Photoshop CS6 (and only Photoshop) dies on first run

Report · Dec 19, 2012

Hello,

I'm hoping someone can help me. I used AAMEE 3.1 to generate a serialized package of CS6 on OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.2). It's fine, or so I thought. I created a Mac OS image through DeployStudio and deploy it across our school's iMacs. Great. However, during the first run, Photoshop (and only Photoshop) launches the Adobe Application Manager alongside it, and they both exit. Subsequent launches of Photoshop proceed as they should, and other programs in the suite load properly on first run.

This would be a minor annoyance, except all of our Macs are frozen using Deep Freeze, so everyone will experience this behavior, every day. I haven't found anything helpful in the system or Adobe logs, haven't been able to web-stalk anything, and monitoring the filesystem for changes during this sputtered launch only yields three binary files, two in /System/Library/Preferences/Adobe and one beneath ~/Library/Preferences/Adobe/SLStore. Pushing out these files to another machine as a test doesn't change Photoshop's behavior - is this tied to the Adobe ID (mine), the user account, some hardware identifier, or a combination of the three?

Thanks for any pointers,

Donald

Report · Dec 20, 2012

My thoughts:

Confirm the permissions of ~/Library/Preferences/Adobe/SLStore. Adobe likes "drwxrwxrwx root admin" for that folder.
Does problem occur on both administrative account and standard account? If administrative account, that would further indicate a permissions problem.
Since further launches work, I am also inclined to suspect corrupt cache files that are updated after launch. Check/Move to Desktop/Delete Photoshop-related (or Adobe-related) cache files in ~/Library/Caches, then test

Report · Dec 20, 2012

I really appreciate the pointers:

1. Permissions were correct (albeit I should have referenced SLStore beneath Application Support, but... everything was world-writable.

2. Administrative and standard accounts alike.

3. I've trashed all Caches in any directory containing "Adobe" case-insensitive, and wiped out /Library/Caches for good measure. Then signed in with my personal account on a new machine and... same thing

Thank you again for any ideas or further thoughts!

Donald

Report · Dec 21, 2012

When you duplicate the error, does the Console application (in /Applications/Utilites) provide any log data that seem relevant? Make sure you are checking looking at "All Messages" under "System Log Queries" (all the way in upper-left).

If that does not provide any information, at this point, I feel the most likely suspect is either the AAMEE package or how it is interacting with your Mac OS X image. Focusing on the AAMEE package, I have three additional thoughts:

If you remotely deployed your AAMEE package to a Mac with a clean (not-imaged) OS, does problem still occur?
What other troubleshooting have you done?
When I create an AAMEE package, I use the following configuration in order to avoid font and AIR-related difficulties.
- Under Options: Unchecked the option to install fonts under Illustrator, InDesign and Photoshop.
- Under Configuration: Select: End User License Agreement
- Under Configuration: Select: Adobe Product Improvement Program
- Under Configuration: Select: Disable all Adobe Air installers, including Adobe Help Manager
- Under Configuration: Choose: Ignore conflicts and continue installations
- Under Configuration: Choose: Adobe Update Manager is disabled
- Under Configuration: Choose: Deploy to default application directory

Report · Dec 21, 2012

Ugh, you're right. On a freshly/newly-installed Mountain Lion image, the program doesn't manifest.

I used AAMEE 3.1 options identical to yours except the product improvement program. In my image, nothing shows in the console logs on product launch (until the second launch, when either program continues to load rather than exiting).

I see that re-imaging is the "right" way to proceed, but I would love to find some way to shut this up. All our labs are imaged, prepped and ready to go for the Spring semester...

Donald

Report · Dec 21, 2012

Have you heard of a program called "fseventer"? It is a disk tool that shows a graphical view of file activity. Google "fseventer" to find it and download it. Familiarize yourself with it.

My thought is on an imaged system where the CS6 has not been first-run launched, log in, place fseventer on the desktop, and, after you set it to record, launch Photoshop and see what files and processes are affected during first-run.

Report · Dec 27, 2012

Hello everyone, I have a similar issue.

It affects both "Master Collection" and "Design&Web" CS6 suites - packaged with AAMEE 3.1 (same setting as Penguin2071) and deployed with ARD or Casper (it seems not to make a difference), after imaging clients.

