[Solved] Reinstalling AI WAR: 2.0

[Zulgaines]

The 2.0 installer keeps giving me this error:

"The file 'ZedGraph.dll' cannot be installed becuase the file cannot be found in cabinet file 'PCW_CAB_Family'. This could indicate a network error, an error reading from the CD-ROM, or a problem with this package."

The only other instance I found of this error on the forums was here: http://arcengames.com/forums/index.php/topic,649.msg10768.html#msg10768

However I don't have the game on this PC anymore, and I'm trying to do a fresh install.

[x4000]

For whatever reason, it sounds like your Windows Installer version is out of date, and either you skipped that from the prerequisites, or it didn't detect that it was out of date (oddly).  You can get those installers directly from this thread:  http://arcengames.com/forums/index.php/topic,11.0.html

Hope that works for you -- if not, it's possible that your download was corrupted, but that's usually unlikely.  I'd simply download it again from another source (GameTrove on our downloads list is the original upload), if you think that's what it is.

[Zulgaines]

I'v tried in the  past, I have a never ending struggle with this game and the updates.

I just installed it from Impulse however, which worked for me.

[x4000]

Impulse and steam each use their own installers, which bypass normal methods, so those are always good options. The main game instLler uses the msi installation and patching system -- in rare cases if that gets corrupt on your machine, then msi packages won't work until your windows is fixed. I suspect that is what is happening here.

[Zulgaines]

Necromancing my old problem.

I pretty much figured out why I'm getting the ZedGraph error: The insallers looking for something that's not there, maybe searching the wrong path.

In my Add/Remove programs AI War is still shown on the list, but I get errors when I try to remove it and when i try to repair it I get the "can't find Msi at C:\Documents and Settings\Anthony Thomas\Application Data\Arcen Games, LLC\AI War\install\" error.

How can I remove the old traces of AI War form my PC and registry?

[x4000]

There are two things you can do. First, you can run the 2.0 installer (if that's what you had previously directly installed) and then it will put the file back into "C:\Documents and Settings\Anthony Thomas\Application Data\Arcen Games, LLC\AI War\install\."  Then you'd be able to run the uninstaller properly.

Secondly, the new version 3.0 of the game is a completely new installer that completely replaces the older stuff, and works better in general (such as not requiring the older copy of the installer to hang around in the directory above).  It will completely replace 2.0 or earlier if you install 3.0, although if you are not able to properly uninstall 2.0 I am not sure exactly how it will work.  All of this is Microsoft's MSI installation/patching system, which is supposed to be very simple but turned out not to be terribly much so.  In 3.0 we went with a different patching system, which lets us just use MSI for installation and not for patches, which then should bypass the various wonky issues with MSI when you try to use it for patches -- which is what you're running into.

[Zulgaines]

Yeah I thought that too, except it's not working.

The .msi never extracts back to that location, even when I run the installer, it says unpacking and what not but I don't see any trace of the files and the repair/uninstall in add/remove still can't find it.

[Zulgaines]

Wait wait, I got it to unpack. my window just wasn't updating to let me know. I had to exit/come back to the folder.

But it's still not able to use the msi that extracts. :|

[Zulgaines]

Ok I let the files extract, then copied and pasted them all, finnished the installer after the error and put them all back so they'd stay there.


Now it would let me uninstall since I have the MSI. Except it's the wrong version. I'm stuck without using the version I had originally that caused this problem. *Face palm*

[Zulgaines]

I need the installer for version 1.0.04

:| That's the only way I know to fix this.

I wonder if I can find it anywhere.

[Zulgaines]

Freaking solved it.

http://support.microsoft.com/kb/290301

Download the windows installer cleanup utility and use it to remove all traces of AI War from the installer side of things.


I re-downloaded 2.0 and it installed without a hitch, no more Zedgraph messages and I didn't need to hunt down the old non-existent installer I used when I first bought AI War.

[Fiskbit]

Glad to hear it's fixed. Sorry about how much of a pain it was. Hopefully things will go more smoothly for you with the new updater in 3.0!