Problem with Run() - troubleshooting suggestions?

[johnbear]

Hi guys,

We use AutoIT where I work for some internal software deployments; we have in the region of 20,000 endpoints.

I'm working with a user who is having a problem with one of our AutoIT packages. Part of what the package does is use FileInstall() to put an external tool in %temp%, run it with Run(), and read the output. Here's the code snippet around the actual running of the tool:

FileInstall("path\to\externalTool.exe", @TempDir & "\externalTool.exe", 1)
Local $PID = Run(@TempDir & "\externalTool.exe /u", @TempDir, @SW_HIDE, $STDERR_CHILD + $STDOUT_CHILD)

I've cut the code down for the post, our real-world code has catches for all the standard errors. This code has worked for the last year or two across 80+ packages, including all of the test machines I have available to me for testing.

However, on this one user's machine (Windows XP SP3), the Run() command is failing. @error is set to 1, and @extended is set to 193, "Not a valid Win32 application". I put together a special troubleshooting package to help me work out what's going on with this user's machine, and here's where it get's weird: the above code fails with @extended 193, but the following code run immediately afterwards in the script works fine:

FileInstall("path\to\externalTool.exe", @TempDir & "\externalTool.exe", 1)
Local $currentDirectory = @WorkingDir
FileChangeDir(@TempDir)
Local $PID = Run("externalTool.exe /u", "", @SW_HIDE, $STDERR_CHILD + $STDOUT_CHILD)
FileChangeDir($currentDirectory )

So, with the first Run() statement I get Windows error code 193, but with the second (manually changing working directory to @TempDir), the external tool runs fine. I don't think it's an AutoIT problem, as the same code runs fine on all of our test machines, and we've not had any complaints from other users, but I want to try and work out what's going on with this user's machine. Here are the other facts of the case:

• Machine is Windows XP SP3
• User is an administrator on the machine
• Machine has over 100GB free on @TempDir drive
• I've checked permissions on his @TempDir folder, nothing weird going on there
• Copying write.exe from C:\Windows\System32 to @TempDir, it also fails to execute using code like the first snippet above
• If I FileInstall() a batch file with "externalTool.exe /u" in it to @TempDir, and then Run() the batch file with the same code as the first snippet above, then the batch file is able to successfully run externalTool.exe (and I can read the output), even though running from AutoIT is failing with @extended 193
• No log entries in user's anti-virus software client (AV software not interfering)
• No non-company processes running on machine at time of failure

So, can anyone else think of things I can check on this user's machine that might be causing the observed behaviour? I'm getting him to run a full disk surface check at the moment in case his @TempDir is stored on a damaged part of the disk, but I don't know why that would cause one Run() statement to fail and the other to succeed?

Cheers!

John