Cannot install ACT! 2010 on SBS 2008

[lancorp]

I am trying to get ACT! 2010 (standard edition) installed on our SBS 2008 server.  Initially, I had tried to get the ACT7 instance installed under SQL 2008 Express Edition, but then read that ACT! 2010 Std only can use SQL 2005 Express (which is already on the server).

I have since removed the ACT7 Instance under SQL 2008.

Now, I go to install ACT! 2010, running setup, and it goes through the SQL install and creates the ACT7 instance, but then I get this error:

"ACT! Installer has detected that the ACT7 instance is either not running or disabled.\n\nSystem.ComponentModel.Win32Exception: The system cannot find the file specified

   at System.Diagnostics.Process.StartWithCreateProcess(ProcessStartInfo startInfo)

   at PrereqCommon.SQLMethods.HardReset(String strSecurityCmdLnApp, String ACTPath)

   at PrereqCommon.SQLMethods.InstallSQL2005(String SourcePath, String ACTPath, String Param, String strSAPWD, Boolean InstallSP)

   at PrereqCommon.SQLMethods.PrepareAndInstallSQL2005(String strSrcPath, String strSQLPath, String strACTPath, String strSQLAccount, String strSQLCollation, Boolean IsSPNeeded)" 

I checked in Services, and SQL2005 ACT7 is started, as is the SQL Browser.  I've removed the ACT7 instance in SQL Express 2005 using add/remove programs, and reinstalled ACT! 2010 again, only to have the same thing happen.  

One thing I notice is that the setup program for ACT! 2010 is not detecting an existing instance of ACT7.  For example, I did go through the KB article to manually install the ACT7 instance in SQL 2005 Express.  Everything went perfect.  I did everything it said. When I went to install ACT! 2010, it STILL wanted to install SQL 2005.  Of course, it failed.  Same thing here...after going through the install of ACT! 2010, and it creates the ACT7 instance OK, but fails the install with the above error.  I rerun ACT! 2010 setup and it does not detect the ACT7 instance.  It wants to reinstall SQL 2005 and ACT7 instance, which fails right away.

HELP!!!  What am I missing here?   

[lancorp]

Anyone, please?

[mscott821]

Sounds like you might have some left over Act7 instance stuff from perhaps the initial SQL 2008 installation...

Take a look at this KB about troubleshooting SQL installs and then also manually uninstalling SQL.

Hope that helps.

[lancorp]

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mscott821 wrote:

Sounds like you might have some left over Act7 instance stuff from perhaps the initial SQL 2008 installation...

Take a look at this KB about troubleshooting SQL installs and then also manually uninstalling SQL.

Hope that helps.

---

Cannot say for sure. I wound up calling Sage support, though, and the rep did a remote session into the server.  I watched what he did, and it was the same steps I did for a manual install.  When he saw it failed at the end of the SQL install, though, and saw that the ACT7 instance was installed and started OK, he did something to interrupt the install--at the point of the SQL failed error, he brought up task manager and ended the prereq.exe process.  Doing that allowed the installation of ACT! to continue, successfully, I might add.

 Interestingly, I had the SAME thing happen on a XP workstation that I attempted an ACT install on.  I just killed the PREREQ.EXE process, and let ACT! continue the installation, and all was fine.

 Hopefully, this helps anyone else with this problem. 

[mscott821]

Cool!

[somuchand…]

Perfect! Thanks a ton for this tip. I was so confused by what was happening. After I read your tip, I had task manager open and kaboom! - the error happened and there it was - PREREQ.EXE - ended that task and it was oh so smooth after that! Fantastic tip! Thanks a lot once again!

Regards,

Somu 

[pregen]

Just wanted to say thanks again for this forum.  I found this link by doing a Google search and presto - removing prereq.exe did the trick.  It seems that the prereq.exe has an issue on 2008 servers.  It can't seem to find manual installations of ACT7 or it fails during installs.  Reboots of the server didn't fix it as well.  Hm.