"please unload the debugger and restart the application"

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Guest

This is driving me nuts. I just got a new laptop with Windows XP Home, and
I'm trying to install half a dozen of my favorite games on it. I keep
getting this error message:

"This application cannot run with an active debugger in memory. Please
unload the debugger and restart the application."

I'm not running any debuggers. I've already tried disabling all anti virus
and anti-spyware programs. I've looked at the knowledge base article
(812759), and tried the few steps that apply to me (this is not an AMD
processor, it's a P4, and a different sound card, with current drivers, so
it's not that) I don't have the MS firewall enabled. I've tried it in safe
mode, I've disabled everything in MSCONFIG, and killed off every extraneous
process I can find, and NOTHING works. These games all work perfectly fine
on my XP Pro desktop machine.

There's several pages worth of entries in search.msn.com and google for
people asking this same question, and virtually no answers other than the
stock ones I listed above. All of which I have tried - I'm no newbie.

So I'm at my wit's end. There has to be SOMETHING going on here, but darned
if I know what it is.

Anyone?
 
Hi Netmeg,

This can occur if you have the /DEBUG switch in your boot.ini file. Follow
these steps to remove the /DEBUG switch:

1) Make sure Windows is set to Show All Files. To view protected operating
system files:
Double-click My Computer.
On the Tools menu, click Folder Options.
Click the View tab.
Click the "Show hidden files and folders" circle under "Hidden files and
folders".
Click to clear the "Hide extensions for known file types" check box.
Click to clear the "Hide protected operating system files" check box.
Click Yes when you are prompted to confirm your choice.
Click OK.

2) Find boot.ini on C:\
3) Right-click on the file-icon and choose Properties - uncheck the
Read-Only check box if it is checked, then click OK.
4) Double-click the boot.ini file, you should see text that looks like this:
[boot loader]
timeout=30
default=multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS
[operating systems]
multi(0)disk(0)rdisk(0)partition(1)\WINDOWS="Microsoft Windows XP
Professional" /fastdetect /DEBUG

5) Remove the "/DEBUG" listing and any other "/" listings after ""Microsoft
Windows XP Professional" /fastdetect" *** WARNING - If you have a multi-boot
option, you may show more than one line under "[Operating systems]". Only
remove text on the line pertaining to the operating system you are booting
to. ***
6) Save the boot.ini file and close all Windows to desktop.
7) Reboot system.

Orignally posted in XP.GAMES by Nick Kritselis [MSFT]

--
Cheers, *Windows_XP_MVP_Shell/User*
Jimmy S. http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

Visit my MSN Zone.com and Gaming Help Site: http://mvps.org/nibblesnbits
MS Games Help and Support Center: http://support.microsoft.com/?pr=gms
My advice is donated "AS IS" without warranty; nor do I confer any rights.
_________________________________________________________



Netmeg Wrote:
=================
| This is driving me nuts. I just got a new laptop with Windows XP Home, and
| I'm trying to install half a dozen of my favorite games on it. I keep
| getting this error message:
|
| "This application cannot run with an active debugger in memory. Please
| unload the debugger and restart the application."
|
| I'm not running any debuggers. I've already tried disabling all anti virus
| and anti-spyware programs. I've looked at the knowledge base article
| (812759), and tried the few steps that apply to me (this is not an AMD
| processor, it's a P4, and a different sound card, with current drivers, so
| it's not that) I don't have the MS firewall enabled. I've tried it in safe
| mode, I've disabled everything in MSCONFIG, and killed off every extraneous
| process I can find, and NOTHING works. These games all work perfectly fine
| on my XP Pro desktop machine.
|
| There's several pages worth of entries in search.msn.com and google for
| people asking this same question, and virtually no answers other than the
| stock ones I listed above. All of which I have tried - I'm no newbie.
|
| So I'm at my wit's end. There has to be SOMETHING going on here, but darned
| if I know what it is.
|
| Anyone?
 
Jimmy S. said:
This can occur if you have the /DEBUG switch in your boot.ini file. Follow
these steps to remove the /DEBUG switch:
Click to expand...



Thanks, but I had already checked that - there is no /DEBUG switch in my
boot.ini file.
 
Thanks, but I had already checked that - there is no /DEBUG switch in my
boot.ini file.
Click to expand...

Sounds like it's time to eleminate other applications.

Press CTRL+ALT+DEL to bring up the Task Manager, click on the processes tab.
Try closing any process that's running under your username (ie not system or
services) and see what happens when you run the game then.

If it works, reboot so all the applications are running again, and start the
process again, closing 1 or 2 down at a time until the games will start and
weed at any potential problematic application.

It might also be a good time to check the system out for malware, Microsoft
have just released a beta of Windows Defender (
http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/spyware/software/default.mspx ),
which can scan for any nasty little apps up to no good. A virus scan of the
system may also be helpful - but at least a few years ago virus scanners
running on the system could cause the debug error.

