Armoury Crate 6.1.18.0 - Problems / bugs

[inge70]

Since updating to the latest Armoury Crate, AuraSync suddenly no longer detects any connected hardware when repeatedly launching the software:

The problem may be with the ASUS AURA SYNC lighting service.

Troubleshooting:
If I restart the PC, all RGB hardware is correctly detected the first time the software is launched after booting the PC, and RGB works reliably:

If I then exit Armoury Crate and restart it after a while (e.g. 20-30 minutes or even later), AuraSync suddenly no longer recognizes any connected Hardware:

The RGB lights continue to glow, but they don't change color based on the temperature, as I had set via SMART (from 50 degrees = yellow, from 80 degrees = red).
The RGB lights remain green, regardless of the CPU temperature.

If I restart the "ASUS AURA SYNC lighting service", everything is detected correctly again:

There are no error messages in the reliability history or event log.

I then completely uninstalled Armoury Crate using the uninstallation tool V2.2.15.0 and reinstalled it after a system boot using the installer V3.3.1.0.
The error persists. The problem has only been present since version 6.1.18.0.

Standby or Hypernate are not used, nor is Fast Startup.

See signature for system details.
Windows 11 24H2 Build 26100.3915
UEFI/BIOS and all drivers are up to date.

Armoury Crate Version:
Armoury Crate UWP App 6.1.18.0
ROG Live Service 3.0.26.0
Aura Service (Lighting Service) 3.08.18
Armoury Crate service 6.1.18
Aura Wallpaper Service Not installed
Aura SDK 3.05.06
ArmouryDevice 4.2.2.8
ASUS AIOFan HAL 1.4.9.0
ASUS AURA Extension Card HAL 1.1.0.20
ASUS AURA Motherboard HAL 1.6.0.0
ASUS Ambient HAL 5.7.0.0
AacVGA 0.0.7.9
KingstonDram 1.1.39
AURA DRAM Component 1.1.29
ENE RGB HAL 1.1.57.0
ENE_EHD_M2_HAL 1.0.14.0
Patriot Viper M2 SSD RGB 1.1.0.3
WD_BLACK AN1500 1.0.14.0
AIOFanSDK 3.00.31
AiSuiteSDK 1.03.06
MainSDK 2.01.40
MbLedSDK 3.00.57
VgaSDK 1.00.22
Armoury Crate Plugin - Aio 2.1.0
Armoury Crate Plugin - Motherboard 1.3.0
Armoury Crate Plugin - ROG FAN XPERT 4 2.0.14
Armoury Crate Plugin - Vga 1.0.4
ASUS Motherboard 4.06.10
ROG FAN XPERT 4 4.02.06
VGA 3.01.09

POSTSCRIPT from 29.04.2025:

Next error in Armoury Crate V6.1.18.0:

When I boot my PC and run Armoury Crate and then click on "Mainboard Settings" in the Dashboard or "Device", the motherboard settings for AuraSync are loaded accordingly, and I can see everything:

The same applies when I go to "Devices" in the sidebar. The devices are displayed there, and when I click on the respective device, the settings in AuraSync are displayed correctly:

If I close Armoury Crate and restart it later, I can see my motherboard and graphics card under "Device," but after clicking on "Mainboard," an error message appears:

And when you click on the graphics Card under "Device", you can see that:

the previous settings are gone.

The only solution is to restart the “ASUS AURA SYNC lighting service” so that the previously made settings appear correctly again.

It's really annoying that such errors go unnoticed.

I last completely reinstalled my PC on March 8, 2025, and reinstalled Windows 11, etc., to fix the two reliability history errors that had occurred with Armoury Crate version 6.1.13.0. However, this was unsuccessful.

The errors that existed at that time remained and have now been fixed by Asus with version 6.1.18.0.

However, it's incomprehensible that new errors are now appearing.

In most cases, reinstalling Windows won't help, as the errors are still there.

