I’ve already registered but have lost my registration codes!
You can look up your registration code online right here.
Why are my users getting more or less time than I allow them to have?
- If your users are set up for weekly time restrictions, any changes made to time limits will not take affect until the following Sunday at approximately 12:01am
- If your users are set up under a group, then changes made to a user will effect the entire group.
- Check and make sure there are no conflicting time restrictions. For example a user may appear to be logged off early if they have time-of-day restrictions as well as time limits.
- Maximum time allowed will take precedence over any extra minutes you give a user. If you set up a user to get extra time on the weekends, but also have maximum time set, then the extra minutes will only add up to the maximum time.
- Make sure that the “Extra minutes on: Weekends/Weekdays” or the “Carry over unused time” features are not enabled, or are enabled with the desired time.
I’ve locked myself out of WatchDog and Windows. What should I do?
If you have WatchDog v6.0 and above, you may have created a “Backup Admin” account. If so, this account has the same password as the original Parent User you created. The account is hidden from the login screen, but you may simply type “Backup Admin” (no “s) in the user field, and the correct password in the password field.
If that does not work, please email technical support.
I forgot my password. What can I do?
If you have WatchDog v6.0 and above, you may have created a “Backup Admin” account. If so, this account has the same password as the original Parent User you created. The account is hidden from the login screen, but you may simply type “Backup Admin” (no “s) in the user field, and the correct password in the password field.
If you have forgotten the backup admin password (or did not create a backup admin), please email technical support.
I keep getting strange Windows and WatchDog error messages. What do they mean?
If you are getting an error message that says, “WARNING: Type Mismatch”, do not be alarmed. This warning is normal and does not adversely effect the operations of WatchDog.
If you are getting a popup error message saying, “vball.bar - run-time error ‘0′ “, then an anti-spyware program (Norton, AdAware, SpyBot, etc.) has most likely disabled WatchDog or deleted key files. To check if this is the case do the following:
- Disable (or Uninstall) your spyware programs temporarily (Norton, AdAware, SpyBot, etc).
- Reinstall WatchDog from our download page
- Run WatchDog, to see if it still works
- Re-enable the anti-virus and spyware programs.
- If WatchDog no longer runs, the anti-spyware is disabling WatchDog.
If this is the case, then you will need to setup your anti-spyware program to allow WatchDog to run. We are contacting these vendors to take our software off of their list and would appreciate it if you would email technical support with the name of the anti-spyware program disabling WatchDog.
Why isn’t WatchDog logging keystrokes or screenshots?
Please upgrade to the latest WatchDog version.
For keyboard logs make sure you have enabled the option shown here. For screen shots make sure you have enabled the options shown here.
Ensure that the log directory you have specified can be written to by all users (a log directory in Documents and Settings will not work).
Lastly, you can specify a different folder to store the logs.
How do I restrict internet access with WatchDog?
There are a few methods for restricting web access.
- Restrict specific web sites: You can add key words to a list which will be blocked by WatchDog. These options are explained here.
- Time limits: You can also restrict any browser under the program restrictions option. This will allow you to impose time limits on their use, or block them from being used whatsoever.
NOTE: It is not possible to impose time limits on specific websites (urls). This can only be done for the overall use of the web browser program.
How do I Uninstall WatchDog?
Please follow our Uninstalling Guide for uninstalling WatchDog.
WatchDog was installed on my system and I don’t know how it got there. How do I remove it?
If you see a “watchdog” in your Task Manager, and you do not know how it got there, it may not be the WatchDog Time Manager sold on this site.
Several companies such as Dell and Compaq install a program called “watchdog” that comes pre-loaded with new systems. Their software is not affiliated in any way with the software on this site.
- A watchdog in C:\Windows\system32\drivers\ is NOT our WatchDog.
- A watchdog in C:\Windows\Logs is NOT our WatchDog.
WatchDog Time Manager for Windows can be identified in several ways:
- Right-clicking on watchdog.exe, and select Properties. The company will be listed as “CQL Inc.”
- The icon for watchdog.exe will look like this:
- The size of the watchdog.exe will be around 3MB.
If you have identified the watchdog.exe as the one sold on this site, please email technical support for uninstall instructions.
Otherwise, please contact your computer manufacturer for details on their “watchdog”.
Why is my registration key not working?
The best way to enter the Registration Code is to copy it from the confirmation email and paste it into Notepad. Then copy it from there (making sure there are no trailing spaces) and then paste it into the “Unregistered” screen. Also make sure that when entering your Username that you type it in exactly as it appears in that email.
If the above does not work, you should email technical support with your user name and registration code to verify the information is correct.
ORDERING QUESTIONS
How do I Order?
You can order online here.
I have X computers that need to run WatchDog, what license do I need?
There are 3 different licensing options you can purchase, each allowing more computers to install and run WatchDog. You can order them online here.
- Single License: covers 3 computers
With the single license you may install and run WatchDog on up to 3 computers. If you have a network with 3-5 clients and a server, then a total of 4-6 machines will need to run a copy of WatchDog. For this situation you will need to purchase two single licenses. - Site License: covers 25 computers at one location
With this license you may install WatchDog on 25 computers at one site. If you have more than one location with 25 or less users, then you will need to purchase two or more site licenses. - Unlimited Site License: covers any number of computers at one location
With this license you may install and run WatchDog on as many computers as you need per site. Note that if you have multiple sites you will still need to purchase multiple licenses.
