My BOINC screensaver has vanished from Start > Settings > Control Panel > Display Properties > Screensaver. I've no idea why, or where, it's gone.

How can I retrieve this function? I can't find a file with the word "screensaver" (or any recognizable abbreviation thereof) in my BOINC file folder.

Any assistance you can render in the form of advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

=^..^=

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BOINC.scr can be found in C:\\Windows (or C:\\WINNT for Windows 2000 versions).

If it isn't there, do a repair install of BOINC through Add/remove programs.

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Thank you, Ageless, for your timely response. I found the BOINC screensaver right where you said it would be, in "Windows"; and I chose the "Test" option from the drop-down menu, which produced one second of black screen.

I went to the "Screensaver" tab in "Display Properties" and BOINC was nowhere to be found on the menu. So, I went back to the BOINC screensaver application in "Windows" and chose the "Install" function. Up popped the "Display Properties" box, but the "Screensaver" menu was at the "None" selection and no BOINC screensaver could be found.

Subsequently, just for the fun of it, I went back to the BOINC screensaver in "Windows" and chose the "Configure" option. Up came a configuration dialog box, on which I clicked "Okay." But, back at the "Screensaver" tab in "Display Properties," "None" was selected and there was still no BOINC screensaver to be found.

Finally, I did the "Repair" thing to "BOINC" via the "Add/Remove Programs" function. It went through all the motions and claimed to have repaired BOINC but, alas, there was still no BOINC screensaver in the "Display Properties" "Screensaver" tab's menu. "None" was again the chosen screensaver.

Mind, I like a good mystery as much as the next guy; but at this point I'm at a loss as to how to proceed. Again, any further advice would be greatly appreciated; and I thank you in advance.

=^..^=

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If you use regedit to check in the registry, do you have the following key and if so, what is under it?

HKEY_CURRENT_USER\\Software\\Space Sciences Laboratory, U.C. Berkeley\\BOINC Screensaver

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Alas, Ageless, I ran the "Find" function in "Registry Editor" and it failed to locate "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\\Software\\Space Sciences Laboratory, U.C. Berkeley\\BOINC Screensaver." So, apparently the screensaver is everywhere but in the registry. What might I do at this point? Thank you for your help!

=^..^=

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Uninstall BOINC and reinstall it.

By uninstalling BOINC you only delete the BOINC program parts, all other stuff will be unaffected. You can do a reboot between uninstalling and reinstalling, but that shouldn't be necessary.

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Ageless, I'm afraid Lady Luck just isn't with me on this. I uninstalled BOINC, then downloaded "boinc_5.4.9_windows_intelx86" from the BOINC web site and installed it. Everything works just fine, but there's still no BOINC screensaver to be found on the "Screensaver" tab's menu in "Display Properties." I then re-started my computing system and checked everything again, with the same negative result.

There's no sign of that "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\\Software\\Space Sciences Laboratory, U.C. Berkeley\\BOINC Screensaver" key in the registry, either. The "BOINC.scr" file is present in "Windows," but using the "Install" function on the drop-down menu still fails to produce the desired result.

In the "BOINC Manager," I clicked on the "Show graphics" button after selecting the running SETI@home task under the "Tasks" tab; and up came a window clearly showing the SETI@home graphics, rotating just like they're supposed to. But, alas, the BOINC screensaver appears to be dead dead dead.

Let me again thank you in advance for any further advice you can offer. I appreciate the time you're spending, trying to help me. This mystery is deepening, I fear.

=^..^=

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OK, I'll contact Rom Walton (a developer) and ask him to come by this thread. I am a little bit out of ideas. :)

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OK, I'll contact Rom Walton (a developer) and ask him to come by this thread. I am a little bit out of ideas. :)

I too have a similar problem.

I have two computers, one is running Windows XP Pro and BOINC 5.4.9 and the screensaver works as it should, the other is running Windows XP Home and when I loaded BOINC 5.4.9 the screensaver would not function properly.

When the computer timed out and the screensaver came on it would flash on the screen for probably less than a second then the Desktop would come back. This would repeat everytime the timeout period was up. I went into the Control Panel to Display then Screensaver and found that there were two listings for BOINC. When I used the test button I got the same result of the screensaver flashing on the screen then retuning to the desktop. Didn't matter which of the two BOINC Screensavers I tried they both did the same thing. Just checked the other computer that is running 5.4.9 with no problem and there is only one BOINC Screensaver listed.

On the original install of 5.4.9 I had uninstalled 5.2.13 then installed 5.4.9 as suggested in WIKI. When this didn't work I went back to 5.2.13 and the screensaver worked fine. Did some more reading and found other people had just installed the new version over the old so I tried this and still got the same result of a non functioning screensaver.

