https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/recent.aspx SyMenu - Recent Posts en-us http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Tue, 14 Apr 2026 07:22:19 GMT Tue, 14 Apr 2026 07:22:19 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=972

The _Cache folder of your SyMenu suite is no longer accessible. Restore the correct permissions and everything will work again.

i deleted and its working

Thank you.

]]> Tue, 14 Apr 2026 07:22:19 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=970 Mon, 13 Apr 2026 08:24:29 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=972 However, since SyMenu downloads new definitions every time it starts and therefore should automatically fix this kind of issue, why doesn’t the problem resolve itself?
There are four possible cases:

• Something went wrong during the download and the definitions file became corrupted. This is the easiest case to fix, because you can simply force a new download using the special button (read here). Eventually you can manually download the file if SyMenu is not able to do that by itself.
  
• The _Cache folder of your SyMenu suite is no longer accessible. Restore the correct permissions and everything will work again.
  
• Your firewall is blocking SyMenu’s web connection. In this case, it’s up to you: if you want online services, you need to trust the program.
  
• You are using an old version of SyMenu. In the past, older versions caused several problems (misuse, abuse, and false errors), so I blocked them from accessing the SPS service. If you want to access the SPS suite, you must use the most recent version of SyMenu.
  

With these four tips, you will definitely solve the problem.
If you want to let me know which one worked for you, I’d be glad to hear it.]]> Mon, 13 Apr 2026 08:19:31 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=972
edited by bigbadmoshe on 12/04/2026]]> Sun, 12 Apr 2026 11:17:05 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969 Sun, 22 Mar 2026 13:35:40 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=959 Thanks to a user with a bit more dedication and patience than Shadohz, I was able to implement a workaround that allows SyMenu to bypass Windows excessive timeout when dealing with disconnected network drives.
The workaround is now available to everyone through the new SyMenu release.


Here are all the details:
https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969&MessageID=3724#post3711]]> Sun, 22 Mar 2026 10:53:28 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969 Thanks again for your patience.]]> Sun, 22 Mar 2026 10:48:32 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=942 Mon, 09 Mar 2026 15:40:41 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=970 Hopefully in a good way!

That's good news, glad your planning portability!
I bet this is an interesting project for you eh?

Re: Plugins - Also good news about current support. Not so about plugins, that looks quite complex when I looked inside the plugins folders to see what they consisted of O.o
I assume it'll require quite a bit of knowledge of .NET and some other stuff to do this?
Still, looks very useful indeed. Thanks for making it! ]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 15:37:03 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=942 Configuration - Help - Changelog web page]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 14:14:18 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=970 ).

Is it portable?
Well, it will be. Once I exit the beta phase, I’ll include it as an SPS in SyMenu.
At the moment it writes its data in AppData\Local\GANI, but as you know, SyMenu can easily redirect that folder into a program’s subfolder.
The other file it creates is a virtual disk called GANI, which you’re free to place wherever you want.
So when GANI becomes part of SyMenu, its setup will be torn to pieces, just like we do for every other program... no privileges for anyone inside the SyMenu suite.

Plugin
Currently, GANI can read any kind of text file with the following extensions: .txt, .log, .csv, .ini, .md, .htm, .html, so HTML is already supported.
XML would be plain text too, but it’s more flexible than HTML because XML can define its own tags. So I can consider supporting specific XML formats. For example, if a data flow uses a specific XML structure, I can create a plugin to decode it without losing information. Remember that HTML relies on tag content, while XML can store information in attributes as well.

As for the other formats: why not? I designed the plugin system exactly to expand the tool or to allow someone else to expand it.
In fact, in addition to plain text files, I've already written plugins for xlsx, docx, pdf, pptx, and rtf.

edited by Gianluca on 10/03/2026]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 14:11:06 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=450 Mon, 09 Mar 2026 14:10:15 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=450
What do you say?]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 14:08:10 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=450
He handed the source code over to me, but unfortunately mrx gave up because PAT is too complex and not very well written, so it’s too steep a project to start with.

I can’t take it on myself either, so I’m still waiting for someone new who might want to help with this project. In my opinion it’s a really interesting topic, and there’s room for tons of improvement. If I weren’t so overloaded, I’d be happy to work on it myself.

