Virtual Weather Station Version 13.00p10
yet another build addressing the lock-ups and memory issues all related to the Internet uploads and downloads to and from Wunderground...
I found that I was still launching a new thread if the last one was still in use and it may be causing multiple threads doing the same thing and eventual lock-ups.
I found and corrected this problem.
Here is the download link:
http://www.wunderground.com/autoasp/downloads/vws_install.exe
I will need the next month or so to finish up the foreign language version of Oregon Scientific WMR-100. If you post comments under this link, I will read them and make changes, but it may be at least one month.
I will need you to distinguish between Lock-Ups (where Virtual Weather Station freezes and you can not update menu items, change the display, etc) and Loss of Communication (this occurs when the data stops updating and it is specifically related to the VantagePro2 with their USB interface).
I found that I was still launching a new thread if the last one was still in use and it may be causing multiple threads doing the same thing and eventual lock-ups.
I found and corrected this problem.
Here is the download link:
http://www.wunderground.com/autoasp/downloads/vws_install.exe
I will need the next month or so to finish up the foreign language version of Oregon Scientific WMR-100. If you post comments under this link, I will read them and make changes, but it may be at least one month.
I will need you to distinguish between Lock-Ups (where Virtual Weather Station freezes and you can not update menu items, change the display, etc) and Loss of Communication (this occurs when the data stops updating and it is specifically related to the VantagePro2 with their USB interface).
posted by Ambient Weather at 12:47 PM
8 Comments:
When you say "Hang", what do you mean? Can you be more specific? What does your FTP error log say? Are you receiving any errors? Does the program lock up, or does the FTP stop updating? Yes, the previous version is available for download on our website, but I want to agressively pursue this problem. Strangely enough, I have 5 copies of VWS running on 5 computers connected to 5 weather stations and each one is running without a hitch. No problems, so it is extremely frustrating!
I am extremely frustrated by the memory leaks in 12.08p11, and other prior versions. PLEASE WORK ON THE MEMORY LEAKS.
Today I downloaded the "latest" vesion from your download page, and installed it, only to discover that it is also 12.08p11 ! I wasted my time. Please put something on that page which shows what version we are downloading.
I have found the blog, and see that some people are experimenting with what is apparently a beta version 13. The feedback about the crashing doesn't incentivize me to try it at the moment.
*** HOWEVER, I need help with the horrible memory leaks. After running for a few days, some functions stop working. The first to go is always the map background image. Later the color goes away in the little temperature squares on the map. At this point, task manager shows VWS is using often around 300 Meg of virtual memory. Once VWS is in this state, it is extremely difficult to exit gracefully. It can take as long as an hour to exit, as it unwinds some extensive memory use. Viewing VWS in task manager, you can see the memory use climb up to the virtual memory size during this time.
On the machines in your lab, do you ever let VWS run for days at a time? Do you observe the virtual memory size in task manager? Do you also see it creep up constantly? Are there things you would like users to do to help you diagnose these problems?
I'm running on Win2k. Do you test on Win2k?
I left a comment several weeks ago on the other feedback page, and got no acknowledgement, so I have no idea whether you received my comment. Some feedback would be nice.
Hi Peter,
I am working on memory leaks, crashing and lock-ups in Version 13.00, and that is the purpose of this blog. I have never been able to reproduce these leaks, crashing and lock-ups, but I am doing everthing I can to address them and eliminate these issues.
They all seem to be related to reading and writing from Wunderground and related to threads that do not complete. In these versions, I do not start another thread until a previous thread is complete.
If you download the latest version on the website, you will get V12.08p11. That is because this is the last formal release. V13.00 is the beta version and is only addressed in the blog. We want to thoroughly test this version and make sure it works before we move on.
Map backgrounds are extremely memory intensive, and it may be related to other applications running at the same time. For example, web cam software is notorious for memory leaks. The leak may not be coming from Virtual Weather Station at all. Therefore, I would suggest you monitor memory usage of all programs by selecting Ctrl-Alt-Del.
As for your question, I have 5 machines running 5 copies of Virtual Weather Station connected to 5 weather stations, including Windows 2000. Every function possible is turned on. I have yet to encounter any of these problems, and that is why it has been so difficult to diagnose.
That being said, I did find another issue where it could launch the MesoNet data (tied to the Mesomaps) and launch it again before the previous thread is completed.
Mult-threading is complex, there is an entire volume written on it and I am trying everything I can to solve this problem. It is too bad I can not reproduce it.
Peter, I answer all emails, read this blog thoroughly and read all of the problem reports.
I am trying to state upbeat and aggressive in fixing problems.
Bob,
That is good news! I am glad to hear that. Yes, if the timeout periods are too small, it will not allow the images to upload.
Thanks!
Ed
The memory leaks are absolutely in VWS, and not in other programs.
I watch the memory usage of VWS in task manager, and you can see your memory usage climb hour by hour. You need to observe this in your testing. This has been visible and obvious in every version of VWS I have used over the last 2 years.
Other programs do NOT have this behavior.
I have started re-experiencing loss of communication between the Vantage Pro 2 (with USB data logger) and VWS. I thought I had the problem solved by attaching the VP2 to a powered hub; I did not have the comms loss problem for a long time (over a year) but now it happens on a regular basis. It doesn't seem to happen at a particular frequency, sometimes it will run fine for a day, sometimes comms will hang within minutes of launching VWS. I upgraded to 13 p9 with no avail. As an FYI, I'm also uploading data to WU in rapid-fire mode. VWS is setup to communicate with the VP2 at 9600 baud in 3 second intervals. Are there recommended comms settings that seem to work best?
I have 13.00p09 and and I don't have to many problems. My main frustration is when I restart VWS I lose every data for daily and monthly max and min data.
Do you have any suggestion?
I am running 13.00p09 on XP with a WMR-100 station and I am also experiencing a loss of communications on my USB after a period of time (usually about 1.5-4 hours). I have disabled the screen saver, disabled power management options including on the USB devices, and have disabled hibernation. Still the same problem others are noting. I am using rapid fire updating at a rate of every 10 seconds. I have a very stable DSL connection and do not believe there are any connectivity issues. I have looked at log/error files and don't see anything out of the norm. Any ideas?
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