WindowBlinds 10 and ESET NOD32 antivirus

The instructions should remain correct and I will get them checked, but the general gist is you should exclude wbcore.exe from the HIPS feature.

An alternative is to swap to an antivirus product that does not break OS features but I suspect you would prefer not to do that.

The instructions on the knowledge base article refer to interface elements that don't exist or have been moved.  If I've read correctly, the new process for excluding items from HIPS seems to be much more complex, and requires certain details about what the exclusion is to allow and not allow rather than just a 'one size fits all' exclusion.  I've got no idea which of the options apply to WindowBlinds.

The instructions have been updated to match the most current version of ESET

Thanks for checking.  Two problems.

First, there is a step missing between 7 and 8.  After you name a rule and set it to 'allow', you have to pick from a number of options for how you want the rule to work.  Having no knowledge of how WB works under the hood, there is no means by which to determine which options to pick.

To try and get it working, though (I've had WB since WindowBlinds 2, and miss having it), I selected all of the options.  When attempting to apply a skin, it still gives me the error pictured above and sends me to the knowledge base page.  I have tried numerous variations of the rule.  I've tried adding additional executables to the rule.  I've uninstalled and reinstalled WindowBlinds.  I've run it as an administrator.  Nothing changes the result - skins cannot be applied, as they just generate an error and open the webpage. 

Thanks again for the timely update. I've always been happy working with Stardock.

I tried the new instructions and get the same result.  WindowBlinds sees ESET and tells me to change settings, never letting me actually apply a skin.

I already contacted Stardock via the email link on the KB page earlier.  Should I submit a ticket as well?

IZR-265-37962

I've already heard back from the help desk and replied.  I just wanted to make sure I wasn't submitting two support requests for one issue.

I'm updating this just in case anyone else has the problem.  There is nothing worse than googling your problem, finding a discussion about it, and then finding that the answer never got posted.

Unfortunately, after some back and forth with Stardock, it seems that there currently is no solution to this problem.  WindowBlinds 10 is simply incompatible with ESET NOD32 Antivirus, at least on my system.  Hopefully there will be an update at some point in the future.  I'm photophobic (I have a high sensitivity to bright light) and have used WindowBlinds for years to dim the blindingly white Explorer backgrounds.

Google 'f.lux' ... it's a proggy that auto dims your monitor for lower brightness at night under artificial light [when the intensity is not needed].

I use it....;)

It is important to note that THEY are breaking us.  I am afraid all blame rests at their door as they are intentionally breaking core OS functionality.

Regarding the issues, I have checked and been told the instructions were checked and it works fine once they are followed.  An alternative is disabling HIPS entirely which will also resolve it.  Please be aware that the message will appear if WB is also not installed properly if ESET is installed (as we detect a bit of WB not running and then notice ESET running and so show the message), so it is possible you would need to uninstall and reinstall were ESET to have messed with WBs install procedures too.  Certainly a reboot is needed after configuring ESET.

As the issue is outside our control (the message appears when the problem is detected), there will be no updates from us regarding this I am afraid as there is nothing we could do (we are being broken).  One alternative I could suggest would be to consider a better antivirus product as ESET is the only one with this unfortunate 'feature'

Thanks, Neil.  I wasn't assigning blame - with so much software and variability in PCs, there will be times when there are simply incompatibilities.  I can promise you that the instructions were followed (and WB was removed and reinstalled multiple times, into different directories and on different drives to try and eliminate that issue), which is why I said "at least on my system."  I'm guessing that there is some other piece of software, driver, or hardware that is causing the fix to fail.  Such problems are usually rare enough that actually solving them is unrealistic.

Unfortunately, ESET is the antivirus that has best met my needs, as it is one of the only I've tried that hasn't consistently interfered with games and thrown false positives twice a week.

Thanks, and that's a great suggestion.  I've actually used f.lux in the past, but it doesn't really help with the problem.  F.lux adjusts the color of the light as well as its intensity, which is OK for some things, but I do enough stuff that distorted colors are a problem more often than they are a solution.  It is only the bright colors, usually whites, that cause me problems (this reply box, for instance, feels like I'm staring at a light bulb.)  F.lux would ease that a little in the evening, but it would also alter the blues, the reds, the greens - colors that aren't an issue for me at all.

Is the HIPS functionality required?  Based on what ESET says it does, a prudent user of PCs (which it sounds like you are) might go without that "feature" without exposing oneself to high risk.

I could, possibly, but it comes with the unfortunate side effect of putting ESET permanently into 'alert' mode, which has the effect of making it impossible to tell when a real alert is present.  I'm going to keep fiddling with it on my own.  I will post here if I come upon any solutions.

It's important to note that if Neil says it isn't going to work.....then it isn't going to work.

I'd be dumping the AV and choosing a better one....;)

There are others that aren't rubbish like Norton...with all the false positives....;)