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Emule Forgets Configuration At Start

#1 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 23 March 2015 - 04:31 AM

I have been using eMule in my computer with Windows 7 for more than four years without problem but suddenly today when I started it, I got a series of errors and then eMule started as if it were the first time it runs, asking for configuration parameters.

The errors I get before the eMule window loads are:

1- The language was set to 'English'. You can use the 'Options' dialog at any time to select a different language.
2- Failed to create incoming files directory "C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\Incoming" - Access is denied.
3- Failed to create incoming files directory "C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\Incoming" - The system cannot find the file specified.
4- Failed to create temporary files directory "C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\Temp" - Access is denied.
5- Failed to create temporary files directory "C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\Temp" - The system cannot find the file specified.
6- Unknown error while reading emfriends.met: %s - C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\config\emfriends.met contains an invalid path.
7- Failed to load known.met file - C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\config\known.met contains an invalid path.
8- Failed to load credit file, a new file will be created - C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\config\clients.met contains an invalid path.
9- failed to initialize cryptokeys - secure ident disabled.

After I accept all these warnings, eMule starts the same as if it was started just after first installation. If I try to config something and then close eMule, the next time I open it all the same happens again, no config changes are saved.

My eMule was configured to use my personal user config at C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local\eMule but it seems to have forgotten this and is trying to find the config at C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule and when not finding it, tries to create it (that is not allowed in Windows 7). I have completely uninstalled it and installed again several times and also with the shared option (Where the path for the config is C:\Program Data\eMule) but the problem persists. Every time I run eMule, the same bunch of warnings and then tabula rassa.

I still have my config data at C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local\eMule that remains untouched by eMule. When I uninstall eMule it gets deleted (but I have a copy) and it is created again by the installation process, but eMule just ignores it.

I also tried to copy my config folder to C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule just to see what happens. eMule starts with all my personal configuration and the downloads and servers list are populated again with my servers and my downloads but it doesn't work well I suppose because eMule can read the config folder contents but cannot alter them.

What happened? Why suddendly eMule is looking for the config at the wrong path? How can I fix this? maybe is something in the system register what tells eMule where is the path to look for?

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 23 March 2015 - 04:33 AM

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#2 User is offline   fox88 

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Posted 23 March 2015 - 11:55 AM

Someone played with Extended settings?
You could read Shared usage article.
That might happen wher setting was changed from Each user has its own configuration to Store setting and config in program directory.
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#3 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 23 March 2015 - 11:46 PM

View Postfox88, on 23 March 2015 - 11:55 AM, said:

Someone played with Extended settings?
You could read Shared usage article.
That might happen wher setting was changed from Each user has its own configuration to Store setting and config in program directory.


Hi Fox,

I don't think so. I am the only one who uses this computer and I haven't touched anything in the eMule program folder or the config folder. Maybe a corrupt file or something. Anyway, if this was the case, wouldn't uninstalling the program and installing it again solve the problem?

I know about the three installation modes of eMule. The old one (Store setting and config in program directory) is not good for Vista and up. I haven't used it since I abandoned WinXP. My original installation in this system was Each user has its own configuration and I have also tried All users share the same configuration when reinstalling, but eMule always starts blank and as if it was installed with Store setting and config in program directory.

So, how do I solve this? What is what tells eMule when it starts where to look for the config? obviously this information can't be inside the config folder because at the very start, eMule doesn't know where is the config folder located. Is it some ini file in the program folder? some registry key? I think if I could edit it manually, everything would work again.

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 24 March 2015 - 12:39 AM

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#4 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 23 March 2015 - 11:57 PM

NOTE: In the meantime I have copied my config folder from C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local\eMule to C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule and have given emule.exe admin privileges temporarily so it can access the config where he is stubbornly obsessed to find it, but I would appreciate a solution to the problem that doesn't involve this breach in security of my system.
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#5 User is offline   Some Support 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 12:22 AM

View Postjedikalimero, on 23 March 2015 - 11:57 PM, said:

NOTE: In the meantime I have copied my config folder from C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local\eMule to C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule and have given emule.exe admin privileges temporarily so it can access the config where he is stubbornly obsessed to find it, but I would appreciate a solution to the problem that doesn't involve this breach in security of my system.


Just change the setting Fox has noticed under the Extend Settings tab. Appearently for whatever reason it's set to program folder. Also don't run eMule with admin rights, if you have to rather copy the program directory into an unprotected folder where eMule can access it without privileges.