I don't know how many times I switched back and forth between 5.2.13 and 5.4.9, I still could not get the screensaver to work so at present the XP Home machine is running 5.2.13 and I have been checking the Message Board to see if any body else has had a similar problem.

I don't know whether this has any bearing on the problem, the XP Home machine is running SETI and Einstein and the XP Pro computer is only running Einstein.

Paul

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Thanks, Ageless, for all your advice/help so far. Oh, by the way, since I re-installed BOINC the screensaver test works properly -- with animated graphics appearing as they should, only ceasing when I escape the screensaver via a mouse move or the "Esc" key. But there's still no sign of the BOINC screensaver within "Display Properties"; and the file still does not respond to the "Install" function. ("Install" continues to pop up the "Screensaver" tab in "Display Properties," showing I've selected "None" as my screensaver.)

Here is my "System Information" as of right now:

OS Name -- Microsoft Windows [Millennium Edition]
Version -- 4.90.3000 Build 3000
OS Manufacturer -- Microsoft Corporation
System Name -- COMPUTER
System Manufacturer -- Compaq
System Model -- Compaq PC [5WV270]
System Type -- X86-based PC
Processor -- AMD Duron(tm) Processor AuthenticAMD ~751 Mhz
BIOS Version --
Windows Directory -- C:\\WINDOWS
System Directory -- C:\\WINDOWS\\SYSTEM
Boot Device -- \\\\Device\\Harddisk0
Locale -- United States
User Name --
Time Zone -- Pacific Daylight Time
Total Physical Memory -- 319.51 MB
Available Physical Memory -- 48.50 MB
Total Virtual Memory -- 2.00 GB
Available Virtual Memory -- 1.46 GB
Page File Space -- 1.69 GB
Page File-- C:\\WINDOWS\\WIN386.SWP

I shall await further word on this matter of the reluctant screen saver. Thanks again for your help!

=^..^=

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I am having the same problem described by Paul Anderson below. I just installed BOINC 5.4.9 on my computer. Initially, the screensaver worked correctly and displayed the Einstein@Home graphics. Now, it does as Paul describes: it tries to run the screensaver, and immediately returns to the desktop. Eventually, the screensaver stays on, with the BOINC logo and text" BOINC screensaver is shutting down" or words to that effect.

I only have one BOINC screensaver listed now, but for a while there were two. When I try to change the settings from the Display Properties window, the Display Properties window locks up, and trying to close it results in a "rundll32.exe is not responding" warning message window. Previewing the screensaver from this window brings up a black screen for about 4 seconds, then a return to the desktop.

In the registry, I do have the "HKEY_CURRENT_USER\\Software\\Space Sciences Laboratory, U.C. Berkeley\\BOINC Screensaver" listed, and under it are:

Name                     Type                 Value
(Default)                REG_SZ               (value not set)
Blank                    REG_DWORD            0x00000000 (0)
Blank Time               REG_DWORD            0x00000005 (5)

Thanks for your help.

Chris Kautz

I only have one BOINC screensaver listed now, but for a while there were two.

There should only be one.

The project's screen saver is built in in the science application, so any complaints you have about specific screen savers, post them on the project's help desk forums as well.

Updating videocard drivers is a good thing.
Updating DirectX is always a good thing.
Updating your motherboard chipset drivers is a good thing.

BOINC 5.4.9 also sends an Remote Procedure Call for the screen saver to the firewall when it starts up. Make sure you allow Boinc.scr in your firewall software.

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Finally had spare time this weekend to track down new video card drivers, and all works fine now.

Chris Kautz

I'm still waiting for that "Rom Walton" guy to post here, with instructions on how to get the BOINC screensaver to install. It's all present and accounted for, but it won't install. It was installed, then one day it mysteriously uninstalled itself; and now refuses all attempts at installation, as my previous posts to this thread indicate. *is trying to remain patient*

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It could be a problem with Windows Millennium. Rom knows about your problem, but he's also quite busy with programming the new BOINC version. I'll send him another request to come look, though.

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I'm still waiting for that "Rom Walton" guy to post here, with instructions on how to get the BOINC screensaver to install. It's all present and accounted for, but it won't install. It was installed, then one day it mysteriously uninstalled itself; and now refuses all attempts at installation, as my previous posts to this thread indicate. *is trying to remain patient*

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Ouch, sorry I dropped the ball.

Can you copy the boinc.scr file from c:\\windows to c:\\windows\\system and/or c:\\windows\\system32?

Microsoft changed the default location of all the other screensavers and I thought I had everything covered in the most compatible way. Although I don't have an ME machine, so I couldn't test it on ME.

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----- Rom
BOINC Development Team, U.C. Berkeley
My Blog

Yay! Thanks, Rom: You've solved the problem! I copied the file to c:\\windows\\system and -- Presto! -- it now appears in the Screensaver tab's scroll-down menu. It's up and running! Ta da! *loves happy endings*

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