Not Responding Message when Syncing or Writing Notes

[promosinc 14]

I continue to get “not responding” messages when attempting to sync Evernote using Windows 7 Home Premium and now on my brand new HP Windows 10 laptop. Evernote hangs with “not responding” message on syncing for unacceptable length of time -- increasingly longer and longer over the past few years -- often 10 minutes or more at a time. I have searched the internet and Evernote forums and there is little help for this problem, plus a post by Evernote team member that it is a known Evernote issue -- this post several years old. I bought a new HP Windows laptop running Windows 10 with 12 GB memory and 1 TB storage in the hopes that this problem would be eliminated, but almost immediately it started giving me the "not responding" message again. I do not have syncing issues on my Android smartphone Evernote app or my iPhone 5 Evernote app, only using Windows client, but it has been years and this has not been fixed. The “not responding” times get longer and longer. The "help" given is contradictory -- some say registry issues, but others dispute this is the solution. I spent a lot of money on a new laptop for the sole purpose of fixing this, and now I am stuck with a brand new computer and the same problem. I was literally spending hours each day waiting for Evernote to start responding during syncs or even when writing new notes. It’s impossible to continue this way. I tried a Chromebook -- response was great – no “not responding” messages, but the Evernote Chromebook “app” did not offer features I use frequently that are on the Windows desktop app like "tag notes". Same issue when using evennote.com – no “tag notes” feature.  Also very difficult to scan and print from Chromebooks, so cannot make this my main computer. Macbooks are too expensive for me. This has been documented as going on for years with an admission from Evernote that it is a known problem and still no fix. Has anyone had this problem and successfully fixed it?

[gazumped 11,664]

Hi.  The 'not responding' issue was indeed a problem some years ago.  It got fixed,  and came back,  and got fixed again.  The problem that some users have - and they seem to be mainly Windows 7 users - is that their devices refuse to  believe that the problem has been solved,  and continue to sulk for long periods at the least appropriate moments.

The reason why desktops do this and mobile devices don't.,  by the way,  is because Mobiles don't have anything like the same number of features / the same application size or the stored database files that a desktop manages. 

There are several things you can do to try to avoid this,  but since they're individual settings,  it's probably not something that Evernote can do a great deal about.  You could certainly contact support directly if you can,  or message them on Twitter  - but there are a couple of other high-priority issues going on at present,  so it may take a while to get a response.

If you don't have any Local Notebooks,  the best thing to do may initially be to copy your database folder to your desktop as a backup (See Evernote > Tools > Options > General for the location),  File > Exit Evernote and then uninstall your current copy of Evernote,  rename the original Databases folder to Databases.OLD and then reinstall Evernote,  logging into your account with your usual user details.  This will rebuild your database and the search index from the server.  Your copies of the original database are just in case something goes wrong...  (It is good sense to keep regular backups though!)

Once you have your reinstall up and running (depending on the size of your database this might take a while) go back to Tools Options and check:

• Synchronisation:  tick only 'sync changes on exit',  'sync shortcuts' and 'sync automatically'.  Change that to every hour.
• At the bottom of the window tick 'show advanced options' then go to
• Note:  Scroll down and untick 'Show Context' (if you have it there)
• Search: make the 'search as you type' delay 0

I'm sure a few others here may have additional suggestions,  but that should get you off to a good start...

 

 

 

 

[promosinc 14]

Gazumped - thank you for the suggestions which I will try. I am seeing the "not responding" message on my new Windows 10 laptop as well, so it seems more a global Windows issue than specific to Windows 7.

• Is it correct that SSD drives and/or Macbooks don't have this issue?
• Also wondering would the "Optimize Database" selection under <control-Help> be something to try first? What does this do?
• I have created a trouble ticket, so waiting to hear from EN support. I will post their comments when I hear back from them.
• If they would just add a few more features to the Chromebook Evernote app like "merge notes" and "add tags", I would be happy to go that route. 
• You mentioned "local notebooks" and I do have several, so how would this affect making the backup copy of my database folder? How would I get them back into my new Evernote after a reinstall?
• At the end of your response (above) you write "At the bottom of the window tick 'show advanced options' then go to" but rest of this sentence is missing -- can you resend this....

