Symptoms
From the Task Administrator, task icons are marked with a red "X." If trying to edit the steps to the task, the 'Edit Steps' button will be disabled or the following error occurs: "The task file associated with this task cannot be found."
Reasons / Solutions
The wrong default managed task location is being specified
The problem may occur if the .AML files were moved from its default location to another folder and changes were not made to the 'Default managed task location' option to point to the new folder. From the 'Task Administrator,' go to 'System' -> 'Options' -> 'System' tab.
Verify that the "Default managed task location" is indeed pointing to the correct folder. If not, simply make the appropriate changes. Unless modified the default managed task location is in: C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\My Automate Tasks.
Service User is not entered or does not have proper rights to access the default managed task folder
The Service User located in 'System' -> 'Options' 'Service User' tab is used to set the user context that the Automate Task Service should emulate when accessing restricted or secured resources such as network shares. The default task location is directly affected by the access permissions of the user specified.
If no Service User is supplied, the Task Service runs as LocalSystem user, which has very limited network permissions. Furthermore, if the "Default managed task location" has been modified to point to secured resource, such as a network folder, the user account entered in the 'Service User' tab is required to have read/write access to that folder in order for the tasks to be recognized.
A mapped drive is specified instead of a UNC path
If the default managed task location is pointing to a network folder, it is recommended that a UNC (Universal Naming Convention) path is used to specify that folder instead of using a mapped drive. For example: X:\pathname\ should be \\servername\pathname\. This is because mapped drives are created and accessible only when a user logs on but are not accessible when a user is logged out.
The .AML file was deleted, removed or disassociated with the task
The error may occur if the .AML file associated with the task no longer exists in the default task folder (i.e. task was deleted or removed). On the other hand, if the .AML file still exists in the folder but was somehow disassociated with the task, follow these instructions to re-associate it with the original task:
- From 'Task Administrator,' right-click the task in question.
- Select "Properties."
- On the 'General' tab, click on the button labeled 'Location.'
- Browse to the .AML file and select it.
Applies To: Automate 5, Automate 6