#6 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 12:34 AM

View PostSome Support, on 24 March 2015 - 12:22 AM, said:

View Postjedikalimero, on 23 March 2015 - 11:57 PM, said:

NOTE: In the meantime I have copied my config folder from C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local\eMule to C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule and have given emule.exe admin privileges temporarily so it can access the config where he is stubbornly obsessed to find it, but I would appreciate a solution to the problem that doesn't involve this breach in security of my system.


Just change the setting Fox has noticed under the Extend Settings tab. Appearently for whatever reason it's set to program folder. Also don't run eMule with admin rights, if you have to rather copy the program directory into an unprotected folder where eMule can access it without privileges.


I already tried that. I went to Options->Extended and set "Sharing eMule with other computer users" to "Each user has his own configuration and downloads" (it was set to "Store config and downloads in the program directory"), then Apply, then OK and Close. Then I open eMule again... and the setting is once more at "Store config and downloads in the program directory"!!!

Just to be sure it was saving the settings, I also changed the language to Spanish and it opens in Spanish, so other settings are saved but not the Sharing settings. I suppose this is due that the Language setting and all other settings are saved in the preferences.ini file inside the config folder but the Sharing setting obviously is not saved there because it determines where to find the config folder to begin. Where is the Sharing setting stored?

Thank you for the suggestion of moving eMule to a folder where eMule can access it without privileges. (but it is also a temporary solution until I find out what is wrong with eMule, of course)

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 24 March 2015 - 12:35 AM

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#7 User is offline   Some Support 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 08:55 AM

The setting is stored in the registry under "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\eMule\UsePublicUserDirectories" which needs to be set to 0 in your case. If nothing is set in the registry eMule will use the multi user configuration by default, except if it finds the config files in its programm directory (which means deleting your config folder from your programm directory would solve the issue, except if the registry key is set otherwise)

#8 User is offline   fox88 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 02:14 PM

View Postjedikalimero, on 24 March 2015 - 02:46 AM, said:

I haven't touched anything in the eMule program folder or the config folder.

That setting could be changed directly in Options; an accidental click will do.
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#9 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 02:50 PM

View PostSome Support, on 24 March 2015 - 08:55 AM, said:

The setting is stored in the registry under "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\eMule\UsePublicUserDirectories" which needs to be set to 0 in your case. If nothing is set in the registry eMule will use the multi user configuration by default, except if it finds the config files in its programm directory (which means deleting your config folder from your programm directory would solve the issue, except if the registry key is set otherwise)


I moved the config folder from C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule back to C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local\eMule, removed admin privileges to emule.exe, went to the the registry key you indicated but it IS already set to 0.
So I run eMule and again the same problem.
1- The language was set to 'English'. You can use the 'Options' dialog at any time to select a different language.
2- Failed to create incoming files directory "C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\Incoming" - Access is denied.
Blah, blah, blah...


Here is a screenshot of my folders and the registry (ignore the administrator shield on the eMule icon. It is already removed but explorer hasn't refreshed the image yet):

Posted Image

Anyway, I accept all the warnings and start eMule, go to Options->Extended and "Sharing eMule with other computer users" is set to "Store config and downloads in the program directory" (according to the registry, it should be set to "Each user has his own configuration and downloads" but it is not). So, to see if it changes the registry key, I set it to "Everyone has the same configuration and downloads" just to test if the key changes to 1, then Apply, then OK and Close. I open the registry editor again and the Key is now at 1, good.
So eMule should look for the config now at C:\ProgramData\eMule, isn't it so?.
But I run eMule again and the same problem!!
1- The language was set to 'English'. You can use the 'Options' dialog at any time to select a different language.
2- Failed to create incoming files directory "C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\Incoming" - Access is denied.
Blah, blah, blah...


I don't understand what is happening.


View Postfox88, on 24 March 2015 - 02:14 PM, said:

View Postjedikalimero, on 24 March 2015 - 02:46 AM, said:

I haven't touched anything in the eMule program folder or the config folder.

That setting could be changed directly in Options; an accidental click will do.

Fox, to change this you have to open Options, go to Extended tab, scroll all the way down and select the setting. It can't happen accidentally. I have recently only opened the Options window to change the speed limits and this was several months ago. Besides, even if I changed it accidentally, changing it back to the correct value or uninstalling and installing again eMule would have made everything work again.
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#10 User is offline   Some Support 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 05:11 PM

Enable the verbose log in the settings and see what the messages say (well, you may need to do this while its not in your protected program folder so it can be safed to the preferences.ini), it will tell you which config directory it tries to use.

Also, are you sure you aren't running eMule as another user? Maybe still admin?

