True Vector Engine

[Knack]

I've had a problem with both the current (v 3.7.211) and November 2001 (v
2.6.357) versions of ZoneAlarm (ZA) freeware. My problem has not been as
severe as described by the poster. Sometimes the TrueVector Internet Monitor
Service won't start because it thinks there's an instance of it already
running. Another problem is that sometimes the TrueVector Basic Logging
Client service won't start because the file minilog.exe cannot be found.

The former problem seems to be indirectly related to Windows not being able
to find a DHCP server upon bootup. When the DHCP client has such difficulty,
CPU load goes way up, RPC Service may not start and consequently many other
services directly or indirectly dependent on RPC Service may not start
either.

The latter problem may also be indirectly related to no DHCP server also.
Haven't investigated it thoroughly yet to say for sure.

~~~

Anyway, the poster should check Event Viewer to see what errors precede the
problem with ZA. It's probably some other error that's bringing down ZA,
which in turn is bringing down the computer.

But yes, uninstalling ZA would be a good diagnostic test to see if in fact
ZA is the root of the problem. It can then be reinstalled.

 

[Pat Hartman]

I am running XP pro and have applied all patches and
driver updates. My system simply shuts down. Sometimes
several times a day. Sometimes not for a week or two.
Sometimes the screen goes black. Other times the system
just freezes and I have no cursor or mouse control. The
only recovery is a hard reboot. The system error log
indicates that the "True Vector Engine" is the program
that abended. Gateway tech support's only suggestion is
to reinstall Windows. Any other suggestions?

 

[Chris Lanier]

True Vector Engine is part of ZoneAlarm. Please reinstall the latest
version of it, or contact ZoneLabs for support.

 

[Pat Hartman]

Thanks very much. I'll do that.

True Vector Engine is part of ZoneAlarm. Please reinstall the latest
version of it, or contact ZoneLabs for support.

 

[Will Denny]

Hi

These 'techs' are marvellous, aren't they - if anything goes wrong 're-install Windows'. True Vector is part of ZoneAlarm. The best remedy is to uninstall/re-install ZA:

http://www.zonelabs.com/store/content/support/znalm26Main.jsp#1

Perhaps you may like to pass this URL onto Gateway for future reference for True Vector problems and tell them to sort the problem out themselves next time.

 

[Lem]

Hi

These 'techs' are marvellous, aren't they - if anything goes wrong 're-install Windows'. True Vector is part of ZoneAlarm. The best remedy is to uninstall/re-install ZA:

http://www.zonelabs.com/store/content/support/znalm26Main.jsp#1

Perhaps you may like to pass this URL onto Gateway for future reference for True Vector problems and tell them to sort the problem out themselves next time.

I find absolutely amazing the number of "experts" whose solution to virtually every problem is to format the disk and reinstall Windows. My wife's office manager was
convinced that "because a virus had so damaged the disk" they had to throw out the hard drive and replace it with a new one. They did it, too.

 

[Will Denny]

I find absolutely amazing the number of "experts" whose solution to virtually every problem is to format the disk and reinstall Windows. My wife's office manager was
convinced that "because a virus had so damaged the disk" they had to throw out the hard drive and replace it with a new one. They did it, too.

Who had the final decision? I'm surprised at the number of professional people who are not adequately trained in IT. One category is teachers - and before I get a cavalcade of retorts - my wife is a teacher and she completely agrees with me. The standard of IT training for teachers in the UK is 'rock bottom'.

 

[Lem]

Who had the final decision? I'm surprised at the number of professional people who are not adequately trained in IT. One category is teachers - and before I get a cavalcade of retorts - my wife is a teacher and she completely agrees with me. The standard of IT training for teachers in the UK is 'rock bottom'.

Don't know, but presumably it was the non-technical manager. I only heard about it after the fact, and wasn't about to stick my head in that particular lion's mouth.

 

[cimex]

Will, things aren't any better here in the states!



're-install Windows'. True Vector is part of ZoneAlarm. The best remedy is
to uninstall/re-install ZA:for True Vector problems and tell them to sort the problem out themselves
next time.

I find absolutely amazing the number of "experts" whose solution to

virtually every problem is to format the disk and reinstall Windows. My
wife's office manager was

convinced that "because a virus had so damaged the disk" they had to throw

out the hard drive and replace it with a new one. They did it, too.

Who had the final decision? I'm surprised at the number of professional
people who are not adequately trained in IT. One category is teachers - and
before I get a cavalcade of retorts - my wife is a teacher and she
completely agrees with me. The standard of IT training for teachers in the
UK is 'rock bottom'.

 

[Ken Blake]

In

I find absolutely amazing the number of "experts" whose solution to
virtually every problem is to format the disk and reinstall

Windows.


Yup--it's one of my pet peeves. With a modicum of care, it should
never be necessary to reinstall Windows (XP or any other version)
from scratch. I've run Windows 3.0, 3.1, WFWG 3.11, Windows 95,
Windows 98, Windows 2000, and Windows XP, each for the period of
time before the next version came out, and each on two machines
here. I never reinstalled any of them, and I have never had
anything more than an occasional minor problem.

Technical support people at many of the larger OEMs, in response
to almost any problem they don't quickly know the answer to say
"reformat and reinstall." That's the perfect solution for them.
It gets you off the phone quickly, it almost always works, and it
doesn't require them to do any real troubleshooting (a skill that
most of them obviously don't possess in any great degree).

But it leaves you with all the work and all the problems. You
have to restore all your data backups, you have to reinstall all
your programs, you have to reinstall all the Windows and
application updates, you have to locate and install all the
needed drivers for your system, you have to recustomize Windows
and all your apps to work the way you're comfortable with.
Besides all those things being time-consuming and troublesome,
you may have trouble with some of them: can you find all your
application CDs? Can you find all the needed application codes?
Do you have data backups to restore? Do you even remember all the
customizations and tweaks you may have installed to make
everything work the way you like?

Occasionally there are problems that are so difficult to solve
that Windows should be reinstalled cleanly. But they are few and
far between; reinstallation should not a substitute for
troubleshooting; it should be a last resort, to be done only
after all other attempts at troubleshooting by a qualified person
have failed.

And reinstalling Windows prophylactically--without the intent to
solve a specific problem? That's simply nonsense. Almost every
time I see someone do this foolish thing, he ends up with
problems he didn't have before--for example, because he didn't
realize that he needs a driver for some piece of hardware.