I really don't like the implementation of Documentum at my current employer.

Today, Documentum doesn't like me either.  When I click on the name of a file that I used to be able to view, it shows me a blank Internet Explorer page.  Bummer.

UPDATED RESOLUTION:

1. After IE shows the blank window, click in the address bar and hit Enter.  If the Documentum plug-in is not installed on your compter, this will cause IE to go through its do-you-want-to-install-this dialog for Duckumentom.  Let it install.

2. Set the Java proxy (via Control Panel Java applet) to official employer's PAC file, exit all browsers, ensure that NO Java is running, and restart IE</em />.

RETURNING TO THE ORIGINAL STORY

  • I tried rebooting.  No joy.
  • I uninstalled all versions of Java, and deleted my Windows tmp directory (there were ~10,000 files there), rebooted, installed the company-approved edition of Java (1.6.0_16). No joy.
  • Uninstall everything from "C:\windows\Downloaded Program Files" (by right-clicking on it and selecting Remove). Revisit Documentum.  It downloaded and installed something.  Still can't open a file.
  • THE NEXT DAY: I'm in the office today (yesterday was VPN).  When I attempted to open a file, it downloaded something ADDITIONAL, and now it works.  I'm thinking that either IE or Java security was confused by the VPN. 
  • If it happens again, I'm going to set both IE and Java to anything-goes for all sites and see what happens. 
  • Oh, you know.... There is something else different besides the VPN.  At home, I use VPN over WiFi.  It wouldn't hurt to try it over a wired VPN connection with the WiFi disabled. 

UPDATE:  It now works from home, over VPN and over WiFi.  My best guess is that there is a cached component (the download that happened on "THE NEXT DAY" above) and that download was failing security or failing to choose the right network adapter.  The conclusion is, when Documentum shows a mostly blank page after you click on a document link, go to the office, connect via wired LAN without VPN, open ANY Microsoft Office document that is stored in documentum, and the problem will go away.

Update 2: It isn't working again.  I'm at the office. 

The following seems to clear it up:

  • Delete temp files in IE.
  • Delete all of C:\Temp.
  • Delete Java temp data (via the Java Control Panel applet)
  • Uninstall everything from "C:\windows\Downloaded Program Files" (by right-clicking on each item and selecting Remove).
  • Reboot.
  • Set IE proxy to official employer's PAC file.
  • Revisit Documentum WITHOUT running my startup stuff.
  • Move to Project Module on project 216745.
  • Select Artifacts view.
  • It wants to install Webtop.  Tell it OK.
  • Navigate to folder containing documents.
  • Wait a minute.
  • Click on a document.  Wait about 2 minutes.  It eventually shows a progress bar and opens the document.

I'm sure it doesn't require ALL of the above, but I don't (yet) know a minimal subset.  Let's see if I can break it:

  • Set IE proxy to file://t:/pac/employer-name-here/proxy.pac
  • Exit/restart IE.
  • Revisit Prism WITHOUT running my startup stuff.
  • Move to Project Module on project 216745.
  • Select Artifacts view.
  • Navigate to folder containing documents.
  • Click on a document.  Does not open.
  • Set the proxy back to official employer's PAC file.
  • It is still broken.
  • Close all IE.
  • Kill javaw.exe
  • restart IE.
  • Revisit Prism.
  • Move to Project Module on project 216745.
  • Select Artifacts view.
  • Navigate to folder containing documents.
  • Click on a document.
  • It works again.

New theory -- Maybe once javaw.exe throws an exception, it never fully recovers.  Try this the next time it fails:

  1. Set proxy to official employer's PAC file.
  2. Exit all IE.
  3. Make sure javaw.exe is NOT running.
  4. Start IE again and try to access the document.

"Final" disposition:

  • When at work, set the Java proxy (via Control Panel Java applet) to official employer's PAC file, and restart IE</em />.