As you may be aware, Microsoft is releasing the Windows 8 operating system on Friday, October 26. We’re working hard to ensure that our software works perfectly with it.
Currently, we have a Beta (test) version of Covenant Eyes for Windows 8 available. We recommend that you wait for 4-6 weeks before you upgrade to Windows 8 while we finish testing it.
Can’t wait to upgrade?
No problem! Here is some information you should know about using Windows 8 and Covenant Eyes Windows 8 Beta.
- Before you upgrade to Windows 8, you MUST uninstall Covenant Eyes. If you don’t, your system will become unstable. (Learn how to uninstall Covenant Eyes.)
- After you upgrade to Windows 8, log in to your account and install the Covenant Eyes Windows 8 Beta.
If you have any questions, call us at 1.989.720.8000.
Can you please explain to me why we have to uninstall Covenant Eyes first before upgrading to Windows 8? Why would Windows 8 become unstable if we don’t first? Could you provide a technical explanation with technical language?
Our software installs into the network stack of your Windows computer. Microsoft has changed the way in which we are installed into the network stack on Windows 8. In order to make sure our code is installed correctly, we need you to uninstall first. If you do not uninstall, one of our services will go into a hard loop when Windows 8 starts. This will dramatically slow down your system and cause it to become unstable.
Please modify your pop-up warning window so that it can be ignored or discontinued, maybe with a check-box in the window: “Check if you don’t want to continue receiving these warnings.” I am aware of the potential problem, but I have no intention of upgrading to Windows 8 and don’t want to read and respond to a warning about it every time I use my browser. All I was doing today was reading a news story about it and that brought up the warning. My wife encountered trouble every time she accessed the internet today even though her access had nothing at all to do with Windows 8. I appreciate the warning, but it is very troublesome to have to click to close the warning window multiple times in a single browsing session. Please modify so this is not necessary. Thank you.
Hi Tim,
Thanks for letting us know. Yes, the message is pretty important for people to see, which is why we’re pushing it out in that message bubble.
One possible reason why you might be seeing this come up again and again is if your Internet connection is weak. That message bubble is set to come up when someone logs in. Our service is designed to log out when the Internet signal drops and then log back in when the Internet signal returns. If your signal is weak, Covenant Eyes might be logging out and logging back in silently in the background, triggering that bubble each time.
Either way, the message is set to not repeat up to 1 hour after a user logs in. If you continue to see issues 1 hour after you first logged in (or 1 hour after your wife first logged in), then please call us. There may be another glitch causing the issue and we can help you fix that. Call 877.479.1119.
Does this help?
hey I keep getting a pop up with the windows 8 upgrade info from covenant eyes, how do I stop it?
One possible reason why you might be seeing this come up again and again is if your Internet connection is weak. That message bubble is set to come up when someone logs in. Our service is designed to log out when the Internet signal drops and then log back in when the Internet signal returns. If your signal is weak, Covenant Eyes might be logging out and logging back in silently in the background, triggering that bubble each time. Don’t worry: the message is set to go away about 1 hour after you first log in, so if you continue to have problem after 1 hour, please call us and we will help you get rid of it. 877.479.1119.
I have not upgraded to windows 8 that I know of, but i can’t use youtube. do I need to update something?
Are you currently using our Filter?
Before I upgrade and use the beta I need to know if the new version of Covenant Eyes will be monitoring everything happening within the apps of Windows 8 or just browser activity and which browsers it may or may not work with. Thanks for all the hard work.
Hi Jeff. All Web traffic (http and https) is being monitored, yes. Any browser or app that displays webpages or information from webpages will be monitored. For instance, some tiles in Windows 8 display periodic updates from the Web (like, for instance, a stock market tile); all of this is monitored. Other apps are not currently monitored. Keep in mind, this is still in the testing phase, so be patient as we work out any unknown kinks.
Hey, thanks for the beta. I am running Windows 8 64 bit. There is a Covenant Eyes Proxy (32 bit) that is using around 50-60% of the resources. Is that a bug of the beta? Also, since installing the beta, I cannot access xbox music anymore. I could before I installed covenant eyes. Thoughts?
Great questions, Jeremy. We’ll get back to you soon. I’ve forwarded your message on to the beta team.
Just to follow up-
It looks like when any “Metro” app is using the internet heavily, the CE Proxy service really gets slammed. I’m sure the devs are aware of it, but I thought I’d share it here.
Thanks, Jeremy. I’m passing all your comments along to the devs.
I’m having the same problem here with CovenantEyesProxy (32 bit) completely overloading my CPU anytime I connect to the internet on more that one app at a time. I’ve gotten 5 BSOD’s in the last 24 hours, and can’t seem to find any good work-arounds. Any ETA on an update, or will I need to uninstall CE to make my computer usable again?
