Tool for changing preferred DirectShow filters in Windows 7

[Brazil2]

Originally Posted by clsid

Added

New version can be found in first post.

Brilliant! Thanks a lot

[turbojet]

Hi, is that for Arcsoft TMT2\TME or TMT3?

[clsid]

I don't know, I haven't ever used that filter. It is likely they use the same filter in all their products.

[turbojet]

Yup after registering ASVid.ax it does have the same CLSID and it shows up.

However I wonder how people are making use of it in directshow as it can't connect to haali or gabest splitters. Brazil2 how are you using it?
The only way I know of to get it to work is through VC1tweak and that will only connect to certain TMT2 versions and it's currently not supported by this tool. What would be nifty is if this tool could setup arcsoft/powerdvd/windvd filters to connect to haali and gabest splitters, do you think that will be a possibility in the future?

BTW I kind of prefer this preferred method over merits, more organized, as long as tools like this exist and are supported. Thanks for the tool!

[zachdms]

Originally Posted by DarkZell666

As someone who loves life, cars frighten me. I would suspect that if you tried to live, someone would always find a way to introduce ways to kill you. Your "great cause" now is someone else's "uh oh whoops" three months from now.

... Life can kill you, you know

I ain't trollin', just commentin'. I simply talk with security and stability folks often. Imagine if you will that you put an "air bag" in the car to make it "safer"...

As a dev tool, sounds awesome. If it's something that starts creeping into the user ecosystem nonjudiciously... that's the part that scares me. As a reminder of why I politely bang the caution drum, during the middle of last year, the top crashes across all multimedia components upon Windows Vista were caused by codec packs. Not sheer and absolute MS incompetence as you might expect, just old dumb stuff like mmswitch, iac, and other oh-so-avoidable sources of error. Stuff not working is a tragedy I want to avoid. I'll do what I can to help put the pieces together, as I'm sure many of you do. <3

All respect to the project. I apologize for the minor digression.

[clsid]

I am going to correct you there. Codec packs do not cause crashes. It are the bad components in some packs that cause the problems you refer to. Not all packs are bad. For example the K-Lite Codec Pack actually helps users to remove those buggy items you mention when it detects them as installed on a users system.

From what I can see in the Registry, there is a blacklisting option. Is that correct? Why doesn't MS use that for those few known troublemakers, like mmswitch and voxware?

[clsid]

Originally Posted by turbojet

Yup after registering ASVid.ax it does have the same CLSID and it shows up.

However I wonder how people are making use of it in directshow as it can't connect to haali or gabest splitters. Brazil2 how are you using it?
The only way I know of to get it to work is through VC1tweak and that will only connect to certain TMT2 versions and it's currently not supported by this tool. What would be nifty is if this tool could setup arcsoft/powerdvd/windvd filters to connect to haali and gabest splitters, do you think that will be a possibility in the future?

BTW I kind of prefer this preferred method over merits, more organized, as long as tools like this exist and are supported. Thanks for the tool!

I would also like to know if the Arcsoft filter is actually usable. Otherwise there is no point in having an option for it in the tool. If it only works for certain versions of the filter, then additional information would be welcome. I could let the tool check the version of the filter if needed.

This tool only controls preferred decoders. It does not control which splitters are used.
A different tweak can be used to force a splitter for specific a file extension. Maybe I will someday make a similar tool for that.

[zachdms]

Originally Posted by clsid

I am going to correct you there. Codec packs do not cause crashes. It are the bad components in some packs that cause the problems you refer to. Not all packs are bad. For example the K-Lite Codec Pack actually helps users to remove those buggy items you mention when it detects them as installed on a users system.

Agreed. I was assessing culpability that way for them throwing in the kitchen sink as opposed to being lean/trim. Given the stats, I don't think there's any way that that many people *really* were trying to install mmswitch... it was just included with other things they were getting.

It would be nearly technically impossible without extreme malice for things to be as bad as they were previously in the third party space here. Thanks to all for helping clean this area up.

We all know that most of this stuff functions on a lower level than any average user ever wants to deal with and in many times would be able to figure out themselves. (Well, OK, maybe not everybody you know - but I'll use the example of my parents.... ) I think the current generation of multimedia development benefits from more people running 7, but when badness is placed on the system it manifests in strange ways that most novice users (80% of the PC population?) cannot sort out by themselves.

