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    N++ behavior when Windows Update does an unattended restart

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    • Alan KilbornA
      Alan Kilborn
      last edited by Alan Kilborn

      (I really need to disable Windows Update (EDIT: Windows 11, specifically) so that it doesn’t fire when I’m not around, but…)

      What should/can N++ (8.7.9) do to exit “cleanly” when Windows Update restarts my PC?

      I know that it isn’t exiting cleanly, because I have (at least) one PythonScript N++ shutdown callback that I know isn’t happening in this circumstance. I can tell this because I get an (intentional) message when I next start up N++…

      Of course I never walk away from my PC without saving modified files, so I’m never in danger of losing data I’m working on, but…

      @xomx : Didn’t you do some work on N++ that was supposed to ease/fix this problem?

      1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 2
      • xomxX
        xomx
        last edited by

        Yes, I did my best to N++ behaves in such a situation well (in fact, as close as in the usual WM_CLOSE case - after all, it shares the same code with this N++ exit-handler).

        The greatest danger in this case is represented by any non-standard situation in which, while terminating the N++ is in progress, some state requiring action from the user occurs (modal dlg, msgbox, etc.). I tried to adjust all such possible dlgs in N++ in a way that when such a forced logoff/restart/shutdown is in progress, these dlgs behave like the user presed Esc-key on them (and so close itself).

        So if you detect that the N++ behaves differently than in the normal manual closing by user, there should be a culprit blocking the standard N++ WM_CLOSE exit.

        Alan KilbornA 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
        • xomxX
          xomx
          last edited by

          @Alan-Kilborn

          Could you look into your %APPDATA%\Notepad++\ or the portable N++ main dir for the zero-size trigger nppLogNulContentCorruptionIssue.xml ?

          If it is there, then there might be already a hint for us what is happening - here is content of my nppLogNulContentCorruptionIssue.log generated when there was evidently a blocking modal-dlg (I did not know about) during one of my past Windows restarts:

          2024-06-05 22:17:00  WM_QUERYENDSESSION (lParam: 1 - ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP) =====================================
2024-06-05 22:17:00  Main Notepad++ wnd is disabled by (an active modal-dlg?):  Regex backward search disabled (MessageBox)  -> Main Notepad++ wnd has been successfully reenabled.
2024-06-05 22:17:00  WM_ENDSESSION (wParam: TRUE, lParam: 1 - ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP)
2024-06-05 22:17:00  C:\Notepad++\config.xml is opened.
2024-06-05 22:17:00  C:\Notepad++\config.xml  8483/8483 bytes are written.
2024-06-05 22:17:00  C:\Notepad++\config.xml is closed.
2024-06-05 22:17:00  C:\Notepad++\session.xml is opened.
2024-06-05 22:17:00  C:\Notepad++\session.xml  193/193 bytes are written.
2024-06-05 22:17:00  C:\Notepad++\session.xml is closed.
2024-06-05 22:17:00  WM_DESTROY (isEndSessionStarted == true)

          In the above case, my safety code successfully re-enabled the blocked main N++ wnd, so the N++ code-flow can continue to the required WM_ENDSESSION (from there the code-flow directly goes to the usual WM_CLOSE and finally to the WM_DESTROY exit…).

          Alan KilbornA 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
          • Alan KilbornA
            Alan Kilborn @xomx
            last edited by

            @xomx said :

            I tried to adjust all such possible dlgs in N++ in a way that when such a forced logoff/restart/shutdown is in progress, these dlgs behave like the user presed Esc-key on them (and so close itself).

            What happens regarding this when the prompt dialog is asking the user to save an unsaved file? I’m just curious, but I’m 99.9% sure this wasn’t my situation, as I’m always all over the save keycombo, and never walk away from my PC with anything unsaved.

            xomxX 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
            • Alan KilbornA
              Alan Kilborn @xomx
              last edited by

              @xomx said:

              Could you look into your %APPDATA%\Notepad++\ or the portable N++ main dir for the zero-size trigger nppLogNulContentCorruptionIssue.xml ?

              Here are the final 3 lines in that file, only the last 2 of which are relevant to when this happened very recently:

              2025-01-26 01:57:19  WM_ENDSESSION (wParam: TRUE, lParam: 1073741825 - ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP - ENDSESSION_CRITICAL)
2025-04-09 02:14:28  WM_QUERYENDSESSION (lParam: 1073741825 - ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP - ENDSESSION_CRITICAL) =====================================
2025-04-09 02:14:28  WM_ENDSESSION (wParam: TRUE, lParam: 1073741825 - ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP - ENDSESSION_CRITICAL)
              1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
              • xomxX
                xomx @Alan Kilborn
                last edited by

                @Alan-Kilborn said in N++ behavior when Windows Update does an unattended restart:

                prompt dialog is asking the user to save an unsaved file?

