16- I have a Windows™ 10, 8, 7 or Vista operating system and my DecoTech saved files have disappeared.

If you do not need to recover any of your missing files, click here for the instructions.

To know The complete story about this trouble and where exactly are your missing files, click here.
You will find there useful information to avoid this same trouble with your other software.


Procedure to fix the trouble and to recuperate your missing files

Step 1 of 8 :  Get the appropriate privileges to be able to make the clean up

If you are using a computer with multiple user accounts on it, you must log with the account that has the administrator privileges.  If your computer never ask you for a log name and password, you are probably using a computer with only one account with the administrator privileges already enabled.

Step 2 of 8 :  Set the Folder Options to be able to access the users' profile folders

For more fun and longer pleasure, Windows 7 (and Vista) has decided to make it harder to find the Folder Options window than it was in previous versions.  Here are the steps...

1- Click on the Start menu button in the task bar (normally at bottom left).
2- Select the Control Panel menu.
3- When the control panel opens you can be either in Classic View or Control Panel Home view:

If you are in the Classic View continue with the following steps:
3a- Double-click on the Folder Options icon.
3b- Click on the View tab.
3c- Go to step 4.

If you are in the Control Panel Home view continue with the following seps:
3a- Click on the Appearance and Personalization link.
3b- Click on Show Hidden Files or Folders.
3c- Go to step 4.

4- Under the Hidden files and folders section, select the radio button named Show hidden files and folders.
5- Unselect the check box named Hide extensions for known file types.
6 -Unselect the check box named Hide protected operating system files and accept the warning message.

Once this is done, your Folder Options window should look like the following image.

7- Select the OK button.

From now, Windows 7 (or Vista) is configured to show you all the hidden files.  Once you will be done with the clean up, you can come back here and set those options back to their previous values.

Step 3 of 8 :  Moving your existing DecoTech folder to its new default location

1- Run the Windows Explorer application.  You can find its shortcut in Start -> All Programs -> Accessories.
2- Locate your C: local hard disk in the left pane and select it.  You should see its contents in the right pane.
3- Create a folder name "DDS Inc" directly in your "C:\".
4- Make a copy of your "DecoTech\" folder, normally installed in the "C:\Program Files\" or "C:\Program Files x86" folder, and paste it in the "C:\DDS Inc\" folder.
Once the copy is completed you should see a "DecoTech\" folder in the "C:\DDS Inc\" folder.

Step 4 of 8 :  Get the DecoTech version 6.11 installation application

You cannot install a DecoTech version 6.08 (or lower) on Windows 7 or Vista and simply update it to version 6.11 (or higher).  That will not fix anything and the trouble will stay there.  To definitely fix the trouble you must do a fresh new installation by running a DecoTech installation application version 6.11 (or higher).

If you do not have in hands a DecoTech version 6.11 (or higher) Master CD-Rom, then look for the appropriated link, based on your serial number, directly at the bottom of the main Tech Support webpage.
Take the time to read the information on the downloading webpage but do not run immediately the downloaded file.  Save it somewhere you can easily find it, and come back here for the next step.

Step 5 of 8 :  Install the DecoTech version 6.11 as an update

1- Run the application you have downloaded in step #4.  Select OK.  Select Unzip.  Select OK.
2- Follow the usual installation instructions and enter your version 6.xx serial number and numerical key.
3- You will see the Welcome window, the License Agreement window and the Installation type window.  In that last window be sure to select the check box named UPDATE programs only.
4- In the Choose DecoTech destination folder window, be sure that the Main folder of DecoTech is set to "C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\".
5- Continue the installation as usual.  If you are asked to install extra libraries of items, image sample files or animation sample files, you can skip them since they were already installed.
6- When the installation is complete, you can unselect the check box that will run the Scene Editor application automatically, otherwise you will have to close it anyway.

Step 6 of 8 :  Get familiar with the DecoTech Main Folders Merger Utility application

Take the time to read the information about this application, then come back here for the next step.
This application is explained in the Topic #16 in the Tips Spot sub-section.

