MAYA_SHELF_PATH in module file prevents Batch Render from working

[Sebastian_Wiendl]

Hi everyone,

This is a very odd one and I am curious if there is an explanation for this 🙂

I've got a plugin that works well and without any issues.

In my plugin .mod module file, I am setting the MAYA_SHELF_PATH to ensure that the shelf is loaded on Maya startup.

Again, all of this is working well and as expected.

But, it turns out that this seems to be preventing Batch Render from working.

If I try to do a Batch Render, I receive this in the Script Editor:

// Result: Saving temporary file: C:/Users/Sebastian/Documents/maya/projects/default/scenes/batch_render_test__13288.mb // 
// Result: Rendering with Maya Software... // 
// Result: Rendering Completed. See mayaRenderLog.txt for information. //

But the log file contains nothing but three empty lines and the current date. Literally nothing else.

3/23/2020

But then, if I edit the module file and remove the following line 

MAYA_SHELF_PATH += C:\Users\Sebastian\Documents\shelves

and try to do the Batch Render again, then it works without issues.

And if I re-add the line to the module file, it stops working again.

So it must definitely be that line that is causing the issue.

Also important: The plugin is not even loaded! And I do not need to restart Maya or do anything special after editing the module file in a text editor! Just editing and saving is enough to make Batch Render work or stop it from working.

As the solution to this issue seems to be to remove the MAYA_SHELF_PATH from the module file and set it another way, I am not necessarily looking for another workaround.

What I am really after is an explanation of why this causes the Batch Render to fail; because it is not obvious to me and I would try to avoid any similar issues in the future.

Any and all input is much appreciated.

Cheers,

Sebastian

[Stephen.Blair]

What plugin is it?

What is in the shelves folder? Just mel files? Any different about what those mel files do?

If you put an empty mel file in the shelves folder, or a mel file with an empty, do-nothing global proc, what happens?

[Sebastian_Wiendl]

Hi Stephen,

Thanks for getting back to me.

It is a custom plugin, but I can recreate the same behavior with standard plugins.

For example, if I open C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Maya2020\modules\MASH.mod and change it from

+ LOCALE:en_US MASH 1.0 ../plug-ins/MASH
MASH_LOCATION:=
PATH+:=bin
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=MASH Examples
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=Smart Presets
scripts: scripts

+ LOCALE:ja_JP MASH 1.0 ../plug-ins/MASH
MASH_LOCATION:=
PATH+:=bin
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=MASH Examples
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=Smart Presets
MAYA_PLUG_IN_RESOURCE_PATH+:=resources/l10n/ja_JP
scripts: scripts

+ LOCALE:zh_CN MASH 1.0 ../plug-ins/MASH
MASH_LOCATION:=
PATH+:=bin
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=MASH Examples
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=Smart Presets
MAYA_PLUG_IN_RESOURCE_PATH+:=resources/l10n/zh_CN
scripts: scripts

to

+ LOCALE:en_US MASH 1.0 ../plug-ins/MASH
MASH_LOCATION:=
PATH+:=bin
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=MASH Examples
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=Smart Presets
MAYA_SHELF_PATH+=C:\Users\Sebastian\Documents\EmptyFolder
scripts: scripts

+ LOCALE:ja_JP MASH 1.0 ../plug-ins/MASH
MASH_LOCATION:=
PATH+:=bin
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=MASH Examples
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=Smart Presets
MAYA_PLUG_IN_RESOURCE_PATH+:=resources/l10n/ja_JP
scripts: scripts

+ LOCALE:zh_CN MASH 1.0 ../plug-ins/MASH
MASH_LOCATION:=
PATH+:=bin
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=MASH Examples
MAYA_CONTENT_PATH+:=Smart Presets
MAYA_PLUG_IN_RESOURCE_PATH+:=resources/l10n/zh_CN
scripts: scripts

I get exactly the same behavior.

As you see, I just added the single MAYA_SHELF_PATH line.

Also, the folder EmptyFolder is empty. Nothing in it at all.

Again, you can see an immediate effect when you edit the file while Maya 2020 is running.

Depending on whether the line is in the file the Batch Render will fail or run.

Also, I double-checked in the Plug-In Manager and MASH.mll is neither set to loaded nor autoload.

Please let me know if you are able to reproduce the issue.

Cheers,

Sebastian 

[Stephen.Blair]

Yup, totally repro (reproducible). I'll log a Maya ticket.

Only workaround I see is "don't do it"

I notice that things like MtoA, Mash, Bifrost, and XGen all stick their shelves in the user's prefs/shelves folder.

[Sebastian_Wiendl]

Hi Stephen,

Thanks for getting back to me.

Yes, that's the workaround I've been using.

Please keep me posted on any updates on the Maya ticket.

Cheers,

Sebastian

[asztalosdani]

It looks like Maya 2022.2 is still affected. Any news on this?

[duduf]

This is still an issue in 2023.3 ........

[pfina]

Any update on this?
I found it only fails when I use Render.exe through deadline using MayaCmd plugin. MayaBatch plugin doesn't fail.
I also tested a CommandLine job that calls Render.exe and it worked fine.

[Sebastian_Wiendl]

Sorry, I do not have an update.

I have not tested this again. Just been putting the shelf file in the in the user's prefs/shelves folder.

[stefan.reutersward]

I can confirm that this is still an issue. Sure is one of the odder issues I've seen.