ORBX software continuous Enabled Addon

[Harrier77 58]

In the last few days every time I launch P3Dv5 it requires all my Orbx products to be enabled (a succession of Enable Request Boxes).

I am running P3Dv5 HF1 and I have uninstalled and re-installed the Orbx products, but no change. Also, Orbx themselves cannot help!

Anyone seeing this? Anyone got any ideas on how to solve this?

 

[JoeFackel 760]

Are you starting P3D with admin rights?

[Harrier77 58]

Yep

[David Roch 1,980]

Yes, it did it to me once -very boring- but not anymore after rebooting the PC.

[Christopher Low 5,339]

Why would anyone need to start P3D with admin rights?

[SteveW 1,792]

31 minutes ago, Christopher Low said:

Why would anyone need to start P3D with admin rights?

I can rock that baby:

Lets say we install an addon that is started from exe.xml. Remember that the simulator refers to exe.xml and starts those programs. These programs inherit the rights of the starting application, our flight simulator.

Now let's also suppose that those programs install files into the simulator or more importantly the program files folder. Let's also suppose those programs want to write settings into those files when we are using the simulator.

Since the regular User does not have Modify Allow permission, those settings can't be saved. This can manifest in a CTD or a simple "can't write to file" error.

When we run the simulator as Admin, we acquire the Modify Allow permission and so the program inherits the permission to save the settings.

Instead we can very easily set the Modify Allow permission for the Users group on the folder. This is the proper way to provide permission to do just the thing we need. We can provide the permission to the Sim folder if we have several programs writing there during the sim.

There are more examples but that's the main gig. Giving Admin access all the time is incorrect since it is the master key and allows malware to run.

 

Edited May 14, 2020 by SteveW

[SteveW 1,792]

...so the idea that Joe came up with is reasonable since when something doesn't work it might just go when run as admin. The fact is that addons should put user updatable files in user modifiable places or set the user up with  proper permissions if the folder is read only. We can see that in Steam FSX:SE whereby the program folder Users group is already set to Modify Allow due to the way steam addons insert into the program folder.

Edited May 14, 2020 by SteveW

[David Roch 1,980]

Very informative, thanks Steve.

[Christopher Low 5,339]

The reason that I am always critical of this "run as administrator" lark is because I have either never had to use it, or because trying it made absolutely no difference whatsoever. Maybe having UAC disabled in Windows 7 masked any problems of this kind, but then "run as administrator" made no difference when I had some issues modifying files in P3D when I upgraded to Windows 10. Only Steve's recommended "Modify - Allow Permission" solved the problem.

In other words, "run as administrator" is next to useless as far as I am concerned.

Edited May 14, 2020 by Christopher Low

[SteveW 1,792]

The other way to avoid problems from program files being a read only location is to install the simulator into a user folder. When we create a folder that folder inherits our permissions. Naturally when we make a folder of our own we can Modify the contents, or rather an application hoping to be writing there can write to it, because we own it.

Modify Allow is a simple procedure so is usually more reliable to provide that permission. That also maintains application security at the same time - run as admin does not.

Obviously all that should not be for us to worry about, and should all be taken care of by the application setup routines when the app has admin permission during installation or updates.

However, remember that some programs were developed when we had no problem access to program files as with Chris's older system. Windows 10 application security is a bit tighter that's all. Some of these programs can't be changed and so they will persist installing into the simulator program folder.

Edited May 14, 2020 by SteveW

[Maury Pratt 5]

7 hours ago, panner said:

In the last few days every time I launch P3Dv5 it requires all my Orbx products to be enabled (a succession of Enable Request Boxes).

I am running P3Dv5 HF1 and I have uninstalled and re-installed the Orbx products, but no change. Also, Orbx themselves cannot help!

Anyone seeing this? Anyone got any ideas on how to solve this?

 

Yes, I have the same issue with P3Dv5 HF1. Computer restart has no effect. Anyone have a solution?

[SteveW 1,792]

How is ORBX installed, migrated or in the simulator program folder?

[Stratocruiser1 134]

I had to answer YES once to each of my ORBX products when I went to P3Dv5.1. Once I said YES to each one, I never was asked again. It is just like if you add a new ORBX airport that you just now purchased and the first time you start P3D, you are asked if you want to add that product. You say YES and you are never asked again.

[SteveW 1,792]

That's what it should do.

Perhaps the sim isn't closing properly, so then maybe the details are not saved correctly requiring enabling each time? Try starting up and go through the procedure of enabling each with Yes, then close the sim before flight. There's a difference between install types, the add-ons section enables migrated scenery.

If all fails reinstall the sim and install ORBX to external library.

[Maury Pratt 5]

7 minutes ago, Stratocruiser1 said:

I had to answer YES once to each of my ORBX products when I went to P3Dv5.1. Once I said YES to each one, I never was asked again. It is just like if you add a new ORBX airport that you just now purchased and the first time you start P3D, you are asked if you want to add that product. You say YES and you are never asked again.

That's the way it's supposed to work; and has on my system until the past week or so. During start up P3D is now asking permission for just the 4 sceneries I've installed and/or activated since installing v5 HF1; and this is happening each time P3D is started (which shouldn't be happening).

I'm using Orbx Central v4.1.9. All Orbx libraries and files are located on a separate drive external to P3D.