[Tex/LaTex] MikTeX 2.9 does not respond under Windows 10 Pro 64 bit

miktex

Two weeks ago I installed MiKTeX 2.9 64 bit on my laptop with OS Windows 10 Pro 64 bit. When working a while on a document (article) MiKTeX all of a sudden no longer responds. This invariably happens when I activate a menu option (for example to compile or to enlarge the pdf compilation) or simply when moving the mouse across the menu bar. The program seems to 'hang' itself. Both screens, code and pdf (I use the option pdfLaTeX when compiling), are visible and can be clicked down to the taskbar, but that's it. Closing the program, saving the work, using menu options and working in the document is no longer possible. No error or warning messages appear.
The only option left is closing the program using the task manager, and then start it up again. But after a while the problem reoccurs.
What goes wrong here? The installation went fine. I tried, but to no avail:
– uninstall MiKTeX 2.9 64 bit and install MiKTeX 2.9 32 bit;
– updating MiKTeX 2.9 64 bit and 32 bit;
– running or not running other programs at the same time as MiKTeX 2.9.
I previously worked with MiKTeX 2.9 32 bit on a desktop with Windows Vista Ultimate 32 bit and experienced no problems.
Does someone have an idea?

Cor Vermeulen
The Netherlands

Best Answer

Well, it seems that your installation of MiKTeX has problems. I do not use Windows 10, but I had an similar problem with Windows 8.1.

I got from time to time error messaged from windows 8 that an application crash happend. Please check your system panel for error messages and report them to the MiKTeX support.

At last I got rid of this problem by doing the following things:

  1. uninstall MiKTeX and editors
  2. Reboot windows
  3. I forced an update of windows
  4. Reboot windows
  5. Download the current installer for complete MiKTeX
  6. Install MiKTeX. Please make sure, that the installation is complete. It could happen, that the downloading and installing of MiKTeX can be interrupted by an unreachable download server (one student of mine had to restart the MikTeX installer for 11 times!).
  7. Reboot windows
  8. Run the package manager of MiKTeX (you have to do that, the installer does not always install the current versions of packages. The package manager checks that and show you all packages with newer versions available.
  9. Reboot windows. Check if you got unusual windows errors with the system panal.
  10. Test MiKTeX with commandline and compile your HelloWorld.tex with pdflatex HelloWorld.tex. Check the log file for errors or warnings. There should be none of them.
  11. Download the installer for your prefered editor and install it. Check that the installation is complete. If you need to configure the editor do it.
  12. Reboot windows to make sure the new program can work properly.
  13. Test your editor compiling HelloWorld.tex. Check the log file again. There should be no warnings or error messages.

I ask you to do the reboots to be sure windows had finished the installing and updating MiKTeX. All my students following this advice have no problems running MiKTeX.

It seems that windows needs the reboots to be able to finish the installation process. If you omit the reboot it can be that the installing is not finished and that results in variing error situations.

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