I have noticed this for some time... when my computer (Windows 7 x64) gets a BSOD, sometimes ObjectDock - when it starts after a reboot - goes back to its default settings (that is, it brings up its default dock instead of what I had set up).
I go to examine the .ini files for ObjectDock, and the one with all my dock settings is no longer there, but gone completely.
Why would a system crash cause ObjectDock to rewrite its own .ini file with default values? There hasn't been any disk corruption or anything - it seems like ObjectDock does this itself. It is very frustrating, because I've often spent a long time cobbling together my dock the way I like it.
Anyone else see this happening, or know why it happens? Any StarDock person want to chime in?
- Tim
Please contact support so we can get more info.
https://esupport.stardock.com/index.php?/Tickets/Submit
I already did, and was told that I should not have a computer that gets BSOD's.
That is a pretty ridiculous answer from a support department - I'm a software developer with 30 years development experience in industry; an app that rewrites its own configuration file with default values when a system crashes is a badly designed piece of software. I had asked the support folks why this is happening, and they tell me I need a more stable system!
Can you talk with your support people and tell them this is not an acceptable response? Or I can write to them myself - either way, their reply is pretty darned stupid. My system gets a BSOD perhaps once every few months or so, most likely do to third-party driver issues, so there's little I can do about it; Windows systems get BSODs more often than they should, of course, but it happens. An app overwriting its own config file for an unrelated system crash is a ridiculous thing.
What do you think?
Perhaps the more pertinent question is "Why am I having system crashes?".
Actually, it isn't.
There's something wrong with your computer: Stable, updated systems don't crash.
I bet when you solve the problem of crashes, your Object Dock problem gets mysteriously solved, as well.
This doesn't solve your situation but in case you don't know how to save your setting.
Open OD settings. Click on "Troubleshooting Options" On the new window click on "Open my ObjectDock settings folder so I can backup my settings" You can copy and paste what you want to save to a new folder and save it. At least if you do lose your setup files you can just use the saved ones and overwrite the other ones.
I have also had BSOD crashes but have never lost my OD settings (.ini file) You may be able to restore them from the open window. Not sure as I would rather overwrite with files I know are good. Or in your case if the file is totally missing just add the missing file. Sure makes it easy after all the time we may take to get OD look the way we want it to.
Damn Dave you beat me to it.
Here's a link of what Dave's talking about https://forums.wincustomize.com/404232/page/1/#2879207
Thought maybe you were taking a nap. I should have known better then that. lol.
Actually I was searching for the link. Then I took a nap.
It happens because you have an unstable OS system which is apparently suffering BSODs.
It is an effect, not a cause.
To circumvent you either need to make your system stable and/or backup any and all system files to enable restoration of function, not just with Object Dock, but with ALL system-specific programs/addons.
The BSOD you are experiencing is corrupting data and causing issues as your computer fails to complete the normal shutdown process.
I cannot recall the last time I saw a BSOD....I assume they are still 'B' ....on a high-end system running 7 Ult 64 with Object Dock behaving flawlessly, 24/7/365.
Actually, it isn't. There's something wrong with your computer: Stable, updated systems don't crash.I bet when you solve the problem of crashes, your Object Dock problem gets mysteriously solved, as well.
I'll have to disagree with you on that point - I've been in software, and working in Windows environments, for long enough to know how frequently Windows systems of various stripes BSOD; it happens often enough that the frequency with which it happens on my systems does not surprise me.
It is likely NOT system instability CAUSING ObjectDock to lose its settings - for that to happen without it being the fault of ObjectDock's design, then I likely would be seeing the cause be corruption of the ObjectDock .init file itself, triggering ObjectDock to recover as best it can. And if this were true, then I'd be seeing one or all of the below:
1. Disk corruption elsewhere on my system
2. Corruption in regularly accessed files of other sorts
3. Outright driver and system code failures
4. More frequent crashes than the very infrequent ones I've seen.
5. All-out system flakiness on a regular basis
... since the above does not happen, and the only thing on the entire system that "goes bad" after a crash is the content of ObjectDock's .ini file, that seems terribly suspicious to me. Were I assigned to debug this problem, as a developer, I would be looking at the ObjectDock code to see when it attempts to write to the .ini file:
1. Does it do it after any crash?
2. Does it do it if it was in a certain state during a crash?
3. Is it constantly attempting to update the .init file without making a backup during the update, thus causing corruption itself in the case of a system crash?
