WinBatch® Technical Support Forum

All Things WinBatch => Customer Service => Topic started by: limnos on September 27, 2018, 06:48:51 AM

Title: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: limnos on September 27, 2018, 06:48:51 AM
I entered the new license info for both the compiler and at the main winbatch winbatch window, but still getting prompted for a license when I right-click open a wbt in WB studio, when I try to enter it there, it barks that I'm not a local administrator (which I am).  So, I went back in to Winbatch.exe and ran it as administrator, then re-entered the license info...still same problem when I right-click and open a wbt in Studio.  We just purchased a 6 user license.
Title: Re: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: td on September 27, 2018, 07:43:00 AM
What exactly do you mean by "right-click and open a wbt in Studio"?  Are you referring to launching WinBatch Studio from an Explorer window by selecting a FileMenu menu option or are you referring to using the context menu of WinBatch Studio's project window?  What exactly do you see when it (whatever it is) " it barks that I'm not a local administrator"?  Also, which version of Windows are you running WinBatch on?
Title: Re: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: limnos on September 27, 2018, 10:32:22 AM
When I right click a .wbt in windows explorer (Windows 10 1607) and select the option "Winbatch Studio", I get a "Visa-Master Card" Buy Now window with the button for "Enter License Info", even though I have already entered my license info in the Winbatch.exe window for both the studio and the compiler opened as a local admin.  When I enter my license info at the "Enter License Info" window and click on OK, I get this message (Which I will attach) "WIL Licensing Error" - "Unable to write registration data to INI\registry.  Try licensing from an account with Administrator rights."  When I click "OK" that error message, I get another pop up stating "Incorrect Licensing Data".

Title: Re: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: limnos on September 27, 2018, 10:33:12 AM
Second attachment.
Title: Re: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: limnos on September 27, 2018, 10:50:16 AM
Well, now it gets even weirder.  When I clicked on "I agree" to the license purchase window after a right click open wbt in WB studio (To get around the license prompt issue), when I went to a compile (Which, I entered the license info into the compiler right after I upgraded), it prompted for the license info.  I entered it, it compiled.  NOW, when I right click open wbt in explorer, it's happy and opens it without prompting for a license....?????  I've been a 15+ year WB user (closer to 20 truth be told), so I'm not a newbie to this stuff.  Very weird...W10???
Title: Re: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: td on September 27, 2018, 01:44:14 PM
Almost always when you display a Shell Explorer window the window's process does not have elevated administrator privileges even if you are using an admin account and have UAC prompting turned off.  This is why you get the error message about needing administrator privileges. In other words, it is very difficult to license WinBatch from FileMenu on Windows 8 and newer versions of Windows. 

There is no mystery and the behavior is expected but seldom encountered because users usually have WinBatch licensed before they ever use FileMenu.

While very rare, users do sometimes have to enter their license information multiple times for WinBatch or the Compiler to get both to "stick".  There are several reasons why this happens and identifying the exact cause, in this case, is not possible without wasting a bunch of time better spent on other pursuits.  If you ever encounter this again the best solution is to either start Navigator to first delete and then re-enter your license information or simply uninstall and reinstall WinBatch+Compiler.
Title: Re: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: limnos on September 28, 2018, 07:32:44 AM
Yeah, I never get the prompt if I open studio first then browse to the wbt's.  It's only a function of the file explorer\right click functionality.  What is odd, is that it never did this under the last version I had installed on this PC (2016A), it only started happening when I upgraded to 2018A.  No big deal, just an annoyance.
Title: Re: Entered License but still getting prompted for license
Post by: td on September 28, 2018, 08:22:20 AM
Again, this has nothing to do with some change in WinBatch.  You would get the same result with any version of WinBatch over the last 10 years given the same set of conditions and it is not "odd" in the sense that it is understood behavior.   Put another way, the inability to license WinBatch using FileMenu is the result of how Windows 10 UAC is implemented and not any change to WinBatch, and license numbers not sticking can occur on any version of WinBatch and any supported version of Windows back to Windows 2000.

If you are going to write scripts for and on Windows 10,  it is strongly recommended that you get a clear understanding of how UAC works on Windows 10.