Frequent X13 crashes

tbuck1db

By tbuck1db,
in General Q & A

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tbuck1db

tbuck1db

Posted
Posted

I updated my Chief version from X12 to X13 yesterday and am having frequent crashes when I go in to make adjustments to various elements or take measurements of objects on plans that were built in X12. I'm really not very technically savvy and am quickly way over my head when trying to figure out what video card version I'm running, what I should have to run this program correctly or diagnosing anything about it. It basically just makes me extremely frustrated when I can't do my work and waste hours and hours trying to figure out something I know nothing about.

 

I don't get any error messages, the program just closes.

 

Can anyone recommend someone who could log on to my computer remotely to diagnose and prescribe a fix for me? X12 ran great! But can see that there are many updates that I do want to be able to use in X13.

Thanks for any help that you can share.

 

Thomas

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HumbleChief

HumbleChief

Posted
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Hey Thomas, can you reproduce the crashes? If not there's not much tech support can do to help but that's always the first step in my opinion in these cases. If you can reproduce the crashes then the first step is still a chat with tech support. Good luck and please keep us posted on a solution.

 

EDIT: If by chance you can reproduce the crashes perhaps a plan posted here, describing the crashes, could give other users a chance to trouble shoot?

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HumbleChief

HumbleChief

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10 minutes ago, robdyck said:

A few things seem to help me: 

  • Don't use PBR RT for any default camera views
  • Don't use PBR for default library or material previews
  • Avoid 'Line Drawing on Top' for default camera views
  • Avoid shadows  / reflections for default camera views
  • Don't have too many windows open at once; I don't have a specific number here but I try to keep it limited to 5 or 6.
  • Press Save frequently, especially before generating a camera view.
  • Don't edit materials with multiple windows open
  • Don't browse the library with multiple windows open

The Auto-Save feature seems to be saving really close to the crash point, but not always!  Essentially take out all the great rendering features of X13 and treat it like it's 1999. I've found I can still use those great rendering techniques, I just need to be much more careful and ready for the force-close.

Interesting, and safe to say you are also experiencing frequent crashes as well? I don't have a RTRT video card so can't use the 'features' you describe but sheesh, that seems like a lot of work and caution to get a program to work as it should.

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Dermot

Dermot

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Posted

This sounds very much like a problem with your video card and/or its drivers.  These kinds of problems are usually very specific to your particular system so another person's experience may be completely different.  The most common solution is to update your video card drivers but there are many other things that can be going on as well.

 

First, see if this tech article helps:

https://www.chiefarchitect.com/support/article/KB-00106/troubleshooting-3d-camera-view-display-problems-in-chief-architect.html

 

If not, or you need more help than the article can give you, then please contact technical support;

https://www.chiefarchitect.com/support/

 

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robdyck

robdyck

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I did not follow my own advice from yesterday and I've had half a dozen crashes just this morning. However I must say that the auto-save is working much better than it used to for me. It seems close to perfect, for which I am thankful... almost like it knows a crash is coming. I've got the latest driver for my graphics card, and my PC is well over minimum spec. so I'll send the plan in to tech support and I'll promptly return and post the simple fix that will be recommended shortly.

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VHampton

VHampton

Posted
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Hey Rob.

 

You may be experiencing crashes due to a memory issue. Often times the default setting for being able to undo a plan move is set to something like 10 or more.  

Which isn't a big ask, but if the plan is complicated, it certainly can be. This may occur irrespective of what kind of hardware your machine is equipped with. I've had plans with cars and stuff which have large 3D surface counts. Extraneous 3D objects can over-burden a drawing file pretty quickly. 

 

As an experiment, turn down the undo option to 1 or 2.  Or try even turning it off altogether. Then play around with an archived version of the plan.

If it crashes, then the issues have been narrowed down to either a quirk or a hardware issue. If it's more stable, then you've found a potential cure for the crashing.  

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Kbird1

Kbird1

Posted
Posted
On 8/13/2021 at 7:24 AM, tbuck1db said:

I don't get any error messages, the program just closes.

 

This is a known Issue even in X12 for some , there is an Article in the KB about this.... how useful I am not sure ......YMMV.

 

PC          https://www.chiefarchitect.com/support/article/KB-03049/troubleshooting-chief-architect-software-closing-unexpectedly-on-windows.html

 

macOS  https://www.chiefarchitect.com/support/article/KB-02940/troubleshooting-chief-architect-software-closing-unexpectedly-on-a-mac.html

 

 

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MarkMc

MarkMc

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I haven't gotten many, maybe none, sudden closes without error message. I have managed to occasionally get a lock up both with and without error message occasionally. Most of the time it happens when adjusting materials in a 3D view when there is also an elevation open.

Have any of you checked system temperatures? Might be worth a look.

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