Unless
.you have other software registered that uses the drive Id as part of tegistration there is no need to tevert to the old drive Id.

How would I know whether or not I have software that uses the drive ID?  I do have software (Windows 10 itself, Office Home and Business) that came pre-installed and licensed to the machine, but perhaps those licenses are linked to something in the BIOS and not to the volume ID itself... -- jclarkw
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Tuicemen

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Re: AHP Lifejacket
« Reply #92 on: February 26, 2020, 06:39:16 AM »

Yes, after installing and using Lifejacket move the installed folder. If you have a desktop shortcut modify it to point to the new location.
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jclarkw

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Re: AHP Lifejacket
« Reply #93 on: February 26, 2020, 06:56:20 PM »

Yes, after installing and using Lifejacket move the installed folder. If you have a desktop shortcut modify it to point to the new location.

Thanks very much for your help and patience!  This worked for me with a bit of playing around that I will document for others shortly.  First, however, could you please remind me about plug-ins, specifically how they get installed?

It turns out AHP on my old Windows 7 Pro SP1 system (soon to be retired) has the SmartMacros plug-in registered (presumably courtesy of your Lifejacket), and my existing CM15A programs evidently use it and need it (I think) to be edited.  Problem is I don't remember how I obtained/installed this plug-in (if it wasn't already included in the ActiveHome Pro installer).  Can you please remind me?

(Of the installers I found on this old machine, "AHP_3.318 from X10 Sales.exe" and "Unregistered_AHP from Tuicemen.exe" [vs. 3.318], I chose to install on the new Windows 10 Pro machine [and register using Lifejacket, though I didn't try to register any plug-ins] the first one.  I also see on my old machine something called "AHP310basesuite.zip", which contains "setup_SmartMacros.exe" among others and which I apparently downloaded from somewhere, but I don't know what to do with it, if anything.)

Best Regards -- jclarkw
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Tuicemen

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Re: AHP Lifejacket
« Reply #94 on: February 27, 2020, 07:30:28 AM »

Lifejacket installs 4 plugins by default these are enabled with a file.
If memory serves me right it is in the AHP folder and called plugins.xml.if you read through the lifejacket thread here and or on my forum the exact wording of the file and what coresponds to what plugin can be found.
If you add only the line coresponding to SmartMacros it will be activated.
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jclarkw

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Re: AHP Lifejacket
« Reply #95 on: February 27, 2020, 03:04:22 PM »

Lifejacket installs 4 plugins by default these are enabled with a file.
If memory serves me right it is in the AHP folder and called plugins.xml...
If you add only the line coresponding to SmartMacros it will be activated.

Thanks Tuicemen!  This worked, and I seem to be up an running at last.  One note:  Most of the links in this thread to "http://tuicemen.com/forum/..." are broken, and the material seems to have been moved to "http://forums.tuicemen.net/index.php."

FYI the file is "ahp_plugin.xml" and it's in the C:\Program Files (x86)\ActiveHome Pro folder (unless this folder was moved to C:\ActiveHome Pro, as you suggested I do for Windows 10 after running Lifejacket).  The same file can also be found in the C:\AHPLifejacket folder that was created by running Lifejacket.  Interestingly the contents of this file in both folders are identical and appear to depend on which plug-ins were checked when Lifejacket was run.

In my case, however, that file on my new Win10 machine was empty, I presume because I had erroneously unchecked all plugins.  Fortunately my old Win7 machine had a copy of this file with the only the SmartMacros plugin registered (the only one I need), so I didn't have to re-run Lifejacket.  Copying that file over to the new machine and using it to replace the version of that file in the ActiveHome Pro folder did indeed register that plug-in for me.  (Perhaps a better approach would have been to leave all the plug-ins that are checked by default in Lifejacket checked and then, if necessary later on, to edit the version of ahp_plugin.xml in the C:\Program Files (x86)\ActiveHome Pro folder to eliminate unwanted plug-ins?)

Before I forget all of these details, I offer the following notes on my eventual success running Lifejacket on the Win10 machine in hopes that they may help others and serve as notes to myself for future need.  This is not to say that the instructions provided in Lifejacket are incorrect, only that (1) I got confused following them and (2) certain difficulties are unique to Windows 10:

A) AHP must be installed in the default location (C:\Program Files (x86)\ActiveHome Pro) or Lifejacket will not be able to find files that it needs to modify.  Don't guess, as I did, that the best way to end up with it in C:\ActiveHome Pro (to avoid Windows 10 security features) is to install it there in the first place!  Instead move the entire folder there after running Lifejacket.

B) Before running Lifejacket, run the "vol" command from the Command Prompt and copy down the 8-Hex-digit "Volume Serial Number" (Lifejacket calls it the "Volume ID" or "Drive ID") of the C: drive.  If you have SSD drives like me, Lifejacket may not be able to read it to store in its "OldVolume ID.txt" file for restoration later.  (This may be indicated by the "Volume Serial Number" listed at the top of the Lifejacket window being blank.)  Fortunately, after running the first sequence of Lifejacket steps, it's easy to edit the serial number you copied into this file.  The format should be like "1C47-9110" followed by one (or two?) new lines.

C) Restart your computer before first running Lifejacket, always run it explicitly "as Administrator," and always restart your PC after each sequence of Lifejacket steps has been completed.  You will have to run it twice, first following the first set of 5 steps in its readme file to register AHP and second following the second set of 7 steps to restore your original volume serial number (if you bother to do this).  Note in (B) above that you may need to have recorded the original serial number in order to accomplish the restoration.

D) When you run Lifejacket for the first time and click the "Change Id" button, don't be surprised if you have to accept the terms of use of SysInternals (a safe Microsoft product) in order for Lifejacket to run the VolumeID program from that suite.  (It's included in Lifejacket; you don't have to download it.)  If you have enabled the Controlled Folder Access security feature in Windows 10, as I did, you will probably also have to permit C:\AHPLifejacket\volumeid.exe in the blocked-program fly-out message in order for Lifejacket to run to completion.

E) The next thing that confused me, after clicking "WriteAHP Register Files" in Lifejacket, was that Lifejacket never closed itself.  I wondered if this meant something had gone wrong, but apparently that's just the way it behaves.  I had to close it manually.

F) In the second set of Lifejacket steps, after opening ActiveHome Pro and verifying that it indeed is now registered, you then have to run Lifejacket (as Administrator) again before continuing.  (If it had a problem reading your original Volume Serial number, then you should have completed (B) above before getting this far.)  When you get to Lifejacket step 5, note that the instructions in Lifejacket versions earlier than 1.0.1.4 are in error.  This step should read, "Don't Start x10nets."

G) Finally, although clearly stated in step 7 of the instructions, don't forget to restart the PC after closing Lifejacket.

H) If you're running Windows 10, it's probably necessary to move the AHP program folder out of the Program Files (x86) folder, as mentioned in (A) above.  Don't forget to correct your shortcuts to the program, both on the desktop (if you made one) and in the Start menu.  (In Windows 10 the latter can be done by right-clicking that "shortcut," selecting More/Open File Location, right-clicking the shortcut that's visible there, and selecting Properties.)

I hope this helps somebody else to navigate this valuable program successfully.  We all owe Tuicemen a big thank-you for enabling our continued use of AHP and the CM15A into the future! -- jclarkw
« Last Edit: February 28, 2020, 10:47:58 AM by jclarkw »
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