Troubleshooting Drawings and Reports - Intergraph Smart 3D - Help - Hexagon

Intergraph Smart 3D Isogen Isometric Drawings

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English
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Intergraph Smart 3D
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Drawings and Reports
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Smart 3D Version
13.1
Isogen Version
13.0(2016)

This section describes Drawings and Reports error levels and error logging. You can use log files to review activities and errors that occur when working with the software.

Error Levels

Run the [Product Folder]\Core\Tools\Administrator\Bin\EnableErrorLog.exe tool to enable detailed error logging in the SP3DErrors.log. Contact the PPM Smart Community.

Generally speaking, the larger the number for the error level, the more exhaustive is the logging of errors. The error levels are as follows:

1 - General user error. This is the default level. At this level, log files only contain error messages for certain anticipated error conditions (such as a missing filter or a missing view style), as well as some unanticipated error messages.

101 - Development-specific error level. At this level, log files include everything from the previous error level, as well as certain development-specific error or informational messages.

201 - General Information. At this level, log files include everything from the previous error levels, as well as informational messages about what projects and methods are being called.

251 - Batch Information. At this level, log files include everything from the previous error levels, as well as special batch-specific informational messages.

999 - Exhaustive. At this level, log files contain all informational and error messages. When the error level is set to 999, the error log files can become very large.

For information on specific error messages, see Drawings and Reports in the Troubleshooting Reference Help. Because errors are dependent on many variables (customizations, work flows, and so forth), it is not possible to provide a comprehensive list of every error message you might encounter. If the error message you receive is not listed in the Troubleshooting Reference Help, contact the PPM Smart Community.

Log Files

The software splits drawings log messages into separate files based on the Windows Process Identifier (PID). There are multiple categories of orthographic drawings error log files. These files are all located in your temporary (TEMP) folder. For example, your TEMP folder might be located at C:\Documents and Settings\login name\Local Settings\TEMP.

SHARED Tip You can type %TEMP% in the Address box at the top of Windows Explorer to go to your TEMP location.

The log files are:

  • %TEMP%\Drawings_PID.log (for interactive actions)

    • The PID is the Windows Process Identifier of the S3DHost executable process for the current Smart 3D session (for example, Drawings_13908.log).

    • In cases where you perform drawing actions in Draft.exe (SmartSketch Drawing Editor), the software maps the Draft.exe PID with its associated S3DHost.exe instance using the DraftPIDToDrawingsLogFileNameMap.xml file in your %TEMP% folder. In the example below, the Draft.exe PIDs 12240, 10236, and 13596 are mapped to Drawings_9716.log, where 9746 is the PID of the related S3DHost.exe instance. Draft.exe PID 12936 is mapped to Drawings_14508.log, which correlates to the 14508 S3DHost.exe PID.

      DraftPIDToDrawingsLogFileNameMap_xml example

    • The software automatically creates or amends the mapping file when you open a drawing using Smart 3D. Smart 3D checks this file when updating the drawings log from the Draft.exe instance to ensure the messages go to the correct Drawings_S3DPID.log.

    • If you delete the mapping file from your %TEMP% folder while a drawing is open, the software writes all subsequent log messages for that specific drawing to the %TEMP%\Drawings_[DraftPID].log, where DraftPID is the PID of the current Draft.exe instance.

    • If you delete the mapping file from your %TEMP% folder while no drawing is open, Smart 3D recreates the mapping the next time you open a drawing.

  • [Batch TEMP Folder]\Drawings_PID_DateTime.log (for batch actions)

    • The PID is that of SP3DJobRunner for 32-bit actions. For 64-bit actions, the PID is that of SP3DJobRunner64.

    • The DateTime value is the local date and time when the batch job started. The format is YYYY_MM_DD_hh_mm_ss. The hour value is based on the 24-hour clock.

      Example: Drawings_8336_2022_08_15_13_06_50.log

  • Generation-time error logs (for example, error log files generated during a drawing update operation). You can easily view these files by right-clicking a drawing in the software and selecting View Log on the shortcut menu.

SHARED Tip The Temp location also includes .xml files. The software creates one .xml file for each graphical view in a drawing as it processes the drawing.

