Boinc is running. When it shows in task bar it has red dot. Can not view anything in boinc manager, it just disappears. In windows task manager, boincmgn and boinctray are running with 4 tasks rosetta/seti. Used to work but now doesn't. In order to shut it down I have to end tasks in task manager and I prefer to do so from the tray. Any ideas?

First off, Boinctray.exe is the BOINC idle detection program. It only runs in the background, checking for mouse movements and keyboard taps. It's mainly there for Windows Vista and Windows 7 systems plus their server versions, since these use a different security system. For Windows 2000, XP and their server versions, running either Boinc.exe or Boincmgr.exe (or both) will suffice in having BOINC detect if your computer is idle or not. It's built into Boinc.exe and Boincmgr.exe

Boinctray.exe does not make the icon appear in the Windows system tray. That's done by running BOINC Manager.

Now then, with that out of the way, most problems where the client runs (Boinc.exe) but the Manager doesn't (Boincmgr.exe) make contact with the running client, is because something changed in the firewall software. You'll have to re-allow both BOINC and BOINC Manager through your firewall software, allowing them to make contact with each other, talk on TCP port 31416.

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I've rechecked my firewall show green for both to communicate in system (Vista Premium 64 bit) and the internet. Boinc screen saver wants to act as server for internet.

AVG has never stumbled with Boinc and Zone Alarm shows it is free to talk.

When I open Boincmgr.exe it opens, communicates, and closes all in a few seconds and I can not view any thing in the manager.

I only get weird problems after I do windows updates, and this issue started immediately after 2nd to last update.

I haven't found anywhere to configure TCP port 31416 access.

BOINC Manager and Tray are always loaded at boot. It (BOINC Manager) always shows in tray after reboot now with red dot. It is no longer accessible.

I've uninstalled, reinstalled, but didn't delete any thing in the registry. I will play there next unless it would cause loss of working Seti/Rosetta data. Shouldn't as I wouldn't be deleting those files. Right?

Does Boinc.exe even try and start when you start Boinc Manager?
Watch task manager when you start Boinc Manager.

Claggy

Boinc screen saver wants to act as server for internet.

Apropos of nothing, are you sure of this? Is that boinc.scr or boincscr.exe?
I ask as the only thing that needs to act as a server to the internet is Boinc.exe, no other part of BOINC needs internet access.

Deleting registry entries does not put work at risk, as long as you remember where the BOINC Data directory is and point the BOINC installer to that directory at the next installation. Losing the BOINC Data directory and everything in it means you'll be losing work (done).

Default Vista/7 BOINC Data directory is C:\ProgramData\BOINC\

You shouldn't need to set the port number when using Windows firewall, but other (3rd party, commercial) firewalls may require this setting. So what are you using, Windows firewall or Zone Alarm, or both?

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Both manager and tray are running right now in task manager. The manager only shows in tray after reboot with the red dot. Move cursor over the icon and poof, it is gone. If I start the running boinc.exe from quick launch it comes up, communicates and poof, it is gone. But both are still running in task manager. The usual 4 Seti/Rosetta applications are running as usual. I configured these applications not to use so much system resources but they run full tilt even after mouse/keyboard activity so I've ended the tasks in task manager when I want to play Sacred II as it wants more resources to run.

Processor: AMD Phenom (tm) 9550 Quad-Core 2.2 GHz

6.GB ram.

last time I ran bench marks, I saved this:

12/3/2010 5:47:04 PM Benchmark results:

12/3/2010 5:47:04 PM Number of CPUs: 4

12/3/2010 5:47:04 PM 1804 floating point MIPS (Whetstone) per CPU

12/3/2010 5:47:04 PM 5581 integer MIPS (Dhrystone) per CPU

Both boinc.scr and boincscr.exe have always wanted to act as servers on the internet (not seti classic). Along with several other files, mostly windows (including windows .dll files) That is why I run the Zone Alarm firewall. The free version doesn't show the dll stuff. I used to use Zone Alarm Full/Paid. The virus software failed me. Now I run the paid full version of AVG and am very happy with it.

All of the systems I've worked on for other people running other anti virus programs that failed are running AVG now and have had no more problems.

I am convinced that Windows uses files as it wants. I am not sure that the boinc software was programmed to do so. Maybe you will find otherwise.

I don't use Windows Firewall. When I ran the full version of Zone Alarm, it found key logging software in the program. I may still have a screen shot of that message stashed some where.

Boinc loads in both program files and program files (x86). Is this normal? or just a 64 bit thing?

AVG full with firewall and other bells and whistles. and Zone Alarm firewall free stand alone.

Never was a problem for about 4 years.

I don't use Windows Firewall.

Heh, the only way I know of, of not using Windows firewall is by not using Windows. Even with it turned off, especially in Vista and above, it will be on.
As for Zone Alarm finding suspicious things in Windows programs, that's usually just things that Microsoft added, like their update-checking software and the parts talking home (like DirectX). Again, the only way you can disable those is by not using Windows.

Boinc loads in both program files and program files (x86). Is this normal? or just a 64 bit thing?

It won't. If you have a BOINC directory in both C:\Program Files\ and C:\Program Files (x86)\, it should be an empty directory.

But it begs a question: What directory do you start BOINC Manager from? As it has to start from the same directory that Boinc.exe starts and runs from. And then the next question is what BOINC version you installed? Did you install a 32bit version or a 64bit version? Where did you install it to?

The BOINC installer isn't that intelligent that it knows that the contents of the package it is installing is 32bit or 64bit. It does read from the registry where you installed BOINC to the last time around, then when it finds a previous version there, it will uninstall it and put the contents of the MSI file it carries in that position.

And that's the thing. If you used a 64bit version of BOINC before, it will have been installed into C:\Program Files\BOINC\ by default. However, the C:\Program Files\ directory in a 64bit version of Windows is reserved by Windows for 64bit programs only.

If you then downloaded and installed a 32bit version of BOINC, its installer will read the registry and see that you used C:\Program Files\ before, so it'll just dumbly uninstall (delete) the previous BOINC files there, and then dump the ones it carries in the MSI file in this directory. However, a 32bit program cannot be run from the 64bit C:\Program Files\ directory. Windows won't allow it. These programs will require to be installed in the C:\Program Files (x86)\ directory. (You can't run 64bit programs from this directory either).

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program files boinc v. 6.6.36.0

program files boinc v. 6.10.58.0

I screwed this up a long time ago and didn't have the current problem till recently.

In settings, programs it only shows one of them.

msconfig start up points to program (x86)

short cut in quick launch points to the other so I'll change that.

I just double clicked on boincmng.exe in (x86) and I got a windows problems and solutions error message that said that boinc screensaver had stopped working. I don't use screensavers and it wasn't running (in task manager either) then boinc manager came up, communicated, and poof. Gone..

And I am running 4 seti tasks in task manager.

Windows freaked out when AVG disabled Windows firewall. I clicked that I would manage anti virus and fire wall options myself. Works fine 4 years +. I used to use the string and can telephone modem for ISP service. Zone Alarm allowed me to turn off the server activity and my isp speed jumped from 24.6 to 34.something. Amazing at the time. Now I do wireless but still don't care for the server stuff. No wonder windows has so many security problems.

Now to get rid of IE.

Next machine will be a mac.

I uninstalled Boinc.
Deleted: C:/Program files Boinc folder and C:/Program data Boinc folder.
Deleted all references to Boinc in registry. Go back to my computer in registry and search/delete at least 3 passes until complete registry scan finds no more references.

Reboot.

Installed Boinc.

Problem fixed.