Naming Windows installer "vlc.exe" causes install to fail
BLUF:
- Issue: Installer named "vlc.exe" detects itself as a background process and then closes itself.
- Workaround: Name the installer something other than "vlc.exe"
Details: When I downloaded the VLC installer, I named it "vlc.exe". Then when I run the installer, it notifies me that I have a background instance of VLC running. After clicking on "OK", the installer attempts to close the background process but instead closes itself. Renaming the installer to anything other than "vlc.exe" fixes the issue.
My OS (Windows 10 Home) was recently installed using the stock image from Microsoft, so there is no way VLC may have been previously installed.
I believe this issue may be the root cause of the problem reported in this forum post:
https://forum.videolan.org/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=146595&p=480830&hilit=installer+vlc.exe#p480806
Presumably, when the person reporting an issue downloaded a new copy of VLC, they did not name it "vlc.exe" again and thus unintentionally resolved the issue.
System Information:
- VLC Installer Version: 3.0.6
- OS: Windows 10 Home (x64)
- Windows Version: 1809
- Windows Build: 17763.316
- Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 1700