These are all important questions; and the fact that ObjectDock is the ONLY thing that gets broken after a crash means, to me, that something in ObjectDock's design is at fault.
If you have a better theory with some details involved, please let me know.
Thanks for your suggestions. After this happened the other day, I rebuilt all my tabs to the best of my ability, and then copied the settings folder over to another drive as a backup in case this happens again, so I'm all set for the next time.
It is an effect, not a cause.To circumvent you either need to make your system stable and/or backup any and all system files to enable restoration of function, not just with Object Dock, but with ALL system-specific programs/addons.The BSOD you are experiencing is corrupting data and causing issues as your computer fails to complete the normal shutdown process.I cannot recall the last time I saw a BSOD....I assume they are still 'B' ....on a high-end system running 7 Ult 64 with Object Dock behaving flawlessly, 24/7/365.
Please see my comment above - no other corruption happens, no other apps lose these settings, I get no disk structure corruption - there are absolutely NO other bad effects of the BSOD's I've occasionally had. The ONLY bit of software (Windows system code, drivers, settings files, apps, etc.) that goes haywire after any BSOD I've ever had... has been ObjectDock. That's meaningful.
I don't keep my system up 24/7/365. However, I do have several "exotic" add-in boards and their accompanying drivers, which I believe are likely the cause of the BSODs (nothing too crazy, just some very specific video, audio, and I/O boards). And the BSODs happen reasonably infrequently - not all the time, more like once every few months, as mentioned.
One thing I do with my computer that is different than the way lots of people use theirs these days, is I put my desktop to sleep, and wake it for use. Laptops usually handle this with ease, but desktops don't always recover cleanly (less gracefully than laptops, in my experience). Also, all my desktop machines are ones I've built myself (and I've been building them for about 10 years, so I'm not new at this). Thus, they haven't been vetted for perfectly behaving combinations of hardware that all play well together. The BSODs happen so infrequently that debugging which the culprit(s) is/are would be pretty difficult - I'm willing to put up with it if it means I don't have to spend weeks that I don't have trying to nail down the issue. It could be something as minor as memory timings that VERY occasionally cause issues, but which aren't identified by running MemTest for a day or two.
Every once awhile,there are always people so knowledgeable that the only way that they are looking for is blaming the seller........
I suspect what is happening is you have had a number of BSOD in a row and ObjectDock may well have code to detect it failed to shutdown itself cleanly multiple times in a row in which case it might decide the file is corrupted and causing ObjectDock to crash. Fences for example would shut itself down in such a situation if it happens within a set time of starting up.
I cannot be sure as I am not involved in the development of that product, but it seems logical that may be happening. It probably believes something in the configuration is bad so reverts to safe settings.
Your snark aside, ANYTHING is possible. But one can only go on their experience, and sometimes the product *is* at fault. Since I spend all day, every (week) day debugging code, I think those skills can be useful in trying to figure out what the problem is. I'd happily admit if I thought it more likely that it's the result of data corruption caused by something other than ObjectDock. Given the facts of the matter I've stated, it points to ObjectDock.
As an example - I own several "SqueezeBox" music streaming devices. For some months, one of them would lose WiFi connectivity. My home network used a hidden SSID and MAC filtering (not the most secure things, but it's what I had at the time). The company that made them, Slim Devices, said that they thought it was something wrong with my network. After a long time debugging my network, I found that if I turned on SSID broadcast and turned off MAC filtering, it worked. Slim Devices sent a hardware tech to my home (unheard of, I know - they were a smaller, more friendly, local company back then, before Logitech bought them) and we worked on the issue together. He discovered that it was a fault with their TCP/IP stack that didn't handle hidden SSID and MAC filtering situations correctly. He went back and they fixed their firmware and issued a patch (and he gave me a free SqueezeBox device for my time). So these things DO happen.
Anyway, if you have a better idea of the cause, please submit it.
That's what I would guess. The odd thing is, both the settings file AND the settings backup that ObjectDock keep are reverted to default when this happens. Not sure what to make of that.
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