Voxware MS should generally be blacklisted as of Vista SP1: Vista RTM had an incomplete blacklisting that we fixed up.
Blacklisting is the last resort, the big huge hammer. And if people are already hacking away at your introduced tools to help stability, it's not like they won't create the new "deblacklist tool" next. Diminishing returns in this area vs doing other positive work. I'm just saying that if I see a tool like this in codec packs, regardless of 'vendor', I reserve the right to bash my head against the wall and set a calendar reminder to check the online crash report stats later. lol

Keep on keepin' on, I'm just being curmudgeonly and realize you're judicious and sane in how you use / configure tools like this. <3

[turbojet]

Is there any chance of supporting VC1tweak for Arcsoft and PowerDVD?

Filename: VC1Tweak_Haali.ax
CLSID: {9DAD7B50-4432-4F48-AC60-B2B4E854454B}

Filename: VC1Tweak_clhaali.ax
CLSID: {394DFD1B-6F4C-4096-AA14-EF852B02595B}

Let me know if you need any more info if you plan on adding it. Thanks

[clsid]

Voxware MS should generally be blacklisted as of Vista SP1: Vista RTM had an incomplete blacklisting that we fixed up.
Blacklisting is the last resort, the big huge hammer. And if people are already hacking away at your introduced tools to help stability, it's not like they won't create the new "deblacklist tool" next. Diminishing returns in this area vs doing other positive work. I'm just saying that if I see a tool like this in codec packs, regardless of 'vendor', I reserve the right to bash my head against the wall and set a calendar reminder to check the online crash report stats later. lol

Would it be possible for you (in your role as MS dev) to share some info/stats about crash reports? It would be interesting to see which DS filters cause the most stability issues. Such knowledge would also be useful for me and others to assist people with solving multimedia issues in Windows. It would also be useful for the developers of those filters, since users often choose not to report bugs.

With regard to my tool. My intention is to only include options for filters which are considered to be stable.

Is there any chance of supporting VC1tweak for Arcsoft and PowerDVD?

Filename: VC1Tweak_Haali.ax
CLSID: {9DAD7B50-4432-4F48-AC60-B2B4E854454B}

Filename: VC1Tweak_clhaali.ax
CLSID: {394DFD1B-6F4C-4096-AA14-EF852B02595B}

Let me know if you need any more info if you plan on adding it. Thanks

Please clarify the following:
1) The unpatched Arcsoft filter only connects to its own splitters, right? Or does that only apply for VC-1 video?
2) What happens if you use the unpatched Arcsoft filter and set it as preferred with the current tool? Does WMP fallback to using a different filter?
3) Does the patched filter only connect to Haali splitter, or also to other splitters?
4) Could you give MD5 hashes of those two patched filters?

[turbojet]

Originally Posted by clsid

Please clarify the following:
1) The unpatched Arcsoft filter only connects to its own splitters, right? Or does that only apply for VC-1 video?

VC-1 Arcsoft and PowerDVD for sure and probably WinDVD filters connect with their own splitters but they don't output video via directshow. PowerDVD used to be usable in directshow but I'm pretty sure BD+ made them change their minds, unsure about arcsoft and windvd prior to BD+.

Arcsoft MPEG2 either works in WMP12 or it's using MS decoders (verified with ffdshow tray on and set to highest merit), falls back to other directshow filters in MPC-HC/graphstudio.

Arcsoft H.264/XviD/DivX works with graphstudio and either WMP12 uses it or MS decoders (verified with ffdshow tray on and set to highest merit). MPC-HC falls back to FFDshow, or other directshow filters.

2) What happens if you use the unpatched Arcsoft filter and set it as preferred with the current tool? Does WMP fallback to using a different filter?

It falls back to ffdshow if it's set to decode VC-1, the merit doesn't affect anything, even at do not use level it still gets used. If ffdshow isn't set to decode it falls back to MS filter. MPEG2 falls back to nothing even if ffdshow is enabled to decode

3) Does the patched filter only connect to Haali splitter, or also to other splitters?

These 2 particular ones do, the thread I linked to also has arcsoft for gabest splitter, but only certain versions of the arcsoft filter work, v2 build 113 and 119 are the only 2 so far that work. Needs to be updated to work with newer versions.

4) Could you give MD5 hashes of those two patched filters?

f4e92a42845b5cc72e27fc91c0e5e1a8 *VC1Tweak_Haali.ax

0b2f8e0b80a1cb771a9e5efe3171a11d *VC1Tweak_clhaali.ax

BTW all the links to VC1tweak powerDVD from the original author seem dead now. I have uploaded it again with decoders that work with it here. It isn't very useful though since it always resizes to 720x480, I'm pretty sure it's an issue with the VC1Tweak_clhaali.ax

I can get clsid's on powerDVD and winDVD filters if you want me to as well.

