Windows 10 compatibnle

[britt]

can I installl Phreeqc 3.4 on a Windows 10 device?

[dlparkhurst]

Yes.

[AlanCas]

Good to know since I'm about to switch to Windows 10. Are there any known issues I should look for or try to avoid?

[dlparkhurst]

Generally, there are no problems. Scott Charlton is a magician at making the PHREEQC programs install easily.

[mssmith]

IPhreeqcCOM cannot readily be used with Windows 10 where one's corporate administrator does not grant write privilege for the Program Files folder; i.e. System Environment Variables cannot be changed and the IPhreeqcCOM installer does not provide the option for installation in another folder. Attempting to run IPhreeqcCOM via the Excel VBA approach results in a pop-up error message: "Run-time error '424': Object required".

Is there a simple work around solution for this problem where IPhreeqcCOM is to be operated via Excel VBA?

[dlparkhurst]

I checked with our guru and he thought there was not an easy way to install a .msi without admin privileges.

[mssmith]

The .msi does successfully install IPhreeqcCOM under the Program Files folder. However, IPhreeqcCOM then does not run successfully via VBA, instead it returns the error message: "Run-time error '424': Object required". On previous Windows versions, IPhreeqcCOM ran without problems. I assumed, perhaps incorrectly, that the error was caused by IPhreeqcCOM not being able to write temporary or output files to the Program Files folder, or that there are incorrect or missing System Environmental Variables.
So, what might this error message be referring to and what can I try to do to solve this? Thanks.

[dlparkhurst]

I think you need to install .net 3.5. See the following post.

http://phreeqcusers.org/index.php/topic,687.msg2164.html#msg2164

[mssmith]

Thank you for your advice. Unfortunately, as the direct installation of .Net Framework 3.5 is a retrogressive action (we're currently on .NET Framework 4.7.2) it will likely compromise other applications, including the security of many corporate applications. Moreover, such updates are corporately managed and thus cannot be personally installed.
So, for many potential PHREEQC users in the corporate world, IPhreeqcCOM is unavailable. And, as no other convenient option exists for rapid modelling-data pre- and post-processing and PHREEQC operation, we effectively cannot use PHREEQC in the work place.  Sadly, geochemical modelling is not even considered, let alone being of any priority, in this groundwater-management state agency.
Please update/upgrade IPhreeqcCOM and/or its dependencies to make it available for use on modern operating systems. Thank you.

[dlparkhurst]

You can install multiple versions of .NET, but perhaps the simplest way to
become the Very Model of a Modern Geochemical Major-General is to turn on
the version that is available in .NET 4.7.2.

Press the Windows key + "s" on your keyboard, type "Turn
Windows Features", and click on the icon. The Turn Windows
features on or off dialog box appears.

Select the .NET Framework 3.5 (includes .NET 2.0 and 3.0) check
box, select OK, and reboot your computer if prompted.

The older version is only needed for the graphing capability. If Microsoft drops support, we might have to eliminate the graphing capability implemented with Zedgraph.

[mssmith]

Selecting the Turn Windows Features - .NET Framework 3.5 check box and OK, followed by rebooting the computer, as recommended did not solve the problem. The same error 424 message is returned. Returning to Turn Windows Features verified that the .Net 3.5 check box had been selected.

[dlparkhurst]

I guess you are not intended to be a modern geochemist.

Did you install both the 32-bit and 64-bit version of IPhreeqcCOM?

There is an example Excel file runphreeqc.xls that has a macro in the directory

C:\Program Files\USGS\IPhreeqcCOM 3.4.0-12927\examples\com\excel

You should be able to open that file, view->macros, and run the macro RunPhreeqc. You should be able to run the macro in that file, although you should not be able to save results in the Program Files directory.

[mssmith]

I did download both 32- and 64-bit versions, but forgot to install the former. Darn, I'm a drip (too big a workload to think straight) and am terribly sorry for wasting your time. Thank you so much for persisting and eventually helping me to solve this, even if a simple and foolish problem at my end. Best regards.