4 days ago
Topic:
[SPS Editor] x64dbg update
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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Not sure if it's the best in absolute, but for me it is 
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4 days ago
Topic:
[SPS Editor] x64dbg update
ronen1nPosts: 21
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Not sure what the format but I added it as [SPS Editor]
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4 days ago
Topic:
[SPS Editor] x64dbg update
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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You're right, plugins.
As you already know, the "Ignore on Update" option can be used to skip single files or entire folders, so yes, you can add the plugins folder.
I really like your idea of using topic categorization in the titles.
Could you please update the title of this thread by adding "SPS Editor"? That way, we can kick off this new standard together.
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4 days ago
Topic:
[SPS Editor] x64dbg update
ronen1nPosts: 21
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If you create new discussion area for editors it will make the forum more organized but add confusion for some that used to ask in the general area and maybe make you add rules for opening new post and transfering posts that opened in the wrong place
More simple way is to add something like "SPS Editor" in the post title or just live it like it is
In this app maybe some manually installed plugins also need to preserve on clean install
Thank you for the good explanation
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4 days ago
Topic:
[SPS Editor] x64dbg update
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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Hi ronen1n,
Since we're on the forum here, I need to give the other users a bit of context.
-----------------------------------
Ronen1n isn't talking about the x64dbg user-side update, that one works as usual.
Since he's an SPS editor (one of the great people who make the entire SyMenu suite work!!), he's referring to the SPS update, i.e., the definitions that allow the suite's programs to auto-update.
Ok, context provided.
-----------------------------------
Yes, you can add the DelFile instruction in the "Script After Install" section of the SPS.
Don't worry about the versions after this one because DelFile won’t throw an error if the Qt5Network.dll file doesn't exist anymore.
Also, the DelFile should stay for a while, because we can’t be sure users are updating through every single version.
For example, if a breaking change occurred between version 4 and 5, a user might skip directly from 4 to 8, so SyMenu still needs to delete Qt5Network.dll even if it normally shouldn't be there anymore.
Let me take this opportunity to explain another very useful technique for SPS.
If a program tends to introduce breaking changes, you should use the "Clean Update" option.
A clean update ensures that each version only contains the files included in the current package.
However, in this case, you should preserve any configuration/data/customization files set by the user in the previous versions.
For x64dbg, it looks like the only files to preserve are:
- release\x96dbg.ini
- release\x64\x64dbg.ini
The choice is on you.
BTW, a question for everyone: do you think it would be useful to create a new technical discussion area for SPS?
I often speak privately with editors about the best practices for creating program definitions, but maybe it would be helpful to have these conversations publicly.
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5 days ago
Topic:
[SPS Editor] x64dbg update
ronen1nPosts: 21
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I tried to update x64dbg but it looks like i need to delete Qt5Network.dll file
Change log: "Get rid of Qt5Network dependency"
I found 2, one in release\x32 and one in release\x64
do i just add the following?
DelFile release\x32\Qt5Network.dll
DelFile release\x64\Qt5Network.dll
Is it need to stay future updates?
edited by ronen1n on 01/07/2025
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29 days ago
Topic:
SyMenu 8.08
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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Hello guys,
Version 8.08 is out and brings some interesting new features.
Finally, we have a graphical way to check trash disk usage. Naturally, it's not the Windows trash folder (that's not SyMenu's business) but the SPS trash.
Where is it? It's in the status bar at the bottom of the form, specifically the red part of the Free space bar (see it in this image: https://www.ugmfree.it/manual#SPSForm).
Since the Free space bar refers to the entire disk usage, the trash part does too. So you can have the trash button on one suite (e.g., the SyMenu suite) and not on another (e.g., NirSoft suite), yet the red bar appears in both.
I've been forced to add this information because some users reported excessive disk usage due to an unemptied trash.
Now you have no more excuses for flooding your disk because everything is clearly under your control.
The second main feature concerns one of the ways to import items into SyMenu.
When you drag something from the file system into SyMenu (either the floating icon or the configuration form), this "thing" is analyzed and imported. If you drag an executable, it's easy to guess what happens but what if you drag a folder?
Before version 8.08, the folder was linked as a SyContainer and could be explored from SyMenu. This version introduces a breaking change: folders are no longer converted into containers but are scanned in search of programs. The scan happens at every level (folder and subfolders). When an executable is found, it is added to a new folder called "Import" (with a different icon than the regular container, too).
It's up to you to organize what SyMenu found and placed inside the Import folder. My advice is to move each item to the correct folder within your carefully structured menu, then delete the emptied Import folder. That way, you'll keep things clean and tidy.
A strong piece of advice: don't import a folder full of programs all at once unless you can let SyMenu run for a long time.
You can find more details here: https://www.ugmfree.it/manual#SyMenu_ImportFromFS
As usual, if you have any comments, questions, feedback, or simply want to chat about SyMenu and its world, I'm here.
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12/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
sl23Posts: 301
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Ah, I just created the post. I'll amend it at to add that info.
https://www.portablefreeware.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=26554
No idea why you're having issues with email. I only use that email address and receiving other emails ok.
