Problem with ZoomSearch 4 and 5 on Windows 2003 SP2

[Casey]

Hi,

I've just installed Service Pack 2 on our server, running Windows 2003 Server Enterprise Edition.

I noticed that both Zoom 4.2 (build 1011) and Zoom 5 (build 1006) both start to index, but then "disappear" after the program commences indexing the first page, or within the first few pages (ie., after it has initiated HTTP sessions).

The program doesn't crash - no Dr Watson - it just exits.

I have determined that it the problem only occurs after installing SP2.

I have confirmed this with 2 servers. One is our Casey website and the other is a Win2003 server running in VMWare.

On the VMWare machine, I ran Zoom with SP2 installed without problem. I then installed SP2 and it exited. I then uninstalled SP2 and the problem went away. Installing SP2 for the second time, the problem returned. Finally, restoring to a snapshot of that machine without SP2 present (ie., as if it has never been installed) and there was no problem.

Any suggestions?

Thanks,

Michael

[Ray]

We've just confirmed this problem on our Windows 2003 Server machine with SP2 installed, and are currently investigating various possible solutions.

The problem is due to SP2 changing an important setting for DEP ("Data Execution Prevention") which is now defaulted to be enabled for all programs.

We are currently looking into a permanent solution to include in a patch release of Zoom which will address this issue.

But in the meantime, the current workaround is to go to your Windows' "Control Panel" -> "System" -> "Advanced" -> "Data Execution Prevention" tab, and either:

a) Change the selected option from "Turn on DEP for all programs and services..." to "Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and services only".

or

b) Add "ZoomIndexer.exe" to the list of programs and services under "Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select:"

Note that turning on/off DEP requires a system reboot to take effect.

Please let us know if anyone continues to have problems.

[Casey]

Thanks - that has fixed the problem! Thanks a million Ray!

[Ray]

We've just released a new build (Version 5.0.1007) which will automatically add "ZoomIndexer.exe" to the list of applications to be excluded from DEP upon installation.

So if you are experiencing this problem with an older build, installing the latest version will automatically fix this.

You can download the latest build from here:
http://www.wrensoft.com/zoom/whatsnew.html

[Casey]

Thanks again Ray - haven't installed the new build as yet but good to know that the bug has been squashed.

[Ray]

Just to add that DEP is available on Windows XP and Vista as well. However, on XP and Vista 32bit, DEP is disabled by default. But if you have manually enabled it, or a future update enables this feature, then you may come across this problem, and the above solution would apply.

Note that if you are using a build after 5.0.1007, then the Zoom Installation package should have already added itself to the exclusion list and no action should need to be taken (unless you have manually removed the exclusion entry for Zoom).

If you are using the Dreamweaver Extension of Zoom (http://www.wrensoft.com/zoom/support/dreamweaver.html), then this will not automatically add itself to the DEP exclusion list since the Dreamweaver Extension format provides no facility to do so. In this case, you will need to manually add the entry, or disable DEP as described above.

[Ray]

UPDATE:

As of build 5.1.1006 released today, the abovementioned problems with DEP should no longer be an issue. Zoom should now run successfully even when DEP is enabled for all applications and ZoomIndexer is not in the exclusion list.

You can download the latest build from this page:
http://www.wrensoft.com/zoom/whatsnew.html

Please let us know if you continue to have problems similar to the above symptoms with the latest build.

[jetmuzer]

Thanks for the update (http://www.wrensoft.com/zoom/whatsnew.html), it works good now