Desktop won't start up

[DHodges]

I've written a script that is supposed to launch Retrospect and back up a set of files every night. Unfortunately, no matter what settings I try, Retrospect simply will not launch at 10:00 P.M. (the time in the script). I've checked and re-checked the script. I've asked Retrospect to verify it, and it says it's ready; so I quit from Retrospect. But when I launch Retrospect the next morning, it immediately begins a countdown to execute the script that should have run the night before. What am I missing?!?

[AmyJ]

What OS? What version of Retrospect?

 

 

 

Make sure you are running the latest version, available from: Updatescolor=blue>

[DHodges]

Mac OS 10.2.2 and Retrospect 5.0.205 (the latest version).

[AmyJ]

In reply to:

---

Retrospect 5.0.205 (the latest version).

---

 

 

 

This was a known issue with this version of Retrospect under Jaguar. Please download the Jaguar compatible version (5.0.238) from the Updatescolor=blue> page.

[DHodges]

I DID download the one marked 238, and the installer is also marked 238 (retrospect_50238_desktop_en.sit). But after I install, the version number still says 205. Weird, I know, but that what is happening.

[AmyJ]

Hold down the Cmd key and click the radio button 'Off' on the client. Then apply the client upgrade.

 

 

 

If the client still shows up with an old build number, try uninstalling the old, and reinstalling the new.

[rpeskin]

Unfortunately, Version 5.0.238 doesn't fix this problem. It appears to be present in some configurations, but not others. I have a dual processor G4 with one client (clock is synchronized), and Retrospect will not start automatically as per its script schedules. On a single processor system with no clients, it is starting automatically. It will shut down however, after completing a scheduled script. Until this is fixed I suggest using a cron process to startup Retrospect to assure it will be running at its scheduled script times.

[DHodges]

"Get Info" now reads that it's version 5.0.238, but it still won't start up on its own. It acts exactly as before. I found this out before I tried what you suggested. I had to restart the machine for some other reason, and then I noted that the version number changed to 238.

 

 

 

I'll still try the uninstall/reinstall if you suggest that. However, I'm not sure what you mean about the radio button on the client and client upgrade. This is the "Desktop" version and I just use it to back up a single machine.

[DHodges]

Thank you for your help. I'm not sure exactly what a "cron process" is. Please advise.

[CallMeDave]

Try this:

 

 

 

1- Open the Console application in your Utilities folder (/Applications/Utilities/)

 

2- Visit the Preferences item under the Console menu

 

3- Switch to the Crashes tab

 

4- Check the box for "Automatically display crash logs"

 

5- Quit the Console application

 

 

 

Now, launch Retrospect.

 

 

 

Does the Console application launch and display a crash of retrorun?

 

 

 

If so, try this:

 

 

 

1- Quit Retrospect

 

2- Open the Startup Items folder (/Library/StartupItems/)

 

3- Drag the "RetroRun" folder to the Trash

 

5- Empty the Trash

 

6- Launch Retrospect

 

 

 

What happens?

 

 

 

Dave

 

 

 

 

 

 

[rpeskin]

A cron process is a Unix process that does scheduled jobs on behalf of users and the system. You can schedule your own jobs to be run at specified times by creating a "crontab" of your own. Open the Terminal.app and from the command line: (I'll denote the commandline prompt by a ">")

 

 

 

> crontab -e

 

 

 

This will open the Unix editor of your choice and you can create a crontab file; When you save this file, it will automatically register your crontab and your jobs will run as scheduled. To learn more about crontab:

 

 

 

>man crontab

 

(for the overall description)

 

 

 

>man 5 crontab

 

(for the crontab file syntax, etc.)

 

 

 

What I did was to use the Retrospect scheduler to schedule my scripts. When I found that Retrospect was not starting on its own (this appears to be a thread problem associated only with some systems, e.g. dual processor systems), I set up the following crontab to "force start" Retrospect at required times:

 

---

 

59 22 * * 1-5 open "/Applications/Retrospect 5.0/Retrospect";echo "23" >> ~rpeskin/backupCronLog

 

59 0 * * sat open "/Applications/Retrospect 5.0/Retrospect"; echo "1" >> ~rpeskin/backupCronLog

 

59 1 * * sat open "/Applications/Retrospect 5.0/Retrospect"; echo "2" >> ~rpeskin/backupCronLog

 

59 3 * * sat/2 open "/Applications/Retrospect 5.0/Retrospect";echo "4" >> ~rpeskin/backupCronLog

 

59 4 * * sat/2 open "/Applications/Retrospect 5.0/Retrospect"; echo "5" >> ~rpeskin/backupCronLog

 

-----

 

The first line says to launch Retrospect at 10:59 PM (and put the characters "23" in a log file so I can check that it worked). In effect, I'm launching Retrospect 60 seconds before Retrospect's scheduler starts one of my scripts.

