[Bug]: Installation freezes Windows 10

[glocalglocal]

Installation Method

Local Installation

The Problem

I tried to install Stirling-PDF-win-installer.exe (v0.36.3 on Windows 10) for the first time. Installation freezes at 90%. The popup displays the message:

Initializing Stirling-PDF
Stirling-PDF
Finalising startup...
90%

If I terminate and start C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Stirling-PDF\Stirling-PDF.exe it tries to continue from where it stopped and freezes again.

If I run the downloaded Stirling-PDF-win-installer.exe again, it offers to repair the installation, and in the end I get the same freeze at 90% as above.

Version of Stirling-PDF

0.36.3

Last Working Version of Stirling-PDF

Docker and portable 0.36.0

Page Where the Problem Occurred

No response

Docker Configuration

No response

Relevant Log Output

No response

Additional Information

No response

Browsers Affected

No response

No Duplicate of the Issue

• I have verified that there are no existing issues raised related to my problem.

[Ludy87]

Hi @glocalglocal can you please provide the info.log from the path C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Stirling-PDF\logs?

[glocalglocal]

Upgraded to 0.36.4 and problem persists. info.log attached.
info.log

EDIT: I can access Stirling PDF on the localhost but the error message above remains on the screen.

[HerveKr]

Same for me .... Blocked at 90% on 2 Windows 11 Pcs

[Frooodle]

Are you running any anti viruses?

I have tested this on 5 windows machines and it works on all
So trying to see what you have in common

Anti virus:
Admin/guest account:
Changed install path yes/no

Whatever else you can think of that might differentiate you from other windows users

[HerveKr]

Use MalwareBytes and ad guard ... and Microsoft defender
yesterday tested with ad guard on but disable , same pb

[glocalglocal]

I use the Windows AV but only on-demand. I run as admin and haven't changed the default installation path.

I don't see anything relevant in the Windows Events log.

I have the docker version installed and the portable version. Both work fine but the docker version won't work if I use the default port 8080. 8081, 8082 work OK.

The docker version sees the applications for conversion to docx and compression. The install and portable versions don't, but I am guessing that's by design.

I don't see anything unusual about my setup.

[Frooodle]

https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF/releases/download/v0.36.5/Stirling-PDF-test.exe
Can you see if this version results in anything extra? i have added some logs

[Frooodle]

You will need to uninstall the old version first (should show up in add/remove apps/programs on windows)

[HerveKr]

Yesss this one is one , continue after 90% and see

A big Thanks

[Frooodle]

very odd... i didnt add anything to fix this! I only added more logs to investigate the issue....

Will remain a mystery.... Well will push this in next release anyway :) thanks!

[HerveKr]

lol will test this on other pc in 24h

[Frooodle]

Perhaps the issue is resolved by uninstalling and reinstalling somehow

[HerveKr]

Tested on a second PC : blocked yesterday and uninstall yesterday :
On this too , it's Ok Now (first open in admin, Ok and after in user mode Ok too)

Dont know why lol
Big thanks

[Frooodle]

@glocalglocal how is it your side? can you try that new version
and also see if it shows anything new in info.log

[HerveKr]

For information : this morning tested on a 3nd PC
Classical exe : ask me for firewall windows (local and not locally) , accept , and finally after install block at 90%
Test version : dont ask me for firewall , and directly Ok
Perhaps something to see with firewall

[glocalglocal]

The test version completed OK here too. If there is nothing substantively different with this, then there is still an issue that is hit and miss. HerveKr and I were affected once and reported it. Others may not report it.

I see the install version doesn't do compress and convert to docx. If that's how it is designed to be, I will have to go back to the full docker version anyway which uses ghostscript and LibreOffice for these features.

[BloodyKitchen]

I got the same situation during installation,initializing stuck in 90% even if I uninstall and reinstall can't resolve this problem,and I using the test version it finally work out.

[pehamu]

I had the same issue with the regular Windows installer on a Win 11 laptop. Uninstalled, rebooted, reinstalled, same problem. Tried the test version... installation completed, but then when I started up the program, I get an alert that says "Failed to launch JVM"...
Hope someone can help. Thanks!

[Frooodle]

@pehamu any extra info in logs folder
from the path C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Stirling-PDF\logs?

