Elmedia Player and kernel panic

Question

Elmedia Player and kernel panic

Hi!

My name is Anna Brooks and I represent Eltima Software Company, which is the developer of Elmedia Player. We have noticed a lot of posts in Apple discussions in which users consider that kernel panics on their Macs were caused by Elmedia Player kernel extension. A lot of users wonder why the mere Flash player asks their administrator password for installing the rootkit (kernel extension and root daemon). More than that there were posts in which these components were referred to as Tojan. That's why we decided to make this post to clarify these issues once again.

ElmediaPlayer is not only a media player, but also an online video downloader. For better links catching from the web some additional components like ElmediaPlayer.kext file should be installed. These components can't be installed without entering the administrator password. Please mention that this is absolutely optional. You can use Elmedia Player without password entering and installing its components. However, in such case we cannot guarantee correct downloading of all online videos.

So installing these components is the normal thing for the app with such functionality and it does not mean that they are definitely the reason of the kernel panics. Only in rare cases the kernel panic can take place because of the driver installed and there can be lots of reasons for this. Our developers regularly investigate such cases and fix the issues.

And of course Elmedia doesn't include any viruses. If you think that Elmedia Player can install a Trojan on your Mac, you can always scanyour computer with antivirus and find out that it is not so.

Posted on Aug 30, 2011 8:06 AM

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Answer 1

Linc Davis

Level 10

209,547 points

Aug 30, 2011 9:03 AM in response to Eltima Software team

We have noticed a lot of posts in Apple discussions in which users consider that kernel panics on their Macs were caused by Elmedia Player kernel extension.

That's because the panics were caused by the Elmedia Player kernel extension.

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Answer 2

geyien

Level 1

70 points

Feb 10, 2012 6:07 PM in response to Eltima Software team

Avoid Elmedia Player like the plague - acts and behaves like a trojan, installs all kinds of dangerous crap all over your system and then crashes / kernel panics your machine on a regular basis afterwards. Sorry Anna, your product is junk.

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Answer 3

Feb 13, 2012 5:25 AM in response to geyien

Please tell us the version of your OS and the version of Elmedia Player you tried.

We explained the purpose of the components which Elmedia Player installs. But if you are sure that Elmedia Player causes the kernel panic on your Mac, we will appreciate much if you send us the crash logs and help us to investigate your case.

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Answer 4

fane_j

Level 4

3,697 points

Feb 13, 2012 2:42 PM in response to Eltima Software team

Eltima Software team wrote:

My name is Anna Brooks and I represent Eltima Software Company, which is the developer of Elmedia Player.

Thank you for posting here -- it's always good to see a developer taking note of users' concerns.

For better links catching from the web some additional components like ElmediaPlayer.kext file should be installed.

I had a look at -- but did not install -- your software because it required to install a .kext. Kernel extensions are a well-known potential source of trouble. No software which requires to install a .kext gets installed on my system, unless it does something I absolutely need and I absolutely have no other alternative. AFAIC, "better links catching from the web" is not an adequate justification for installing a kernel extension.

If you can't find engineers who can achieve what you need without installing .kexts, I suggest either releasing a different version of the app, one with limited "link catching", but no .kext; or making much more clear in your installer and Read Me docs the option of installing your software without the .kext.

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Answer 5

Feb 14, 2012 12:46 AM in response to fane_j

Hello! Thanks for your comment.

As it was mentioned in my first post you can use Elmedia Player without installing the components we are talking about.

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