Text issues in system visualization of IDW created by Job Processor after RDP

[Maxim-CADman77]

Our company's policy require all vaulted CAD files to have system visualization (user visualisation is forbiden).

We almost never use separate physical PCs as JobProcessors (seems a sort of overkill). We prefer to use virtual PCs.

Anyway, problem I'd like to rise is actual for both physical and virtual PC.

The problem is text issue on DWFs that were created for IDW files by JobProcessor that was at least once remotely connected (RDP) to during current OS session.

Text either changes some parameters (font, height ... see orange) or even disappears (see red):

DWF for that same file generated by JP after RDP session:

Text objects known to suffer: notes; dimensions; tables (not sure do baloons suffer).

The only workaround known till now (close current OS session and start new) is not applicable for virtual PCs.

One more detail - Inventor is not software to blame - Export to DWF after RDP gives correct result (also correct result when "update Locally" is used).

Software Used:

Windows 7 64 bit Corporate

Autodesk Inventor 2014 SP2

Autodesk Vault Pro 2014 SR1 Update1

[smithmat]

This is a known Inventor issue (Internal Inventor Issue Id: 1518022) for which there is a workaround.

First, let me explain the issue:

• The JobProcessor re-uses the same instance of Inventor for several DWF creation jobs (rather than closing/restarting Inventor each time).  
• This issue only shows up when using Inventor through the API and only after creating a few DWFs (i.e. the first few DWFs created do not usually exhibit this problem--and we've never seen it exhibit this problem for the very first dwf created).
• The "Update Locally" option does not re-use an Inventor instance, it closes/restarts for each DWF creation which is why the problem is not reproducible for that workflow.
• Also, we do not know of a workflow that reproduces this through the Inventor UI--only through the Inventor API (which the JobProcessor uses).

The workaround involves changing the JobProcessor configuration so that it will restart Inventor for each DWF publish.  Unfortunately, this results in slower bulk DWF creation (since for each DWF creation job, you have to wait for Inventor to start-up), but you do not experience the text issue issues. Here are the steps:

• First you'll need to ensure you have at least up to Cumalative Hotfix 1 for Audoesk Vault 2014 SR1, SP1 (which you can find in the subscription customer).  Note: Non-subscription customers would need at least up to Cumulative Hotfix 1 for Autodesk Vault 2014 SP2.
• Exit the Job Processor
• Edit the JobProcessor.exe.config file which is typically located at C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Vault Professional 2014\Explorer
• Locate the setting named InventorDwfPublishCount and change the value to 1.  
• Restart the Job Processor

Hope that helps.  Let me know if you have any further questions. Thanks,

- Matt

(Autodesk)

[Maxim-CADman77]

Thanks for you answer

IMHO If it is known issue then Autodesk should have set value 1 by
default and somewhere in the help declare that user AT HIS OWN RISK can
boost Job Processor by increasing the value BECAUSE THE GARBAGE MIGHT
APPEAR AS AN OUTPUT.



Somewhere after

"Stability

Finally a great deal of effort has gone into overall product stability
from replication and purge support to an overhaul of Job Processor
designed to greatly enhance the reliability and performance of this
component.

"

http://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/vault-products/learn-explore/caas/
CloudHelp/cloudhelp/2014/ENU/Vault/files/GUID-6294BEBB-04B6-4DB6-A82F-66
39DAF737AD-htm.html



You can't even imagine how it is hard for users to localize such issues
and how frustrated they are!



Don't you know what are chances to get this fixed in Inventor 2014 (our
company don't have plans to use Inventor 2015)?



As to profit from your answer.

As soon as there is no separate setting for each filetype (there isn't
right) ... I'd rather say we need to use at least two JPs.

First would handle only IDWs (or all filetypse) with value = 1.

The rest would handle all but IDWs with some bigger value.



PS: Of course I should have direct my annoyance not to the person who
like you tries to help but I just don't know where to apply - Autodesk
Techsupport would say it is Inventor Team to blame Inventor Team as a
best bet would inform that maybe in some future release it would be
fixed.

But we are living now and not in some future releases...

[smithmat]

By "known", I didn't mean we released the product knowing of the defect, I meant that you are not the first to report this issue and that it is previously known by us (Autodesk).  Had we known about it at release time, I'd tend to agree with you.

The setting is only applicable to Inventor DWF creation (it indicates how many dwf publish jobs should execute before Inventor is restarted).  It has no effect on other non-Inventor types--but assuming you are only talking about Inventor file types, then "yes", you could have two Job Processors set up such that one handles the IDWs and the other handles other file types.  However, before you go through the trouble of doing that, you should observe the performance of a single JobProcessor to see if it is actually too slow for your needs with the setting at 1.  I say this, since older versions of the Job Processor (that didn't have this setting) behaved as if the setting were 1.

Unfortunately, I'm not permitted to comment on the likeliness/timeliness of fix to the Inventor issue.  However, I've included a link to this post in the issue report, so that they can be aware of how this is affecting you.

Thanks,

- Matt

[Maxim-CADman77]

Seems like there are much more than one issue with DWFing

We just got DWF where Part List table contained no text.

DWF was created by JP which for sure was operated by OS session with no RDP connections...

We also keep getting DWFs without raster images (even so JP uses Inventor 2014 SP2 Update 1 where the issue with images is declared as solved).

[Olaf.Górski]

To the best of our current knowledge the issue as described above by smithmat is not impacted whether the Job Processor is running within a RDP connected session or without; it can simply happen in any environment. The key point is that the JobProcessor re-uses the same instance of Inventor for several DWF creation jobs. Therefore please apply the workaround as recommended by smithmat, i.e. InventorDwfPublishCount=1.

[Maxim-CADman77]

Ok.

But I already can say that switching to new Inventor session for each
new DWF doesn't help to fix issue with image disappearing.

[Olaf.Górski]

An appropriate Autodesk Knowledge article has been newly pushed to the public: http://knowledge.autodesk.com/article/Randomly-incorrect-visualization-files-for-Inventor-drawings-w....

[ericlynch7405]

When will there be a fix for this issue? I have several hundred thousand dwf's that need to be recreated and changing this setting makes this quite slow.

Thanks,

Eric

[smithmat]

Since this is an Inventor API based defect (Id 1518022), the Vault forum is not the best place to ask.  You might want to post in the Inventor customization forum and link to this thread.

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/inventor-customization/bd-p/120

- Matt

[Maxim-CADman77]

I wonder if "28743: Elements of the drawing get lost when batch generating visualization files with Vault Job Processor" (from readme to http://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/inventor-products/downloads/caas/downloads/content/update-4-fo... ) has any relation to the issue?

[scottwayand]

FYI - I was having the same issue with both missing text in Job Processor generated dwfs as well as what I call "washed out views".  I was able to solve all of my issues by:

1. Installing SP2, Update 4 for Inventor 2014
2. These Inventor settings changes
3. These changes to the jobprocessor.exe.config file

[Telson.Hadden]

These links are broken - does anyone have any idea what the changes were?\

[scottwayand]

If I remember correctly...

For the "Washed Out Views"...

First, on the machines running the job processor, disable background updates.  This setting is found in Application Options, Drawing tab, at the bottom.  This fixes the "washed out views".  The job processor creates the visualization file before the drawing has a chance to generate and update all of the views - creating a ghosted/washed out view in the visualization file.  It is important that last version of the drawings that were saved have all of the updates to the views made already, prior to doing this.

See this article:

https://knowledge.autodesk.com/support/vault-products/troubleshooting/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/Vault-Randomly-incorrect-wrong-visualization-dwf-files-for-Inventor-drawings-when-created-by-Job-Processor.html