--
Paul Smith,
Yeovil, UK.
Microsoft MVP Windows Shell/User.
http://www.windowsresource.net/

*Remove 'nospam.' to reply by e-mail*
 
Hi Netmeg,

Try using a new Administrator's account.

--
Cheers, *Windows_XP_MVP_Shell/User*
Jimmy S. http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

Visit my MSN Zone.com and Gaming Help Site: http://mvps.org/nibblesnbits
MS Games Help and Support Center: http://support.microsoft.com/?pr=gms
My advice is donated "AS IS" without warranty; nor do I confer any rights.
_________________________________________________________


Netmeg Wrote:
=================
| "Jimmy S." wrote:
|
|| This can occur if you have the /DEBUG switch in your boot.ini file. Follow
|| these steps to remove the /DEBUG switch:
|
|
|
| Thanks, but I had already checked that - there is no /DEBUG switch in my
| boot.ini file.
 
Hi Netmeg,

If it's not a profile issue, then something must be wrong with your
Windows XP Home installation. Instead of repairing Windows,
you might want to try an alternate route and reinstall XP SP 2.

--
Cheers, *Windows_XP_MVP_Shell/User*
Jimmy S. http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

Visit my MSN Zone.com and Gaming Help Site: http://mvps.org/nibblesnbits
MS Games Help and Support Center: http://support.microsoft.com/?pr=gms
My advice is donated "AS IS" without warranty; nor do I confer any rights.
_________________________________________________________

Netmeg Wrote:
=================
| "Jimmy S." wrote:
|
|| Try using a new Administrator's account.
|
|
| Just created one and tried it - no cigar. Thanks for the suggestion.
 
Jimmy S. said:
If it's not a profile issue, then something must be wrong with your
Windows XP Home installation. Instead of repairing Windows,
you might want to try an alternate route and reinstall XP SP 2.
Click to expand...


Ok, I've done BOTH - I've reinstalled Windows XP Home, and reinstalled SP2.
Remove all anti-spyware and virus protection. Still get the active debugger
notice. I go out in Google and find a whole bunch of people with this same
problem going back years now, and apparently there's no solution to it, even
from Microsoft (their solution presupposes I have hardware that I don't have)
If someone doesn't acknowledge it, how's it ever supposed to get fixed?
 
Hi Netmeg,

Did you do a fresh install Windows XP Home from a Microsoft CD or
from a OEM / Computer manufacturer provided Recovery CD?

Did you test the game *before* reinstalling other software (AV / Antispyware)?


--
Cheers, *Windows_XP_MVP_Shell/User*
Jimmy S. http://mvp.support.microsoft.com

Visit my MSN Zone.com and Gaming Help Site: http://mvps.org/nibblesnbits
MS Games Help and Support Center: http://support.microsoft.com/?pr=gms
My advice is donated "AS IS" without warranty; nor do I confer any rights.
_________________________________________________________

Netmeg Wrote:
=================
| "Jimmy S." wrote:
|
|| If it's not a profile issue, then something must be wrong with your
|| Windows XP Home installation. Instead of repairing Windows,
|| you might want to try an alternate route and reinstall XP SP 2.
|
|
| Ok, I've done BOTH - I've reinstalled Windows XP Home, and reinstalled SP2.
| Remove all anti-spyware and virus protection. Still get the active debugger
| notice. I go out in Google and find a whole bunch of people with this same
| problem going back years now, and apparently there's no solution to it, even
| from Microsoft (their solution presupposes I have hardware that I don't have)
| If someone doesn't acknowledge it, how's it ever supposed to get fixed?
 
Sounds like the copy protection doesn't like some software on your
computer that it thinks is used to debug applications (and therefore
potentially crack the copy protecton).

Don't have a list of software that might generate this error but you
should probably start with Safedisc + debug or Securom + debug @
www.google.com.......
 
Hi, Nutmeg:
I'm having exactly the same problem that you are. I've tried all the fixes
I can find, but nothing helps. I can run my Solitaire game and other games
that came already loaded on my computer, but I've tried downloading several
different games and have the same pesky debugger error message when trying to
open each one. I don't have a fix. But I did, by accident, find a
workaround. If I click into my Solitaire game, immediately get right back
out, and then click into my new downloaded game, then it lets me in without
the debugger message! I don't know what it is about getting into and out of
Solitaire that temporarily fixes the problem. It doesn't necessarily work
when I click into other pre-loaded games. And once I get out of my
downloaded game, then the debugger message is back. But if I click into and
out of Solitaire, that seems to let me into the new game. Go figure! I'd be
interested to know if this is just an anomaly to my computer, or if it works
for you as well.
 
Nevermind!!! Last night when I wrote the last post, that workaround was
working consistently for me. This morning I have to do it about 20 times
before it works. And it seems like it only works when I pull the icon for
the downloaded game into my Games folder on my desktop -- which makes no
sense at all! I do appear to be able to get into the new game eventually,
but it's not predictable or handy.
 
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