This github issue:
opened 03:46PM - 13 Jan 23 UTC
Does Racket 8.x actually run on Windows 7 as the Download page suggests ?
I'm h… aving problems installing herbie on it, and DrRacket.exe also does not start, instead there are multiple DLL related errors.
**What version of Racket are you using?**
8.7
**What program did you run?**
raco pkg install --auto herbie
**What should have happened?**
Herbie should have installed properly.
**If you got an error message, please include it here.**
```
Resolving "herbie" via https://download.racket-lang.org/releases/8.7/catalog/
Resolving "herbie" via https://pkgs.racket-lang.org
Downloading repository https://github.com/uwplse/herbie.git?path=src#v1.6 commit 600fd02dd9057ff758c4c73f806e323470f72a02
make-file-or-directory-link: cannot make link
path: e:\Temp\UserTemp\SYSTEM\16736245871673624587460-uwplse_herbie_git_v1_6\www\doc\latest
system error: The parameter is incorrect.; win_err=87
context...:
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\net\git-checkout.rkt:776:3
[repeats 2 more times]
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\net\git-checkout.rkt:167:11
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\net\git-checkout.rkt:55:2: retry-loop
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\pkg\private\download.rkt:102:2: download!
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\file\cache.rkt:63:2: fetch-and-continue
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\racket\contract\private\arrow-val-first.rkt:555:3
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\pkg\private\download.rkt:94:0: download-repo!
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\pkg\private\stage.rkt:319:11
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\pkg\private\stage.rkt:115:0: stage-package/info
[repeats 1 more time]
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\pkg\private\install.rkt:142:0: install-packages
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\pkg\private\install.rkt:953:4
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\racket\contract\private\arrow-val-first.rkt:555:3
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\racket\file.rkt:763:8
G:\Progs\Racket\collects\racket\file.rkt:752:0: call-with-file-lock
...
```
**Please include any other relevant details**
Windows 7
"Run as Administrator" was used for the prompt
... suggests that Racket 8.7 does not start on Windows 7. Does anyone here have a test machine, or know of a trustworthy VPS provider that supports Windows 7 instances?
shhyou
January 14, 2023, 5:12pm
2
I found this thread but there's no answer
A user of ActivityLog2 reported that the application fails to run on Window7, and the application is built using Racket 8.6 CS. Since the application itself does not load additional DLLs except for what Racket libraries load, I suspect this is a problem with Racket itself, however I have no way to verify this.
The racket download page at Racket: Racket 8.6 indicates that "Windows 7 and up" is supported, but does anyone actually use Windows 7 and can confirm that DrRacket starts up OK?
I can …
1 Like
I recetly acquired an old Windows laptop, but have not used it, and have no idea whether is it Windows 7 or some kind of windows 8. I haven't even booted it. Is there a safe way to fine out without risking it on the internet? It's likely not even slightly up-to-date. Does Windows 7 need to phone home?
-- hendrik
On my windows 7 laptop 8.6 cs , 8.7 cs, 8.6 BC and 8.7 BS cannot start up.
Many thanks for your detective work! How about earlier versions? Does 8.5 start up?
mflatt
January 24, 2023, 2:21pm
7
The issue appears to be with a rebuilt library starting version 8.6. Copying the .dll
files form a v8.5 installation's lib
directory to the lib
directory of an v8.7 installation allows DrRacket to run on the Windows 7 installation that I tried.
The specific failure that I saw with a plain v8.7 installation was about ScriptIsComplex
— probably as referenced by Pango, and the note about Windows 7 compatibility on ScriptIsComplex function (usp10.h) - Win32 apps | Microsoft Learn is probably relevant. I'll check whether adjusting Pango linking helps, but there may be other problems.
mflatt
January 25, 2023, 2:49am
8
Changing the link order for libpangowin32-1.0-0.dll
did the trick.
For someone who needs a quick repair, if you don't want to install an old version to get the old DLLs, here's the only DLL that needs to be replaced:
https://www.cs.utah.edu/~mflatt/tmp/libpangowin32-1.0-0.dll
(32-bit version: https://www.cs.utah.edu/~mflatt/tmp/32/libpangowin32-1.0-0.dll )