arduino / arduino/ArduinoCore-avr
dpinst.exe runs indefinitely and consumes all RAM when restricted Windows account installs platform
- Dominant language
- C
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- 1.5k
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Description
### Describe the problem
On the first run of a fresh installation, Arduino IDE automatically installs the "**Arduino AVR Boards Platform**". The platform has a Windows [post-install script](https://arduino.github.io/arduino-cli/latest/platform-specification/#post-install-script), which uses **Driver Package Installer** (`dpinst.exe`) to install USB drivers for the platform's boards:
https://github.com/arduino/ArduinoCore-avr/blob/master/post_install.bat
When used in a restricted Windows environment (standard user, no admin rights), dpinst.exe is repeatedly launched in the background — dozens of times — without any visible progress or error message. Each instance consumes increasing amounts of RAM until the computer becomes unresponsive or crashes.
The IDE never finishes initializing, and the only way to recover is to kill all dpinst.exe processes or reboot the machine.
This makes Arduino IDE unusable for non-admin users in managed environments such as schools or enterprises.
This issue prevents deploying Arduino IDE in educational and enterprise environments.
### To reproduce
1. Use an administrator account to install Arduino IDE system-wide under `C:\Program Files\Arduino IDE`.
1. Log out of the administrator account and log in as a non-administrator user (standard domain account with GPO restrictions).
1. Launch Arduino IDE normally.
🐛 Multiple dpinst.exe processes appear in Task Manager and start consuming large amounts of memory. After several seconds or minutes, the system slows down or completely freezes.
### Expected behavior
Problems encountered during post-install script execution are handled gracefully.
### Arduino IDE version
2.3.6
### Operating system
Windows
### Operating system version
11 24h2
### Additional context
#### Additional reports
- https://forum.arduino.cc/t/freeze-on-start-up-multiple-dpinst-amd64-processes/1327057/1
- https://forum.arduino.cc/t/freeze-on-start-up-multiple-dpinst-amd64-processes/1327057/4
### Issue checklist
- [x] I searched for previous reports in [the issue tracker](https://github.com/arduino/arduino-ide/issues?q=)
- [x] I verified the problem still occurs when using the latest [nightly build](https://www.arduino.cc/en/software#nightly-builds)
- [x] My report contains all necessary details
Contributor guide
No contributing guide indexed for this repository
Research direction
Start by reading the Arduino AVR platform's post_install.bat and reproducing the launch under a restricted Windows account. Inspect how dpinst.exe is invoked and compare the reported behavior with the linked forum reports. Done means post-install problems no longer repeatedly launch dpinst.exe or prevent the IDE from initializing.
Written by the indexing model from the issue text.
Assessment
- Domain
- embedded-iot, operating-systems
- Issue type
- Bug
- Difficulty
- 4/5
- Estimated time
- 3-5 days
- Activity status
- Stale
- Clarity
- Mostly clear
- Newbie friendliness
- 38/100