Cannot install Helper tool on Big Sur 11.6.2

Try manually uninstalling all the components with the terminal.app. Its possible something is damaged or has wrong ownerships.

Please let me know if this does or does not solve your issue. thanks

How to manually Remove/uninstall the SoftRAID driver and components:

Paste each command line below into the terminal application. You will need your normal admin password for some steps.

Delete the SoftRAID driver:
sudo rm -r /Library/Extensions/SoftRAID.kext
sudo touch /Library/Extensions
sudo kextcache -fu /

Now, Restart your computer

Remove the daemon and SoftRAID Monitor:
sudo rm /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.softraid.softraidd.plist
sudo rm /Library/LaunchAgents/com.softraid.SoftRAIDMonitor.plist

Remove the SoftRAID application support directory:
sudo rm -r /Library/Application\ Support/SoftRAID

Remove all the SoftRAID preferences:
defaults delete com.softraid.SoftRAID

Remove preference files
sudo rm -r com.softraid.com

reset the extensions caches:
sudo kmutil clear-staging
sudo kextcache -i /

Restart the Mac. SoftRAID volumes will no longer mount on the desktop, but that is temporary, until you reinstall the driver.

When you run SoftRAID to install the driver, do not immediately restart. wait until the dialog box pops up to go to System Preferences/Security. "Allow" OWC as an Identified developer, now restart later when you quit System Preference, go to SoftRAID and restart.

I followed the above procedure to the letter, to no avail.

When I run the terminal script lines "sudo rm -r /Library/Extensions/SoftRAID.kext" or "sudo rm /Library/LaunchDaemons/com.softraid.softraidd.plist", I get "no such files or directories".

In fact, nothing gets installed at all, because I cannot install the Helper tool.

However, every time I enter my admin password at the Install Helper tool prompt, The application quits unexpectedly.

Note that my Mac mini startup security settings are on "normal" and "allow external device boot". Should it be set temporarily on "no security"?

I thought this issue was solved. Note that I always give Full disk access permission to the software.

@numinoos 

Yes these issues are resolved with Big Sur, it was a Catalina issue. The need to "Allow" third party developers is still there, however, but you go to System Preferences/Security to "allow" OWC there.

Did you go through all the commands? Even if you get lines with no file found, run through it.

You are running 6.2, correct?

On a chance, when you get to the pop up, what if you go to System Preferences/Security/general... Is there a option to "Allow" OWC?

Did you download the app from the internet from this computer?

I repeated the above procedure twice, to no avail.

I downloaded the program softRAID 6.2 from the site https://www.softraid.com/support/download-latest-version/

When I install the program, I do not have any popup message on allowing OWC in the dialog "System Preferences/Security/general".

I do not know what to do.

@numinoos 

M1 or intel?

This is a Mac Mini 2018 Intel iCore7.

I could set my Intel Mac mini's startup security settings to "disabled" momentarily and try installing SoftRAID.

I really hesitate to do this (and I shouldn't have to do this since it is assumed to be a fixed issue).

The last time I disabled my startup security settings when the issue with SoftRAID still existed, I had hell of a time re-enabling "normal" startup security.

After disabling startup security, I could no longer boot into Recovery mode (cmd + R).

The only thing that worked (after a hectic one-week troubleshooting with Apple support), was to hold the combo keys cmd + R for almost 10 minutes to have access to recovery mode!

Any ideas.

@numinoos 

Its possible "Gatekeeper" placed SoftRAID under quarantine.

There is a terminal.app command called xattr, which can check for and fix quarantine issues.

To test for quarantine, follow the following instructions.

Run the Terminal.app
Enter xattr into a terminal window.
Then a "Space".
Then find the SoftRAID application and drag and drop it into the terminal window. This will add a path.
Hit Enter.
(The total command may look something like this: "xattr /Applications/SoftRAID\ 6.2/SoftRAID\ 6.2.app")

If the response from this is: "com.apple.quarantine". Then you know this app got quarantined by Gatekeeper. If there is no return, then it is not under quarantine.

Now, test to see if the SoftRAID driver is under quarantine:

sudo xattr /Library/Extensions/SoftRAID.kext

OK, from what you explained, the app did get quarantined by Gatekeeper because when I launch the terminal command:

sudo xattr /Applications/SoftRAID\ 6.2/SoftRAID\ 6.2.app

I get the reply : com.apple.quarantine

However, when I check whether the driver got quarantined with sudo xattr /Library/Extensions/SoftRAID.kext 

I get: xattr: No such file: /Library/Extensions/SoftRAID.kext

As a matter of fact, the driver is not installed (or cannot be installed) under that location /Library/Extensions because the installation aborts when I type in my password to install the Helper tool whenever I try to install SoftRAID.

Is there a way to tell Gatekeeper to remove SoftRAID from quarantine?

@numinoos 

sudo xattr -r -d com.apple.quarantine /Applications/SoftRAID\ 6.2/SoftRAID\ 6.2.app

try this, restart and then launch SoftRAID.

Tried this terminal command script and restarted.

Same issue; after admin pwd is entered in Install Helper tool dialog, application quits.

If you run the original command, there is no quarantine, correct?

I only see this help tool dialog box pop up occasionally, am not sure what triggers it but have never seen it "fail" like this.

If you run SoftRAID, get the fail message, then run it immediately again, does it work?

If I run the Gatekeeper query "xattr /Applications/SoftRAID\ 6.2/SoftRAID\ 6.2.app", I no longer get the quarantine message.

After I run the SoftRAID, I get the Install Helper tool, type in the admin pwd, and the application quits immediately.

I get no error message, the application just aborts and there is no message on driver installation or update, the app just quits.

My wife has the same Mac mini 2018 as I, the Macmini8,1.

I tried installing SoftRAID 6.2 on her Mac where the driver has never been installed. Her Startup security settings are just like mine, i.e., on "normal".

When I type in the admin pwd in the Install Helper tool, I get a driver update message, then the OWC message in the Security preferences about allowing it to run, then I am invited to reboot.

After I reboot, SoftRAID runs fine.

I have no idea what is wrong.

So, unless you can help me find a solution, my only option is to run the SoftRAID from my wife's Ma mini and access the mounted RAID6 volume from the network.

At least, I can have access to our photo archive.

I plan on migrating to Monterey after they release 12.2 and on a clean install, not an update.

Attached are the system properties of both My Mac mini and my Wife's:

My Mac mini where SoftRAID does not want to install.

My wife's Mac mini where installation is fine.

@numinoos 

Very strange problem. You can attempt one more thing:
download a fresh copy of SoftRAID using this computer directly.

See if you can run it.