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12/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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sl23 wrote:
I will ask Andrew about reading your post and to see what he thinks. I think I will also create a new post on TPFC forum and get others idea, point to this topic here, that way can gauge others opinions and hopefully Andrew will join in there.
Yes but ask Andrew before creating the post. If he thinks that's no space to go further we have to respect his will.
sl23 wrote:
Also, as a side note, I got stuck on the first hurdle! [...] Perhaps it's a little early for this yet!
Yes it is. As I told you, we should study that before going, otherwise it's a waste of time.
BTW. I've got a problem in reaching you with your usual email... you know sl....@...
Can you please contact me with another email? Because I fear your email provider is going nuts.
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12/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
sl23Posts: 301
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I don't understand the technicalities nearly as much as you do, but, it sounds like a complicated set up is required.
I will ask Andrew about reading your post and to see what he thinks. I think I will also create a new post on TPFC forum and get others idea, point to this topic here, that way can gauge others opinions and hopefully Andrew will join in there.
Does that sound ok with you?
Also, as a side note, I got stuck on the first hurdle! I went to try and start creating SPS for items not currently supported, I went to the Audio/Cataloguers category and the first app was DataCrow, it won't accept the download via SPS and it won't run without Java installed. I do have JAR files associated with PA.com's JavaLauncherPortable, but it still doesn't run! Any idea what to do about these issues? Perhaps it's a little early for this yet!
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12/05/2025
Topic:
check for github releases
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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ronen1n wrote:
Maybe is it best to open source the "SPS Published App Track" if you allowed and it's safe to do
I agree and it'll be the best thing to do but only when someone takes care of it.
Open source means there's always someone in charge to review the pull requests and accept or refuse them.
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12/05/2025
Topic:
check for github releases
ronen1nPosts: 21
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Like I said I also use this tool by adding elements to track with distill.io chrome extension and exporting the data to json and putting it in tracked_elements.json
https://github.com/ronen1n/Website-Change-Tracker
Maybe is it best to open source the "SPS Published App Track" if you allowed and it's safe to do
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12/05/2025
Topic:
check for github releases
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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Great tool. Thank you.
So we have:
- https://newreleases.io
- SPS Published App Track (PAT)
If someone knows or uses other free tools please report them here.
And BTW, the SPS Published App Track author, my old and good friend Cesar the Great, gave me permission to use his source code to follow the program's development.
If someone is interested, please contact me in private and we can speak about that.
PAT is written in .NET.
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12/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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sl23 wrote:
I can start to create the SPS for every app on here if you'd like, but maybe there are perhaps some that should NOT be included?
Maybe include everything after a certain date? Or perhaps, Windows version?
Thank you but, don't lose your time.
The data needs to be studied beforehand. One of my rules is "never do work without studying it".
sl23 wrote:
But the SPS system needs updating to auto-update itself via the RSS Feed
This is the point!
Is TPFC an inspiration, a guide, to find and publish new programs or could it be a data source for SPS?
The real game changer is clearly the latter option.
I personally don't need a new channel that inspires me and I think the other editors don't need it either. We are already overwhelmed with the programs we manage today.
In the same way I don't need a channel that alerts me about program updates because I already have tools to be alerted of new versions.
You are talking about an SPS that auto-updates itself so you are exactly on my same page.
So let's analyze the second option: an hypothetical use of TPFC as a data source for SPS.
As a source Andrew suggests the RSS instead of the website scraping but unfortunately the RSS is a simple list of the latest new/updated programs. If we need the program details - and yes we need them to fill an SPS - it's necessary to follow the RSS link to an HTML page. Well it's the exact purpose of RSS: you read the announcement on your aggregator and then you go to the website to deepen it.
We need the detail so the HTML scraping thing comes again to life.
Well, scraping is not impossible even if, as I said, it is unreliable and complex. But anyway let's see which data we can find on the program detail page. Or better let's see which data we need that we can't find there.
The detail page doesn't contain the program "Author" but, as a workaround, we should use the website URL from the "Publisher website" field.
Packer format and Main exe names are information drowned into open text ("How to extract" field), so they are not structured data. It's a big problem because those fields are mandatory in SPS or, better, they are two of the most important data because they teach SyMenu how to manage the program.
Probably other fields, not mandatory but useful in several programs, are inside this text too ("Script before install", "Installation arguments", "Create files on install", "Ignore on update" and others).
The last big obstacle is the Download url. SPS needs to download a program, TPFC needs to bring you to the download page. Well, when we update an SPS, 90% of the time we need to change the download URL so it's the single most important data we need to automate the process.
Want to know what I realized?
The TPFC detail page is a subset of an SPS, so it's impossible to use the TPFC page to fill an SPS.
What is possible instead is to go the other direction. From an SPS it is possible to fill a TPFC detail page. And this approach could break new ground for a reciprocal collaboration.
If the TPFC editors will use the SPS to update the program and naturally TPFC use the updated SPS to publish the announcement page and detail pages, it'll be a win-win game for both our users: TPFC instantly has a desktop launcher for all its program, SyMenu will instantly has a new suite with hundreds of new programs.
