Since upgrading to 12.7.5, I have been experiencing problems scheduling an auto forecast run.
I use windows task scheduler to start wxsimate 10 mins before wxsim - three times a day. The data is collected and wxsimate closes automatically. Wxsim then runs and also auto closes once finished.
I’ve noticed nearly every day that the auto forecasts have not run. Logging on the the weather pc, when I try to start wxsim, I get an error message saying that another copy is already running. I’ve looked in task manager and can’t see any wxsim process running. If I click ok on the error dialog, wxsim starts normally and every subsequent start of the program seems to run ok. I’m wondering if the auto close at end of forecast is the cause, but I’m having trouble replicating the fault.
I believe that when WxSim starts up it writes to a file named alreadyopen.txt and puts a “1” in it. When it shuts down normally it puts a “0” in it. If WxSim crashes or gets shut down abnormally that file still has the “1” in it so WxSim thinks that another copy is already running. So the issue is, what is causing the occasional abnormal shutdown.
I have seen that repeatedly here as well. I use System Scheduler to start all programs - including wret as that doesn’t seem to start by itself on closure of Wxsim. Wxsim closes by itself, after the pause, but I have SS looking for the file page header to close it even if it still exists, but that may shut Wxsim down badly - ie without setting the file to 0. I’ll check my time offsets against running and shutting of Wxsim. Sometimes I have three layers of that alert as I run it every 2 hrs from 6am to 10pm.
This is interesting as I too have virtually the same problems since I upgraded. For each new day, the prog will run fine doing the 4 f’casts that I have set up, but with mine when it comes to the following next day I get the symptoms that you are seeing. Likewise, I too was unable to find another example of wxsim running. Something must have changed somewhere between 12.7.2 and 12.7.5 as reverting to 12.7.2 overcomes the problem.
As I wish to run 12.7.5 for the other advantages it gives, I have resorted to changing the tick boxes within the WxSim Autorun Schedule (ie unticked…“Activate Scheduler on next bootup” and “Close program after autorun”) and am now NOT using Windows Scheduler to open WxSim at all. Not exactly a cure, but a way of getting round the problem.
This makes perfect sense as to why I can never replicate the problem as I close the program manually. Next time I have a problem I’ll check the file in question.
That’s interesting, I am using 12.7.5 and use the W2K system scheduler to open both programs but leave both to shutdown on their own, the scheduler will only try to shut them if they run for an inordinately long time. I dont have any problems…
I’m wondering if the “alreadyopen.txt” feature is causing more problems than it’s solving (?).
I think I’ve been almost too flexible with the options on auto run, and people are doing it many different ways. I’m interested to hear what the most stable way of doing this is. Right now I’m using SS to boot WXSIM and WXSIMATE, but letting them auto-close. I rarely get errors, but actually did have a couple last month. The new forecasts still got made, but I think some open files were accumulating and eventually slowed things down. It’s summer, and that computer is running up at the school in my absence (I’ve visited it once every couple of weeks, and haven’t bothered with remote access).
I have had the same problem, not sure what caused the already open/not closed issue but it is way different then previous versions and caused the auto feature to lock up often. It was offline on mine for a week because it somehow determined that it wasn’t closed properly right after I left town for a week. I’ve done as others did and stopped having system scheduler open and close it and that was the way I had been doing it for ever. I also find that if I do a “Full Start” after a missed auto run (even after running WXSIMATE) I get a bogus run (it does the metars 5-6 times then the progress bar rolls from like 5% to 100% with nothing else happening). The result is a graph that is line a sign-wave.
Previously, I was using SS to boot WXSIM and used the WxSim Scheduler to “close programe after autorun”…WxSimate was just left on permanently. Until the recent upgrade, it had run in this manner quite happily for some years. Whatever it was that has changed in the upgrade, it has been detrimental to this way of operating. However, maybe some element of WxSim was not closing even then, as I have had an unexplained gradual PC memory leakage which has required the PC to be rebooted about once a month for years too!!!..mmmm
Yep, all my problems are down to the alreadyopen.txt file.
Both Wxsim and Wxsimate seem to close ok and task manager is not showing any open processes that I think may be relevant to the issue.
For the time being I’ve added a command in the script I use to copy files onto my web server to overwrite the culprit file with one containing the 0. Everything now seems to be working without a hitch.
I’ve had this a couple of times where there is no other WXSIM process open.
I think in my case it’s the length of time it takes for WXSIM to produce a forecast run during periods of little winds and continuous wind direction changes. As these runs take much longer then I think that System Scheduler is closing WXSIM before it’s completed the run, even though I allow 20 minutes for a run to take place.
