Mountain Lion wipes out DP authorizations

[Jim]

... for both DP603 and 724. I insert the installer disk and try to authorize both, but the authorization screen keeps returning after thinking about it for 20 seconds.

I repaired permissions, uninstalled and reinstalled, and even deleted the invisible "Authorize Digital Performer 6" that's at the root of the boot disk.

I had done a clean install of ML on an erased partition, and used Migration Assistant to move my documents, apps and etc. over to the ML partition from my Lion partition. Most of my other apps and plugs (and I have dozens and dozens) work just fine without reauthorizing. I did have to reauthorize a few, like Chronosync and Transmit, but they took right away.

I also tried the trick of creating a new user, and installing with that logged in. That was a no go. As was trying to launch DP in Safe Mode (DP just crashes on launch in safe mode.).

DP is the only app that doesn't work. And it was working fine on Lion and Snow Leopard.

I'm about out of ideas. Can anybody help?

Thanks,
Jim

[Jim]

Well, I tried running Disk Warrior on my ML disk... about the only thing I hadn't yet tried.

I tried authorizing 6 first, and got returned to the authorize screen after 20 seconds again. Then, I ignored the statement on the DP7 installer that I had to have an authorized version of DP6 installed before I could authorize 7. It authorized me anyway.

I find it hard to accept that one has to rely on a third party utility to keep a Mac running in top shape. Alsoft Disk Warrior is often the only solution to certain vexing OSX problems.

DW found that my fresh install of ML was 38% fragmented. I'd NEVER seen that much fragmentation on a disk in my entire history with DW. That's seriously FUBAR, Apple.

I'm not out of the woods, yet, though. None of my third-party interfaces are showing up. I have PSP VW, Wave-Arts Track-Plug and MasterVerb5, and Bias Sound-Soap. The first two work in Premiere Pro CS6 (64-bit versions). It seems DP is letting me apply the effects, but just not see them or use them in any meaningful way.

I seem to recall this happening with a much earlier version of DP, but can't recall what the fix was.

Anybody?

[Steve Steele]

Jim. Have you tried Mike's suggestions here..

http://www.motunation.com/forum/viewtop ... =1&t=50647

[FutureLegends]

DW found that my fresh install of ML was 38% fragmented. I'd NEVER seen that much fragmentation on a disk in my entire history with DW. That's seriously FUBAR, Apple.

Isn't MacOSX running it's own maintenance such as defrag etc when the computer is idle for some time and at night etc? Maybe it just didn't have the time to sort itself out after the install before you checked?
Just a guess.

[Jim]

NW, I'm not particularly interested in running DP6, but I appreciate your thoughtfulness in posting the link.

FL, what OSX does at night is clean up caches, something that you can do manually with ONYX, IceClean, etc. It doesn't fix directories, which is the only thing that Disk Warrior does (Well, it will run a shell to repair permissions, too; but so will a zillion other apps.).

Drive Genius also has a directory fixer, but I really can't say whether it works. I do know that I ran it on a disk once, then scanned it immediately using DW, which found a significant number of directories out of order. Then I ran the DW cleanup task, scanned the disk again, and then there were less than 1% out of order, which is typical, and what you want to see.

OSX directories get royally screwed up by crashes. DW and possibly Drive Genius are the only apps I know about that can fix them.

Also... I've run DW after I get kernel panics, and they've always gone away right after doing so. Most of the KPs I've gotten were after installing a driver for a RAID controller, graphics card, slot card, etc. DW takes care of them. I've read about people who get KP after KP after KP and at wits end trying to stop them. It's infuriating, and simply puzzling that a directory cleanup utility isn't built into Apple's Disk Utility. If you have a Mac, you really should have DW, IMO. I'm not a shill for Alsoft, I just believe it's something I couldn't run my business without.

If anybody has any tips on the disappearing plug-in GUIs, I'd love to hear them.

[daniel.sneed]

Jim, AFAIK, Disk Warrior doesn't work on data fragmentation, but on catalog fragmentation only.

AFAICT, iDefrag works on both, data and catalog.

[mikehalloran]

>I find it hard to accept that one has to rely on a third party utility to keep a Mac running in top shape.<

>Alsoft Disk Warrior is often the only solution to certain vexing OSX problems.<

I have never seen it fix a real problem. I use it for diagnosing and I do repair the directories - but I have never seen my system behave any differently.

Jim,

You are big on telling us what doesn't work but still no clue as to what you did to cause the problem.

How did you install ML, how did you import your files?

[taka]

I don't know if this is relevant, but when I moved to Lion(notML), my DP7.23 and Arturia Analog Player exhibited the same 'keep asking for authorisation' behavior. For DP, 7.24 solved the problem. For Arturia, I contacted their tech support and Younes @ Arturia gave me this method, which worked brilliantly! If you're UNIX/Terminal savvy (I'm not), you can figure out the logic of this & apply it to DP situation? Below is the instruction email I received from him.

