Troubleshooting Windows

Lightform Creator shows an error at startup or is unstable after a few minutes of use.

Problem: Lightform Creator exhibits any of the following:

• Starts with an error page with most controls removed, hidden, or disabled.
• Starts normally and later crashes randomly when performing a simple action such as clicking on a button.

Solution: Ensure your graphics driver and Windows installation are up-to-date. 

• Graphics driver:
  • If you’ve never manually updated the graphics driver on your computer, you are probably using an outdated graphics driver either provided by the computer manufacturer or Windows Update. Having a more recent graphics driver is critical to the operation of Lightform Creator. To get the most recent graphics driver you will need to go directly to the manufacturer of the graphics hardware in your computer:
    • Intel: https://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/products/80939/graphics-drivers.html
    • NVidia: https://www.nvidia.com/download/index.aspx
    • AMD: https://www.amd.com/en/support/kb/faq/gpu-driver-autodetect
• Windows operating system:
  • The minimum Windows 10 version supported by Lightform Creator is 1809. Earlier versions may work, but these aren't tested. Run the 'winver' application on your computer to see which version you have.
  • As of the writing of this document, Windows 10 version 20H2 is the most recent version. If possible, you should update to this version since it has resolved a number of issues related to layout scaling that impact some users when using Lightform Creator. 
  • There are actually many different versions of Windows 10, and updating through Windows Update will often not give you the most current version. 
  • If running Windows Update does not update your Windows installation to 1809 or higher, you can manually download and run the Windows Update Assistant to get the newest version. To get the Update Assistant, visit https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/3159635/windows-10-update-assistant. 

Lightform Creator is unable to find or communicate with Lightform device. 

NOTE: If you are on a corporate network, you may need to leave the university/office to be outside of its wi-fi range and try again on a supported network.

Issue: When connecting your device to your network via Ethernet, you cannot see your device in Lightform Creator's device list. Or, when trying to pair your device to a Wi-Fi network, you cannot advance past the "Connect to Lightform Device" pairing page.

Solution: Most of the time, this issue indicates that a firewall (hardware or software-based), antivirus, or other applications on your computer are blocking the connection to your device.

• A common problem occurs when running Lightform Creator for the first time. Windows displays the following dialog. At a minimum, "Private networks" should have been checked, and you should have then pressed "Allow Access". If you unchecked these or pressed "Cancel", Lightform Creator will probably be blocked from accessing the network. This can be manually fixed in the Windows firewall settings.
  

First, verify that your Windows software firewall is set to allow Lightform Creator.

1. Go to the Windows Start Menu and search for "Firewall" -- Choose the "Firewall & network protection" menu item.
2. Select "Allow an app through the firewall"
3. Search this list for "lightform.exe". If you don't see it, choose "Allow Another App" and add "C:\Program Files\Lightform\Lightform Creator\Lightform.exe". If you do see "lightform.exe" in the list, verify that all three checkboxes are checked ("Allowed" on left, and "Private/Public" on right). You will need to click "Change Settings" in the upper right to make changes to this list. When finished, the Lightform line should look like this:
4. At this point, you should be able to see your device in Lightform Creator. If you do not, keep reading.

Advanced firewall rules:

If the above does not fix the issue, you may have another firewall rule blocking Lightform Creator.

1. From the "Firewall & network protection" page, select "Advanced Settings".
2. Halfway down this window, click "Windows Defender Firewall Properties". Ensure that both the Private Profile and Public Profile are set to the following settings:
3. Then, click "New rule" in the upper right hand corner of the Advanced Settings window, and follow these steps to allow Lightform:
4. If you still cannot see the Lightform device after this, it is possible that an existing firewall rule is blocking the connection, or antivirus/router settings (see below for more details). 

Additional troubleshooting steps

If you still cannot connect to the device, antivirus or other software may be blocking the connection. Refer to your specific antivirus software guide for allowing other programs through (for example, this describes what to do for Malwarebytes).

If none of the above works, it is recommended to try using Lightform Creator on a second computer in order to further narrow down the issue. If the second computer allows you to connect to your device, then this indicates that there is still a program/setting that is blocking the connection to your device on the computer you tried first. 

If you are having this issue only when using your device on a certain network, there is also a chance that your router has been configured to block network traffic that the Lightform device needs to communicate with your computer. Lightform Creator uses the following ports:

• TCP 7340-7349, 50051
• UDP 7350-7351

Refer to your router instructions for allowing traffic through these ports. 

Lightform Creator's layout is too small or too large.

Problem: The text and other layout elements within Lightform Creator are too large or too small.

Solution: You need to adjust the scaling:

• If all of your applications (not just Lightform Creator) have a layout that you find to be too small or too large, you should adjust the Windows scaling settings to find a more comfortable sizing. Good information on this can be found at https://www.pcworld.com/article/2953978/use-windows-10s-individual-display-scaling-to-perfect-your-multi-monitor-setup.html

• Alternatively, if Lightform Creator is the only application with a layout that appears to be too small or too large, you can use the in-app settings to adjust the sizing. Navigate to the application preferences dialog in the Edit> Preferences… menu. On the "User Interface" tab you can adjust the "User Interface Sizing" setting to your liking.

Lightform Creator starts with the error 'Failed to initialize standard file paths...'.

Problem: Lightform Creator starts and immediately presents an error in the application window. The error states that Lightform Creator 'Failed to initialize standard file paths...', and includes additional information. No other actions in the application are possible, except to submit a bug report or quit the application.

Solution: Windows is preventing Lightform Creator from reading the standard directory locations from the system. These locations are used by the application for storing application preferences and temporary files.

• Ideal solution: Disable 'Controlled Folder Access' in Windows 10.
  • Microsoft's documentation on this can be found at: https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/4046851/windows-10-allow-blocked-app-windows-security.
  • Unfortunately, Microsoft's documentation isn't clear about what triggers this situation in the first place.
• Easy solution: You can simply run Lightform Creator as administrator:
  • Right-click on the application's icon on the Windows desktop and choose 'Run as Administrator' from the context menu.