freeAXP/Avanti build 653 and 653a - problems updating from 649

I'm running VSI community distro v8.4-2L1, formerly successfully on build 649,
on Windows 10 pro, build 19042.685.

I noticed the new 653 build. I attempt to install 653, replacing 649.
All kinds of trouble ensues.

When I first started the configurator after the upgrade, it hangs upon loading the pre-existing configuration. I believe that this was a 'hard' hang, in which i could not forcibly terminate the process from windows task manager. When I attempted to reboot Windows, the reboot also hangs.

After hitting the RESET button, I started the configurator and this time, the configurator process does not hang; however, when I attempted to start the emulator process, dec.exe, the emulator process hangs, again in such a way that it cannot be terminated, and reboot required pressing RESET.

After this, I reverted to build 649, which fortunately still works.

Today, I notice that a new build 653a has appeared, so I tried again. This time I used control panel to remove the broken version, rebooted, installed 653a, rebooted again, prior to starting the configurator. This time, the config file loads without a process hang, but dec.exe, when started, still immediately enters a hung state (no CPU time charged). Again, I cannot use Task Manager to terminate the process. First attempt is accepted silently, subsequent ones return an 'Access is denied' pop-up. I haven't tried system reboot yet, but I expect the same behavior as before.

This system has no other applications that use an NDIS shim (*pcap), so no conflicts should arise. I am running with only a single NIC - which has been trouble-free until now.

I plan next to reboot again, and create a new configuration file from scratch, to see if anything changes.

Frustration: Why, oh why, can't this thing 'just work' ?

Sorry, I fibbed one little bit above; this system does have 2x NIC installed. The one used in the pre-existing configuration is named 'Ethernet 2'.

Also note that yet again, rebooting Windows required use of the RESET button.

After the reboot, I created a new configuration file - which results in unchanged behavior; dec.exe process is still hung, and can't be terminated.

I checked to see which version of msipcap was installed in \windows\system32\drivers, and it IS the one supplied by 653.

Is Winpcap installed on the system? If so, remove it. It conflicts with msipcap. If you need Winpcap functionality, switch to Npcap.

The problem has been solved.

It appears that Winpcap is a thing that just won't die. I found it on two of my systems that run freeAXP. Winpcap didn't appear to cause problems with build 649, but it's fatal to 653.

At issue with Winpcap is that once it's installed, typically by a dependent product, it doesn't necessarily get removed when said product is removed - after which, Winpcap doesn't necessarily show up on the Control Panel 'Programs and Features' panel.

I solved the problem by renaming three files; packet.dll and wpcap.dll (in &#92;windows&#92;system32&#92<img src='../images/smiley/wink.gif' alt='smiley'>, and npf.sys (in &#92;windows&#92;system32&#92;drivers&#92<img src='../images/smiley/wink.gif' alt='smiley'>, so they would not be found by Windows during system startup.

I had also tried INSTALLING Winpcap over itself, with the intent of trying to remove same afterwards - this failed because some of the pre-existing files couldn't be replaced by the installer.

It would be helpful if the freeAXP installer could alert the user to the presence of Winpcap.

I am glad you were able to resolve the issue. FreeAXP 653 addresses this in two ways:

- The FreeAXP log file indicates the pcap driver in use. Search on "pcap" to find the relevant lines.

- msipcap is now the default NDIS driver. If npcap use is desired, the use_npcap_driver option must be enabled in the configuration file. See the FreeAXP User Guide and Release Notes for details.

These changes do not address older implementations of Winpcap. Winpcap 4.1.3 has always interfered with FreeAXP's NDIS driver. A change in Windows broke compatibility with Winpcap 4.1.2 and older versions. These issues are addressed in the FreeAXP Release Notes. The short answer is: Replace Winpcap with Npcap.