Let me recap everything:
- PAT needs to be updated: user agent, UI typos, architecture (x86 → x64)
- PAT should be converted from its current language (VB.NET) to a more standard one (C#)
- There’s plenty of room to improve the program’s functionality as well
- We need a developer, even a young one, because I can’t manage a new project but I can supervise one

If you want to write a small manual, I can republish PAT including this new resource — no problem at all.]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:59:30 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=942 Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:58:56 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=967 ]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:52:37 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=970

The most important question I have though... Is it portable?
Will there be more plugins for other formats? I'm thinking: epub, mobi, djvw, html, xml, etc.
These would be the most useful for me personally.
I have many ebooks and this app would help in learning subjects.

Thanks Gian!

edited by sl23 on 09/03/2026]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:40:59 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=450 First, instructions aren't very clear, and are only available online. I would be happy to relearn it's usage and write a small text file or something for offline usage, but it needs to be included in the download. This will obviously need to be done by VVV.

Also, I am wondering if there's any chance the PAT app can be updated to x64 due to the continued movement in this direction by MS.

Thanks.]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:30:49 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
the new beta works fantastic.
11 GB of programm data and 3 non accessible network drive letter configured.... start in 1 second !!! Brilliant :-)

@Gian
Thanks a lot for your kind words and thanks a lot for your quick support.]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:20:22 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
Windows uses a component called the Network Redirector to manage communications with network drives.
Unfortunately, it has a very long default timeout (10-20 seconds) before declaring a unit unreachable. As we know... networks can be slow by definition.

In my previous attempt, I only partially solved the problem. I used an API that 'wakes up' the Network Redirector on the first unit checked (X: in Masspuck's case). This still required those 10-20 seconds for the first check, but at least the Redirector was smart enough to realize that other units on the same IP were also down. Good boy, Redirector.
Before this update, SyMenu didn't trigger this behavior, causing timeouts to pile up one after another.

Since there’s no way to change how Windows works, I decided to run every check on separate threads in parallel.
Why didn't I do this in the first place? Because SyMenu loads so fast that I was afraid a user might click on a unit before it was actually ready.
With hindsight... well, who cares? If a user is that fast, they’ll be smart enough to understand they just need to try again.
As I get older, I tend to become more and more cautious, so now the behavior is slightly different: you won't see a network unit until it's confirmed as ready. So, if you’re quick enough, you might actually see a mapped unit appear in 'My Computer' right before your eyes.

I’m quite confident the problem is now solved, but I’m looking forward to your feedback.

A word for Maaspuck:
Without your help, I couldn't have solved this. You have been great, fast, and precise in your reporting. If all users were like you, SyMenu would have been bug-free for years!

The new beta is here: https://www.ugmfree.it/public/SyMenuBeta/SyMenu.8.12.9564.beta.zip]]> Mon, 09 Mar 2026 12:05:24 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969 Sun, 08 Mar 2026 20:15:48 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
you will find some logfiles in PN. I always started symenu.exe -logger from the command line as stated above.

With network drive letters available, but not accessible, the start is still slower. I did not use a stop watch, but I had the feeling that it was a bit more reliable though slow.
A big improvement is, that though drive letters are available, the menu in "My computer" did not show them and SyMenu did not try to access them making this menu fast again independently from network drive letter existance.

After "deleting" the network drive letters using "net use X: /delete", SyMenu started within a second as expected with no programs installed.

With accessible network drives SyMenu started fluent au usual including fast "My Computer" Menu.

So overall, I would state, that the "My Computer" Menu is fast again, even with unaccessible network drives but start of SyMenu is still slower with unaccessible network drives than without.]]> Sun, 08 Mar 2026 18:52:28 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969 I’ve built a new beta version, identical to the current one, but with a new system designed to prevent Windows from 'hanging' while trying to access inactive or unavailable network drives. This was indeed the root cause of the freezes you experienced in SyMenu.

You can download the beta and use it to overwrite your current installation, or simply run it in parallel only to test the fix.

One important note: since this is a manual download, Windows might trigger its security protection. To avoid any issues, please remember to unblock the ZIP file after downloading it, as explained here for plugins: https://www.ugmfree.it/manual#SyMenuPluginBlocked.

