2.5.3 doesn't run at all

[uro]

Hello. I asked for help further in this forums, but there were no hints which really adressed the problem nor showed a solution.

On my desktop-PC (Win11, all updated) there do none of the affinitys (photo, designer, publisher) start after updating to 2.5.3. All further versions up to 2.5.2 did run very fine, without any problems or crashes. Updating to 2.5.3 make the apps disappear during startwindow; last info what is to be seen there is "loading fonts", next would be loading files (or similar in english).

Fonts never were a problem on my system, even I do use the fontmanager "FontExpert". Even the newest InDesign-version which doen't support postscript-fonts anymore shows any difficulties on the font-settings. "FontExpert" doesn't show broken fonts.

Now I have downgraded all apps to 2.5.2 to be able to work on. But it would be nice to take part at newer developments and features.

I guess You will better know about changes in 2.5.3 all versions, so does anyone here have an idea whats going on?

Sincerely, Uwe

[walt.farrell]

You could check if you got any crash reports.

To see if it's something related to your fonts, you could try this approach, but it will involve reinstalling 2.5.3 for one of the applications. I'll suggest using Publisher for this.

First: Stop Publisher 2.5.2. Then restart it and specify the --font-cache-logging commnd line switch. How you do this will depend on whether you installed using the EXE/MSI installer, or the MSIX installer.

For EXE/MSI installer:

1. Start a Windows command prompt.
2. Switch to drive C (or whatever drive you installed to)
3. type: cd \program files\affinity\publisher 2\ (or wherever you installed Publisher 2) and press enter.
4. type: publisher.exe --font-cache-logging and press enter.
5. after the program has completed startup, close it.
6. Open File Explorer and paste this into the address bar: %appdata%\affinity\publisher\2.0
7. Make a copy of the log.txt file (say, log252.txt)

For the MSIX installer:

1. Start a Windows command prompt.
2. type: AffinityPublisher2.exe --font-cache-logging and press enter.
3. after the program has completed startup, close it.
4. Open File Explorer and paste this into the address bar: %userprofile%\.affinity\publisher\2.0
5. Make  a copy of the log.txt file (say, log252.txt)

Next, update Publisher to 2.5.3

Next, repeat the appropriate set of steps above, but this time when you make the copy of the log.txt file name it log253.txt.

Finally: If 2.5.3 crashed, go to the end of log253.txt and see what the last thing it did was. Look at that same spot in log252.txt, and you should be able to see the next thing that 2.5.3 would have tried to do.

[uro]

Hello Walt. Thanks a lot for that patiently explanation.

The last entry in the logfile starting 2.5.3 is:

[FontCache::Update] Starting

V 2.5.2 follows up at that point:
[FontCache::Update] Starting
[FontCache::Update] Done
  Font: Eras Bold ITC [ErasITC-Bold]
...
 

Means, "Starting font cache" causes the crash? So what has been changed in 2.5.3, that makes this version crash on my system? As I wrote, I never had such an issue since I was an early-adaptor of Affinity...

Uwe

[walt.farrell]

I have no idea what might have changed that causes the problem. Sorry.

Only the Affinity team are likely to know that, but if you're not getting any crash reports it may be hard for them to tell exactly what's happening. 

Yes, it looks like it's related to a font cache, but I don't know if that's some cache that Affinity maintains or whether it's the Windows Font Cache. 

You could try clearing the Windows Font Cache, I suppose. Or you could wait for one of the Staff members to get to this topic and provide additional advice. 

To clear the Windows Font Cache yourself, try: https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/all/how-to-reset-font-settings-in-windows-10/e3739be7-31e0-4dcd-aa52-2f662e1b8fcf

[stokerg]

Hi @uro,

Can you attach the full Font Cache log and also the latest DMP file?  To find the DMP file, see here. 

This will likely be font related, its just finding out which one is causing the issue.

 

[uro]

As asked for to send a crash report: There are no new crash reports when tryint to start i.e. publisher (I uptdated this app only 'cause the other ones I have do use in production. All apps don't run in 2.5.3 but in 2.5.2 and earlier. ). The startwindow just disappears after some seconds while changing from "installing fonts" to "loading files..."

The last entry in the logfile starting 2.5.3 is:

[FontCache::Update] Starting

V 2.5.2 follows up at that point:
[FontCache::Update] Starting
[FontCache::Update] Done
  Font: Eras Bold ITC [ErasITC-Bold]
...

(see uplaoded files)

If you can't figure out what changes in 2.5.3 are causing this behaviour I have to switch again to adobe. Painfully, but I need a stable and reliable system.

Uwe

Log253.txt Log252.txt