Thank you.

 

 

 

 

 

[gazumped 11,664]

Yeah - I got that you were having issues with a Win10 device.  That might be a good sign - they're more likely fixable than if it was Windows 7!

As to your other questions -

SSD's (I think) seem to be one answer,  though the sample size is pretty small.  The half-dozen or so who have commented here,  don't seem to have issues after installing.  It is expensive,  and it's not guaranteed...

The Optimise Database option could be something to try either before or after a reinstall - as you have local notebooks,  it's a bit more complicated to uninstall everything.  I'd give it a go - but copy your databases folder first as a precaution.  Optimisation can take a while too.  Check out 'Recreate Full Text Search Index' while you're there...

On local notebooks - see below:  Export your local notebooks to one ENEX file per notebook and check 'Options' (during export) to include Tags.  Beware that any note links / note history will be lost in the export.  You can re-import the notes after the rebuild is complete.

How to back up (export) and restore (import) notes and notebooks

And re the previous post...

36 minutes ago, gazumped said:

Once you have your reinstall up and running (depending on the size of your database this might take a while) go back to Tools Options and check:

• Synchronisation:  tick only 'sync changes on exit',  'sync shortcuts' and 'sync automatically'.  Change that to every hour.
• At the bottom of the window tick 'show advanced options' then go to
• Note:  Scroll down and untick 'Show Context' (if you have it there)
• Search: make the 'search as you type' delay 0

I'm sure a few others here may have additional suggestions,  but that should get you off to a good start...

Hope that helps... 

[promosinc 14]

Thank you!!

[CalS 5,280]

15 hours ago, promosinc said:

 

Gazumped - thank you for the suggestions which I will try. I am seeing the "not responding" message on my new Windows 10 laptop as well, so it seems more a global Windows issue than specific to Windows 7.

• Is it correct that SSD drives and/or Macbooks don't have this issue?
• Also wondering would the "Optimize Database" selection under <control-Help> be something to try first? What does this do?

 

• Personal experience - I converted to SSD some years back and have been running great since.  Everything else runs faster as well.
• Optimize Database has had a positive impact for some, reported in these forums
• Turning off context if you have it turned on has helped as well

Per @gazumped If all of the above doesn't work, then a rebuild should help for some time.

[Dick M 16]

I am a "Plus" subscriber and I have tried all the suggestions here and nothing works. The Evernote app with Windows 10 on my Lenovo laptop continues to stall as I type. I type fairly rapidly and view the text on the screen as I type. Stalling is not only distracting but often Evernote misses characters I have typed during the stall. I had hoped that this would be a priority for a fix but after experiencing this with no change for months and months, I am thinking of looking for other applications for my notes. With the exception of this problem, I love Evernote and would like to continue using it. Anyone have a fix for this issue that really works?

[gazumped 11,664]

Hi.  There's quite a bit of aggravation on the Forums about slow performance,  but your experience seems more extreme than most.  Unless you have already reported this to Support (as you are entitled,  as a subscriber...) I imagine they're not aware of any specific issues that might affect Lenovo more than usual,  and therefore aren't / haven't been working on fixes for this particular frustration.

If you've not already done so,  I'd recommend a sync,  then a full uninstall / restart / reinstall (assuming you have no local notebooks).  Before you reinstall,  take a look at C:\Users\<user>\Evernote for the Databases folder,  and rename it to Databases.old,  which will force Evernote to rebuild your database and search index after the reinstall.

Depending on how many notes you have this may take anywhere from minutes to an hour or so to complete.

