This article explains what to do if you have problems launching OpticsViewer and will help you get your OpticsViewer installation running smoothly.

Authored By Matthew Sutton

Introduction

This article is organized by error message or issue that may arise in an OpticsViewer installation. Please navigate to the section relevant to the issue you are experiencing to find steps to resolve the issue. If the issue persists, the Getting Help section covers getting support .

Nothing happens when launching OpticsViewer

If you have no error and nothing is displayed when launching OpticsViewer, this is normally due to missing Windows components that OpticsViewer requires to run. In order to correct this, you will need to check your Windows version and Windows updates. To do this:

1. Note that we require WIndows 7 Sp1, 8.1 or Windows 10 or equivalent Server OS's (2008 r2 or higher).
2. Check for Windows Updates on your PC. Install all available updates, including optional updates. Optional hardware device driver updates and updates to Microsoft software applications (such as Bing and Skype) are not necessary.  If this doesn't resolve it, move to the next section. 

Reinstall and verify the OpticsViewer Prerequisites Package. To do this:

1. If you have internet access, proceed to Step 2. If you do not have internet access, download the appropriate Microsoft .NET framework, as described above. You can obtain Microsoft .NET 4.6.2 here. 
2. Launch the OpticsViewer_Prerequisites.exe file that is located in your OpticsViewer installation folder. The default install folder is C:\Program Files\Zemax OpticsViewer. 
3. After clicking on this executable, you will see a progress box as it installs. The prerequisite installer will perform a reinstall of most components. It will skip any that it finds already exist on the machine and close automatically when done.

4. Once the installation has completed, try to launch OpticsViewer again.
   
   
5. If OpticsViewer does not launch properly, you can verify that all the most important components have been installed. One of the most common errors is with the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable packages not properly installing, even though they show up in the list of installed programs. To fix this, follow the instructions outlined in the Reinstalling the Visual C redistributables section below.

Reinstalling the Visual C redistributables

This is usually easily resolved by going into Control Panel...Programs and Features (Windows 7) or Settings....Apps (Windows 10). <Right-click> on each of the redistributable packages, select Change then Repair. 

• For OpticsViewer, check and repair the 2010, 2012 and 2019 Redistributables. 

If you don't see the appropriate Redistributable versions, they can be downloaded from here. 

If you are still unable to launch OpticsViewer, skip to the "Getting help" section.

OpticsViewer is unable to find a license key

If you get an error saying "Cannot find Zemax Key" there are some steps you can take to resolve your issue.

If you are trying to reach a network server, refer to "client" section of "How to install the keyserver and clients for an OpticsViewer network license."

OpticsViewer requires the .NET Framework

OpticsViewer requires that the Windows .NET Framework be properly installed. Normally, OpticsViewer automatically downloads the required version of the .NET Framework from Microsoft during installation, but errors can occur during the installation. If the .NET Framework has not been properly installed or needs to be repaired, you will receive the following error. OpticsViewer requires a minimum of .NET 4.8. Newer releases are backwards compatible.

You may install the .NET 4.8 version that does not require Internet access here.  

If you are still unable to launch OpticsViewer, or get .NET to install, skip to the "Getting help" section.

OpticsViewer has stopped working or immediately launches the Zemax File Collector

If you encounter an error message when launching OpticsViewer that contains "stopped working" or a similar error, this is usually due to missing or corrupt Windows components required to run OpticsViewer. A crash will automatically open the Zemax File Collector utility to allow you to report the crash to us for assistance. Before submitting a crash report, there are some steps to take. 

The first step in resolving the above error is to reinstall and verify the OpticsViewer Prerequisites Package. To do this:

1. If you have internet access, proceed to Step 2. If you do not have internet access, download the appropriate Microsoft .NET framework, as described in the above section OpticsViewer requires the .NET Framework
2. Launch the OpticsViewer_Prerequisites.exe file that is located in your OpticsViewer installation folder. The default install folder is C:\Program Files\Zemax OpticsViewer. 
3. After clicking on this executable, you will see a progress box as it installs. The prerequisite installer will perform a reinstall of most components. It will skip any that it finds already exist on the machine and close automatically when done.

4. Once the installation has completed, try to launch OpticsViewer again.
5. If OpticsViewer does not launch properly, you can verify that all the most important components have been installed. One of the most common errors is with the Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable packages not properly installing, even though they show up in the list of installed programs. To fix this, follow the instructions outlined in the Reinstalling the Visual C redistributables section above.
6. Try and Launch OpticsViewer again. If you still have troubles, move to the Getting help section. 

OpticsViewer hangs at splash screen on startup

This section applies if, after launching OpticsViewer, the application hangs at the below picture and it never moves past it. 

This issue has been known to happen due to antivirus software blocking the licensing process OpticsViewer needs to run. 

If you have something other than Mcafee Enterprise antivirus/security software, check to see if it has blocked any files at the time you launched OpticsViewer. The most common files are anything with "HASP" in the name (e.g. "hasp_RT.exe or hasplms.exe") or files in the OpticsViewer installation folder (by default: C:\Program Files\Zemax OpticsViewer). If you are unable to find any blocks in the antivirus move to the "Getting help" section below. 

If your organization uses Mcafee Enterprise, the "Host Intrusion Prevention System" feature may be the cause. To verify if this is the case and work around the issue, you can temporarily turn off HIPS. Note that HIPS is re-enabled upon restart of the computer, so this is not a permanent fix. To perform this action:

1. <Right-click> the Mcafee icon in the system tray (normally a red shield with an M in the center)
2. Under Disable, select Disable HIPS Protection.

3. Try and launch OpticsViewer.
4. If it launches properly, ask your IT department to whitelist (mark as safe) the "C:\Program Files\Zemax OpticsViewer\hasp_rt.exe" process in Mcafee's administrator console. 

If this does not fix the issue, proceed to the "Getting help" section.

Getting help

If your installation issue is not resolved, please email support@zemax.com. 

Please send us the following:

• Screen shots or description of any error messages or the behavior you encounter.
• A summary of any troubleshooting steps you have already taken 
• Your license key number in the format L100000.

This will provide us with all the information we'll need to quickly diagnose the problem or escalate as needed.

KA-01859