If this is the case then I assume that WXSIM doesn’t get the chance to add the ‘0’ to the alreadyopen.txt file?
Martin why not set WXSim and WXSimate to close themselves when finished and leave System Scheduler to catch them if say the have not closed for a couple of hours (assuming you forecasts are more than two hours apart). As I said earlier I have not had a problem doing things this way (although I guess its not guaranteed if there is another problem). Whenever I have looked the awaysopen.txt seems to have a 0 in it for me.
This is interesting. I’m thinking that something about the program and its environment allowed it to work just fine without properly closing. Now it thinks there’s a problem, and that’s causing a new problem!
I’m interested in more feedback on this, and I may be able to introduce a temporary version which simply doesn’t write the alreadyopen.txt file. On second thought - that may be complicated some by the fact I’ve been doing a bunch of other work on it in the meantime. Maybe I can find a slightly older copy to work off of. Meanwhile, I think you could simple delete the alreadyopen.txt file in between runs.
Have you been getting the message box about a copy already being open?
I have changed my Schedule times for both WxSim and WxSimate with greater periods between actions from the programmes. I have also re-enabled System Scheduler to open WxSim for the new run, post its previous auto closure by WxSim…It will be interesting to see if the same problem returns over the next 24 hrs…
I checked on my computer up at the school, where I keep older copies of the source files (in case I ever goof up and have to go back!), and the last ones I had were for 12.7.4. I made some other important changes after that, so I don’t really want to go back to that for a release.
I also found I was still running 12.7.4 on that computer. I just upgraded it to 12.7.5 and will wait and see what happens.
Meanwhile, I’ve just experimented with 12.7.5 and found that everything worked properly with the auto-close feature (no messages on the next boot up). I’d be very interested to learn what combination of settings or events causes the problem. I very much appreciate everybody’s input!
By the way, if somebody out there still has an older version, you have my permission to share it with anybody who can’t seem to fix this problem. I really recommend finding out what’s wrong first, but I know you have other things to do!
Stuart, I have WXSIM & WXSimate set to auto close and use the System Scheduler as a fail-safe. The close signal for WXSimate is sent a minute before WXSIM opens and the WXSIM close signal is sent 20 minute after that. I also run Digital Atmosphere after WXSIM and the two DA maps + plaintext.txt + latest.csv are all uploaded together. To stop the PC from being overloaded with open programs then I try to close stuff when it’s finished, remembering that the PC is also running WD, Nexstorm, Wasp2, NSLog, Syncom for Netweather, Strikelink, TSentry, Webcamcapture, and AISServer at the same time.
Martin this whole situation is very strange, as I have said I simply do not have a problem.
Just thinking out loud here … feel free to ignore my ramblings…
I know it wont help much but could it be that I run on W2K rather than XP or 7? You say that you have the auto-close set in both WXSim and WXSimate in which case they should both be long gone before any scheduler program gets anywhere near issuing a close, in fact it should not be doing anything anyway if the program has closed. I wonder what might happen if the scheduler was set to never try to close them and just left it to auto-close? If this was better then it might suggest something the scheduler was doing. I also wonder if those people who have a problem are all using the same scheduler program? Does the scheduler you use have any logging capabilities?
I should say that I’ve only seen the problem once or twice, so for me it’s no great headache.
There is a log on the System Scheduler but it only goes back to the 16th and I’ve not had a problem in that time.
Just for comparison; I’m using Splinterware Software Solutions System Scheduler v3.82.
I am using Splinterware System Scheduler 3.73…The S System Scheduler, however, was/is only used to re-open the WxSim prog (not WxSimate as that is always left running)…WxSim is left to autoclose via WxSim Scheduler (tick box)…What I failed to fathom, when the problem originally came up, was that WxSim would run quite happily via the relevant schedules throughout the day, but then the warning and failure to open WxSim would manifest itself on the 1st run of a new day…This happened every new day for at least a week before I changed to a different operating scenario, thinking that perhaps my setup was the sole oddity and I was alone with the miscreant fault
Obviously, allowing WxSim to run continuously without additional external scheduling, enabled everything to run OK WxSim wise. However, like Budgie I like to keep the number of programmes running to a minimum and run a very similar load overall (if not more…) to Budgies setup.
Now that I have just gone back to using the SSScheduler with the auto WxSim shutdowns it will be interesting to see what happens come tomorrow.
Edit: I have just updated the Splinterware System Scheduler on my PC to V4.15 (the latest version on their site)
