Hey Martin, Though it's little help, I recall running across a warning in the SI docs that unloading custom renderers in-session could introduce instabilities back when I was investigating the same thing. I can't find the exact entry for you, it was weeks before I accidentally stumbled across it last time, but that's pretty much where I threw my hands in the air and wrote a workgroup switcher that would restart sessions instead here at Kettle.
Nic On Wed, Aug 15, 2012 at 10:22 AM, Martin Chatterjee < [email protected]> wrote: > Chris, > > well, I wasn't implying that the bug I found is the cause for every > reported Arnold-related crash... :-) But all tests indicate that it is the > cause for our specific scenario. > > As a test I've removed all xsirtcompound files from actual copies of a > couple of our production workgroups and can happily switch between them > without a single crash. This is of course not an option/workaround for > actual production - but solid proof for my theory, I would guess. > > To answer your questions: > > 1.) I repro'ed this with three different versions of Arnold and 3delight. > In addition I asked a friend of mine to repro with VRay as well. So I'm > very confident in claiming that this is NOT a renderer-specific bug. > > 2.) I didn't state this specifically - but of course the crash is not > happening when no custom renderer is installed. If a custom renderer is > installed, but at a different location (e.g. in the user dir or in a > different workgroup) the crash also does not seem to happen. > > Cheers, Martin > > -- > Martin Chatterjee > > [ Freelance Technical Director ] > [ http://www.chatterjee.de ] > [ https://vimeo.com/chatterjee ] > > > > On Wed, Aug 15, 2012 at 2:39 AM, Chris Chia <[email protected]>wrote: > >> Hi Martin, >> We seem to have some customers complaining about XSI crashes with Arnold >> plugin. I am not too sure whether this is the cause. >> >> Thanks for the repro steps! I will take a quick look! >> >> Which specific version Arnold and 3delight are you using? >> And since you felt that it might be because they were in your workgroup >> and unloading them causes crashes, have you brought them out of the >> workgroup and tried whether it still crashes? >> >> Chris >> >> On 15 Aug, 2012, at 12:05 AM, "Martin Chatterjee" < >> [email protected]<mailto: >> [email protected]>> wrote: >> >> Hi list, hi Support, >> >> as many other studios we've been suffering from fairly regular crashes >> when trying to switch workgroups containing custom renderers in an open >> softimage UI session. >> >> I've made several attempts to work around this issue in the past with >> mixed results. >> >> However this time I've been in a particularly stubborn mood and I think >> I've finally isolated the bugger! (Repro steps further down in this mail) >> >> Cheers, Martin >> >> >> --- Description --- >> >> Softimage UI will crash reliably on workgroup unload when this workgroup >> contains a custom renderer and at least on .xsirtcompound file >> >> >> --- Background Details --- >> >> When switching between jobs we are dynamically unloading the old job >> workgroup and then loading the new job workgroup in an open Softimage >> session without restarting the software. >> >> This has worked reliably for years - until we started to regularly >> install a custom renderer into these job workgroups (in our case Arnold - >> but I've verified that this bug is not Arnold related). >> >> Right now our workgroup switching leads to a crash in roughly 50% of the >> cases in a UI session... :-/ >> >> BUT: the same workgroup switching code works on our farm absolutely >> flawlessly. >> >> >> --- This is what I think happens --- >> >> A workgroup unload will crash Softimage reliably if... >> >> 1.) a custom renderer is installed in this workgroup >> 2.) at least one .xsirtcompound file is part of this workgroup (either in >> /Data/RTCompounds, or as part of another addon) >> 3.) the Render Tree window was opened at least once in the UI session >> BEFORE the workgroup gets unloaded >> >> I think that when the Render Tree window gets displayed it refreshes its >> list of available shaders and rtcompounds. >> >> If this refresh gets executed before the attempted workgroup unload it >> will crash. You will achieve the same effect if you open the Preset Manager >> window. >> >> Please note that it already is enough to display the Render Tree window >> in an empty scene - the offending xsirtcompound must not be seen or used >> for the crash to happen. >> >> >> --- A few more remarks from my side --- >> >> 1.) I've run "unit tests" on my side (scripted UI sessions unloading a >> workgroup, loading a workgroup, rendering a preview frame, ... 50 times in >> a loop) without a crash. The minute I let the same test script also display >> the Render Tree window it crashes reliably. Removing the offending >> xsirtcompound file results in the same 50 loops of testing to finish >> reliably again. >> >> 2.) It is not important what xsirtcompound file it is - as long as it is >> a legal one. For my tests I just put a standard Mental Ray factory phong >> node into a compound and exported it into /Data/RTCompounds. >> >> 3.) We've seen this with many versions of Arnold - but to understand if >> this is a Softimage or Arnold issue I also tried this with the free version >> of 3Delight - same behaviour. >> >> 4.) I've tested this on Softimage 2012.SAP (x64) and 2013.SP1 (x64) - >> both on XP and Windows 7. >> >> >> >> --- Repro Steps --- >> >> 1.) Create an empty workgroup >> 2.) Install a custom renderer addon into this workgroup (e.g. 3delight) >> 3.) Place a legal .xsirtcompound file into Workgroup/Data/RTCompounds. (I >> just put a standard factory MentalRay phong node into a compound and >> exported it...) >> >> 4.) Start a fresh vanilla Softimage session and connect to this workgroup. >> 5.) Disconnect the workgroup again. --> This works >> 6.) Connect the workgroup again >> 7.) Disconnect the worgkroup again --> still no problem >> >> 8.) Now connect the workgroup once more >> 9.) Display a Render Tree Window >> 10) Now disconnect the workgroup again ---> crash... >> >> >> [ Repro'ed with Softimage 2012.SAP and 2013.SP1 (both x64) on both >> Windows 7 and Win XP64. ] >> [ Repro'ed with multiple versions of Arnold and 3Delight. ] >> >> >> >> >> -- >> Martin Chatterjee >> >> [ Freelance Technical Director ] >> [ http://www.chatterjee.de<http://www.chatterjee.de/> ] >> [ https://vimeo.com/chatterjee ] >> >> > -- Technical Pretty Picture Making Person Kettle <http://www.kettlestudio.co.uk/>
