topic Re: Powermill api, plugin gets stuck on UseExistingInstance in PowerShape and PowerMill API Forum

Powermill api, plugin gets stuck on UseExistingInstance

adrian.motea — Sat, 21 May 2022 10:13:32 GMT

Hi, i noticed a problem with all my plugins made in vb.net using windows forms.

if i have a pmill running that is making a toolpath calculation, and i open another pmill,

the code gets stuck at this line

PMillInstance = New PMAutomation(Autodesk.ProductInterface.InstanceReuse.UseExistingInstance)

and it doesn't proceed until the first pmill finishes.

Same thing happens also when i try to enable the plugin, it just get stuck with execution on the same line.

the code is inside the initialise sub

Public Sub Initialise(Token As String, pServices As PowerMILL.PluginServices, ParentWindow As Integer) Implements PowerMILL.IPowerMILLPlugin.Initialise

PMillInstance = New PMAutomation(Autodesk.ProductInterface.InstanceReuse.UseExistingInstance)

...

end sub

anyone has any idea why this might happen ?

Thanks in advance

Re: Powermill api, plugin gets stuck on UseExistingInstance

ondrej.mikulec — Sat, 21 May 2022 23:15:10 GMT

Hi,
Your code looks like you already got pServices from Plugin Framework. Then I think you don't need to initialize PMAutomation from API.
Actually, PMillInstance = New PMAutomation(Autodesk.ProductInterface.InstanceReuse.UseExistingInstance) doesn't differentiate between instances of PMs so you could have pServices from the correct one and the PMAutomation from the other.
From the code (open source in the internet) the New PMAutomation(Autodesk.ProductInterface.InstanceReuse.UseExistingInstance) is just using Marshal.GetActiveObject(CLASS_ID) where the CLASS_ID is "PowerMILL.Application". In this case, you will just get the first instance of the Powermill which was run first.
If you want to connect to the correct instance, look at the New PMAutomation(powerMillComObject).

Re: Powermill api, plugin gets stuck on UseExistingInstance

adrian.motea — Fri, 27 May 2022 07:13:51 GMT

Thanks,
indeed all data needed was already there, and no need to do "new pmautomation..."

Thanks again

Re: Powermill api, plugin gets stuck on UseExistingInstance

nguyenthinhvt95 — Tue, 12 Sep 2023 02:36:05 GMT

Do you have any sample with this code?

New PMAutomation(powerMillComObject)