Hi Joshua. We have only seen this issue in a hand-full of cases and we’re working hard to recreate the same problem in-house so we can solve it. We would need to know more about your system: antivirus, firewall, games, and anything else that is starting up automatically that uses the Internet (what are the programs called and what are their version numbers). Knowing this will help us to recreate the problem here so we can solve for it.
I understand if you need to uninstall Covenant Eyes. We appreciate your patience as we work out any of the bugs.
I’m also seeing this issue with my machine as well. I am running Win8 x64, Webroot Antivirus with Firewall protection, and numerous programs that use the internet. I have limited the number of programs that use the internet immediately at startup, but the issue persists. I have seen up to 70% or 80% of my CPU in use by the covenanteyesproxy.exe at any point in time. I also run Google Chrome (v. 24), Eclipse Juno, and iTunes 11 as well, which takes up decent chunk of resources themselves. Two system crashes so far, and if I wasn’t learning to recognize the signs, there would probably be more. Is there a fix for this?
Hi Andrew, I’ll pass your feedback on to the developers. You can also leave comments and feedback on our support forum.
This happens to me all the time too particularly when I have Spotify running. I’ve had BSOD happen to be at least 10 times in the last 2 months which really sucks since a lot of work has been lost.
Hi Joseph. Thanks for letting us know about your issue. Here’s what you need to do. We want to debug the problem. To do that, we need the crash dumps from your machine. The best way to get us that information is by calling us at 877.479.1119. I apologize for this inconvenience. We hope to get the problem sorted out for you pronto.
The same bug is continuing. I have seen 80 percent of my CPU being used while I was surfing with the chrome app on Windows 8.
Also I could not access my skype app. Covenanteyes beta for windows 8 is currently a disaster.
I had to uninstall it, it completely crippled my PC
I’m so sorry this is being a problem for you. We can work with you on this if you are willing. Are you signed up for our beta program? That would be the best avenue to go if you want to continue using Covenant Eyes.
I already have a computer with window 8 on it. Will there be a time when I can load covenant eyes without causing my computer to be unstable?
Hi Doug. If you have Windows 8 installed already and want to have Covenant Eyes, I recommend you install the test version we currently have specifically designed to work on Windows 8. You’ll need to first get an account with Covenant Eyes if you don’t have one. If you have any previous versions of Covenant Eyes on your computer, make sure those are uninstalled.
I didn’t uninstall Covenant Eyes before I upgraded and it looks like my system is in this hard loop you warn of at startup. I saw the warning too late. Can you give any help?
Yes, Mike. Please call our customer service folks and they can talk you through your options. 877.479.1119.
I mistakenly upgraded to Windows 8 from Vista before uninstalling Covenant Eyes. When I went to uninstall it after the upgrade it wasn’t to be found (since you lose your programs when upgrading from Vista), and so I thought I was safe to download the new version of Covenant Eyes for 8. I got into that hard loop you mentioned. I got Windows 8 going again when I turned off my computer and got to a Restore Point. Is there something I can do to get Covenant Eyes safely, without creating havoc for my system?
Thanks for letting us know, Mike. Have you tried calling our customer service team. They should be able to help you. This issue requires a more detailed look that will too difficult to handle over e-mail or in blog comments.
I did not uninstall Covenant Eyes before installing Windows 8. I am running 4.5.3.2301 and have not had any stability problems or repeating pop up windows. I do however want to install the CE Windows 8 beta. How would you suggest I proceed?
Hi Matt. Good to hear you didn’t run into any snags. If you want the Windows 8 Beta, then uninstall your current version and reinstall the new one.
Thanks for the beta version on Windows 8. When I log off for the evening and come back to login in the morning – CE is not started. I have to restart it manually. Just letting you know.
Do you expect that you will support windows 8 phones as well in much the same way as the android phones?
It is far too early to say. We only just gained access to the Window Phone 8 software developer’s kit at the very end of October, and at this point we can’t really say what might be possible. We will also base our decision on the market share of Windows phones and the demand from our customers. One of the reasons we have pursued the iPhone and Android apps so heavily is because we received a lot of communications with our customers about their desire for protection on these devices. For Windows phones, the demand has been much smaller. We’ll let you know as things develop!
In line w/ Luke’s reply to Robby Kurtz’s comment, please consider this my request for Covenant Eyes to be be developed for Windows 8 Phones. I’ve had an iPhone; got rid of it. Personally, I don’t want to go with an Andriod phone.
If there is an official poll or page you are keeping track of requests for Covenant Eyes for Windows 8 Phones, let me know and I’ll be there to provide my input. Or perhaps a poll of CE users for their opinions could shed light on where they stand with regards to this matter?
Nevertheless, I’ve got CE running on both PCs and the laptop here at the house. Thanks for all the great work you all do!