As long as the PC is otherwise running error-free (and has always been stable) and sfc /scannow or DISM doesn't find any errors, a reinstall shouldn't be necessary.

POSTSCRIPT from 30.04.2025:

And the bugs in Armoury Crate V6 continue:

For some unknown reason, Armoury Crate asked for permission to make changes to my PC today.

The software already received this permission during installation. I've currently received this request three times today:

 

Whenever this request appears, an error for Armoury.Crate.Service.exe is triggered in the Windows Event Log and Reliability History:

What's wrong with Armoury Crate? I've never experienced anything like this with version 6.1.13.0.

POSTSCRIPT from May 1, 2025:

And the bugs in Armoury Crate V6 continue:

Now this error also appears sporadically in the reliability history:

This "Aac3572MbHal_x86.exe" probably belongs to or works with the Aura Sync service, etc. I've seen this error entry in the reliability history every now and then since version 6.1.18.0. I have no idea what it is.

Even after a clean uninstallation and reinstallation of Armoury Crate, this error entry also appears sporadically.

POSTSCRIPT from May 2, 2025 / 11:00 PM German Time added:

I've now completely destroyed my Windows installation through all the uninstallations and reinstallations of ArmouryCrate.

So today, around 2 p.m., German time, I started completely reinstalling EVERYTHING again so I could at least get back to the state it was in before the update to 6.1.18.0.  I've NEVER had such problems since October 2023, when I started using Armoury Crate.

Anyway, I've now finished everything with AC 6.1.13.0, and the two recurring error entries in the reliability history caused by ArmouryCrateService.exe are ignored because they don't affect the use of the software.

The fact is, the 6.1.18.0 update introduces new bugs and changes.

Here's a comparison between 6.1.13.0 and 6.1.18.0, showing which plugins have been changed:

Armoury Crate UWP App 6.1.13.0
ROG Live Service 3.0.19.0
Aura Service (Lighting Service) 3.08.09
Armoury Crate service 6.1.13
Aura SDK 3.05.04

Armoury Crate UWP App 6.1.18.0
ROG Live Service 3.0.26.0
Aura Service (Lighting Service) 3.08.18
Armoury Crate service 6.1.18
Aura Wallpaper Service Not installed
Aura SDK 3.05.06

These changes obviously caused the errors/bugs described on MY PC.
Constantly uninstalling and reinstalling does not fix any internal errors in the software.

PS:
My hardware is from October 2023, and everything worked fine until the current update 6.1.18.0.

POSTSCRIPT from May 7, 2025 / 11:45 PM German Time:

It's continuing, friends.

Today I'm being offered the update to 6.1.18.0 again, along with an update for my motherboard: HAL and Device SDK.

I'll just install the motherboard update for now and continue testing to see what changes there.

PS:

Today, Armoury Crate asked for permission again, even though I've already accepted this request twice since the last reinstall of my entire PC:

If you click "OK" again, the following prompt appears from Windows UAC:

Oh yes, if you click on the section "Change the time when permissions are displayed" (shown in German in the image), you'll be taken to Windows UAC.
I just click "OK" (without going to UAC first) and that's it.

If you display UAC, you'll see the current settings. The default setting is (roughly) to only be notified when an app requests permission to make changes.

But the moment AC asks for permission again, an error message appears in the event log:
"ArmouryCrateService.exe":

It never seems to get boring.😁

POSTSCRIPT from May 8, 2025 / 10:42 AM German Time:

it continues:
The following update just arrived:

It's already installed and I even restarted the PC once, but AC will remain on 6.1.13.0 for now so I can continue to test whether it remains stable with 6.1.13.0, despite further plugin updates.

