[GH-ISSUE #6422 ] [Bug] AppFlowy is not visible on Launch (first-time installation) #2834

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@birnam commented on GitHub (Oct 13, 2024):

Same problem here. I've tried with the installer version of 0.7.1, and portable (.zip) versions of 0.7.1, 0.7.0, 0.6.9, and 0.5.9.

When I run AppFlowy, I can see a "Background processes" listing in Task Manager, but no other indication of an app running. I've tried a fresh restart. No windows, no icons in the task bar, no icons in the tray.

@birnam commented on GitHub (Oct 13, 2024): Same problem here. I've tried with the installer version of 0.7.1, and portable (.zip) versions of 0.7.1, 0.7.0, 0.6.9, and 0.5.9. When I run AppFlowy, I can see a "Background processes" listing in Task Manager, but no other indication of an app running. I've tried a fresh restart. No windows, no icons in the task bar, no icons in the tray.

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@Xazin commented on GitHub (Oct 13, 2024):

I took out my old Windows 10 laptop (x86_64) which hasn't been used in 5 years and had a nearly fresh install of windows, and I couldn't reproduce.

I tried walking through some possible fixes with Josion (another user with this issue) on Discord, but we didn't manage to find anything that worked.

We will keep exploring what can be causing this.

@Xazin commented on GitHub (Oct 13, 2024): I took out my old Windows 10 laptop (x86_64) which hasn't been used in 5 years and had a nearly fresh install of windows, and I couldn't reproduce. I tried walking through some possible fixes with Josion _(another user with this issue)_ on Discord, but we didn't manage to find anything that worked. We will keep exploring what can be causing this.

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@birnam commented on GitHub (Oct 14, 2024):

Thank you @Xazin -- I'm on Windows 11 23H2 (22631.4317). Can you tell me, from a task manager perspective, is there supposed to be an AppFlowy in both Apps and Background Processes, or just the one in Background Processes like I'm seeing?

I'm a heavy virtual desktop user. I tried scanning through the other desktops to see if it had launched somewhere else but did not find the app. I wonder if it's related though.

@birnam commented on GitHub (Oct 14, 2024): Thank you @Xazin -- I'm on Windows 11 23H2 (22631.4317). Can you tell me, from a task manager perspective, is there supposed to be an AppFlowy in both Apps and Background Processes, or just the one in Background Processes like I'm seeing? I'm a heavy virtual desktop user. I tried scanning through the other desktops to see if it had launched somewhere else but did not find the app. I wonder if it's related though.

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@Xazin commented on GitHub (Oct 14, 2024):

Thank you @Xazin -- I'm on Windows 11 23H2 (22631.4317). Can you tell me, from a task manager perspective, is there supposed to be an AppFlowy in both Apps and Background Processes, or just the one in Background Processes like I'm seeing?

I'm a heavy virtual desktop user. I tried scanning through the other desktops to see if it had launched somewhere else but did not find the app. I wonder if it's related though.

It should definitely be visible in "Apps" and not in "Backgroundprocesses". Sounds like it's related indeed.

@Xazin commented on GitHub (Oct 14, 2024): > Thank you @Xazin -- I'm on Windows 11 23H2 (22631.4317). Can you tell me, from a task manager perspective, is there supposed to be an AppFlowy in both Apps and Background Processes, or just the one in Background Processes like I'm seeing? > > I'm a heavy virtual desktop user. I tried scanning through the other desktops to see if it had launched somewhere else but did not find the app. I wonder if it's related though. It should definitely be visible in "Apps" and not in "Backgroundprocesses". Sounds like it's related indeed.

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@Joshua-E-Weinstein commented on GitHub (Oct 14, 2024):

Here's my driver info if it helps:
-AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT
-Driver Version 24.20.11.01-240925a-407465C-AMD-Software-Adrenalin-Edition

I do not use virtual desktops, but I do have multiple monitors.

@Joshua-E-Weinstein commented on GitHub (Oct 14, 2024): Here's my driver info if it helps: -AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT -Driver Version 24.20.11.01-240925a-407465C-AMD-Software-Adrenalin-Edition I do not use virtual desktops, but I do have multiple monitors.

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@CamiloMM commented on GitHub (Nov 6, 2024):

Same issue on a GTX 1060 PC, Win10. Since people mention Win11 and Radeon, I don't think that's it. Multiple monitors though.

@CamiloMM commented on GitHub (Nov 6, 2024): Same issue on a GTX 1060 PC, Win10. Since people mention Win11 and Radeon, I don't think that's it. Multiple monitors though.