It's probably far beyond the scope of this project but ultimately until libavcodec adds full support for interlaced VC-1 it would be really nice to get Arcsoft VC-1 working with the latest Arcsoft 3.0.120 trial version decoders, no v2 trial available. Another possibility is powerDVD ax that doesn't resize and pixelate with the troublesome interlaced VC-1. This is how big of a headache proper VC-1 decoding has been since microsoft developed it a few years ago

[clsid]

New version in first post.

[zachdms]

Originally Posted by clsid

Would it be possible for you (in your role as MS dev) to share some info/stats about crash reports? It would be interesting to see which DS filters cause the most stability issues. Such knowledge would also be useful for me and others to assist people with solving multimedia issues in Windows. It would also be useful for the developers of those filters, since users often choose not to report bugs.

AFAIK, I have to be careful in this space. I generally try to be as helpful as I can, but I'm going to extremely err on the side of caution since it's probably more important to get important information out than dive into specifics.

Ideally vendors sign up to view error reports, as I believe this:
* http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/winlog.../StartWER.mspx
lets you do.

If that's a problem for filter dev teams, I can potentially check with the WER team about what to do for lighter weight operations - but it'd be a potentially dodgy area. =\

[clsid]

That is something for commercial companies as it requires a VeriSign ID.

I was more thinking of a top 25 list of most troublesome filters.

[turbojet]

Thanks both VC1tweak filters work great.

I thought of a few more things:
- add PowerDVD 7 for H.264: CL264dec.ax {F2E3D920-0F9B-4319-BE87-EB94CCEB6C09} I've test it working with 7.3.3319, build 4617, and the latest 5105
- for PowerDVD VC1, MPEG2 add a note that it only outputs 720x480
- change Next button to Apply and it doesn't exit, just makes the changes (like changing resolution without a timer)
- change cancel button to close and if there was changes made ask whether to save (yes/no) or cancel. If nothing changed it exits without question (like text editors)
- titlebar naming more specific then 'tool'

Any chance of any of these?

[clsid]

I didn't know the PowerDVD MPEG2 decoder had any limitations. It works fine for me at different resolutions on XP. I haven't tested it on Win7. Are you really sure about that?

[RadioactiveMan]

is there a special way to use this program? no matter if i start it with my normal account with 'start as administrator' or directly under the administrator account, i always get this message as soon as i press 'next' after chosen the preferred decoder:
---------------------------
Tool
---------------------------
Failed to change registry key access permissions for:

HKLM\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\DirectShow\Preferred
---------------------------
OK
---------------------------

What did i do wrong?

[clsid]

I don't know. It works ok for me on clean installs of all recent Windows 7 builds.

[turbojet]

Originally Posted by clsid

I didn't know the PowerDVD MPEG2 decoder had any limitations. It works fine for me at different resolutions on XP. I haven't tested it on Win7. Are you really sure about that?

You are right, the MPEG2 m2ts I was using for test had bad headers or something. After I demuxed or remuxed it was giving 1080p output. So it's just the PowerDVD VC1tweak that has the 720x480 output issue, and only with interlaced streams, with progressive there is no issue.

A few more things I thought of:
- check for missing filters that are still registered (cyberlink and arcsoft TMT2 are notorious for leaving these)
- function to completely remove the preferred folder (too hazardous for this tool? or is there some other way to load in graphs without this folder)

EDIT: Just noticed new version, PDVD7 H.264 decoder is working great, thanks. Also thanks for the apply button for quick changes without having to reopen the app.
Do you think the exit now question is needed when you hit apply?
Also is the exit now question needed when you hit close without any changes done?

Also I forgot to mention earlier that I tested WinDVD 9 filters and they appear unusable, even after manually registering all the ax files it couldn't load any video via directshow.

Originally Posted by RadioactiveMan

is there a special way to use this program? no matter if i start it with my normal account with 'start as administrator' or directly under the administrator account, i always get this message as soon as i press 'next' after chosen the preferred decoder:
---------------------------
Tool
---------------------------
Failed to change registry key access permissions for:

HKLM\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\DirectShow\Preferred
---------------------------
OK
---------------------------

What did i do wrong?

This type of management system wasn't introduced until RC build 7100 as far as I know. Are you using build 7100 or newer?

[RadioactiveMan]

Originally Posted by turbojet

This system wasn't introduced until RC build 7100 as far as I know. Are you using build 7100 or newer?

I am using Windows 7 RC Build 7100 64bit German