Aspire crashed again..

[sugarbeatco]

I keep getting crashes.. This time, screwed me over proper.. 6 hrs into a project, after machining 3 toolpaths successfully. So when I reopen the file after the crash, its a previous version of my drawing (I saved it at least 3 times prior to the crash), file says last accessed 3 days ago. Well I have part file logs that proove otherwise.. So I guess my question is this: Since I am unable to recover my drawing and I have part files that have the gcode (post processor sbp*), is there a way to recreate the file using the gcode from the toolpathes that I have already machined? Second question, why is this happening? I am up to date, newer computer running windows 10.. Im out about $600 in labor time and a 6' x 3' sign blank otherwise.

[SamPris]

Contact Support concerning this issue.

question on your file... how are you saving them? and where? Could it be possible that your accessing the older files and not the most current? Do a search on your pc for one of the files see how many versions and the dates it finds

Something to try while you await an answer

Frank

[sugarbeatco]

Contact Support concerning this issue.

question on your file... how are you saving them? and where? Could it be possible that your accessing the older files and not the most current? Do a search on your pc for one of the files see how many versions and the dates it finds

Something to try while you await an answer

Frank

I tired that, I only get one version, from 3 days ago and an error message that states: Aspire was unable to open the file, code 1, and then it opened the file anyways ( the same previous version that was saved on 12/18/16)
Thank you for the advice though, I do greatly appreciate any and all help I can get with this.

[martin54]

Do you use a usb stick at all or a back up usb drive ? If you do then check those for your missing files, I have inadvertently saved my design files to a usb stick in the past & then not been able to find them because I had unplugged the stick. Last time I did that was after I had been saving toolpaths to the stick for transfer to the control PC.

As for the crashes, have you had any changes to your system recently ? Have you checked for malware & viruses ?
As has already been suggested contact vectric support as they are very helpful.

[sugarbeatco]

Do you use a usb stick at all or a back up usb drive ? If you do then check those for your missing files, I have inadvertently saved my design files to a usb stick in the past & then not been able to find them because I had unplugged the stick. Last time I did that was after I had been saving toolpaths to the stick for transfer to the control PC.

As for the crashes, have you had any changes to your system recently ? Have you checked for malware & viruses ?
As has already been suggested contact vectric support as they are very helpful.

I do not use usb or any other external storage, I have a fresh TB of storage on this 4 month old computer, I just didnt see the need. I guess that's a lesson learned.. as for the changes to my system, yes, I had one windows update that automatically installed, although no reboot until I initiated it (after the aspire crash). Windows 10 does not allow its users to disable automatic updates, so I cannot eliminate this. I am fairly confident that the designers of aspire are aware of this, and should have taken preventive measures to ensure this doesn't cause stability issues? Autosave is a thing, since like 1993, why not in aspire I wonder?

[Rcnewcomb]

Im out about $600 in labor time and a 6' x 3' sign blank otherwise.

Your statement about being out the cost of a sign blank confused me.

Could you help us understand your workflow?

For context, I typically do all my design work in Aspire, and then when I am satisfied with the preview I'll save the Aspire file and then save the toolpaths to one or more .SBP files. I usually copy the .SBP files to a thumbdrive and go to the computer that is running the ShopBot and copy the .SBP files to the hard drive of that computer.

For my setup Aspire is not running while the ShopBot is cutting, so I'm confused about how Aspire crashing could cause a sign blank to be ruined.

What are the differences between your design-and-cut process and mine?

[martin54]

If this is a PC that is used for business then any business adviser or computer expert will tell you that a computer can fail at any time, regardless of age so it is important that files are backed up on a daily basis it is something that you might want to look into for the future just to be safe. It is actually possible to turn automatic updates off in windows 10 but it's not the same as earlier versions where Microsoft provide a button for you to do it. You need to have some knowledge of the operating system to do it & it would be a pain keep putting it on & off
Not quite sure how you are confident that Vectric are aware of any instability issues, I certainly haven't seen lots of posts about software crashes which I would expect if that were the case. I save my work manually on all the software I use & have autosave turned off on those that have it, not a fan of it myself although I accept that there are a lot of other people who like the feature. I haven't seen any other posts about the save function not working either.
Appreciate you have had problems & things are not ideal but can't you rework the artwork & then complete the job ???

[sugarbeatco]

Im out about $600 in labor time and a 6' x 3' sign blank otherwise.

Your statement about being out the cost of a sign blank confused me.

Could you help us understand your workflow?

For context, I typically do all my design work in Aspire, and then when I am satisfied with the preview I'll save the Aspire file and then save the toolpaths to one or more .SBP files. I usually copy the .SBP files to a thumbdrive and go to the computer that is running the ShopBot and copy the .SBP files to the hard drive of that computer.

For my setup Aspire is not running while the ShopBot is cutting, so I'm confused about how Aspire crashing could cause a sign blank to be ruined.
What are the differences between your design-and-cut process and mine?