Also can you open CMD and run java --version just for curiosity

[pehamu]

Thanks Anthony! Attached are the logs. And the CMD prompt gave me this: C:\Users\Peter Murray>java --version 'java' is not recognized as an internal or external command, operable program or batch file. Best, Peter From: Anthony Stirling ***@***.***> Sent: December 24, 2024 7:34 PM To: Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF ***@***.***> Cc: pehamu ***@***.***>; Mention ***@***.***> Subject: Re: [Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF] [Bug]: Installation freezes Windows 10 (Issue #2487) @pehamu <https://github.com/pehamu> any extra info in logs folder from the path C:\Users\user\AppData\Local\Stirling-PDF\logs? Also can you open CMD and run java --version just for curiosity — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#2487 (comment)> , or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/BN6SZS7MMYGJFGRQNJOBXNL2HH4OJAVCNFSM6AAAAABTYKRS2CVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZDKNRRGUYDQOJRGY> . You are receiving this because you were mentioned. <https://github.com/notifications/beacon/BN6SZS24HTSRW2ECIQDROJT2HH4OJA5CNFSM6AAAAABTYKRS2CWGG33NNVSW45C7OR4XAZNMJFZXG5LFINXW23LFNZ2KUY3PNVWWK3TUL5UWJTUYVWDDI.gif> Message ID: ***@***.*** ***@***.***> >

[Frooodle]

Seems logs didn't attach via the GitHub email reply

[pehamu]

Seems logs didn't attach via the GitHub email reply

info.log
invalid-auths.log

[Flithor]

I was also stuck at 90%.
But can use it by open http://localhost:8080 in browser.
more info: The log file is locked by progress when running(Stirling-PDF.exe, jcef_helper.exe)
logs files:
logs.zip

[greaturchin]

I had the same issue where it stuck at 90%. I came here, read all the posts, put my computer aside for the evening, came to the laptop the next day and it was finished. Not sure when it completed, but it eventually did on its own. Hopefully that provides something.

And, after writing the above, I closed the app, reopened it, and it was back to the "Finalising startup" 90% message.

[alexgan123]

I installed Stirling PDF from https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF/releases/download/v0.36.5/Stirling-PDF-win-installer.exe and when I open the app, it is also stuck on finalising startup at 90%.

Here is my logs:
info.log

[topoldo]

Updating from 0.34 to 0.36.5, running with admin permission and using the "official" version..
Putting the executable in:
C:\Programs Files\stirlingtools\Stirling-PDF
Opened the firewall both for private & public networks
Installation freeze at 90%
info.log and debug.log attached
I'll also try with the snapshot on next day.

Topoldo

debug.log
info.log

Topoldo

[topoldo]

I forgot: I have Win11 24H2

[topoldo]

Hi.
I uninstalled my Stirling.pdf version 0.34 leaving the original subdir:
C:\Program Files\stirlingtools\configs
which contained 0.34 version of:

• custom_settings.yml (0 byte)
• settings.yml
  The content of this original 0.34 settings.yml is herein attached (with a .txt extension because of limitation on kinds of attachment of this forum):

settings.yml.txt

Then I downloaded the "test" version:
https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF/releases/download/v0.36.5/Stirling-PDF-test.exe

and I tried to install it into two different locations, running in both cases the installation and the program using admin permissions.

In these conditions I was successfull in both cases and herein I attach the logs of both kinds of installation:

1. C:\Users\Leopoldo\AppData\Local
   debug_local.log
   info_local.log

2. _C:\Program Files\stirlingtools_
   debug_prg.log
   info_prg.log

Regards,
Leopoldo/Topoldo

[Frooodle]

Hey again, back with a new version, some fixes, and writes data to AppData\Roaming\Stirling-PDF
Should also now default install to program files

https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF/releases/download/v0.36.6/Stirling-PDF-test2.exe

Can you see if this fixes the 90% issue and if you have any other issues with it?

[greaturchin]

It still stops at 90% for me

[Frooodle]

Can you check AppData\Roaming\Stirling-PDF for logs. And also see if any log file in webui folder

[djc0739]

I was having the same issue with the installer on Windows 10 computer. Tried running repair which did not help. I did notice that Windows Firewall blocked the program during install, but allowed it and install continued to the 90% mark and froze.

I uninstalled original version and tried the new version and Windows Defender blocked it from installing. I installed anyway and had to allow access through Windows Firewall again. Same result, install froze at 90%.