Anyway this means a lot of changes for me, for Andrew, and for our communities. I don't think Andrew could agree with such a big change but... why don't you ask him to read this post?
Maybe if he's willing to speak about that, even if only hypothetically, we can open a new thread on the TPCF forum and see if something arises.
What do you think about all the reasoning?
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11/05/2025
Topic:
check for github releases
ronen1nPosts: 21
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Update:
Looks like it's working great it just notified me for rustdesk update that released 10min ago
Releases · rustdesk/rustdesk
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11/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
sl23Posts: 301
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I can start to create the SPS for every app on here if you'd like, but maybe there are perhaps some that should NOT be included?
Maybe include everything after a certain date? Or perhaps, Windows version?
But the SPS system needs updating to auto-update itself via the RSS Feed. If you think that's an ok way to go? Maybe have a dedicated TEST Suite first?
Let me know and I'll start.
edited by sl23 on 11/05/2025
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10/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
sl23Posts: 301
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Great news! Andrew is happy for you to do this with nothing more than acknowledgement for it.
Here is the PM I received:
Andrew Lee wrote:
More than happy to help! Here are my attempted answers to your questions:
- 1. Are you happy for this process of obtaining detailed app info from portablefreeware.com.
More than happy!
- 2. Is there a better way than scraping a website, Gian mentioned something about a web API???
For the latest database updates, how about just parsing the RSS feed (that's a link btw!)? That's much more straightforward than scraping. Is there any other info that the app will need to access?
- 3. Is there anything you need or want in return for allowing this?
Definitely some kind of attribution (i.e. some note saying this info is obtained from TPFC), since TPFC is very much a group effort and many members contributes to its content.
- Thanks you for your time and your efforts with the long standing portablefreeware website, I am a very big fan! 
Thanks for your kind words!!
I believe currently, you are using much info from TPFC like descriptions and maybe site data, but hopefully now, the SPS can grow to basically replicate the TPFC sites data.
I will reiterate, I can help create and edit many SPS so as to keep inline with stealthiness of apps, but to also create the new additions in the first place.
What do you think?
edited by sl23 on 10/05/2025
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09/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
sl23Posts: 301
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Ok, I'll make contact. I do see your point though. Maybe add portablefreeware banner and acknowledgements?
I have no idea how good or bad it is scraping a website. This is beyond my knowledge. Was just a thought anyway, but if it seems unreliable then not much point.
Still, I'll see if I can get something from Andrew's point of view on this.
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09/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
GianlucaAdministrator Posts: 1330
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sl23 wrote:
The import feature seems a good call, except i do not use the floating icon.
Well the drag and drop action works on the floating icon and on the configuration form. So there's no need to activate the floating icon only to get this feature.
You select your 100 folders you want to import and drop them onto the configuration treeview. There's an advantage in doing this: you can decide in which SyContainer to drop the 100 folder to scan while dropping in the floating icon puts your items in the menu root. It's even better this way.
I think I'm quite convinced about this approach.
sl23 wrote:
But I think it first needs permissions from Andrew at PortableFreeware. If you wish, I can make contact on your behalf? Let me know if you like the idea. I just think it would free up your time from manually updating this stuff when it's already done on their site. You're only using what's already there. It just means designing the SPS system to parse the news pages for updates. 
Well you know I'm always opened to any collaboration so if you want to try feel free to do it.
I only ask to myself what would be the benefit for PF?
The website scraping would take their content without crediting them in any way. Even if Andrew Lee accepts to consider this collaboration, what can SyMenu offer as a counterpart? A back link put in some SPS field would be enough for him?
The other problem is technical. Scraping a website is a nightmare and even if you succeeded this method is not reliable over time. If PF has a sort of web API to publish its data it'll be fantastic but I never find any of that.
There are several doubts but, as I told you, if you think it's a good idea, go for it. If there's an interested on the other part I can contribute.
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09/05/2025
Topic:
Adding other repositories?
sl23Posts: 301
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The import feature seems a good call, except i do not use the floating icon. I find it gets in the way and it is cumbersome to enter Options to enable/disable it. Maybe if there were a menu item that could quickly enable/disable the floating icon, it may be of more use. A menu item that can be located wherever you want in the Structure settings. Least then we can show or hide the button pretty quickly.
Not too sure I understood the first part of your message? But no worries.
I don't think it's too much of a task to use SPS for the online "wiki" database as you called it. I think at present the SPS system works and works very well, so stick with it. But add more and edit the current to use the info from PortableFreeware.com. You can use the download links, descriptions, categories, all of it. Maybe even expand the SPS system to show the screenshots from PF too?
Like I said, I would be willing to help with this. But I think it first needs permissions from Andrew at PortableFreeware. If you wish, I can make contact on your behalf? Let me know if you like the idea. I just think it would free up your time from manually updating this stuff when it's already done on their site. You're only using what's already there. It just means designing the SPS system to parse the news pages for updates.
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