I'll keep you updated, also so that other users with similar problems have a starting point. Therefore, this initial post is unfortunately a bit long, but it's better than scrolling through all the individual posts.😁

POSTSCRIPT from May 9, 2025 / 7:07 a.m. German Time:

Quick update:
The PC has now been running for another 22 hours (including PC starts and restarts) and Armoury Crate 6.1.13.0 continues to run stably.
All Aura Sync devices remain recognized and RGB is working.
Patch status of my Armory Crate:
Item version
---- -------
Armory Crate UWP App 6.1.13.0
ROG Live Service 3.0.19.0
Aura Service (Lighting Service) 3.08.09
Armory Crate service 6.1.13
Aura Wallpaper Service Not installed
Aura SDK 3.05.04
ArmoryDevice 4.2.2.8
ASUS AIOFan HAL 1.5.0.0
ASUS AURA Extension Card HAL 1.1.0.20
ASUS AURA motherboard HAL 1.6.0.0
ASUS Ambient HAL 6.1.0.0
AacVGA 0.0.7.9
KingstonDram 1.1.39
AURA DRAM Component 1.1.29
ENE RGB HAL 1.1.57.0
ENE_EHD_M2_HAL 1.0.14.0
ENE_ESD_ASM_HAL 1.0.11.0
Patriot Viper M2 SSD RGB 1.1.0.3
WD_BLACK AN1500 1.0.14.0
AIOFanSDK 3.00.32
AiSuiteSDK 1.03.06
MainSDK 2.01.40
MbLedSDK 3.00.57
VgaSDK 1.00.22
Armory Crate Plugin - Aio 2.1.0
Armory Crate Plugin - Motherboard 1.3.0
Armory Crate Plugin - ROG FAN XPERT 4 2.0.14
Armory Crate Plugin - Vga 1.0.4
ASUS Motherboard 4.08.02
ROG FAN XPERT 4 4.02.06
VGA 3.01.09

The only drawback if you stay on 6.1.13.0 is that you'll unfortunately have the two known error entries again:
-ArmouryCrateService.exe
-backgroundTaskHost.exe (refers to ArmouryCrateService.exe)

in the reliability history.  However, these two error entries can be ignored as they do NOT interfere with ArmouryCrate.

The backgroundTaskHost.exe belongs to Windows and seems to have problems with the ArmouryCrateService.exe service when booting or rebooting the PC, meaning it can't shut it down properly.
Asus wanted to solve this with 6.1.18.0, but unfortunately, they've apparently introduced new errors, especially with Aura Sync.

Well, we'll see what else awaits us and whether there will be a fix at some point.😉

POSTSCRIPT from May 9, 2025 / 1:35 p.m. German Time:
A sporadically recurring correction request also occurs with version 6.1.13.0, as I've noticed in the last 48 hours.
This also causes an error in the reliability history for "ArmopuryCrateService.exe."
This may also be related to Windows 11 24H2 Build 26100.3915. I'm not sure, though.
It simply happens sporadically, even though everything has been approved long ago.
Otherwise, 6.1.13.0 continues to run stably. 😉

POSTSCRIPT from May 10, 2025 / 9:55 a.m. German Time:

AC 6.1.13.0 has been running stably with the latest plugins for several days now.
A thought occurred to me.
Windows 11 24H2 includes "Smart App Control" and other security features. It's possible that a setting occasionally interferes with AC, causing the new UAC prompts or crashing certain components, which then either leads to the errors described here or causes the described error entries in the reliability history.
You can simply disable and test this "Smart App Control," but you can't simply disable it again.
Once disabled, it can only be reactivated by reinstalling Windows or (if you're feeling up to it) from running Windows by accessing the registry and performing an in-place upgrade from a Windows ISO.
Asus should test this.😉

The last and final POSTSCRIPT posted on May 11, 2025 / 3:55 a.m. German Time:

On May 11, 2025, at 12:00 a.m. (German Time), I first created a system backup using Acronis True Image and then updated to version 6.1.18.0. I then manually searched for updates in AC several times and restarted the PC cleanly (using "shutdown /g /f /t 0").
The update included the following plugin updates:
Armoury Crate UWP App 6.1.18.0
ROG Live Service 3.0.26.0
Aura Service (Lighting Service) 3.08.18
Armoury Crate service 6.1.18
Aura SDK 3.05.06
And this must be the cause of the error described here.
After just under 4 hours of use, the error described in the initial post reappeared, and I'm back to square one.ArmouryCrate "forgets" the RGB hardware it had already detected (primarily the motherboard as the main control center), and the configured AuraSync "Smart" mode, which changes the RGB color based on the CPU temperature, no longer works.
Checking in AC under Device or AuraSync shows: no RGB hardware is present.
The only solution, as already described: restarting the PC or restarting the "ASUS AURA SYNC lighting service."
Thus, even a complete reinstallation of Windows 11 24H2 Build 26100.3915 did NOTHING. The bug in AC 6.1.18.0 described at length here is reproducible again. This concludes my long testing period with the following conclusion:
Armoury Crate 6.1.18.0 is buggy, and you should skip the update!
I've restored my PC to its pre-update state using AconisTrueImage, thus saving myself another complete reinstallation of Windows and everything else on my PC. I'll stick with ArmouryCrate 6.1.13.0 until a bug-fixed version is released.
I can only hope that moderators or admins here in the forum read this and forward it accordingly so that no more users have to endure these errors.
With that in mind, I'll now conclude and hope I've helped someone avoid unnecessary installations, as the cause is ArmouryCrate 6.1.18.0.

Note:
I've since been informed that because I didn't post this thread under the "product section" we'll probably not receive any support from Asus.

[inge70]

POSTSCRIPT from April 29, 2025, and April 30, 2025, added to the main post due to additional bugs.

The PC hasn't been changed since the clean install of version 6.1.18.0. It's only used and Armoury Crate is occasionally opened, which is when the bugs listed in the main post appear.

Asus, Asus... you really should test this thoroughly before releasing it to users.

[Rooke]

I first saw this update yesterday.  When I tried to apply it, it failed to update.  Today I tried to do the update again, and the 1st time I tried, it failed again, but then immediately did get updates again, and this final time when I clicked Update, it installed correctly.  But...

Like the OP said, it couldn't find any devices.  So, I tried the tried and true way of fixing things (sometimes), and rebooted.  This time when I started AC, it found my devices.  And everything else seems to be OK with it... for now.

[inge70]

For me, the installation has always run smoothly so far.

You just have to check for updates frequently afterwards to ensure that the plugins are installed for all hardware, because unfortunately, this doesn't happen at the beginning.

After starting AC for the first time, all devices were found, and all settings (FanXpert, AuraSync) could be configured.

But if I open Armoury Crate several times afterward (without rebooting the PC), the bugs mentioned above sporadically occur.

I haven't been able to figure out why yet, but it's something to do with "Armoury.Crate.Service.exe" and "ASUS AURA SYNC Lighting Service." If I restart both services or simply reboot the PC, everything is OK again.

This problem didn't occur with version 6.1.13.0, except that the older version caused errors in the reliability history.

I've uninstalled Armoury Crate several times now, deleted all remaining folders, restarted my PC, and reinstalled it cleanly.

The bugs keep coming back.

It's not my Windows installation, though, because it dates back to March 8, 2025. I tried to fix the errors (Armoury.Crate.Service.exe error message and empty gameBar widget) in version 6.1.13.0 that were caused by it, but I couldn't.

It's Armoury Crate itself that's the source of the problem. Especially since, for some inexplicable reason, it now sporadically asks for permissions to change the hardware settings when you open it.

This never happened more than once before.

I strongly suspect that at some point, it will recommend reinstalling Windows, etc. It was the same with previous errors.

But it's not the Windows installation, as the bugs I described here don't occur with version 6.1.13.0. At least, I didn't notice them there.

It can't be right that you have to reinstall the entire PC with every new Armoury CFrate version, just because faulty software has been distributed again.

I understand that you can't test every hardware configuration, but errors like this didn't occur until version 5.9.14.0. At least not on my system.