I cut all that extra stuff out, time is money, I design on one computer, cut from the same computer, with aspire open so I can make adjustments on the fly. Often times I send the files to the machine directly from aspire. (Sign making isnt always an exact science). The fact that aspire crashed and lost my saved progress on the design, leaving me with a half carved blank that I will certainly be unable to replicate the design of exactly, unless my file is recovered or redrawn from the gcode somehow. It contains complex, curved text lines (free-form, aka not to curves) 3D objects, various pockets at different depths, chamfers, etc etc. I may be able to get close, but not exact. I can do close by hand, I did not buy a $30,000 machine and $1200 software to be close.. I have owned my machine well over 5 yrs now (Shopbot PRS Alpha), have made 30 foot signs, hundreds (if not thousands) of smaller signs, furniture, wall hangings...never had this particular issue before. Aspire has been fairly reliable up until this point, I have only had one previous issue that literally went away on its own and had to do with preview window closing every time I pressed the preview button.. Kinda weird but I chalk it up to something I was likely doing wrong, or perhaps a faulty mouse driver (this brand computer is known for that). I just don't understand it what caused the file to be lost. I know I saved it at least 3 times after trivial, minute changes to my design..

If this is a PC that is used for business then any business adviser or computer expert will tell you that a computer can fail at any time, regardless of age so it is important that files are backed up on a daily basis it is something that you might want to look into for the future just to be safe. It is actually possible to turn automatic updates off in windows 10 but it's not the same as earlier versions where Microsoft provide a button for you to do it. You need to have some knowledge of the operating system to do it & it would be a pain keep putting it on & off
Not quite sure how you are confident that Vectric are aware of any instability issues, I certainly haven't seen lots of posts about software crashes which I would expect if that were the case. I save my work manually on all the software I use & have autosave turned off on those that have it, not a fan of it myself although I accept that there are a lot of other people who like the feature. I haven't seen any other posts about the save function not working either.
Appreciate you have had problems & things are not ideal but can't you rework the artwork & then complete the job ???

I am actually a satellite tech, I work for Hughes net, Wild Blue Communications, Dish Network, and Direct TV as an independent contractor, I know redundancy, and my way around a computer (they call me an expert). I have had many crashes in my 31+ years of working with them, none of which have resulted in a unrecoverable file.. I know I can bypass the way windows 10 updates automatically by setting my network as metered, but never am I connected to the internet while machining ( that one I learned the hard way). I am confident that Vectric are aware of the auto update issue with windows 10, because they are software developers, most of which have a very solid understanding of the current operating systems as well as previous versions, and the faults that come with them.. Its kinda their bag to know.. Although I am sure you are correct in that this doesn't happen often ( I am sure because it is a reputable product, you dont get that way by selling crap) it has happened to me today. So surely I am the only one and the issue is my fault, but having never had this issue in the last few years leads me to believe the folly was not my own. I would happily take responsibility, trash my 300 dollar blank, soak up the 600 in lost labor time and start over... I've had worse issues to be honest.. I explained my reasoning for not attempting to redraw the file from scratch in my previous post. I dont mean to be bitter about it, or snappy, but alas, I am.. You might be too if you had a potentially minus $900 day? Not to mention it has now set me back at least one full day waiting to hear from support.

[Adrian]

I run a commercial operation and I run my SBP files directly from another computer for a variety of reasons. The main being that while the machine is cutting I can lay out the next sheet and it massively reduces the risk of anything conflicting and causing an issue with the ShopBot software. All that runs on that machine is the ShopBot software and Windows with the usual conflicting stuff turned off. The machines are networked together so saving and running a file is as fast as it would be running from a single machine.

I've got to say in all the years (seven now) I've been using Vectric software I've never had a crash with the software or lost a file running like that. The ShopBot software (SB3) is another matter entirely. That has crashed on numerous occasions and avoid any new versions for at least a year until the worst bugs have gone.

It's not really Aspire that you need to worry about with auto updates it's SB3. That's the software doing the actual comms. It could even be that SB3 brought Aspire down. Another thing to bear in mind is that Aspire with 3D files loaded can take up a lot of memory and then you're wanting SB3 to load a large 3D SBP file as well and run it. It could be that you ran out of memory at a critical juncture especially with other software around and the paging cause something to flip out.

You can get the file back after a fashion but to be honest the amount of work required to do it isn't really worth the effort unless it's very simple profiles (which it isn't) as the code just doesn't relate back to vectors directly. To get the depths of the pockets etc you can read that from the code.

[backyard_cnc]

personally I would never run my Shopbot from the PC that I do my main design work on. Machine control PC's should be dedicated to one task and that is running the machine. Do I have a copy of ASPIRE on my Shopbot computer, well yes but I don't design on it or have it open and running when the SHOPBOT is cutting ever! ASPIRE on the SHOPBOT pc is simply for occasionally reviewing files. PCs are cheap and its just better to have them for separate functions. After a number of years of using ASPIRE to generate code for my SHOPBOT I have never had an issue or lost a file except when I personally made procedural errors (saved into wrong directory or the USB stick) or my main PC crashed or froze from Windows issues. I would be very surprised if ASPIRE is the issue in this case, not impossible but unlikely.

Gerald

[SteveNelson46]

I'm having similar problems with file management in other programs also. It's intermittent and I'm starting to suspect Windows 10. Now, I always verify the save. A PITA but better than losing hours of work.

BTW, you can turn off windows updates by disabling the service in the service manager. However, if you decide to turn it back on you will have to manually install every update that you missed.