Issue

Agilent OpenLab ChemStation Edition software fails to launch with error containing the words "Autostart Macro failed”. This article will provide you some basic steps in troubleshooting the issue.


Resolution


Hidden items will need to be enabled from the File Explorer View menu in order to see ProgramData to apply the below resolutions:

  • Open File Explorer from the taskbar.
  • Select View > Options > Change folder and search options.
  • Select the View tab and, in Advanced settings, select Show hidden files, folders, and drives and OK.


Scenario 1. Autostart Macro failed, error #xxxx occurred. The reported error numbers are 999, 42, or 17923.

1. Close all online and offline sessions of OpenLab ChemStation.

2. Rename configuration files:

    For Windows 10: C:\ProgramData\Agilent Technologies\Chemstation\# (where # is the instrument number) 

    For Windows XP/Windows 7: C:\Chem32\# (where # is the instrument number)

  • CONFIG.REG to CONFIG.REG.old
  • CONF_OFF.REG to CONF_OFF.REG.old
  • ChemStationPerInstrumentSettings.config to ChemStationPerInstrumentSettings.config.old
  • instrument.config to instrument.config.old
  • RapidControl.InstrumentConfig.xml to RapidControl.InstrumentConfig.xml.old

3. Reconfigure the instrument by following the instruction at How to Configure an HPLC Instrument in the Agilent OpenLab Control Panel Using Auto Configuration or How to Add a GC Instrument in Agilent OpenLab CDS (Ver 2.x) via OpenLab Control Panel. Make sure that the instrument is turned on.  

4. If Configure Instrument option in Control Panel is unavailable, ChemStation running in the background must be forced to close.

  • C:\Program Files (x86)\Agilent Technologies\ChemStation\CORE
  • Double click the CSTools.exe and click Kill ChemStation. 
  • Tip: File Name Extension will need to be enabled from the File Explorer View menu in order to see CSTools.exe.


Scenario 2. OpenLab ChemStation would open after acknowledging this error "Autostart Marco failed, error #65535", but all the instrument modules showed offline and, some modules were not displayed even though they were detected during the autoconfiguration.


This issue is linked to a bad global.config file that had been corrupted during the PC reboot. 


1. Close all online and offline sessions of OpenLab ChemStation. The computer can be rebooted first to ensure that all subprocesses are shut down.

2. Navigate to C:\ProgramData\Agilent Technologies\ChemStation\GlobalSettings 

3. Rename the global.config file to global.config.old. A new global.config file will be created from the default settings.

4. Reconfigure the instrument by following the instruction at How to Configure an HPLC Instrument in the Agilent OpenLab Control Panel Using Auto Configuration or How to Add a GC Instrument in Agilent OpenLab CDS (Ver 2.x) via OpenLab Control Panel. Make sure that the instrument is turned on.  


4.