[Virtualacorn-list] Avast Free freezes VRPC

[Jeremy Nicoll - ml VA]

On 2017-11-26 13:19, Barry Punchard wrote:
> VRPC AdjustSA (v1.6) emulating Arm7500 freezes, then unfreezes up to 20 
> secs
> later, when used under Win7 running Avast Free Anivirus software v. 
> 17.8.2318
> and previous version.
> 
> Freezing can be eliminated or greatly reduced by turning off Avast's 
> Behaviour
> Shield permanently, which I have been doing for many months. I had 
> hoped the
> recent new Avast program version would sort this, but no luck.

Does the Avast Free thing have a facility to exclude certain programs or 
folders
from its attention, or to customise its treatment of programs, per .exe? 
  Or is
that something you sacrifice by using a free product?


> If the Shield is turned off while VRPC is running it causes an 'Unable 
> to Create
> Primary Surface' failure under VRPC. That is, 'power Cycle' is needed 
> to
> restart.

Judging by googling, this is an authorisation issue for a program 
requesting some
sort of Direct3D (ie graphics) process.

There are threads on the VA forum about these errors, which might shed 
some light.
See eg:
http://virtualacorn.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=463&st=0&sk=t&sd=a&sid=4aaed4a2644f0ed236b66fc8fc8cd822&start=0

and threads mentioning DirectDraw.

Also is it happening at random moment, or on waking from hibernate, or 
when you
change from VRPC in full screen mode to window mode, or recovering from 
hibernate
when previously in ful-screen mode?

I used to find VRPC co-existed better with underlying Windows activity 
if it was not
running full-screen, but instead in a window that was very nearly 
full-screen in size.
It meant for example that one could drag that window almost off-screen 
to get at the
underlying Windows stuff without having to force a mode change.  IIRC I 
used the thing
(can't recall where it is) that allows one to create a virtual MDF to 
define a window
mode that was that almost-but-not-quite maximum size, then during RO 
boot (which started
off in a smaller display) issued the command to reset the in-use window 
to my almost-but
mode.


-- 
Jeremy Nicoll - my opinions are my own