There was no log in webui folder. Here is the log from AppData\Roaming\Stirling-PDF.
info.txt

[Frooodle]

Great feedback thanks!
I have addressed some of the issues in that log in
https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF/releases/download/v0.36.6/Stirling-PDF-test3.exe

Hopefully we can get to the bottom of this
To install this since its same version number you need to uninstall the previous one from windows app menu

[topoldo]

Hi.
In my Win11 24H2, I removed all my previous installations of StirlingPDF: both as a server (no need to uninstall - just removed it and all its subfolders from the PC) and the "standalone" version - in this case by using the uninstall feature of the Windows Control Panel.

Then I installed "test3" version as standard user.
Also in these condition I had a freezing at 90%.
The info.log which I found in:
%APPDATA%\Roaming\Stirling-PDF\logs
was this:
info1.log

At this point I killed the StirlingPDF process and re-launched StirlingPDF as admin from its desktop shortcut.
However also in this case it froze at 90%.
In this case the log which was the "sum" of the previous log + lines added by the second execution is herein attached:
info2.log

Seeing that last line of this log was different from the last one of the first execution, and that it was:
2025-01-04 17:38:27,489 INFO s.s.S.SPdfApplication [main] Navigate to http://localhost:8080

I tried to open Firefox (which is my default browser) and I left it opened, while I re-launched (as admin) Stirling-PDF for the third time using its Desktop shortcut.
Unfortunately also in this case the program froze at 90% and its log (which is the combination of the 2 previous logs + the lines added by this last attempt) is reported in the attachment below:
info3.log

HTH
Topoldo

[djc0739]

This time I tried the new download on a Win 11 machine with the same results. Had to allow Windows Defender block and installation stopped at 90%. Please see attached.
info.log

[Frooodle]

I wonder what your installations all have in common
If its not OS etc is it locale?

What default language etc is installed for everyone?

[djc0739]

Both my installs were on Dell notebooks. The Win 10 machine is at 4 or 5 years old and the Win 11 machine is less than a year old.
My locale is English, USA, Eastern Time Zone.

[Frooodle]

what CPUs are they?

[Ludy87]

freezes

x	x
Prozessor	Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU N2940 @ 1.83GHz 1.83 GHz
Installierter RAM	4,00 GB (3,88 GB verwendbar)
Systemtyp	64-Bit-Betriebssystem, x64-basierter Prozessor
Edition	Windows 10 Home
Version	22H2
Betriebssystembuild	19045.4170
Leistung	Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.19054.1000.0

does not freeze

x	x
Prozessor	AMD Ryzen 7 3700U with Radeon Vega Mobile Gfx 2.30 GHz
Installierter RAM	40,0 GB (37,9 GB verwendbar)
Systemtyp	64-Bit-Betriebssystem, x64-basierter Prozessor
Edition	Windows 11 Home
Version	23H2
Betriebssystembuild	22631.4602
Leistung	Windows Feature Experience Pack 1000.22700.1055.0

[Frooodle]

Not working on

x	x
Processor	Intel(R) Core(TM) Ultra 9 185H
Edition	Windows 11 Home
Version	23H2
Version	10.0.22631 Build 22631
RAM	32GB

[topoldo]

Freezes

Later (I don't know if I can today or tomorrow) I could test 2 more devices with old processors
Topoldo

[HerveKr]

Freeze too with this one :

Nom de l'appareil INTEL-NUC02-WINDOWS
Processeur 11th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-1135G7 @ 2.40GHz 2.42 GHz
Mémoire RAM installée 16,0 Go (15,6 Go utilisable)
ID de périphérique 614D
ID de produit 00330-5
Type du système Système d’exploitation 64 bits, processeur x64
Stylet et fonction tactile La fonctionnalité d’entrée tactile ou avec un stylet n’est pas disponible sur cet écran

Édition Windows 11 Professionnel
Version 24H2
Installé le ‎04/‎12/‎2024
Build du système d’exploitation 26100.2605
Expérience Pack d’expérience de fonctionnalités Windows 1000.26100.36.0

[djc0739]

My Win 10 machine is: Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-8550U CPU @ 1.80GHz, 1992 Mhz, 4 Core(s), 8 Logical Processor.
My Win 11 machine is: 12th Gen Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-1255U CPU 1700 Mhz, 10 Core(s), 12 Logical Processor.