Out of Memory Tips

If you are receiving Out of Memory errors when processing very large drawings, check the following:

  • Set the Intersection Edges option in the view style to Off. Sometimes, this option is set to High Resolution for large drawings. High Resolution is typically useful for drawings of one object, such as a hanger drawing or an equipment drawing, where you want to see detail such as the coped intersection of a nozzle with a tank cylinder. If you have this option set high in a large plan drawing, then the software examines every small beam, cylinder, or nut and tries to draw coped intersections or rounded edges in the webs. This operation uses a lot of time and memory.

  • Make sure the Preserve Z Order option in the view style is turned off unless you really need it. A case where you might need it is in a cable tray drawing where trays are stacked or crossing in plan. However, for most drawings, this setting just leads to increased processing time and high memory usage for little gain.

  • Make sure multiple aspects have not been chosen in the VHL graphic rules.

  • If you have a very large session active in the host and then update a drawing, the update process starts at the large memory usage in the active session. So, if you limit your workspace to a very small set of objects or even one object, the update process has a better chance of succeeding. If you use batch updates instead of local updates, workspace is not an issue unless you are using your local computer as the batch server.

  • Decrease the Flush Threshold setting (the default is 2000). This setting is available on the Drawing View Properties Dialog for a view in a composed drawing. In some instances, increasing the number may help. During the update process, the Drawings software asks Core for the monikers of all the objects it has to process. Core passes in the monikers and Drawings binds them, thus using memory. The software binds up to 2000 of the objects before it releases the memory and grabs the next 2000. If you reduce this number, say in increments of 500, the memory gets released much more often and can lead to a successful update. It is an iterative process to figure out a good number. This value should be from 5 to 5000 with a default of 2000.

  • Set the Geometry Validation setting to ON (the default is OFF). This setting is available on the Drawing View Properties Dialog for a view in a composed drawing or a marine mode drawings-by-rule drawing. If the drawing has SAT or DGN files, there are sometimes many invalid geometry errors that can use increasing amounts of memory. With this setting as On, the software analyzes geometry, then discards and does not draw invalid geometry, thus freeing up resources and reducing update time. The caveat is that the drawing may not be 100% accurate because invalid geometries may represent legitimate items but are removed from the drawing. If the reference file is there just as background, this situation might be acceptable.

  • In general, you should not place huge SAT files as equipment shapes. If you must place them as shapes, break them into smaller files.

  • The range inside reference files should be kept as small as possible. For example, if the file contains a pipe rack far away from the global origin, place the file in the model and then move it to the appropriate position.

Isometric Drawings

The isometric drawing log files reside at the location specified in your Temp environment variable. For example, the path to the log might be C:\Documents and Settings\login name\Local Settings\Temp.

You can view message files (.mes), piping component files (.pcf), and .xml files for the isometric drawing generation process.

VHL Precision

Objects can be displayed as Vector Hidden Line (VHL). There can be instances when you may want the hidden line information for a model. For example, it may be useful to know how the edges in the hidden line view are occluded. In general, VHL Precision should not be set, unless you have some parts in the model that have been modeled with a precision different from rest of the system. The values you can set impact the VHL calculations. The VHL Precision setting must be a positive number between 0.001 and 0.000001. This setting is available on the Drawing View Properties Dialog for a view in a composed drawing or a marine mode drawings-by-rule drawing.

ISOKEEPFILES Variable

This variable exports XML settings to the location specified in your Temp environment variable. An XML file contains the name of the isometric view style currently being used. This information can be used to troubleshoot isometric drawing settings.

SHARED Tip The XML file containing the isometric view style will be approximately 27 KB in size.

The ISOKEEPFILES variable is not a Drawings and Reports setting, it is a System Properties setting.

  1. Click Start and right-click My Computer.

  2. Select Properties.

  3. Select the Advanced tab.

  4. Click Environment Variables.

    The Temp environment variable is listed under User variables for username. If you are unsure of where your Temp folder is, the location is noted in this box.

  5. On the Environment Variables dialog, select New under the System variables box.

  6. Type ISOKEEPFILES in the Variable box and type YES in the Value box.

  7. Click OK.

    You must set this variable before entering Drawings and Reports and creating the isometric drawings.

Reports

The log file for reports (SP3DReports.log) resides at the location specified in your Temp environment variable. For example, the path to the log might be C:\Documents and Settings\login name\Local Settings\Temp.

See Also

Drawings and Reports
Troubleshooting Linked Servers