Well, let's see what the forum admins and moderators suggest.
So far, there isn't a thread where you can report bugs, like there was with version 6.1.13.0.

[inge70]

POSTSCRIPT from May 1, 2025 added

[MrAgapiGC]

sadly i can not duplicate none of the notes.. on my z690 apex is running smooth and well. i will keep a eye time to time

[inge70]

I'm glad you're not affected by these bugs.

I have no idea what's causing this for me either. The fact is, it's been happening since the update to 6.1.18.0.

I've uninstalled Armoury Crate several times using the tool, deleted all the remaining folders, restarted my PC, reinstalled Armoury Crate, and then downloaded all the updates.

It remains the same; the errors I posted appear after repeatedly opening Armoury Crate.

I already reinstalled my Windows with everything that goes with it, just for fun, because of bugs in version 6.1.13.0. Back then, the reported errors remained, but they didn't affect the use of the software.

Now with version 6.1.18.0, it's completely different, and I will NOT completely reinstall Windows this time, as it won't help, just like before. Especially since the last installation was on March 8, 2025, and the source of the error is Armoury Crate.

It's annoying when you can't open AC the way you want, because there's a risk that my AuraSync settings won't work as they should. When that happens, AC strangely no longer finds the corresponding hardware, even though it was already detected once.
And I don't want to constantly restart my PC or restart various AC services just so my AuraSync Smart settings work again, change the color based on the CPU temperature, and don't "forget" my previously detected hardware again.

It's definitely not my hardware, as nothing had changed before the update to 6.1.18.0, and everything worked fine before the update (except for the error entries in the reliability history, which many other users also had...)

But well, now I've been hit with all these errors/bugs.

Currently, every time I'm on my PC, I quickly run a CPU stress test to see if AuraSync makes the RGB glow yellow at 50 degrees Celsius. Then I'm sure AC is still running properly and still recognizes the hardware.
But I don't start AC, because then it'll happen again at some point, reproducibly.
I've tested it several times over the last few days.

But let's see what suggestions come up from moderators or admins.

I've also created a log file just in case I need it.

My conclusion:
I'm not currently reinstalling Windows again, only to find that nothing has changed, like I did with V. 6.1.13.0 with the widget in the GameBar, which is currently still empty for me.

Windows is currently on 24H2 Build 26100.2915, all drivers are up to date, UEFI/BIOS is up to date, etc.
There are no hardware defects, and everything else is running smoothly, except for these annoying new bugs.

[MrAgapiGC]

that is the problem you delete folders.

the part of the widget... overlook for now. not important for now. i send that report in 2024. i will blame more windows than ac. but anyway.

i have some way to install the app totally diferent than the asus notes and yours.  when was the last time you intall windows from cero?

If you use malware apps lke ccleaner or similar 99.99% you windows is busted. even that heaters will scream about it is a reality. never use that.

[inge70]

Please read my statement regarding "deleting folders" again.

It's NOT a problem if you previously uninstalled AC with the uninstaller. Remnants will still remain, and after rebooting the PC, you can easily remove such folders manually to be absolutely sure that AC is completely removed.

However, you should make sure that any services still belonging to AC are also gone before attempting to remove folders.

Unfortunately, even the Asus uninstall tool for AC doesn't completely remove everything.

It can't be true that you always have to reinstall Windows to completely remove AC, but whatever.