Taka
-----------------------------------------


Hi,

In this case please follow these steps :

1.Open the Terminal application

2.To navigate to the Library directory, type: cd /Library/

3.To create a new directory called "Arturia", type:
sudo mkdir Arturia(you'll need to enter your admin password to authorize sudo)

4.To create a new directory in the "Arturia" directory called "Analog Player", type:
sudo mkdir Arturia/Analog\ Player

5.To assign open privileges to the new directories, type:
sudo chmod -R 777 Arturia

Now launch the software instrument, for the last time enter the authorization code. Relaunch it to ensure the problem has gone away.

After running the application and authorization, 3 files should now appear in /Library/Arturia/Analog Player:

•plugin_demo.prefs
•standalone.prefs
•user_presets.prefs
If still having problems, try setting open privileges on /Library/Application Support/Arturia/AnalogPlayer:


sudo chmod -R 777 /Library/Application\ Support/Arturia/AnalogPlayer

[paulk]

Taka: that's pretty helpful information, but it's hard to map it to DP. I'm not sure if a user would have to make a /Digital Performer or a /MOTU directory for the program to install to.

To break it down for you/any other interested parties, it's basically saying to make a directory for the company (Arturia), then for their program (AnalogPlayer). Then change the permissions on the directory (chmod) to allow any users (you, or the computer, or the installer program, or etc) to be allowed to read/write/execute files into those directories.

It sounds like their software has an issue where the installer wasn't getting proper access to the filesystem, so you had to do it manually.

As for me, I still can't get 7.24 to install on ML. Anyone have any tips?

[mikehalloran]

>For DP, 7.24 solved the problem<

Yes. Older versions cannot be authorized in Lion or Mountain Lion. The OP has 7.24.

Apple Tech Support gave me some suggestions to deal with an issue - in doing so, my DP installation and PACE authorizations were hosed. Putting Humpty back together and re-installing DP allowed it to boot up but only my Izotope and MOTU plugins could be accessed.

Erasing the drive, reinstalling ML and restoring my apps from Time Machine and Migration Assistant (I tried both ways) brought everything back to life.

[daniel.sneed]

Just something around the OP question: Yesterday, Disk Warrior did wipe my DP7.24 authorization. Can't figure why. Just set new authorization with original code and disk, and voilà.

[mikehalloran]

Just something around the OP question: Yesterday, Disk Warrior did wipe my DP7.24 authorization. Can't figure why. Just set new authorization with original code and disk, and voilà.

Wow - that's weird. I think I'd give Alsoft a heads up on that. I tried the same thing and couldn't duplicate it.

[mikehalloran]

Back to the OP:

I did find an installation issue in Mountain Lion. Running a clean install of DP 7.24 from a 7.24 CD over ML gives me an incomplete installation. The MOTU and Apple AU plugins did not load - neither do any of my 3rd party plugs except Izotope.

What works:
Using Migration Assistant, Time Machine and upgrading my 10.7.4 system to ML -- all worked perfectly.

Doesn't work for me:
Clean install from 7.24 CD. Only my Izotope plugs show up. The Apple AU, MOTU and other 3rd party plugs and VIs do not.

Really weird is if I use the CD to uninstall and reinstall 7.24:
In OS 10.7.4, this works and maintains/repairs links to my plugins and VIs.
With OS 10.8, the Apple, MOTU and other 3rd party plugs and VIs do not load or show up as inserts.

Since I can get it properly installed, I am not going to make this a MOTU support case for me but I think anyone else with this issue should.

I have my suspicions as to the cause and there are some things that I can check to see if it has an effect. If I find the solution, I will report it.

[daniel.sneed]

Just something around the OP question: Yesterday, Disk Warrior did wipe my DP7.24 authorization. Can't figure why. Just set new authorization with original code and disk, and voilà.

Wow - that's weird. I think I'd give Alsoft a heads up on that. I tried the same thing and couldn't duplicate it.

But I should have said that DW did found, and repaired, many errors on my main partition (which I did not keep list of). Then my DP authorization was screwed.

[Jim]

Disk Warrior has been wiping out my DP authorizations for years. I routinely had to reauthorize DP6 under 10.6 and 10.7. I kept my DP install disk handy at all times.

When I installed 10.8, I couldn't get DP7 to authorize at all, at first. More later on that.

I wrote the OP, and Mike H. asked how I went up to Mountain Lion:

I have two partitions on my boot disk for 10.6.8 and 10.7.4. I downloaded 10.8, erased my 10.6.8 partition and installed 10.8 on it. I then used Migration Assistant to move my apps, User folder and settings from my 10.7 partition.

I installed DP724 from the new installer CD, but it wouldn't authorize. I tried about ten times. Finally, I downloaded the updater from MOTU, and ran it from my HD. Then at some point, DP7 accepted my authorization. DP6 was unauthorized under ML, but who cares?

THEN, I learned about my third-party audio plug-ins GUIs gone missing, AND was having serious problems with Adobe CS6, which is how I make my living. I booted back into Lion and haven't gone back to ML. Since DP7 works fine all around on Lion, I abandoned this thread (for a while). When 10.8.2 comes out, I may give it another shot.