 

Hope this helps,

 

--dick peskin

 

 

[rpeskin]

This "crash" problem was fixed in Retrospect 5.0.238. The failure of Retorspect to launch itself with its own scheduler is still present in "238", but it appears to be happening only for some system configurations. In my case it happens with the dual processor system but not the single processor systems.

 

--dick peskin

[DHodges]

For what it's worth, this is a G4 dual processor, 1.25 GHz system running 10.2.2. I'll try the cron process if no one can suggest anything simpler by Wednesday.

[betsmark]

I've been having the same problem on an ongoing basis for quite a while now. I'm on a 466 single-processor G4 running Jaguar, and have faithfully updated Retrospect every time one comes along. Oddly enough, with the last two updates, the autolaunch will work on the first scheduled opportunity immediately after the update, which prompts me to say "yippee! Finally!", but then it never autolaunches again afterwards. I'm getting into the habit of launching Retrospect manually every couple of days or so, because then the script automatically starts running, but I don't think this is what I bought the software for.

 

 

 

Oh, also, after every backup, the machine shuts down just dandy, but on rebooting the next day Retrospect invariably gives me an "process interrupted" error warning. However, when I check, the backup seems to have been completed successfully.

 

 

 

Come on, folks! Is OS X really this difficult to deal with? Howzabout a Retrospect that works?

 

 

 

signed,

 

 

 

Frustrated, to Say the Least

[CallMeDave]

In reply to:

---

Oh, also, after every backup, the machine shuts down just dandy, but on rebooting the next day Retrospect invariably gives me an "process interrupted" error warning. However, when I check, the backup seems to have been completed successfully.

---

 

 

 

This is probably caused by the way Retrospect shuts down. Log in a shell session and watch when your script finishes; Retrospect will send a "shutdown" command, which might kill everything too quickly.

 

 

 

>>Come on, folks! Is OS X really this difficult to deal with?

 

>>Howzabout a Retrospect that works?

 

 

 

Funny, but Retrospect auto-launches for me each and every time.

 

 

 

Dave

[DHodges]

If this is an acknowledged problem on dual processor systems (of which kind mine is), does anyone know of any plans to fix it?

[betsmark]

OK, let me amend that to "howabout a Retrospect that works for people besides Dave?".

 

 

 

Thanks to Dave for the suggestion, but my sense of humor about this program is stretched pretty thin at the moment. Dave, I think it's great that autolaunch works for you each and every time, but I don't find it funny at all. And neither do the numbers of people posting to this forum with the same problem.

 

 

 

Perhaps if I could afford the exorbitant tech support fees Dantz charges, I could get some good one-on-one assistance and track this problem down to its source on my system, but in the meantime I'm resigned to forum posts, update downloads and hoping for a general fix. Someday.

 

 

 

Could someone at Dantz come up with a list of possible causes for this problems, perhaps a diagnostic walkthrough of some sort, and post it?

[Tresy]

I couldn't have written a better description of the problem I'm having, the way I'm forced to deal with it, or my opinion of Dantz for not addressing it. FWIW, I posted a note about this in the forums a couple of months ago, and as far as I know, Dantz never replied to it. I see that the Dantz person on this thread gave up addressing the original problem weeks ago.

 

 

 

Way to go, Dantz. That's some tech support. Really makes me glad I bought a backup program that gives me one more computer problem to think about, rather than one less.

[CallMeDave]

>>I couldn't have written a better description of the problem I'm having, the way I'm forced to deal with it, or my opinion of Dantz for not addressing it. <<

 

 

 

Addressing _what?_

 

 

 

Retrospect auto-launches for _most_ users (or we'd have a _lot_ more then 4 users describing it here). It auto-launches for me on _multiple_ machines.

 

 

 

So why doesn't it work for you?

 

 

 

I have no idea. And without detailed, specific information from you it's unlikely anybody will come up with an answer.

 

 

 

And if you can't write a better description then the ones that have been written then it's unlikely that you'll be able to come up with the sort of detailed, specific information that would be needed. For example, I replied toD Hodges with a concise list of something to try and ended with the question "what happens." Yet he does not reply with what happens.

 

 

 

Everybody is talking, but no one is listening.

 

 

 

>>FWIW, I posted a note about this in the forums a couple of months ago, and as far as I know, Dantz never replied to it.

 

 

 

The Profile for Tresy shows a total of 7 posts, but clicking on the Total Posts link only shows 3 (none of which concern Retrospect not auto-launching). I don't know where the Forum has put your other posts, but perhaps reposting your problem would be helpful now?

 

 

 

>>I see that the Dantz person on this thread gave up addressing the original problem weeks ago.