[Frooodle]

Weirdly i managed to resolve the loading issue by getting it to 90%
Put PC to sleep
re-wake laptop and then it loads, no idea what this means the issue is, likely some thread issue, we will keep investigating

[Flithor]

@Frooodle Nice try, I found that too, but I can use on browser so I'm not consider any more.

[Strongly7402]

Same issue with v0.36.6. Installation worked fine by running Stirling-PDF-win-installer.exe. App launch freezes at 90% saying "Finalising startup...". Tested on Windows Sandbox (Windows 10).

[topoldo]

Hi.
As I promised, I installed Stirling-PDF (client for Windows v. 0.36.6) in another PC (maybe I can try in 3 other PCs in next days).

The PC is a Notebook HP Elite 8440p (2009) with Win11 Pro installed.
Its data (CPU, RAM etc...) are reported here:

When I perform the installation in this PC what happens is the following:

1. the installation (run as admin ) is slow (it's an old machine with only 8GB of RAM!), it stops a little bit to 90%, then go on to the END.
2. When I relaunched the program, it opened but what I got was a blank screen.
3. I checked for the Task Manager and what I got was:
   
   so it seems there wasn't a problem of CPU/RAM.
4. When I killed the process(es) Task Manager was this:
   

The full log from the first installation to the killing of the second launch is reported here:
info.log

IMHO it could be important to check also the version of jdk used.
In my case I'm using: jdk-21.0.5_x64_bin, both in this PC and in the other one I used previously.

After this installation I got a flash of inspiration seeing what happened.
That is: even when I performed the very first installation of Stirling-PDF 0.36.6 on my main PC, I was successfull.
At that time I did not give importance to that fact. Then, in the following installations I started to have freezing at 90%.
So it seems there is something like an "imprinting" created during the first installation that prevents following installations/executions.

My question: when we uninstall this version of Stirling-PDF, we really delete any key/stuff from the Registry?
Is it stupid thinking that something stays there and creates some problems later?

Regards,
Topoldo

[djc0739]

Trying to download test version 3 to give it another try, but I am receiving a page not found error. Is it no longer available?

[Frooodle]

Correct https://github.com/Stirling-Tools/Stirling-PDF/releases/download/v0.36.6/Stirling-PDF-test4.exe

[djc0739]

Tried test 4 installation with the same result. I tried stopping task, rebooting, and started app with the same result. Get to 90% and freezes. I am attaching the log.

I did notice that the app is attempting to use port 8080, which I am already using for something else.
info.log

[MetherFxcker]

您好，我是一名中国用户，我下载了Stirling-PDF-test4.exe文件并完成安装，但仍然在加载至90%时停止不动，无法进入应用，请问是否可以帮忙解决？

[Monoxide8969]

I too have the same issue with test4. Windows 11

[bret-miller]

I have Windows 11 24H2 as well. I downloaded test4, ran the installer as administrator, then ran Stirling-PDF as administrator. It "Finalising startup..." and sitting there at 90%.
info.log
debug.log

After looking at debug.log, it said the cache path was invalid, so I created the cache directory shown and ran it again. Now it says:
"The cache_path directory (C:\Users\bret.miller\AppData\Roaming\Stirling-PDF\clientWebUI\cache) is not a child of the root_cache_path directory (C:\Users\bret.miller\AppData\Roaming\Stirling-PDF\clientWebUI\root_cache)"

But I don't a cache_path setting anywhere I can change. Just trying to see if these errors have anything to do with the app hanging at 90%.
debug2.log

[Strongly7402]

Tested on v0.37.0. Same issue again. I think issue can be related to Windows Firewall? I tested installation in Windows Sandbox. After a fresh install and first launch where it downloads bunch of fines, I get a Windows Security alert right when the launch gets stuck at 90%.

[topoldo]

Installing v. 0.37. Same result of 0.36.6. I also tried to disable Windows Firewall but freezing persists...
Topoldo

[Frooodle]

Thanks everyone for persistent testing
I am trying it find a workaround, it seems it lies with the underlying tooling of java-cef we using to spin up the UI
I don't think more input from you is needed for now
I have managed to reproduce the issue on one of my laptops so will be using this for testing for resolution

[Flithor]

For those waiting for the fix:
Even though if stuck on 90%, you still can use this tool by open http://localhost:8080/ in browser.
(or use the server version)