If things are still running slowly,  I'd suggest a check with Lenovo to see if you're due any system updates - and definitely a word to Evernote Support for more assistance...

[promosinc 14]

I had the same issue with stalled typing on my HP laptop running Windows 7. This in addition to the "not responding" messages, which eventually became intolerable. I bought a new HP  laptop with 12GB memory and 1 TB storage running Windiws 10 - no improvement.  So I swapped it out for a Dell laptop running Windows 10 with a 128GB SSD drive, and both the "not responding" messages and stalled typing issues disappeared. It seems the SSD drive did the trick for me, but still it's unacceptable that these two issues using the Windows desktop client have continued for years, known to Evernote, with no real fix.

[CalS 5,280]

2 hours ago, Dick M said:

I am a "Plus" subscriber and I have tried all the suggestions here and nothing works. The Evernote app with Windows 10 on my Lenovo laptop continues to stall as I type. I type fairly rapidly and view the text on the screen as I type. Stalling is not only distracting but often Evernote misses characters I have typed during the stall. I had hoped that this would be a priority for a fix but after experiencing this with no change for months and months, I am thinking of looking for other applications for my notes. With the exception of this problem, I love Evernote and would like to continue using it. Anyone have a fix for this issue that really works?

1. SSD drive as stated above.
2. There is a firewall block that you can put in place to fully stop EN from syncing for a time, find how to do it here - https://www.evernote.com/shard/s186/sh/ec05ed88-ae37-457d-b188-399615a71449/00e5278c5643d9fe.  I don't typically have any lags (SSD) unless I do massive editing in a note.  When I know I am going to be doing a lot of work in a single note I engage a five minute version of the block.  Works like a champ.

Probably totally unrelated.  I travel between two desktop setups with my laptop.  On one I noticed lagging in other apps and EN.  It turned out to be the wireless keyboard/mouse was flaking out.  Swapped out for new wireless keyboard/mouse and problem went away.

[promosinc 14]

CalS - would you mind sharing brand & model of your old and new wireless mouse? It's an interesting theory and I'd like to test it out. I use Logitech M705 wireless mouse, and also noticed the eventual "spread" of "not responding" messages beyond just Evernote to Chrome browser tabs and even Word docs. I must admit, though, once I uninstalled Evernote from my old (non-SSD) laptop, the typing lag and "not responding" issues disappeared.

[CalS 5,280]

26 minutes ago, promosinc said:

CalS - would you mind sharing brand & model of your old and new wireless mouse? It's an interesting theory and I'd like to test it out. I use Logitech M705 wireless mouse, and also noticed the eventual "spread" of "not responding" messages beyond just Evernote to Chrome browser tabs and even Word docs. I must admit, though, once I uninstalled Evernote from my old (non-SSD) laptop, the typing lag and "not responding" issues disappeared.

How quickly we forget, I think the old was a Microsoft 6000 series.  Got the new one at Amazon, Microsoft Wireless Comfort Desktop 5050, link is here.  I don't know for sure, but I think it was the fob with old set up.

[Dick M 16]

Thanks to all for the feedback. I do enjoy using Evernote but not enough to cause me to spend money on new equipment to make it work. Hopefully, an update in the not too distant future will fix this nagging problem for all.

[CalS 5,280]

7 hours ago, Dick M said:

Thanks to all for the feedback. I do enjoy using Evernote but not enough to cause me to spend money on new equipment to make it work. Hopefully, an update in the not too distant future will fix this nagging problem for all.

The firewall block takes about 5 minutes to set up, and it is free.  Not everyone's cup of tea though.

[FactMan 196]

I have been using Bitdefender for a while as my firewall/virus scanner - I have not figured out how to do this task without changing firewalls.

[CalS 5,280]

On 12/25/2017 at 10:13 AM, FactMan said:

I have been using Bitdefender for a while as my firewall/virus scanner - I have not figured out how to do this task without changing firewalls.

Got me there....