OpenLab ChemStation Not Starting - Basic Troubleshooting

Answer

This Information Applies To: Agilent OpenLab ChemStation Edition Software - Standalone Workstation

Issue:

Software errors can occur for many reasons such as corrupted files, changes in the data structure (e.g. file or folder names), modified user access rights, or intersoftware issues. If your Agilent OpenLab ChemStation Edition Software does not start due to an error, this guide grants you the first basic steps in troubleshooting the issue.

Note: This article does not apply to client/server systems.

Requirements

Hidden folders contained within file explorer must be visible.

1. Open the WIndows file explorer.
2. From the main menu, click View and select the Hidden items check box.
   

   
   
   Figure 1. File Explorer with View expanded
   
   
   

Resolution

If it is not clear from the error message what causes the issue, these steps may solve numerous issues fast:

• Follow the article explaining how to restart the Agilent OpenLab Services.

• Make a safe-copy of and then delete (or completely rename) the following five configuration files, which will be created anew with the next start of the software. The first start after this step may therefore take a bit longer than usual. The files are stored in C\ProgramData\Agilent Technologies\ChemStation\1\, where 1 is the number of your instrument in order of configuration as listed under OpenLab Control Panel > Instruments.
  • CONFIG.REG
  • CONF_OFF.REG
  • ChemStationPerInstrumentSettings.config
  • instrument.config
  • RapidControl.InstrumentConfig.xml
• Note: In older versions, these files may be found under C\Chem32\1

• Delete (or completely rename) the file user.config (in C:\Users\<logged on user>\AppData\Local\Agilent_Technologies\ChemMain.exe_Url_XYZ\2.0.0.0\user.config; XYZ being a seemingly random string of letters and numbers)

• Reconfigure your instrument via the OpenLab Control Panel. If reconfiguration does not work, delete your old instrument and create an instrument.
  
  • If you create an instrument, any desktop shortcut for launching ChemStation will have to be created anew as well.

• Ensure that the ChemStation.ini file is set as an exception in your antivirus software and that the Windows users have full control over it.
  • For revisions until C.01.07, the file is stored in C:\Windows\
  • For revisions starting from C.01.08, the file is stored in C:\ProgramData\Agilent Technologies\Chemstation\

If this article does not resolve the issue, contact your local Agilent Support representative for further help. Helpful information will be:

• Which software you are using and which is the revision/version
• Any error messages that the software gives out
• Attempted steps to solve the issue
• Possibly System Activity Log and Diagnostic log files

Learn how to effectively operate your Agilent OpenLab CDS ChemStation Edition Software :  OpenLab CDS ChemStation Edition Concepts and Workflows user manual on Agilent.com