After a few hours or days of regular and smooth usage on the user side - as soon as they open any CS6 app, it keeps bouncing in the dock together with Adobe Application Manager.

So it looks like the "first run" went fine but somethin happened later.

Whatever the CS app is being opened, it somehow needs to "talk" to AAM to check for something (I assume correct licensing) but they go into a never ending loop and keep bouncing - one after the other - within the dock.

The only "solution" I found so far is un-installing and re-installing the suite and hoping it does not happen again (at times it does though).

The weird thing is only some clients are affected and they all share the same image (OS 10.6.8/configuration) and CS6 installation (only recently added).

Network clients (Active Directory) are managed with MCX but this issue also affects the local admin (with administrative privileges).

Permissions on relevant Adobe folders are fine.

The relevant message within Console is

23/12/12 01.09.42 [0x0-0xab0ab].com.adobe.PDApp[3491] objc[3491]: Class

HTTPHeader is implemented in both /Applications/Utilities/Adobe

Application Manager/CCM/CCMNative.dylib and /Applications/Utilities/Adobe

Application Manager/CCM/../UWA/UpdaterCore.framework/UpdaterCore. One of

the two will be used. Which one is undefined.

23/12/12 01.09.42 [0x0-0xab0ab].com.adobe.PDApp[3491] objc[3491]: Class

ProxyManager is implemented in both /Applications/Utilities/Adobe

Application Manager/CCM/CCMNative.dylib and /Applications/Utilities/Adobe

Application Manager/CCM/../UWA/UpdaterCore.framework/UpdaterCore. One of

the two will be used. Which one is undefined.

I have only a few 10.8 clients where CS6 was "manually" installed from the Adobe dmg and I have not seen this behavior yet.

Any help woudl be greatly appreciated!

Many thanks

Carlo

Report · Dec 28, 2012

I've experimented with producing Serialization files to re-install on top of the existing "trial" installations, which seem to help briefly. For instance, I started with CS6 Master Collection working, if you launch any of the executables twice.

But then inCopy for CS6 decided it wasn't registered any more, and drops back to trial mode. I can install the serialization file for inCopy, and that may or may not break the registration for Master Collection. Further, if I use Composer to turn the serialization for inCopy into an installable package, it works for one user but not another (still tied to account?).

I'm going to try scripting an install package to serialize both CS6 Master Collection and inCopy CS6 to run on system boot, and see if that will silence Unregistered/Trial warnings for all CS6 packages.

This makes me really sad - my organization spent I believe $40k on Adobe software, and it may or may not launch depending on the day, user, HTTP response, whatever.

Report · Dec 28, 2012

Don and/or Carlo,

If you use JAMF Casper Suite and if you have not already done so, check out the knowledge base on the JAMF Software website. Use "CS6" as a query. Even post a discussion. I have found my JAMF peers to be quite helpful.

If an Adobe technical rep responds, I would highly recommend you take the opportunity to send the PDApp.log file to them.

Don,

I have not played with serialization files so I cannot help you with that, though, if you turn the serialization into an installable package (either .pkg or .dmg) and it is only affecting one account, make sure you "Fill User Templates" and/or "Fill Existing User Home Directories" on the package so that it applies to all home directories (accounts).

At this point, I am sad to say I am not sure what else to tell you.

Report · Dec 28, 2012

Hello,

We do use Casper here, but not for initial deployment as a binary restore performs much faster and we need to image over 100 machines during School breaks. I've been using Casper's Composer in "New and Modified" package mode to experiment with Serialization packages, but nothing seems to go into the present (and only/admin) user's home directory. I tend to copy those into /Library/User Templates/English.lproj, as non-admin users aren't present on our "frozen" lab machines.

Re-running the serialization commands using Adobe's CLI tool seems to have quieted everything, for all users on the machine, but those filesystem modifications don't carry to the machine next door - still tied to hardware somehow.

I'm procrastinating with coffee, then building a package to push out the Adobe serialization stuff for CS6 MC and inCopy somewhere beneath /opt, with a short shell script to run them individually on each machine. Seems like it should do the trick - thank you for all your ideas and help.

Donald

Report · Jan 03, 2013

Hi Don,

I am sorry to hear you are having issues. May I ask if it is possible to retake the image ? and roll it out to your machines ? If so

Use AAMEE 3.1 to create a serialized package, install it on your master machine and lanch each of the applications once. Then please push it out to a test machine. Everything should be working fine with no errors and you can use deepfreeze.