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@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 6, 2024):

Same behavior with 0.7.2

@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 6, 2024): Same behavior with 0.7.2

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https://github.com/AppFlowy-IO/AppFlowy-Builder/releases/download/0.7.3.alpha.1/AppFlowy-0.7.3-windows-x86_64.exe

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@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 7, 2024):

Hi, @Joshua-E-Weinstein @CamiloMM @birnam, here's the alpha version of the latest release, which includes a fix for the windows visible issue. We verified it on two machines (Windows 11). Could you help test if the latest package works on your machine?

@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 7, 2024): Hi, @Joshua-E-Weinstein @CamiloMM @birnam, here's the alpha version of the latest release, which includes a fix for the windows visible issue. We verified it on two machines (Windows 11). Could you help test if the latest package works on your machine? https://github.com/AppFlowy-IO/AppFlowy-Builder/releases/download/0.7.3.alpha.1/AppFlowy-0.7.3-windows-x86_64.exe

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@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 7, 2024):

Thank you! Unfortunately I see no improvement. An 'AppFlowy' entry appears in 'Background Processes' in Task Manager, but not in Apps and there is no visible window or icon in the tray.

@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 7, 2024): Thank you! Unfortunately I see no improvement. An 'AppFlowy' entry appears in 'Background Processes' in Task Manager, but not in Apps and there is no visible window or icon in the tray.

mirror commented

https://github.com/AppFlowy-IO/AppFlowy-Builder/releases/download/0.7.3.1_main/AppFlowy-Windows-v0.7.3.1.zip

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@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 8, 2024):

@birnam Thanks for testing. I've built a new version. Would you like to help test it again? This time, I’ve created an executable file instead of an installer, to avoid overwriting your existing application.

@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 8, 2024): @birnam Thanks for testing. I've built a new version. Would you like to help test it again? This time, I’ve created an executable file instead of an installer, to avoid overwriting your existing application. https://github.com/AppFlowy-IO/AppFlowy-Builder/releases/download/0.7.3.1_main/AppFlowy-Windows-v0.7.3.1.zip

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@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 8, 2024):

Thanks Lucas! I tested the new standalone but unfortunately I'm only seeing the same thing as before.

@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 8, 2024): Thanks Lucas! I tested the new standalone but unfortunately I'm only seeing the same thing as before.

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@CamiloMM commented on GitHub (Nov 9, 2024):

Same thing here. Shows up in task manager, but no window.

Feel free to ask us to run some form of diagnostic command, or whatever technical information might help you figure this out.

@CamiloMM commented on GitHub (Nov 9, 2024): Same thing here. Shows up in task manager, but no window. Feel free to ask us to run some form of diagnostic command, or whatever technical information might help you figure this out.

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https://github.com/AppFlowy-IO/AppFlowy-Builder/releases/download/0.7.3.1_main/AppFlowy-Windows-v0.7.3.2.zip

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@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 11, 2024):

Hi, I checked the Flutter issues related to invisible windows and tried another workaround mentioned to rebuild the package. So far, I've attempted the following:

Followed the Flutter team's suggestion to upgrade to the latest Flutter version (didn't work).
Modified windows.cpp to force the window to show (didn't work).
Assigned the restoration scope id to the app (included in v0.7.3.2.zip).
Added back the MS_VISIBLE flag (included in v0.7.3.2.zip).

Please help test the package below. Thanks in advance!

@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 11, 2024): Hi, I checked the Flutter issues related to invisible windows and tried another workaround mentioned to rebuild the package. So far, I've attempted the following: - Followed the Flutter team's suggestion to upgrade to the latest Flutter version (didn't work). - Modified windows.cpp to force the window to show (didn't work). - Assigned the restoration scope id to the app (included in v0.7.3.2.zip). - Added back the MS_VISIBLE flag (included in v0.7.3.2.zip). Please help test the package below. Thanks in advance! https://github.com/AppFlowy-IO/AppFlowy-Builder/releases/download/0.7.3.1_main/AppFlowy-Windows-v0.7.3.2.zip

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@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 11, 2024):

Sadly this one still does not work. I wish I had a Rust environment set up to help test. Are there build instructions somewhere?

@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 11, 2024): Sadly this one still does not work. I wish I had a Rust environment set up to help test. Are there build instructions somewhere?

mirror commented

https://docs.appflowy.io/docs/documentation/appflowy/from-source/environment-setup/building-on-windows

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@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 12, 2024):

Here are the build instructions for Windows.