Step 7 of 8 :  Merging the DecoTech ghost folders with the DecoTech main folder

Each person who logs in Windows with a specific log name and password, automatically uses a specific user account that has its own profile folder located in "C:\Users\".  You will need to look in each of those <username> folders to see if a DecoTech ghost folder is present.  For each DecoTech ghost folders found, you will need to use the DecoTech Main Folders Merger Utility application and set the DecoTech main folder used as SOURCE text box with that DecoTech ghost folder path.

A typical DecoTech ghost folder path should look like
"C:\Users\<Username>\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\DecoTech\" where the <Username> represents a user log name.

Let's say that two persons, Paul and Jane, have used a DecoTech version 6.08 (or lower) on your Windows 7 (or Vista) and have saved some files those need to be moved to the good DecoTech main folder located in "C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\".

1- Go to the "C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\bin\" folder and double click on the "dtmerger.exe" application.
2- Normally the DecoTech main folder used as DESTINATION text box should already contain "C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech" since it is where we just installed the DecoTech version 6.11.
3- Click on the top most Browse button to specify a new location for the source folder.
4- Locate and select the "C:\Users\Paul\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\DecoTech\" folder then select the OK button.
5- Click on the "Start the merging..." button.
6- Read any warning window that may pop and select the appropriated action to continue.
7- Once the merging is done and successful, click again on the top most Browse button to specify a new location for the source folder.
8- Locate and select the "C:\Users\Jane\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\DecoTech\" folder then select the OK button.
9- Click on the "Start the merging..." button.
10- Once the merging is done and successful, you can select the Quit button.

Step 8 of 8 :  Verifying that all your files are back in the DecoTech main folder

To run a DecoTech application, do not use any shortcuts you created or moved on the desktop or somewhere else.  Those ones are still pointing on the old location of DecoTech in the "C:\Program Files\DecoTech\" folder.  The only good shortcuts, those that have been updated by the version 6.11 installation application, are in your
Start -> All Programs -> DecoTech menu.

1- Run the Scene Editor application by using its shortcut (or double-click directly on the application file located at "C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\bin\dt_se.exe").
2- Verify that all your existing customized scene projects are there.
3- Load some of your existing projects and generate the 3D perspective for each of them.  That is a good test since to make the 3D, the external pattern and cabinet files associated with the current project are loaded.
4- Verify that all your existing customized cabinet files, group-object files, pattern files and adding preferences files are there too.
 


Optional step 1 of 2 :  Let's start the clean up

Once you are sure that all your files are now present in the "C:\DDS Inc\DecoTech\" folder, you can start cleaning your computer.

1- You can delete the "C:\Program Files\DecoTech\" folder.
2- You can delete each "C:\Users\<Username>\AppData\Local\VirtualStore\Program Files\DecoTech\" folders.
3- If you had some DecoTech shortcuts on your desktop or somewhere else, you can replace them with the corrected ones from the Start -> All Programs -> DecoTech menu.
4- You can delete the downloaded file "dd611_master_cd-rom.exe" or "dp611_master_cd-rom.exe".
5- You can burn you a DecoTech Designer or DecoTech Pro version 6.11 CD-Rom with the contents of
the "C:\DD Master CD-Rom\" or "C:\DP Master CD-Rom\" folder.  Click here for more explanations.
6- Once you have burned your new version 6.11 CD-Rom, you can delete the "C:\DD Master CD-Rom\" or
"C:\DP Master CD-Rom\" folder.

Optional step 2 of 2 :  A backup?  Good idea!

After all this misadventure and all this wasted time, making a backup copy of your new fixed, merged and cleaned DecoTech main folder should not be a so bad idea.

At the bottom of the Topic #16 in the Tips Spot sub-section you can find a good example of the use you can make of the DecoTech Main Folders Merger Utility application to perform a backup copy of your precious DecoTech data files.

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