But once again for you:
I last completely reinstalled Windows on March 8, 2025, when version 6.1.13.0 was released, and since then I haven't been able to use the GameBar widget because it remained EMPTY. I also posted a message about this in the corresponding thread.

``` I never had such bugs under version 5.9.14.0.

Furthermore, my first post above already states WHEN I last reinstalled Windows.

Your statement regarding YOU having a completely different way of installing the app is of no use to ME, as I only have and know the option of using the corresponding installation tools from Asus.

If you post something like that, it would certainly be more helpful if you also described WHICH other way you have to install the app.

I do NOT use MalwareBytes or CCLeaner.
I never have and I never will.
I've known for years that CCLeaner shouldn't be used these days because it's more likely to break the system than be helpful, and I never use such tools.

But that MalwareBytes could cause such errors would be news to me.

But I don't use anything like that either, as I've never needed it.

The fact is, BEFORE the update to version 6.1.18.0, I did NOT have the bugs described here.

My Windows is definitely NOT broken, as these bugs did not exist before the update to version 6.1.18.0.

It's also unacceptable that you should/have to reinstall Windows for every bug that AC might introduce with a new update, just to eliminate errors that are obviously inherent in a software update.

I've searched and tried a lot over the past few days, but I don't see the point in wasting about 12 hours reinstalling my PC completely just because of AC, only to find out later that it didn't help.
Because that's exactly what happened with version 06.1.13.0 when I tried to counteract the bugs there with various entries in the reliability history and the empty widget from the GameBar.
Besides, I only did it because it was requested in the report that you could submit in the last thread for version 6.1.13.0.

It's also unacceptable that you should/have to reinstall Windows for every bug that AC might introduce with a new update, just to eliminate errors that are obviously inherent in a software update.

I've searched and tried a lot over the past few days, but I don't see the point in wasting about 12 hours reinstalling my PC completely just because of AC, only to find out later that it didn't help.
Because that's exactly what happened with version 06.1.13.0 when I tried to counteract the bugs there with various entries in the reliability history and the empty widget from the GameBar.
Besides, I only did it because it was requested in the report that you could submit in the last thread for version 6.1.13.0.

I'm currently at my wit's end, as the errors mentioned here recur reproducibly, at least after repeated runs of Armoury Crate, where it strangely "forgets" my AuraSync hardware and then no longer implements the RGB settings.
Only when I restart AC's RGB service or the PC does AC do what it's supposed to do again.
Every other software on my PC runs smoothly and error-free, except for AC at the moment.

You write that you'd rather blame Windows for this, but then uninstalling and reinstalling should have helped, which didn't work.
Because if Windows were the cause, say through current Windows updates, you'd first have to figure out WHICH update was causing it, and a clean reinstall of Windows won't help, since you haven't identified the corresponding update causing it beforehand to block it from Windows updates during a clean reinstall.

BUT I can actually rule that out too, since I haven't installed a Windows update since installing AC V6.1.18.0. My last Windows update came BEFORE the current AC update, so when I was still using AC V6.1.13.0, and AC didn't have these errors yet.

Well, let's see if someone from the forum team gets in touch.

[inge70]

POSTSCRIPT from May 2, 2025 added!

The last thing in my post.

I don't like it anymore and I don't feel like continuing to search for the cause of the errors so that Asus can figure out what the problem is.

As a normal user, I can't do more than what I've done here since April 28, 2025.
Except that you're just wasting your life trying to find the cause of errors that were ultimately introduced by the software itself.
If anyone here has similar errors to the ones I described, don't make the same mistake and do the same stupid things I did here. So uninstall/reinstall and finally reinstall the entire PC with Windows.

It won't do any good as long as Armoury Crate doesn't run smoothly with the new updates.

There will certainly be many users who can't reproduce the errors described here, but they are still there and are NOT caused by my PC.
I use standard software like Office, various games, etc. No exotic software like CCleaner or any tuning tools.

I also realize that there's no software that runs smoothly on ALL possible hardware variants, but it shouldn't have the errors described here.

My hardware is a completely standard PC with perfectly standard software, and everything worked up to 6.1.18.0, with the exception of the GameBar widget, which has been empty for me and some other users since 6.1.13.0.
But Asus is working on that.

But otherwise, no problems at all. Not even with the latest Nvidia drivers that came out with the widespread release of the RTX 5000 series, where many users experienced black screens, etc.
Here, the stuff runs stable and smoothly.

Just Armoury Cate 6.1.18.0 suddenly doesn't.

With that in mind, enjoy the weekend!