Some Inventor drawings load slower than others

[itB9559]

 Hi All,

I'm just an IT guy, so if I'm using some incorrect terminology I apologise.  We have a strange issue where some of our inventor drawings take longer to load than others.  In the last month we have upgraded the server where our inventor files are stored (in a shared folder mapped to everyone's PC, we aren't using vault), and this is where the issue started.  It seems that any drawings generated before the server upgrade take around 30 seconds to load, but drawings generated since the server upgrade load in only a couple of seconds.  You can see the difference in load time when using both inventor pro, and inventor view.  I've tested the following:

• Different PCs all load the same drawings slowly
• Opening a slow drawing immediately after closing it is still slow
• File security settings are identical between files
• Different drawings of the same model will load fast or slow depending on when they were generated
• File sizes seem to have no impact on whether a drawing is slow or fast to load
• Creating a local copy of the a slow file doesn't help, unless I then disconnect that PC from the network, then a slow file will suddenly load quickly.  I feel like this is the key to the issue, but I'm unsure what it means.

Not sure what to try next, any suggestions appreciated.

[Anonymous]

We do a similar thing at my place of work. I have a feeling that the delay will have something to do with file references. The newer files will likely load faster because the files they reference are in the location they were originally saved, so the software doesn't need to search the working directory for the file references, whereas the older files will have been relocated form their original storage location, and will need to search the working directory for file references.

Try this experiment:

Make a copy of a recent drawing and its referenced files and move them to a different spot on the server and then try to open it. Once you get past any broken file references, take notice of the load time. If it is no slower, remove the original files from the original location and try again.

Let me know what your results are.

[itB9559]

OK, here is what I tried:

Copied a drawing (which was opening quickly) and its referenced model to a new folder on the server.  I then opened the copied drawing in its new location, loading speed was still only a second or two. I then moved the reference files from their original location.  Opened copied drawing and skipped warnings about missing reference files.  Still loaded quickly.  Opened copied drawing again but instead of skipping the reference warnings I pointed it to the copied reference model, no change in load times.

I think you are correct that the old drawings are having to search for the location of the reference files.  The folder structure is the same as the old server, and the mapped drive uses the same letter.  But the drive where the files sit has moved from C to E server IP address and name have changed.

[Jon.Dean]

Hi @itB9559,

Have you tried running the Task Scheduler with the task "Update Design", just select the drawing and run the task.

All related files with be opened and rebuilt, then re-saved.

This might improve the speed.

Hope it helps.

Jon.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! When you said drawing, do you mean idw/dwg or iam and ipt files also? Regardless, let me ask you a few questions. Is %temp% clean on each machine? Where is Autodesk Appearance and Material Library and Inventor Material Library stored? Locally on each machine or in a shared folder?

Many thanks!

[itB9559]

Looks like this was the solutions.  I've only tried a couple of files but they load instantly after updating design. I'll have to go through and do this for all of our drawings, but it looks like the task scheduler should make this easy enough to do after hours.

Thanks @Jon.Dean and everyone for your suggestions.

[itB9559]

Sorry all, I thought that we had solved it, but going back to the same slow file again after 10 or so minutes is slow again.

@johnsonshiue the drawings are all .idw, with the reference files being .ipt.  I tried clearing %temp%, but it had no effect.  The autodesk appearance and materials folders are stored locally.  The inventor material library is stored on the server.

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! Could you try bringing Inventor Material Library locally? Make sure you change the library path in Project dialog. Then try opening the files.

Many thanks!

[Jon.Dean]

Hi @itB9559,

Going back to your original description, it seems to me that your statement:

• Creating a local copy of the a slow file doesn't help, unless I then disconnect that PC from the network, then a slow file will suddenly load quickly.  I feel like this is the key to the issue, but I'm unsure what it means.

This seems to be the key issue, copying locally and disconnecting from the network. We need to establish why the network is causing the slowdown. Can you try turning off your Firewall, just for test purposes?

Cheers

Jon.

[itB9559]

Sorry, been out of action for a couple of days.

@johnsonshiue  Moving the Inventor Materials Library local had no effect on the speeds of opening slow drawings.

@Jon.Dean Disabled the firewall on both the server and client pc.  It had no effect on the speed of opening. 

[johnsonshiue]

Hi! I will need to see an example. Please share it with Jon or me directly ([email protected]).

Many thanks!

[itB9559 · Accepted solution]

For anyone following this thread (or stumbling across it on google in the future) @johnsonshiue worked out what is causing the slowness.

Our older drawings used a template that had a linked image for our logo on the drawing.  This link points to our old server, so every time a drawing with this link is opened it takes around 30 seconds to locate the logo on the new server, hence the slow load times.  Going to Tools > Links > and then breaking the link to the logo and saving resolves the issue.