Otherwise, I currently can't think of any situation which could cause this to be honest.

#11 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 05:46 PM

View PostSome Support, on 24 March 2015 - 05:11 PM, said:

Enable the verbose log in the settings and see what the messages say (well, you may need to do this while its not in your protected program folder so it can be safed to the preferences.ini), it will tell you which config directory it tries to use.

Also, are you sure you aren't running eMule as another user? Maybe still admin?

Otherwise, I currently can't think of any situation which could cause this to be honest.


So you suggest me to move emule to a folder where he can write (such as Q:\emule), set the registry key to 0, remove config folder from the program folder and see what happens?

Only one user at this computer: me, but with administrator privileges.
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#12 User is offline   fox88 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 08:41 PM

View Postjedikalimero, on 24 March 2015 - 05:50 PM, said:

Fox, to change this you have to open Options, go to Extended tab, scroll all the way down and select the setting. It can't happen accidentally.

Accidentally here means someone opened the page for whatever reason, then unintentionally clicked on that page so that selection changed (and I know people who always close dialogs with OK button). But even if noone changed that particular setting, something must have changed in your computer.

View Postjedikalimero, on 24 March 2015 - 05:50 PM, said:

Besides, even if I changed it accidentally, changing it back to the correct value or uninstalling and installing again eMule would have made everything work again.

Not necessarily. There is an order in which different locations are tried. If directory is not accessible, eMule tries next option. Finally it defaults to program's installation directory.

This post has been edited by fox88: 24 March 2015 - 08:42 PM

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#13 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 09:27 PM

View Postjedikalimero, on 24 March 2015 - 05:46 PM, said:

View PostSome Support, on 24 March 2015 - 05:11 PM, said:

Enable the verbose log in the settings and see what the messages say (well, you may need to do this while its not in your protected program folder so it can be safed to the preferences.ini), it will tell you which config directory it tries to use.

Also, are you sure you aren't running eMule as another user? Maybe still admin?

Otherwise, I currently can't think of any situation which could cause this to be honest.


So you suggest me to move emule to a folder where he can write (such as Q:\emule), set the registry key to 0, remove config folder from the program folder and see what happens?

Only one user at this computer: me, but with administrator privileges.


I think this is not going to work. The verbosity options are stored in the preferences.ini file inside the config folder. It is currently inside the program folder because it seems to be the only place where eMule looks apparently overriding what the registry Key says. If I leave the config folder there, eMule will find it in its own folder and he will assume "Store config and downloads in the program directory" so everything will run OK but not as we intend. On the other hand, if I move it to where it should be according to the registry Key, eMule will not find it (yes, we don't know why but it will not find it) and it will start with the verbosity deactivated. So even if at the very beginning eMule reads the registry Key at looks up the correct folder and for whatever unknown reason it can't access to C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local, he will not log anything.

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 24 March 2015 - 09:44 PM

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#14 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 24 March 2015 - 09:41 PM

View Postjedikalimero, on 24 March 2015 - 09:27 PM, said:

I think this is not going to work. The verbosity options are stored in the preferences.ini file inside the config folder. It is currently inside the program folder because it seems to be the only place where eMule looks apparently overriding what the registry Key says. If I leave the config folder there, eMule will find it in its own folder and everything will run OK but not from place we want. If I move it to where it should be according to the registry Key, eMule will not find it (yes, we don't know why but it will not find it) and it will start with the verbosity deactivated. So even if at the very beginning eMule reads the registry Key at looks up the correct folder and for whatever unknown reason it can't access to C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local, he will not log anything.


Said and done. I run eMule with the config folder inside the new location of the program folder (currently at Q:\eMule). I set the verbosity on and "Sharing eMule with other computer users" to "Each user has his own configuration and downloads". I exit eMule, check the Registry Key, it is set to 0 as it should be. So now what I do is move the config forder from Q:\eMule to where we would expect eMule to find it: C:\Users\myusername\AppData\Local\eMule and run eMule once again from Q:\eMule. As I expected, eMule starts again blank, only this time the only warning I get is:
1- The language was set to 'English'. You can use the 'Options' dialog at any time to select a different language.

I assume this is because now instead of trying to create incoming files directory "C:\Program Files(x86)\eMule\Incoming", he is trying to create incoming files directory "Q:\eMule\Incoming" so the access is not denied this time and no warnings 2 to 9 are generated. Also, I can see how the folders Incoming and Temp are created inside Q:\eMule as soon as I start the program.

