Cubase Sx Osx10.2.2 Pos Error Non-admin Accounts, Cubase quits while starting up Options

[mackillop]

Under limited user accounts (ie non-admin) SX quits on launching with the POS message "POS - Protected Object Server error"
Works fine under admin account.
Installed without dongle
Have repaired permissions
eMac with 768Mb RAM
Any ideas folks?
tia

[rickenbacker]

When you say "installed without dongle", do you mean you don't actually have a dongle? That would certainly stop Cubase SX working - hence the phrase "protected object server error". It wants to see a dongle in a USB port or it's not coming out to play. You get one in the box when you buy the software.

[mackillop]

We have the dongle and are using it.
(added that point because aware that some people had had problems installing CubaseSX with the dongle inserted)

Cubase works fine under full admin account but not under a limited account (we are a school and have blocked student access to certain parts of the computer)

hope that clarifies things

[Francois Déchery]

Is cubase the only software which have problem with a 'simple user' account, or do you have strange behaviours with others apps?

If yes it might be a unix permission problem : if you're used with terminal commands, check that your Cubase App (AND needed files) have correct files privileges, AND correct user and group. (use 'ls -l' , 'chmod' and 'chown')

If not used with unix things, try to unininstall it, and install it again.

HTH

[midiwife]

Dear Mackillop annd webmaster,

This is a post I had been dreading... I run a music techology suite for adults here in London where we run 7 macs. Up till now we have been on OS9.2 and running Cubase VST v5.1. We also run ProTools LE 5.1 and Sibelius 1.4. In order to minimise students 'messing up' our systems and leaving files in the wrong place, we've also been running PowerOn software's OnGuard software which limits student account access to the Macs.

However, we've been having a range of problems with Cubase in particular, mostly crashing on startup with Error Type 2 (addressing) but also when trying to save! Hardly ideal I'm sure you'll agree. Oddly enough it even happens when logged on as admin with full permissions though genererally not when booting up with OnGuard off. It became clear that permission to 'write to' the system folder was required in order to update the Cubase Prefs when needed. We still suffer occasional and unexpected crashes however. I just encourage the students to save regularly.

The point is we plan to move over to OSX this summer break and we have Cubase SX, ProTools LE 6 and Sibelius 2 ready and waiting. I had planned to do as you've tried, create a number of user accounts to protect our systems and our students' work, one account per class. Is it the case then that the limited user accounts won't permit Cubase use as you say? I'm not a UNIX boffin I'm afraid and what's more, I'm basically doing this on my own without the help of a technician.

I'd really appreciate any developments any similar users may come up with. Please feel free to email me directly on midiwife@aol.com if you can save me endless trial and error frustrations! If anyone has any recommendations for getting me up to speed on basic UNIX understanding I'd be grateful.

Kind regards to you all,
midiwife.

[Francois Déchery]

Under 9, you SHOULD NOT get any problem: if you have some, i bet that 'OnGuard' is guilty!

TO find basic unix courses, i suggest you to take a look in the documentations and link from main linux sites like:
http://www.freebsd.org (OSX id build from FreeBsd)
http://www.debian.org (cool linux distribution)
http://www.apple.com/darwin/ (Apple Darwin project = OpenSource unix fondations for OSX)

Basically you have to understand unix user privilege (what can a simple user do, what the root user do, and why its bad to always be root)
You also have to learn basic command like:
- ls (list directory)
- cd (change directory)
- chmod (change file's privileges)
- chown (change file's user and group)

when in the terminal you can ask for the online unix documentation with 'man' (for manual) foloowed by the command name. ie:
man ls
man cd
man man (manual of man)

It's a ala-unix doc, and may be a bit hard too start with, so i strongly advice you to find a 'Unix basics' page from one of the sites listed above.

BUT you only have to deal with unix knowledge when things become wrong, beacause normally (.....), the Cubase installer should to the hard work for you...

Good luck

BTW, please let us know how you finnally solved the problem, if you succeed.

[midiwife]

OK, thanks for all your helpful info. I guess I'll have to find the time to do some private study - not easy when you run a department. I'm about to convert an old windows laptop to a linux machine (or at least get a Linux far friend to assist) so that may be the time to start looking under the bonnet with a helpful assistant to hand.

I shall of course let you know how it goes. In fact, I've got Cubase SX on my powerbook so perhaps I'll try and set up a limited user account on it and try working from there as well.

Again, thank you so much for your informed help.

Very kind regards to all at Mac Music, the daily digest is my breakfast reading every day.
Midiwife.

[rickenbacker]

Does anything like this happen to anyone else with a similar set-up but with other apps, such as Logic, Deck, DP4 etc?

I've had the POS error myself occasionally with SX on 10.2.3, but that's only one machine and me logged in as admin.

Have you tried the Cubase forums? http://forum.cubase.net, I think - it's a pretty active forum, so you might get someone who has had similar problems or can suggest a solution. Read back through recent posts while you're there, too - it's amazing what tips you can pick up "accidentally" that way.

[mackillop]

Found a fix to this problem.
It seems to be a permissions problem.
What eventually worked... (by trial and error)
1. Created a special "cubase" account. Gave it admin capabilities.
2. Logged in as "cubase" and started Cubase which opened fine.
3. Logged out
4. Logged in as main admin user and removed admin capabilities from "cubase" account.
5. Logged out
6. Logged in as "cubase" and ran Cubase successfully.

So easy once you know how but it took a couple of hours of fiddling.

thanks for your willingness to help folks
mackillop

[midiwife]

Hi Mackillop,

Great to hear you fixed it. Using this method, does it mean you only have one user sign-in? We need to have sign-in's or user accounts for about 45 different classes with their own dedicated class folder into which, and only into which, they can save their work. Can you perhaps clone your successful user account and modify the accounts once they work so as to limit save access to the appropriate folder?

I should also add we're going to be teaching Sibelius 2 and ProTools LE 6 (or the most recent revision in the summer).

Kind regards to you and well done again. I've breathed a sigh of relief.

Karina Townsend - Midiwife.