First, always try updating eLicenser. Even if it’s the latest version, go ahead and download a fresh copy and reinstall. Run the cleanup process. Over time I’ve learned to start here anytime something Steinberg acts up, particularly after installing new Steinberg software or updates.
In testing, I install and uninstall lots of things Halion related, and more often than not, reinstalling and cleaning up eLicenser clears things up for me.
If that doesn’t work, read on:
I got this at one point, but tracked it down to what seems to be this:
I had downloaded some User made content packs (found here) individually at some point. I unzipped them to a location (“C:\Samples\Halion\VSTsound”).
The catch seems to be that I’d asked the MediaBay in Cubase to keep a continuous scan for any samples and other content stored in “C:\Samples”.
I’d installed it with the Halion Library Manger, which also put a fresh copy (I’d asked it to copy rather than move) into the usual “ProgramData\Steinberg\Content\VSTsound” directory that Halion likes to keep things.
I kept getting the popups after doing this, even if I used the Library manager to unregister, and delete the said content from “ProgramData\Steinberg\Content\VSTsound”.
So I figured, Halion must still be asking for this content for a reason…but why?
At some point it hit me, “I wonder what would happen if I move this vstsound archive that I’ve kept lingering in “C:\Samples” to a directory that is NOT set to be scanned by the Cubase Media Bay for content?”
I checked the Media Bay in Cubase, and as suspected, I had toggled this directory for continuous scanning of potential content, since I often keep lots of wav/aiff, and other shorter sample content stored there and like to have it bagged, tagged, and preview ready in Media Bay. In the past I’d also kept some vstsound archives in here that I often got samples from to build with in Halion 5, but didn’t have any important ‘Halion presets’ stored in…so I’d simply been treating them like MediaBay browseable sample containers.
So, I moved the fresh archive that seemed to be causing trouble to a location that doesn’t get scanned, and the pop-ups went away.
I reinstalled those user content packs with the Librarian, and they worked as expected, plus, no more popups.
The point is, if you’ve got extra copies of some vstsound archives lurking somewhere, make sure that you do not keep such extraneous copies in a directory that Halion and/or Cubase keeps scanned for content. If you’ve not installed anything out of ordinary on your own using the Library Manager, it still might be that the directory where you downloaded and installed Halion 6 or Sonic 3 from, happens to be in a directory that gets scanned for MediaBay on a regular basis. If so, try moving your installer directories (any installers that contain unpacked vstsound files) elsewhere (I.E. “C:\InstallerScreenTank”) and see if that clears things up.
The new Library Manager allows us to register content from any location we like. When double clicking on a *.vstsound archive, it scans all vstsound files in the same directory and if they are not already installed we get some options.
If we tell it to ‘move’ the content when registering, it moves the whole file to “ProgramData\Steinberg\Content\VSTsound” and registers it.
If we tell it to ‘copy’ the content, it makes a ‘copy’ of the vstsound archives to “ProgramData\Steinberg\Content\VSTsound” and registers them.
If we let it install from the present location, it keeps the VSTSound file where you launched Library Manger from, and puts a ‘shortcut’ pointing to the current location in “ProgramData\Steinberg\Content\VSTsound”.
One potential catch here is that many Cubase Users may well have MediaBay settings that keep a scan of any potential content in their “%USERPROFILE%” directory, and that happens to include your “Download” and “Document” directories, as well as anything kept ‘on your Desktop’! Those are all pretty common places for people to unpack and launch their installers and libraries from. Are they getting ‘double scanned’ when Halion launches?
With all that in mind…
My short guess is this:
Problem: If Halion comes across a second copy of the same VSTsound (perhaps shortcuts count as well) when it’s loading, it causes a fuss. One copy may be properly registered while the other is not, or perhaps there can also be cases where neither is registered…and Halion gets confused in the process so he asks you for intervention (ignore worked for me in the shorthaul).
Solution: Make sure any extra copies of VSTsound content are kept somewhere that doesn’t regularly get scanned by MediaBay for potential content. I.E. Zip it and get rid of the unzipped backup, or move it someplace that MediaBay ignores. In short, take care that Halion doesn’t try to scan the same vstsound archive twice when it starts up.
The good news, at least for me, is that even if I forget and mess up, tapping ignore during the plugin load will let me work without issues until I can get around to finding and moving/removing the lingering vstsound file.
This seems like a bug to me…