@LucasXu0 commented on GitHub (Nov 12, 2024): Here are the build instructions for Windows. https://docs.appflowy.io/docs/documentation/appflowy/from-source/environment-setup/building-on-windows

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@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 13, 2024):

Thanks @LucasXu0 - after some trial and error I did get the project building. TLDR; I found a workaround by incorporating a new dependency.

Setup:
Installing Flutter meant the latest version of Flutter, though, instead of the one mentioned in the instructions (3.24 vs 3.22). This created a build error because the layoutInlineChildren call definition changed to having 3 params instead of 2. The issue was inside another package though, and updating the extended_text_field package to version 16.0.0 solves it without requiring any modification to AppFlowy code.

That is just a side issue though, but now meant I could build the project and figure out the real issue.

The actual bug:
There is a crash occuring when trying to obtain a deviceId from Windows. This is being called in device_id.dart and device_info_task.dart:

There is an open issue with the same problem on the DeviceInfoPlugin package repo, although they are mis-identifying it as only a Windows 10 problem. (I'm running Windows 11) Updating to their latest version does not improve the situation, and I'm not sure what the underlying issue is. Race condition? Something wrong with the await when invoking a native system call? I don't know.

I love finally seeing a "This task failed successfully" message in the wild though :)

Solution:
However, there is another package called PlatformDeviceId that I tried using in the same place and was able to get a deviceId without crashing, completely resolving the problem.

Notes:

Actually, I only updated the code in device_id.dart and not device_info_task.dart, but that was enough. If this was something like a race condition, the conditions that caused it are perhaps corrected by the time the other code is called? A final solution would probably want to test and change this in both places.
I only used the PlatformDeviceId package to replace the code in the Windows branch of that conditional. However it looks like that package does the same thing as the whole block, so it might be a good replacement for the entire thing
I didn't look into how that deviceId is being used, though. If it's something that needs to be the same between AppFlowy versions (across updates) then replacing this code could cause issues.
I'm describing the issue and solution rather than forking and submitting a merge request because I didn't go through all the steps to get tests running or other forms of verification that I had the project set up right in the first place, and I don't have a working previous version I could compare against manually. Seems easier this way.

@birnam commented on GitHub (Nov 13, 2024): Thanks @LucasXu0 - after some trial and error I did get the project building. TLDR; I found a workaround by incorporating a new dependency. **Setup:** Installing Flutter meant the latest version of Flutter, though, instead of the one mentioned in the instructions (3.24 vs 3.22). This created a build error because the [layoutInlineChildren](https://api.flutter.dev/flutter/rendering/RenderInlineChildrenContainerDefaults/layoutInlineChildren.html) call definition changed to having 3 params instead of 2. The issue was inside another package though, and updating the [extended_text_field](https://pub.dev/packages/extended_text_field) package to version 16.0.0 solves it without requiring any modification to AppFlowy code. That is just a side issue though, but now meant I could build the project and figure out the real issue. **The actual bug:** There is a crash occuring when trying to obtain a `deviceId` from Windows. This is being called in device_id.dart and device_info_task.dart: ![image](https://github.com/user-attachments/assets/ef2fd2d6-f785-4e71-8419-239d727c69f1) There is an [open issue](https://github.com/fluttercommunity/plus_plugins/issues/2957) with the same problem on the `DeviceInfoPlugin` package repo, although they are mis-identifying it as only a Windows 10 problem. (I'm running Windows 11) Updating to their latest version does not improve the situation, and I'm not sure what the underlying issue is. Race condition? Something wrong with the `await` when invoking a native system call? I don't know. I love finally seeing a "This task failed successfully" message in the wild though :) **Solution:** However, there is another package called [PlatformDeviceId](https://pub.dev/packages/platform_device_id) that I tried using in the same place and was able to get a deviceId without crashing, completely resolving the problem. **Notes:** * Actually, I only updated the code in `device_id.dart` and not `device_info_task.dart`, but that was enough. If this was something like a race condition, the conditions that caused it are perhaps corrected by the time the other code is called? A final solution would probably want to test and change this in both places. * I only used the PlatformDeviceId package to replace the code in the Windows branch of that conditional. However it looks like that package does the same thing as the whole block, so it might be a good replacement for the entire thing * I didn't look into how that `deviceId` is being used, though. If it's something that needs to be the same between AppFlowy versions (across updates) then replacing this code could cause issues. * I'm describing the issue and solution rather than forking and submitting a merge request because I didn't go through all the steps to get tests running or other forms of verification that I had the project set up right in the first place, and I don't have a working previous version I could compare against manually. Seems easier this way.

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