"Preview isn't available: The system cannot find the path specified."

[wbt]

I have PDF XChange Editor installed and in general it seems to work OK, but I can't get preview of PDF files working in Windows Explorer.

I tried uninstalling and reinstalling, including uninstalling via the uninstaller (same as the installer, with Remove selected), rebooting, downloading the latest (v8.0.336.0) 64-bit MSI for Windows, and installing that complete with all defaults.

When I click a PDF file with the Preview Pane open, the Preview Pane shows a warning triangle with the text "Preview isn't available" and below that in smaller text, "The system cannot find the path specified." Here is what it looks like:

PDF Xchange Editor- preview isnt available.png (3 KiB) Viewed 2147 times

This is different from when the application is completely uninstalled, when it just says "No preview available" with no icon. Here is what that looks like:

image.png (544 Bytes) Viewed 2147 times

I can open the program and go to File Associations, and set all the options including preview handler and click Apply, and do it again for the current user only, and still get the same results.

This is a new Windows 10 computer which has never had any other PDF viewer, including Acrobat's, installed.

What do I need to do to get this working? What path is the system looking for that it cannot find?

I am a fairly advanced user, but can't figure this one out by myself.

[Dimitar - Tracker Supp]

Hello wbt,

Could you please follow this procedure of clean installation of our products:

I've numbered the steps below to make them easier to follow.

1) Uninstall all products of ours that you have installed. Restart the computer.
**Note: restarting the computer at all prompted points is a very large part of making this work, so please be sure to do them
**Note: Also be sure to disable any and all anti virus programs that you have running and make sure that you are logged in as the Administrator.


2) Open up File Explorer and navigate to C:\Program Files and delete the PDF-XChange and/or Tracker Software folder.

3) Now, go to the Windows search bar and type in " regedit ", then right click and hit "Run as Administrator" - the following will show up:

4) Go to HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software and delete the Tracker Software / PDF-XChange folder.

5) Go to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE and delete Tracker Software / PDF-XChange folder.

6) Re-install all the products you have installed before with this link:

https://www.pdf-xchange.com/product/downloads


7) Now complete the install and restart Windows.



Hopefully that does fix the problem!


Regards.

[wbt]

Thank you for the reply and instructions. However, I have done this a few times now and it doesn't make a difference; I get the same outcome as originally reported.

If the information helps with diagnosis, I couldn't find the referenced key in HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE after the uninstaller completed, though I could see it while the products were installed.

Is there another way to get preview working?

I am also seeing the same thing independently on another new Windows 10 machine.

[Dimitar - Tracker Supp]

Hello wbt,


Could you please go to this folder:

C:\Program Files\Tracker Software\Shell Extensions

...and start this file XCShInfoSetup.exe


You will see this window:

Please set all the values to PDF-XChange and restart your computer.



Hopefully that does fix the problem!


Regards.

[wbt]

Thank you for your quick response! Unfortunately, that didn't do the trick either; same results as originally posted.

[TrackerSupp-Daniel]

Hi, wbt

Can I ask you to share the path(s) that some of the files you are trying to preview are in? Are these networked files, or local files, and do you have any folder sharing or custom paths for the affected folders? Do you reach the folder in question by navigating there manually, or do you use a link from the quick access menu in the files explorer instead?

Kind regards,

[wbt]

All of the files I am trying to preview are local on the same machine. I see this issue on any drive letter, including files that are in the root of the user's profile directory on the C:\ drive (under C:\Users\username). I usually get there by navigating from This PC down into the drive letter and the folder path, though the same effect occurs if I use a link in Quick Access or Recent folders. They open just fine when I double click to open them, and even the thumbnail view renders a reasonable approximation of the first page of the PDF content, though the thumbnail size means it's usually too small to read (as expected).

[Dimitar - Tracker Supp]

Hello wbt,

Just to test where is the problem located could you please uninstall your PDF Editor and then install it in different folder than the default one?

For instance, you could install it on Drive D you have such.

Regards.

[wbt]

I tried doing a full uninstall as described in the first response post, installed to a different drive letter (with no spaces in the short install path), and did the file association in-app as well as checking with the XCShInfoSetup.exe utility. I observe the same results as originally reported with PDFs on that drive, on the C drive, and on a third local drive on the same machine.

[Dimitar - Tracker Supp]

Hello wbt,

Thank you for the provided information.

Is it possible to provide me with remote access to your computer?

If it is possible, please send me details to support@pdf-xchange.com about when will be convenient for you
and what program for remote control will be preferable ( TeamViewer Any Desk ... )?

Regards.