The following guide addresses some of the common issues you may come across when trying to install inFlow.

The installer only shows a white screen

This means that the component Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5.2 needs to be installed on your computer. This is more common on Windows 7 and older because the newer operating systems already have this installed automatically.

Try downloading and installing/repairing this component from here.

Error: “There was an error connecting to inFlow”

There are some backend programs that allow inFlow On-Premise to run, if any of them are missing it could cause an error.

To fix this issue:

1. Stop the current installation (it may complete itself, if it does please uninstall it, as it will not work correctly).
2. Download both files: Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable x64 and Microsoft Visual C++ Redistributable x86.
3. Install both files and then re-run the inFlow On-Premise installer.

To see other solutions for this issue, please take a look here.

Error: “Looks like there was a problem installing inFlow”

This means that an unknown error occurred when attempting to install inFlow or one of its prerequisites (e.g. SQL Server).

You may want to try the following:

1. Check that your computer name and your Windows log on user name are not the same. The installation can fail if this is the case. Go to the Control Panel > System and Security > See the name of this computer > and click on Change Settings in order to change the computer name. This will require a restart.
2. Check that your Windows is up to date: click Start (or hit your Windows Key) > type in “Windows Update” and click “Check for updates”. Install any “Important updates” you see and also restart your computer first before trying to install inFlow.
3. Try turning on “.NET Framework 3.5” and “.NET Framework 4.5” fully in Control Panel > Programs and Features > Turn Windows Features on or off. This is a component that’s needed in order to run and complete the inFlow install successfully.
4. Disable any antivirus software which could be interfering with the installation. Usually you can find an icon for your antivirus software in the system tray (bottom-right corner of Windows), and if you right-click on it there’s often an option to disable it temporarily. You can re-enable this after the installation is done.
5. If the installation is failing on a client computer (i.e. a computer that only needs to connect to another “main” computer / the server), you can try customizing your installation to “Client-only” (run the installer > Customize my installation > Client-only).
6. If you are using Windows Vista, try to install using SQL Server 2008. At the start of the installation wizard choose to customize your installation, then choose Server and Client, then check SQL Server 2008 R2 and click Install. If you are using Windows 7, 8, or 10, try to install using SQL Server 2014 instead.
7. If you are getting this message while updating from an older version of inFlow to the current version, you may instead want to try backing up your data (see instructions here) and then uninstalling your current version of inFlow. Then install the latest version of inFlow and restore your data.
8. Perform a manual clean up in preparation for the install. See this article for more information on how to do a manual cleanup.

Are you using a Dell computer?

We’ve had some reports of certain customers experiencing troubles starting inFlow on Dell computers after a recent Windows update (primarily in Windows 10).  Following the update, a pre-installed service, Dell SupportAssist Agent, now uses the same port that inFlow needs to run properly. In v3.5.2 of inFlow On-Premise, we released the feature to choose which port inFlow installs with. If you are eligible to install or update to v3.5.2:

1. Uninstall inFlow and re-run the inFlow installer.
2. Click Customize my Installation.
3. Select Server and Client.
4. Select Use a custom port and set the port to 5800.
5. Install.

We no longer support older versions of inFlow On-Premise (3.5.1 and older). And as of July 31, 2024, inFlow On-Premise will be sunset. For troubleshooting questions, contact inFlow Support.

Error: “Safari cannot open the file inflowinstaller.exe…”

This means you’re on a Mac and unfortunately, inFlow is not compatible with Macs! However, it is possible to run inFlow on a Windows environment installed on the Mac itself. You can read more about it here.

Error: “You must uninstall the alpha before installing v3”

This means that at one point the inFlow Inventory alpha version was installed on your computer. The alpha program was introduced around the summer of 2013 as a way to test the beginnings of inFlow v3 while simultaneously running inFlow v2. Unfortunately it is not possible to run the alpha and inFlow v3 together so the alpha version must be uninstalled first from the Control Panel. It will show in your programs list as inFlow Inventory v3, simply right-click on it to uninstall.

Warning: “There were some errors with updating your data…”

This means that you are upgrading inFlow from v2 to v3 and there were some records in your data that are incompatible with the way records are stored in v3. It does not necessarily mean that the installation has failed. These records have been automatically adjusted in order to successfully update, but the changes might affect your accounting reports. See this article for more information.