Systems Analysis Not Working - "EnergyPlus simulation did not generate a report for systems analysis"

[fuzzylogik511RXH65]

Hello, 

I'm currently going through this course with Autodesk Certification.

https://www.autodesk.com/certification/learn/course/revit-system-analysis-mechanical-design-professi...

I'm using the model (attached below) supplied as part of the course documentation and completed the activities described in the course.  Unfortunately, when I run the systems analysis the report that I get reads "EnergyPlus simulation did not generate a report systems analysis"

I've looked for the "eplusout.err" file but can't find it as it appears to not be generating.  

I've tried this file and tutorial out in both Revit 2022 and 2023 with the same result.

Any help in this regard would be fantastic as I've spent the weekend trying to trouble shoot this and i'm losing my mind!

Thanks very much!

[vitale2]

Perhaps not.  I have been reading several online resources that explain how to properly set up a model and run systems analysis and they all seem to be simple to do with not too much nuance.  I have followed the instructions to the best of my ability and like you am using a very simple one room model.  I also DO have the Intel Tigerlake CPU on my work laptop.  It’s the only computer I can use since the Revit software license is owned by my employer (I can’t just install it on a personal machine, though that would be a nice solution in an imaginary world).  So even though I get results with a highly constrained set of input conditions (who wants a building with no doors or windows?) I still think I may be impacted by my hardware.  It’s a bummer.

[AmmarD]

If you were able to get the report, then it should be a different issue. 

In your case, were you able to get the energyplus ".err" file? if yes, you can open the file in a text reader and see the fatal error that caused the simulation to fail. You can find that file (and all simulation related files) in the %temp% folder. You can, somehow, get an idea of what caused the simulation to fail by observing what files are generated by Revit in the directory. 

[vitale2]

Hi.  Thanks for trying to help.  My issue is that I can get the report now but only when I have no windows or doors in my model.  If I add even just one window or one door to my model (and I'm using conceptual types for material thermal properties) I get no report and there is no eplusout.err file to review.  After the run here is a screenshot of my HVAC Systems Loads and Sizing Folder and of the contents of the "run" folder.  I'm not really sure what to do with these files that are generated.

I appreciate the help.

[AmmarD]

I suggest that you post a new question since the issue is slightly different than that of the main question of this post. It might be hard for others to follow each comment to understand the problem. Please mention the following:

1. The Revit release

2. If you had the same issue and you had to go through the workaround (i.e., updating OpenStudio version) to get the report to generate.

3. Describe the issue.

4. Check the run.log file in the directory and see if that gives any hint to what is causing OpenStudio to fail. 

You can also attach a copy of the Revit model if you want.  

[vitale2]

Will do.  Thank you.

[mwendel93]

Did you ever do that? I'm still having this issue.

[vitale2]

No, I didn't. Ultimately I have given up on using Revit for Load Calcs or energy modeling.  Instead I'm using tried and true Trace 700. 

[mwendel93]

Certainly does seem like a good way to go. Seems unfortunate since the information is all there typically. Love the official response that says "use a different computer". Its just that easy!

Thanks anyway!

[iainsavage]

If you read back you'll see that @vitale2 seemed to have a different problem than other users because they were able to get a report to generate sometimes whereas myself and other users couldn't get a report to generate in ANY circumstances. If that is your issue then the workaround is to replace the OpenStudio version which comes with Revit with a different version.

This post explains how.

It worked for me and others.

I believe the problem has also been fixed in 2023 but I haven't actually tried it in that version.

[mwendel93]

I did try many different processes on replacing the OpenStudio, but none seemed to ever give a report still. I've access to two separate computers with different processors and have resigned myself to working through those for now. It's not ideal, but its the official Autodesk response right now as well.

I'm also working in Revit 2023. I can confirm that it has not been fixed for the processors that were listed and discussed in this post by Autodesk:

https://www.autodesk.com/support/technical/article/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/EnergyPlus-simulat...

[iainsavage]

Did you follow all of the instructions for replacing the OpenStudio version including replacing ALL of the required files?

Did you try different versions? I think I used 3.4.0.

[mwendel93]

I fully replaced the "bin" file, "EnergyPlus" file, and "lib" file from the installed OpenStudio 3.5.1 to "C:\Program Files\NREL\OpenStudio CLI For Revit 2023". I restarted my  computer and Revit after replacing the files.

I did see some comments somewhere about changing some workflow paths, but I don't really understand those and programing language enough to try anything like that.

I did not try different versions of OpenStudio. I tried the latest version, as the suggested youtube videos (in English) indicated the newer versions had actually given full compatibility. The older versions had issues with room names and zones matching what they were supposed to, which defeats the purpose of the program for my purposes.