The beta URL is available here: https://www.ugmfree.it/public/SyMenuBeta/SyMenu.8.12.9563.beta.zip

Please let me know if this resolves the issue.]]> Sun, 08 Mar 2026 15:58:59 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
I tried with a complete new download of symenu without any program....and its slow again if network drives are not available.

Of course, when I hover the mouse over "my computer", syMenu starts to scan again and it takes its time then again.]]> Sun, 08 Mar 2026 13:32:07 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
The only scenarios in which this is possible is:
- when you navigate through folders with SyMenu but, again, SyMenu loads every folder content only if you want to open it.
- if you mapped some NAS resources in your Start Menu. SyMenu scans your start menu to link whatever it finds inside. In this case any broken link is ignored. But, if the OS needs a long timeout to tell SyMenu that one resource is broken... well you got your delay.]]> Sun, 08 Mar 2026 13:15:24 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
Meanwhile, I created a skript connecting network drive letters only a start of NAS and deleting them during shutdown to be sure no network drive letters of non existing connections exist.

Concerning programs that point to the network drives.....there is none as far as I know (unless I haven't make any mistake, I must check this). I habe one complete symenu folder on my local ssd and did not add any "external" program so far.]]> Sun, 08 Mar 2026 13:10:16 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
To recap: it seems that when a network drive is mapped but the device is offline, SyMenu asks Windows to enumerate the folders to begin its scan. Instead of returning an immediate error (like 'not found' or 'unavailable'), the OS keeps trying to access the drive until a very long timeout is reached.
Dear Windows, old boy... anyway, let's try to work around it as we usually do.

I need a log from SyMenu.
To enable logging, you need to start the application from the command line with a special argument:
SyMenu.exe -logger
If the lag occurs, please close SyMenu and send me the log file privately. You will find it in the SyMenu root folder, named something like LogFile.20260308.txt.

Also, if possible, I’d like you to try this test:
Move all your items (programs, folders, etc.) that point to the mapped drive into a SyMenu subfolder.
For example, if you have an item like Z:\myprogram.exe directly in the SyMenu root, create a new container/folder and move it inside.
Then, restart SyMenu and let’s see if the startup delay disappears.]]> Sun, 08 Mar 2026 12:48:52 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=969
just as an information. I encountered a very similar problem with extremely nasty freezes and lags using SyMenu starting a few weeks ago. I even tried a new "installation" of SyMenu with no programs in it. It was just the same problem then. I figured out, that scanning times were extremely long (SyMenu Symbol with flashing green dot) after start of SyMenu and after updating SyMenu. I am using a NAS with three configured network drive letters. NAS is only switched on, when it must be used, so it is not running 24/7. When NAS is on and network drive letters are available, SyMenu is as fast as it used to be.

Until now, I didn't expect, that the network drives are the root of my problem as I am using a comparable configuration of network drives on a NAS not switched on 24/7 together with a SyMenu Installation of 18 GB of data for many years now. Though I changed my NAS Installation (QNAP TS 451+ from QTS to OMV), I think that there must have been any change in scanning process of the operating system. SyMenu directory was always excluded from Defender Antivirus.

My System:
ASUS X570-E Gaming
32 GB DDR4
AMD Ryzen 5800X3D
Nvidia RTX 4070
Soundblaster AE-5
Corsair MP600 1 TB
Samsung 990 Pro 4 TB (Symenu is installed this SSD)
Samsung 860 QVO 2 TB
WD 6 TB HDD
Software: Windows 11, MS Office 21, PhotoLab 9, Game Launchers (EPIC, UbiSoft, EA, Gog, Steam), MSI Afterburner + RTSS, Citrix Workspace, MS PowerToys and many more

edited by Maaspuck on 08/03/2026

edited by Maaspuck on 08/03/2026]]> Sun, 08 Mar 2026 09:55:17 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=970 It's because GANI is a fresh new app without a signed setup.
I think with 200 positive reports, MS will remove the alert or, better, I can add GANI to the SyMenu suite that is more permissive.]]> Fri, 06 Mar 2026 19:23:27 GMT https://www.ugmfree.it/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=970 Fri, 06 Mar 2026 19:09:46 GMT