                The exact way depends on the backup snapshots setting (ON/OFF), type of the dlg (dlg or simple msgbox) and timing (has the dlg/msg been already visible when the restart event occurred or that event was the reason this dlg/msg showed up?).

                When the N++ backup snapshots is ON, there will be no such dlg/msgbox (N++ will rely purely on its backup engine).

                Otherwise (backup OFF) when such a dlg/msgbox has been already there and blocks the N++ main wnd (and thus the N++ graceful exit), it will be hard-closed (when N++ is parent of such wnd … by sending the usual WM_CLOSE to it, when it is only owner … by EndDialog WINAPI). And when the restart event is the reason to show up these dlgs/msgboxes - they will not be shown at all (and behave like the user pressed Esc/Cancel).

                @Alan-Kilborn said in N++ behavior when Windows Update does an unattended restart:

                final 3 lines in that file

                So it shows to us that there really IS a problem, indeed.

                ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP - ENDSESSION_CRITICAL is a clear flag-combination signature of the forced Windows Update restarts, this is ok.

                The fact that there is no log-msg between the WM_QUERYENDSESSION and WM_ENDSESSION corresponds to your I-always-save statement, ok - no already existing blocking dlgs etc.

                But the missing usual log-stuff after the WM_ENDSESSION (wParam: TRUE... means that N++ got stuck somewhere in its standard closing WM_CLOSE-handler, as with that TRUE it goes here (and then directly to WM_CLOSE):
                https://github.com/notepad-plus-plus/notepad-plus-plus/blob/4f649d24dd3ee6e899e5b781df579602cac07583/PowerEditor/src/NppBigSwitch.cpp#L2678

                So now it’s up to you to find what stuff is blocking your N++ WM_CLOSE exit. Maybe there is still a possibility to launch a N++ (or a plugin!) blocking dlg/msgbox at this stage, which I omitted to safe-adjust (to respect the N++ critical exit safe-flag set on this line). You can simulate the forced critical Windows restarts with the cmdline shutdown /r /f. Also because of that main-wnd blocked N++ probably crashed (result of the blocked N++ process termination by OS), there should be also a Windows Application event log record about it around the date visible in your log. Maybe that could give us a clue, IDK.

                Alan KilbornA 1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 0
                • Alan KilbornA
                  Alan Kilborn @xomx
                  last edited by

                  @xomx said in N++ behavior when Windows Update does an unattended restart:

                  there should be also a Windows Application event log record about it around the date visible in your log.

                  I don’t see anything in the Event Viewer:

                  93cac559-7a4f-488e-9b9a-0d0ea3d096e4-image.png

                  1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
                  • xomxX
                    xomx
                    last edited by xomx

                    @Alan-Kilborn

                    Try to run your installation with this notepad++.exe substitute: x64 Release
                    as usual, then left your N++ instance running and use the Windows forced restart cmd shutdown /r /f . After a minute your comp restarts, then collect the new extended nppLogNulContentCorruptionIssue.log and post it here.

                    Mine, with correct restart:

                    2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_QUERYENDSESSION (lParam: 1073741825 - ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP - ENDSESSION_CRITICAL) =====================================
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_ENDSESSION (wParam: TRUE, lParam: 1073741825 - ENDSESSION_CLOSEAPP - ENDSESSION_CRITICAL)
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: before _pluginsManager.notify NPPN_BEFORESHUTDOWN
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: after _pluginsManager.notify NPPN_BEFORESHUTDOWN
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: isSnapshotMode == true, before LockWindowUpdate & MainFileManager.backupCurrentBuffer
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: before getCurrentOpenedFiles(currentSession, true)
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: before fileCloseAll
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: after fileCloseAll
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: before g_bNppExitFlag.store(true)
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: before _pluginsManager.notify NPPN_SHUTDOWN
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: after _pluginsManager.notify NPPN_SHUTDOWN
2025-04-14 13:38:47  ...\config.xml is opened.
2025-04-14 13:38:47  ...\config.xml  8326/8326 bytes are written.
2025-04-14 13:38:47  ...\config.xml is closed.
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: after nppParam.saveConfig_xml
2025-04-14 13:38:47  ...\session.xml is opened.
2025-04-14 13:38:47  ...\session.xml  1562/1562 bytes are written.
2025-04-14 13:38:47  ...\session.xml is closed.
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: after saving session
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_NO_22: before DestroyWindow
2025-04-14 13:38:47  WM_DESTROY (isEndSessionStarted == true)
                    1 Reply Last reply Reply Quote 1
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