Do you offer discounts?
Discounts are available for non-profit organizations, schools, and government institutions. For details please email us with the name of your organization, the number of computers you will have running WatchDog, and any other specifics of your setup.
OTHER QUESTIONS / PROBLEMS
How do I restrict programs from running for my users?
There two different methods for restricting programs.
By File name: You can block a program from running (or limit how long it can run) by giving WatchDog the file name. The help guide for this is found here. If the program specified still runs, or you’re not sure wich file you need to enter, try blocking by window title. Also, make sure you are entering the correct file name and check the program to see if it has multiple executable files (.exe extension). If it does you may need to block all of them.
By Window Title: WatchDog has the ability to block a program if it encounters certain text in a window title. This can be a very powerful tool and is easy to use. The guide is found here.
I am using the networking feature, where are the logs?
The logs must be stored on the server machine. Make sure the “Keep copies of all client logs on server” option is enabled. The option is found in the Options | Networking tab.
What is the best way to secure WatchDog?
There a number of methods for securing WatchDog to fit your needs. A great guide for this can be found here.
How do I disable Safe Mode?
Windows NT, 2000 and XP do not have any easy way to disable Safe Mode. However, there is a way to ‘break’ safe mode temporarily.
Doing this is not recommended. Proceed at your own risk!
- Click on the Start Button
- Select Run
- Type in “regedit” and hit OK
- Expand the left hand side to HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\CurrentControlSet\Control\SafeBoot
- Under SafeBoot, you should now see Minimal and Network. Click on them and hit F2 to rename them to “Minimal-” and “Network-”, respectively.
This should cause Windows to crash the next time it is booted into Safe Mode.
Why are my IM conversations, rss feeds, and other internet resources not working properly?
The advanced web filtering engine blocks all outgoing internet traffic. It is unlikely, but possible, WatchDog is blocking certain content in other programs.
Please try the following in turn.
- Go to the Advanced Security section of the options. Check the status of the Advanced Filter service and follow the instructions.
- Check your list of keywords and compare them to any blocked urls listed in the watchdog_main.txt log file. Try removing any keyword that blocks a URL you may need.
- GIn the Advanced Security section, enable the option “Log filter status”. If you continue to experience this problem, email technical support and attach the FilterDebug.txt log file.
- Disable the advanced filtering service in the Advanced Security section. Please follow the above step so we may assist you in finding the problem.
My web filtering is not working properly. What can I do?
In the Advanced Security section, enable the option “Log filter status”. If you continue to experience the problem, email technical support and attach the FilterDebug.txt log file. The log file should reside in the same location as your other log files C:\Program Files\WatchDog\logs by default, or look in the General Options section for the location.
Next disable the Advanced filtering service in the Advanced Security section.
How come I keep getting the WatchDog Setup screen every time I try to log in as a user?
This problem is caused by WatchDog not being able to properly setup registry permission so that all users can access the WatchDog configuration in a secure environment. To solve this problem, you will need to let WatchDog run the setup again in a Windows Administrator’s account.
Follow these steps:
- Log into a Windows Administrator account, and into a WatchDog Parent User account.
- Go into the main WatchDog Screen.
- Select File | Export… from the main menu. Select Configuration, Networking and all of your users for what to export, and then save it to a file.
- Now, select Help | Uninstall from the menu.
- Select Reset Configuration from the Uninstall program.
- Once completed, close the Uninstall program and start WatchDog again.
- Go through the setup process.
- Log into your Parent User account, and go to the main WatchDog Screen.
- Go to File | Import… from the main menu. Select the file you previously exported, and import all of your old data.
When WatchDog runs for the first time, Office 2000 setup begins and causes WatchDog to crash
This is caused by the current user not having the required permissions for Microsoft Office to complete its installation, or Office trying to “Run on first use”.
There are several possible ways to resolve this, you should try each one in turn.
- Windows 2000/XP and Office 2000:
First, try WatchDog 8.0.2 or higher.
If that doesn’t work, follow these instructions:
- Open regedit.exe from the Start | Run menu
- Goto: HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Installer\Features\904010001E872D116BF00006799C897E in the left pane
- Look for: “ProductNonBootFiles” in the right pane
- Highlight “ProductNonBootFiles” and press the delete key to delete it.
- Give the user Windows Administrator priviliges to complete the installation:
- Change the current user to an administrator account in the Users control panel.
- Restart WatchDog for the first time. The Office 2000 setup should complete and WatchDog setup should complete afterward.
- You can now reduce the user to a Power User or Limited User in the Users control panel.
- Completely uninstall Office 2000/XP/2003, then reinstall with the “Complete” option. Make sure all components are set to “Run From Disk”. Some users reported problems only after updating to Office 2000 SP2, so you may want to not update.
- Follow either of these articles:
Why can’t I view some of my emails?
If you have WatchDog v9.3 then it is possible the advanced filtering engine is blocking the email content. Some emails arrive in your mailbox in html format. When you first go to view the email, it may try to download content, such as images. At this point the advanced filter will check your Interet Restriction settings to determine if the content should be blocked.