Cheers

Karl Gibson

Report · Jan 03, 2013

Good morning,

I appreciate your suggestion, but that's the process I used in the first place - the installation seemed fine on the master; CS6 didn't like being cloned out via DeployStudio.

I regenerated and packaged serialization files with a script to call adobe_prtk, and after re-serializing each machine individually things seem to be holding for our Spring semester.

I may retry plan A when AAMEE 3.2 comes out?

Donald

Report · Jan 04, 2013

Donald,

I am glad for now you have a solution that is working for you. You do not need to wait until 3.2 if you follow the instructions I mentioned above using AAMEE 3.1 you will not have any issues.

Cheers

Karl

Report · Jan 16, 2013

I just ran into the same issue and am also using DeployStudio for image deployment. I had 100+ systems already deployed so I was looking for a workflow that would correct the master image as well as correct the already deployed clients.

Karl, what do you think about the workflow below? It seems to have solved the issue but would like your take on it.

Ran AAMEE 3.1 to create a serialized package on the master client resulting in a directory (which I named MC6Serialization1) containing the following files
1. AdobeSerialization (command line exe)
2. prov.xml (serialization file)
Ran the following command line on the master client which finished with an exit code of zero
1. /Applications/Adobe/MC6Serialization1/AdobeSerialization adobe_prtk --tool=VolumeSerialize --stream
2. I didn't include the file path to the serialization file since it was in the same directory as the AdobeSerialization executable
Launched each of the MC6 applications without incident
1. At this point I could have uploaded the image and deployed it but I also have 100+ systems already deployed so I performed a couple more steps
2. Took the resulting folder and copied it to a directory on the already deployed target clients using ARD
3. Used ARD to remotely run the script in 2.1 above as root
4. Spot checked launch of Photoshop without incident

Report · Jan 17, 2013

Alan,

So when you say you are having the same problem as above, do you also use DeepFreeze ?

You say above that you created a serialized package with AAMEE 3.1 on the Master machine you are going to take an image of. If this is the case you do not need to run a serialization file on the master machine as it is already serialized. What you do need to do is launch the point products before taking the image.

For machines that are already out there the stragegy is dependent on if you use Deepfreeze, if you do then best thing to do is unfreeze them and launch the applications, then refreeze. If licensing is a problem you can run the serialization file on them and then refreeze.

Does that help ?

Cheers

Karl

Product Manager

Report · Jan 17, 2013

Yes a little. We have deepfreeze but its not deployed on our Mac's and the issue is on the Mac platform.

I have sent and run activation in the deployed clients but the issue persists.

I've got several classrooms in chaos now with students unable to work.

Any help would be appreciated.

Allen Vaughn

Sent from my iPhone

Report · Nov 07, 2013

Seems it's an objective C programming issue.

Adobe didn't update their code.

Open Mac OS console application and look for installation error, you will find something similar meaning the code is deprecated for Mac OS 10.8:

11/7/13 5:03:55.758 PM Locum[74925]: Connection with distnoted server was invalidated

11/7/13 5:10:32.433 PM Installer[78488]: *** WARNING: -[NSImage compositeToPoint:operation:] is deprecated in MacOSX 10.8 and later. Please use -[NSImage drawAtPoint:fromRect:operation:fraction:] instead.

11/7/13 5:10:32.433 PM Installer[78488]: *** WARNING: -[NSImage compositeToPoint:fromRect:operation:] is deprecated in MacOSX 10.8 and later. Please use -[NSImage drawAtPoint:fromRect:operation:fraction:] instead.

11/7/13 5:10:32.445 PM Installer[78488]: *** WARNING: -[NSImage compositeToPoint:operation:fraction:] is deprecated in MacOSX 10.8 and later. Please use -[NSImage drawAtPoint:fromRect:operation:fraction:] instead.

11/7/13 5:10:32.445 PM Installer[78488]: *** WARNING: -[NSImage compositeToPoint:fromRect:operation:fraction:] is deprecated in MacOSX 10.8 and later. Please use -[NSImage drawAtPoint:fromRect:operation:fraction:] instead.

11/7/13 5:11:14.879 PM Installer[78488]: The Installer encountered an error that caused the installation to fail. Contact the software manufacturer for assistance.