SM 16...6786 fails to install SmarterMail service

Problem reported by Neal Culiner - 7/13/2018 at 12:53 PM

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Thanks for another untested build, on two servers same result, fails to install the SmarterMail service, it appears the prior service was not uninstalled properly. Trying a reboot and reinstall.

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Ray Cook Replied

7/14/2018 at 4:18 AM

Same problem - whatever I do does not fix the problem. Luckily it's on a backup server - if this was our main mail server it would be disastrous. Tried installing previous version after uninstall and that doesn't work either.

What's happening to SM lately - used to be so reliable, now a problem with so many releases.

Paul Blank Replied

7/14/2018 at 7:32 AM

Ray, many of us are asking this same question. Sad.

Ray Cook Replied

7/14/2018 at 9:20 AM

ok - I think the problem was a recent Windows security update. This seems to have screwed IIS when installing SM 16 update. We rolled back the update and SM started again - so must be some combination of that secuity upgrade and teh SM instal procedure that screw IIS

Neal Culiner Replied

7/14/2018 at 10:45 AM

Server reboot then install SM 16 resolved it for me. There is no testing, there is QA, there is no care. And just like always they release a build on Friday then take the weekend off while everyone is screwed. Sheer brilliance. A little common sense please?

Nicolas Fertig Replied

7/15/2018 at 10:15 PM

At each new minor update, we pray that the update doesn't break anything and doesn't bring new bugs. For now, nothing really broke, but for the bugs...

Freek S. Replied

7/15/2018 at 11:44 PM

This is why I run n-1.

Scarab Replied

7/16/2018 at 8:59 AM

It has always been recommended to reboot after uninstalling SmarterMail prior to installing a minor update (since at least v4.X).

Although a reboot wasn't always necessary and was a Y.M.M.V. before, specifically since v16.3.6543 (Dec 2017) we've been getting the error "Unable to create \Smartermail\MRS\Interface\Output" if we do not reboot in between uninstalling and installing minor updates. Some folders that are locked for exclusive use cannot be removed by the installer or access privileges from SYSTEM modified even when the installer is run as an Administrator so a reboot is absolutely required to have permissions reset and the directory tree removed. I believe this recent behavior is due to .NET Framework 4.6, and not SM.

When in doubt, 1. uninstall 2. reboot 3. install. Rebooting at step 2 will save you time and headaches down the road. (And this pertains to all Windows Server apps, not just .NET ones or SmarterMail...)

Ray Cook Replied

7/16/2018 at 9:09 AM

what a pain - but thanks for tip - that makes sense.

Paul Blank Replied

7/16/2018 at 9:31 AM

This has been an issue since my earliest use of SM. The SM installer should check for such things as previous version uninstalls, needed computer restarts, and if the service(s) are properly running after an install.

Since SM seems to ALWAYS require a previous version uninstall, for instance, why isn't this automatic?

There are installer/program/system checks built into almost all other installers I've seen for complex programs; they take care of these automatically, and either do them for you or remind (or force) you do do them. There's typically no ambiguity, as there is with SM.

Neal Culiner Replied

7/17/2018 at 5:12 AM

This is probably the recent Windows Update KB4338815 causing this as IIS doesn't restart properly. I had an issue on another server where IIS would hang when trying to restart. I have since removed this windows update after finding a discussion about this issue.

Scarab Replied

7/18/2018 at 12:42 PM

Just ran into this yesterday on one of our webservers. It prevents FTPSVC from restarting properly as well. Had to resort to an unexpected reboot of the entire server to recover after FTPSVC hung which caused IIS in turn to hang as well.

If the SM Installer is doing a iisreset or net stop WAS /Y & net start W3SVC during the IIS configuration step of installation, you can bet your bottom dollar that KB4338815 would be to blame...although it sounds like it is also affecting many services during a start or stop, so the Installer would bomb out long before then when it first tries to start the MailService after installing all the files.

I'm going to be keeping my fingers crossed that I won't have to restart any services on any Windows servers until MS releases a fix (and if not fixed by next month's Patch Tuesday I'm just going to follow your example and remove it).

Richard Frank Replied

7/19/2018 at 1:58 PM

there seems some new updates for kb4338815

When an administrator tries to stop the World Wide Web Publishing Service (W3SVC), the W3SVC remains in a "stopping" state, but cannot fully stop or be restarted.
This issue is resolved in KB4338831.

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