Quick Tip: Dynamics fails to launch on system with Symantec Endpoint Protection installed
I recently had a case where the customer was able to install the Microsoft Dynamics GP client on a machine, but when they clicked on the shortcut nothing happened. Even dragging the DYNAMICS.SET launch file onto the DYNAMICS.EXE application did nothing. In fact, any thing that involved getting the Dexterity Runtime Engine DYNAMICS.EXE to launch failed.
I did some research on our internal knowledge base of previous cases and this situation had occurred in the past a number of times when the computers in question were running Symantec Endpoint Protection. When I checked with the customer, sure enough, they were using Symantec Endpoint Protection (SEP).
The solution that was used on most of these cases was to un-install SEP and then Microsoft Dynamics GP would launch. It seemed that just temporarily disabling SEP is not enough and that a full un-install was required.
Obviously, the customer was not keen on removing the product that was protecting their system from the world of "nasties" that can attack a computer, but they were eventually persuaded to remove SEP and, as expected, Microsoft Dynamics GP could now launch.
However, this solution is not really satisfactory as we now have the computer unprotected and have a product that was paid for that can't be used. We had identified that Symantec Endpoint Protection was the cause of the problem, but had not identified exactly why? I had suggested that the customer contact Symantec to ask why it prevented DYNAMICS.EXE from running.
So, I was planning to write an article on the blog about this once we had heard back from Symantec.
Then, Joseph Tews over at Summit Group Software beat me to it with his post: GP Client Installs but Doesn’t Launch. He had come across the same issue and had found the following article in the Symantec Support pages:
The article describes how SEP's Tamper Protection Driver and the Application and Device Control feature block the application and prevent it from executing. It then goes on to explain that you need to avoid installing or remove the components for Proactive Threat Protection and Network Threat Protection. Once these two features have been removed, Microsoft Dynamics GP will be able to launch. Please see the post for detailed instructions.
So, it is possible to keep Symantec Endpoint Protection installed and have Microsoft Dynamics GP working correctly.
Thanks Joseph for pointing out the article.
David