 

Way to go, Dantz. That's some tech support. <<

 

 

 

Remember that this Forum is _not_ Dantz tech support. That they have someone trying to help is good; but it's no substitute for one-one-one support where _you_ get the opportuinty to provide all the information that _they_ need to understand/solve your problem. That's probably why they charge money.

 

 

 

Some things that I would ask (since they were not offered by any of the 4 people in this thread) if I were being paid to solve this:

 

 

 

1- Have you checked that the retrorun process is running when you first run Retrospect?

 

 

 

2- Have you checked that the retrorun process is running before you launch Retrospect later?

 

 

 

3- Depending on the answers to 1 and 2, have you configured CrashReporter to display the console log for any crashes?

 

 

 

4- Are you allowing the Macintosh to sleep? The retrorun process cannot wake a sleeping Macintosh.

 

 

 

 

[Tresy]

I don't know whether retrorun is running when I launch Retrospect because I don't know how to locate it. Nothing upthread provides a clue. But I assume it is, because, like at least one other fellow with this problem, the autolaunch feature works once or twice before failing again.

 

 

 

I did perform the test using the Console. Retrospect did not crash.

 

 

 

Your theory about sleep being the culprit was one I entertained (backup is normally scheduled for the wee hours of the morning), but I have sleep completely turned off in Energy Saver preferences, so I don't know what else to do to rule that out.

 

 

 

I don't know how much more detailed to be than the fellow whose post immediately preceded mine. It's a G4 500Mghz AGP Mac, single processor (unlike most of the other complainants). All my prefs are at their defaults (one of the earlier causes of this problem, apparently). 5.238.

 

 

 

I do appreciate your taking the trouble to help. But clearly Dantz did not completely fix this problem when they released the "fix." That is annoying.

[shadowspawn]

Another couple of data points, autoLaunch is working ok for me, until recently on a DP 450 MHz G4 running Mac OS X 10.1.5, and now on a DP 867 MHz G4 running Mac OS X 10.2.2.

 

 

 

To cover the background again, Retrospect is launched automatically by a process called RetroRun. Two potential problems:

 

a) this process may die. This was a problem with some earlier versions of Retrospect on some configurations, but should be fixed by upgrading to the latest version of Retrospect.

 

this process might not be launched when your computer reboots, usually after copying Retrospect to a new computer rather than installing, and this should be fixed by reinstalling.

 

 

 

So there are already known solutions to the known problems. To help pin down a potentially new problem you can help identify whether and when RetroRun goes bad, read on...

 

 

 

1) The first step is make sure you are running latest version of Retrospect, 5.0.238.

 

 

 

2) Then to find out whether RetroRun is running right now, launch the Terminal utility and paste in the command

 

ps -auxwww | grep RetroRun

 

and hit return. If you type the command, note that it is all case sensitive. I get something that looks like this:

 

 

 

% ps -auxwww | grep RetroRun

 

root 2320 0.0 0.0 15488 64 ?? Ss Mon04PM 0:18.27 /Library/StartupItems/RetroRun/RetroRun

 

john 2570 0.0 0.1 1372 232 std R+ 5:44PM 0:00.01 grep RetroRun

 

 

 

That first line tells me that RetroRun is running, and that is it owned by root as it should be, so I am looking good.

 

 

 

3) If it is not running, try rebooting and check again. If it is not running straight after a reboot, try reinstalling Retrospect. Reboot again. If it is still not running straight after a boot, carry on through the steps anyway in case the issue is a very early crash in RetroRun, but you are more likely to have an install problem.

 

 

 

4) OK, it is running straight after a boot but something goes wrong later. Presumably it is crashing. An easy way to find out is:

 

Open the Console utility.

 

Open its preferences.

 

Click on the Crash tab.

 

Turn on "Enable crash reporting".

 

Turn on "Automatically display crash logs".

 

Close preferences.

 

Leave Console running but Hide it.

 

 

 

Now when something crashes, Console will come to the front with a crash log window with technical details about what went wrong. The window title says which application bit the dust, for example, Finder.crash.log. One small trap is that the window shows the oldest messages at the top, so scroll to the bottom for details on the latest crash.

 

 

 

(If you do not have Console running it will open new crash logs the next time you launch Console, but it is much more immediate feedback to keep it running so logs show up straight away.)

 

 

 

5) Get RetroRun running again without rebooting by launching Retrospect and quitting it again. Check whether RetroRun is running using the ps command in Terminal.

 

 

 

6) Next time Retrospect fails to autoLaunch, before doing anything else check to see if RetroRun is running, and check to see whether Console has a RetroRun crash window open.

 

 

 

7) Report back with the gory details of what went wrong when, and see if anyone has any bright ideas!