Thanks for the request. I’ll make sure to pass your request along. I invite you also to visit our GetSatisfaction page. A lot of our customers go there to start discussions about problems, questions, or ideas concerning our products. You could always start a conversation about Windows Phone. I’m sure there are some other customers who’d love to weigh in on this topic.
The beta version works great on my windows 8 Pro but when is the official release going to be released?
Hi Daniel. We don’t have a release date yet. It’s been a slow process with all the testing that needs to be done, but so far the beta is working for most people.
As a follow-up to Joshua and Robby’s comments, any news on CE for Windows 8 phones? Thanks.
No news yet. Hope to come out with an update soon.
Hi!
I just wanted to tell you that CE beta works great with Windows 8 Pro on my machine but, the new mail app does not work. Before installing CE, I had the mail app working with my Rogers email account and then I installed CE beta and I could no longer use the mail app with any email address I plugged into it. I had to revert to Windows Live Mail 2011. I don’t know if this is a problem for anyone else but, I wanted to let you know.
I have the same issue with the Windows Mail app as Adam Blackburn. I also get periodic bsod’s when covenant eyes starts with the computer. But when CE does not startup with the computer, there has never been an instance of BSOD.
You could install the latest Windows 8 beta that we released yesterday. Please let us know if you do this and whether or not it addresses the issue. I am so sorry this is causing you such a headache.
I’m having issues connecting to xbox music since installing the latest CE win8 beta. Thankfully I still have the Zune software, (as the Xbox music app is frankly pretty terrible), but just FYI!
The time filters do not appear to be working with Windows 8. Any thoughts?
I got a new computer with Windows 8 and dowloaded the beta verson. When I go to a hot spot for internet (vs my home or work), it takes forever for CE to let me access the internet. I’m also noticing, as others have, that it uses more memory than I expected, dragging my computer’s performance. I also had to disable the filter because it was too sensitive, not letting me do just about anything online. I checked, and the level of sensitivity was set the same as my last computer, but blocked so many sites as to render it more of a hindrance than a help to me.
We would need to do some troubleshooting with him. There may be something else conflicting with Covenant Eyes such as an antivirus, firewall, Parental Controls, a proxy setting, etc. It would be best to call in. 877.479.1119. I’m very sorry about this, but because there could be a variety of issues going on, we would need to talk personally.
Any news on the release date?
Did you mean 6-8 months or weeks to finish developing you app?
So when is this thing going to get out of beta into a 1.0?
Very soon. We’re still speaking with Beta testers and working out the remaining bugs.
I have had nothing but trouble using windows 8, I am wondering if it has something to do with the CE software? I can’t access the MS store or use any of the apps.
After installing CE on my work desktop it really slows down just one program. Unfortunately, it is the program that I use the most. QuickBooks Enterprise Solutions 14.0. My OS is Windows 8 with the downgrade to 7.
I have been on the phone with support at CE with my IT guy and there is apparently no solution. Is there a way to strike QB’s from the restricted scan list?
Thanks,
Russ G.
Hey Russ,
Thanks for the information. Currently, there is no built in way to just allow Quickbooks since Covenant Eyes isn’t actually blocking it. Quickbooks, for whatever reason, uses web protocols to handle databases and does not gracefully handle anything adjusting url times which Covenant Eyes does to a very minor extent. I’ll send your issue to our developers so they can look into it.
Thanks for taking the time to post here.
Jake
Hi, I just wanted to echo the request to have CE allow QuickBooks to run at normal speed – thanks!
Hey Karl,
Thanks for mentioning that. It is an issue I have run into in Customer Service a couple times. If you have a free moment, could you email your struggle to support@covenanteyes.com? The more information we get on the issue, the faster we can resolve it. Information like version of windows and what version of quickbooks are super helpful. Our email support team may ask you some follow up questions to make sure we get a full picture of what is going on. Again, thanks for letting us know about the issue.
Please add a “do not display this warning again” box to your warning about Windows 10. Otherwise, how long will I have to click “OK” on that pop-up every time I log in? I get the message that this issue is important, but this is getting really annoying.
Hello Morgan,
I apologize for the inconvenience of this message. We kind of rushed getting the message out there so there currently isn’t a way to disable it but we plan on providing a way very soon. On the flip side, if there were no warning message and a person upgraded to Windows 10 from 7 with Covenant Eyes installed, the pain endured and the time spent troubleshooting the issue would be inexcusable. I hope that you can be patient with us while we implement a better message.
Well I forgot to uninstall CE and upgraded to Windows 10. The size of my screen on my television has made it so I can’t see my start menu. How do I proceed to try and uninstall CE after the fact?
Kristina, probably your best option would be to call our customer support line. The toll-free number is 877.479.1119. We’ll be here until midnight EST tonight, or 10 – 6 tomorrow.