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 24 March 2015 - 09:48 PM

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#15 User is offline   xilolee 

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Posted 25 March 2015 - 03:54 PM

Check your environment variables from Control Panel\System and Security\System - advanced system settings - environment variables or from a command prompt (typing set and pressing enter) or, if you prefer, with this batch (copy the lines, paste them in notepad, save the file as VAR.bat or the name you prefer):

Spoiler


Output (Windows 8.1 x64)

Spoiler

INCONCEIVABLE! - You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
come ottenere aiuto italian guides - guide della sezione italiana
italian support - sezione italiana scaricare la lista server
ottenere id alto impostare le porte nel router
recuperare file corrotti i filtri ip
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#16 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 25 March 2015 - 10:04 PM

View Postxilolee, on 25 March 2015 - 03:54 PM, said:

Check your environment variables from Control Panel\System and Security\System - advanced system settings - environment variables or from a command prompt (typing set and pressing enter) or, if you prefer, with this batch (copy the lines, paste them in notepad, save the file as VAR.bat or the name you prefer):


Everything looks ok:
HOMEDRIVE                 C:
COMPUTERNAME              MAKINON
username                  Juan C Walls
HOMEPATH                  \Users\Juan C Walls
userprofile               C:\Users\Juan C Walls
localappdata              C:\Users\Juan C Walls\AppData\Local
APPDATA                   C:\Users\Juan C Walls\AppData\Roaming
ComSpec                   C:\Windows\system32\cmd.exe
systemroot                C:\Windows
windir                    C:\Windows
ProgramData               C:\ProgramData
ALLUSERSPROFILE           C:\ProgramData
ProgramFiles              C:\Program Files
CommonProgramFiles        C:\Program Files\Common Files
ProgramW6432              C:\Program Files
CommonProgramW6432        C:\Program Files\Common Files
ProgramFiles(x86)         C:\Program Files (x86)
CommonProgramFiles(x86)   C:\Program Files (x86)\Common Files
Press any key to continue . . .

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 25 March 2015 - 10:04 PM

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#17 User is offline   xilolee 

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Posted 26 March 2015 - 12:12 AM

Try this from an elevated command prompt:

TAKEOWN /F "C:\Users\Juan C Walls\AppData\Local\emule" /R /D Y

INCONCEIVABLE! - You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
come ottenere aiuto italian guides - guide della sezione italiana
italian support - sezione italiana scaricare la lista server
ottenere id alto impostare le porte nel router
recuperare file corrotti i filtri ip
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#18 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 19 May 2016 - 06:52 PM

View Postxilolee, on 26 March 2015 - 01:12 AM, said:

Try this from an elevated command prompt:

TAKEOWN /F "C:\Users\Juan C Walls\AppData\Local\emule" /R /D Y



Sorry for not following the topic. I upgraded some components in my computer and installed Windows 8.1 from zero and then upgraded to 10, so fresh installation of eMule worked without problem... for more than a year, until today!!!!

Last night when turning off my computer, I got the typical situation where the screen says to wait for the computer to power off but it never powers off so after a looong wait I had to power it off by holding the power button pressed for five seconds.

Next morning everything seems to work fine except eMule is EXACTLY in the same situation as before!

So I have tried all the previous suggestions, including the last one from xilolee but it doesn't work. :confused:

The AppData\Local\eMule\config folder was copied from the old system to the new one but it worked without problem until the power off incident of last night.

It is the second time it happens, and in a different computer (Well, same computer but somewhat different inners and OS)

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 19 May 2016 - 06:53 PM

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#19 User is offline   xilolee 

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Posted 19 May 2016 - 07:54 PM

Hi jedikalimero.

Download portable 0.50a or 0.50b beta1, then set your temp/complete files folders (and the other settings).
This is a fast way to solve the problem, imho.
INCONCEIVABLE! - You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
come ottenere aiuto italian guides - guide della sezione italiana
italian support - sezione italiana scaricare la lista server
ottenere id alto impostare le porte nel router
recuperare file corrotti i filtri ip
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#20 User is offline   jedikalimero 

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Posted 19 May 2016 - 11:23 PM

View Postxilolee, on 19 May 2016 - 08:54 PM, said:

Hi jedikalimero.

Download portable 0.50a or 0.50b beta1, then set your temp/complete files folders (and the other settings).
This is a fast way to solve the problem, imho.


well, I suppose as fast as moving the program folder to another location (and config folder inside it) where it can be run without permission issues. That's what I've done by now but it is only a workaround while a real solution is found.

Thank you

This post has been edited by jedikalimero: 19 May 2016 - 11:24 PM

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