[fixed] Client Freeze (1 Viewer)

[wjw]

MediaPortal Version: 1.2.0 Beta
MediaPortal Skin: DefaultWide
Windows Version: Win 7 RC 32bit
CPU Type: Intel Core Duo E8200 2.66 Ghz
HDD: 2xWD 1Tb drives
Memory: Kingston 2x1 Gb
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-73PVM-S2H GeForce 7100
Video Card: nVidia 9400GT silent
Video Card Driver:
Sound Card:
Sound Card AC3: Optical Out
Sound Card Driver:
1. TV Card: Hauppauge Wintv HVR4000
1. TV Card Type: DVB-S
1. TV Card Driver:
2. TV Card:
2. TV Card Type:
2. TV Card Driver:
3. TV Card:
3. TV Card Type:
3. TV Card Driver:
4. TV Card:
4. TV Card Type:
4. TV Card Driver:
MPEG2 Video Codec: Cyberlink/MPC/ffdshow
MPEG2 Audio Codec:
h.264 Video Codec: Cyberlink/MPC/ffdshow
Satelite/CableTV Provider: Astra 28E
HTPC Case: Antec Fusion
Cooling:
Power Supply:
Remote:
TV:
TV - HTPC Connection: HDMI

I am having a significant problem with stability of the MP Client. There have now been several instances of MP simply freezing instead of shutting down after completing an activity. I have seen this both after waking for a scheduled recording, completing it so the program on on disk and in the recorded database, and also after simply watching something and then returning the the home screen and waiting for Powersheduler to shutdown. Sometimes the system has - apparently - shut down successfully and sometimes it simply doesn't shut down.

I know I should be providing logs! But....

After the first few times I enabled Watchdog - but that doesn't work. I get the "unable to handle..." message from Windows. Here is the detail from that box:

See the end of this message for details on invoking
just-in-time (JIT) debugging instead of this dialog box.

************** Exception Text **************
System.Text.EncoderFallbackException: Unable to translate Unicode character \uD9D8 at index 730 to specified code page.
at System.Text.EncoderExceptionFallbackBuffer.Fallback(Char charUnknown, Int32 index)
at System.Text.EncoderFallbackBuffer.InternalFallback(Char ch, Char*& chars)
at System.Text.UTF8Encoding.GetBytes(Char* chars, Int32 charCount, Byte* bytes, Int32 byteCount, EncoderNLS baseEncoder)
at System.Text.EncoderNLS.GetBytes(Char* chars, Int32 charCount, Byte* bytes, Int32 byteCount, Boolean flush)
at System.Text.EncoderNLS.GetBytes(Char[] chars, Int32 charIndex, Int32 charCount, Byte[] bytes, Int32 byteIndex, Boolean flush)
at System.IO.StreamWriter.Flush(Boolean flushStream, Boolean flushEncoder)
at System.IO.StreamWriter.Dispose(Boolean disposing)
at System.IO.TextWriter.Dispose()
at MediaPortal.Support.EventLogCsvLogger.CreateLogs(String destinationFolder)
at WatchDog.PostTestActions.PerformActions()
at WatchDog.MPWatchDog.PerformPostTestActions(Boolean autoClose)
at WatchDog.MPWatchDog.tmrWatchdog_Tick(Object sender, EventArgs e)
at System.Windows.Forms.Timer.OnTick(EventArgs e)
at System.Windows.Forms.Timer.TimerNativeWindow.WndProc(Message& m)
at System.Windows.Forms.NativeWindow.Callback(IntPtr hWnd, Int32 msg, IntPtr wparam, IntPtr lparam)


************** Loaded Assemblies **************
mscorlib
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5444 (Win7SP1GDR.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///E:/Windows/Microsoft.NET/Framework/v2.0.50727/mscorlib.dll
----------------------------------------
WatchDog
Assembly Version: 1.1.7.0
Win32 Version: 1.1.7.0
CodeBase: file:///E:/Program%20Files/Team%20MediaPortal/MediaPortal/WatchDog.exe
----------------------------------------
System.Windows.Forms
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///E:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Windows.Forms/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Windows.Forms.dll
----------------------------------------
System
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///E:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.dll
----------------------------------------
System.Drawing
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///E:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Drawing/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/System.Drawing.dll
----------------------------------------
Utils
Assembly Version: 1.1.7.0
Win32 Version: 1.1.7.0
CodeBase: file:///E:/Program%20Files/Team%20MediaPortal/MediaPortal/Utils.DLL
----------------------------------------
System.Xml
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.5420 (Win7SP1.050727-5400)
CodeBase: file:///E:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/System.Xml/2.0.0.0__b77a5c561934e089/System.Xml.dll
----------------------------------------
Accessibility
Assembly Version: 2.0.0.0
Win32 Version: 2.0.50727.4927 (NetFXspW7.050727-4900)
CodeBase: file:///E:/Windows/assembly/GAC_MSIL/Accessibility/2.0.0.0__b03f5f7f11d50a3a/Accessibility.dll
----------------------------------------
MediaPortal.Support
Assembly Version: 1.1.7.0
Win32 Version: 1.1.7.0
CodeBase: file:///E:/Program%20Files/Team%20MediaPortal/MediaPortal/MediaPortal.Support.DLL
----------------------------------------

************** JIT Debugging **************
To enable just-in-time (JIT) debugging, the .config file for this
application or computer (machine.config) must have the
jitDebugging value set in the system.windows.forms section.
The application must also be compiled with debugging
enabled.

For example:

<configuration>
<system.windows.forms jitDebugging="true" />
</configuration>

When JIT debugging is enabled, any unhandled exception
will be sent to the JIT debugger registered on the computer
rather than be handled by this dialog box.


and then Watchdog just sits there waiting for me to close it with Taskmanager.

The only log I can provide (attached) is one from a failure last night. The system gave every sign of having shut down successfully (i.e. the front panel LED went out) and then the system woke again this morning to do the daily WebEPG grab - but it didn't shut down properly after that. I turned the screen on to see that MP Client was still showing a time of 10.20 last night. I started Taskmanager - MP not responding - I terminated the process - watchdog started and immediately crashed (see above).

The log is the .bak file after this morning's restart. I don't think it shows much - but I can't get any more detail!

TV Server seems to keep working.

Any suggestions please on what I can do to get more detail?

 

[jameson_uk]

Can you manually zip logs from log folder and attach?

 

[wjw]

I can - but which ones do you want? Everything from the MedaPortal Folder? Do you want those from the TVServer log folder as well?

I'll wait until the next time this happens nd zip up everything you want.

 

[Seidelin]

Use the Debug-mode shortcut to help you get all the logs. It's easy, and we get all the info we need.
Use the shortcut Mediaportal Debug-mode found under All Programs -> Team MediaPortal -> MediaPortal. There you can select export all currently present logs. Time to update my sig, I guess.

 

[wjw]

That certainly makes it a lot easier. Next time I get the problem I'll do this - no point in doing it now as I had to restart earlier today for other reasons.

 

[wjw]

An update. First, Seidelin. I had a failure last night and tried your suggestion - I just got exactly the same "unhandled exception" error as I posted before. Unfortunately I had no time to try anything else as I was supposed to be recording at this point. The system had failed to wake on time and I noticed this so switched on manually. Again the client was showing a time from hours before - but on this occasion the server hadn't woken either. As soon as I restarted the client the recording started.

Second, I have suspicions about the latest nVidia driver. There was an update quite recently which seemed to install OK, but yesterday I tried to start the nVidia control panel but Windows wouldn't start it. I wonder whether this has been affecting the client display functions. I have now this morning reverted to the previous version and have successfully recorded at least 6 programs during the day.

So far, so good - with one question. There seem to be occasions when the systems wakes to record but when I turn on my TV to check that something is actually happening I get a blank screen. It needs a prod from a keyboard to bring up the home screen. Any ideas? Screensaver is not on and I've not changed any of the default actions in the General or GUI sections.

 

[jameson_uk]

The last bit is by design. When the machine wakes automatically it does not wake the screen. (Eg. System wakes itself for recording)

The screen is woke on user interaction (keyboard press, remote press or actually waking machine manuallyl

 

[Seidelin]

An update. First, @Seidelin. I had a failure last night and tried your suggestion - I just got exactly the same "unhandled exception" error as I posted before. Unfortunately I had no time to try anything else as I was supposed to be recording at this point. The system had failed to wake on time and I noticed this so switched on manually. Again the client was showing a time from hours before - but on this occasion the server hadn't woken either. As soon as I restarted the client the recording started.

Second, I have suspicions about the latest nVidia driver. There was an update quite recently which seemed to install OK, but yesterday I tried to start the nVidia control panel but Windows wouldn't start it. I wonder whether this has been affecting the client display functions. I have now this morning reverted to the previous version and have successfully recorded at least 6 programs during the day.

So far, so good - with one question. There seem to be occasions when the systems wakes to record but when I turn on my TV to check that something is actually happening I get a blank screen. It needs a prod from a keyboard to bring up the home screen. Any ideas? Screensaver is not on and I've not changed any of the default actions in the General or GUI sections.

About your freeze after resume. That is a common problem for which we have a workaround - I use it myself to avoid this issue caused by misbehaving drivers. Try activating this option:

Mediaportal configuration -> General -> Startup/Resume Settings -> Apply workaround to fix MediaPortal freezing on resume on some systems (enable this)

This will have the side effect that you no longer have blank screen.

 

[wjw]

Is this a new "feature"? I don't ever remember this happening in any of the previous versions I had installed - and I'm sure that I have never enabled the "apply fix" feature before. However, I'll do this and see what happens.

 

[jameson_uk]

It partly depends on hardware but this is the way MP has worked for quite a while. Your pc sends different signals as to whether it was woken by a user or by itself.

So when you get to a machine that is already awake and turn the tv on, the pc does not know that the user is active yet.

Normally you would wake the over yourself so the machine knows.