Unexpected closures: how not to lose work

Summary

An unexpected closure of TCP-PointCloud Editor is not the same as closing the application: the project is saved automatically when elements are created or imported and when the project or the application is closed, but in an uncontrolled closure that save is never carried out and all work done since the last save is lost. The documented cases occur in projects with large point clouds and demanding operations, and they do not have a single cause: to determine it, support needs the application log files. This article gathers the measures support recommends to reduce the risk of losing work, and the specific information that has to be provided so that the cause can be diagnosed.

Applies to

• TCP-PointCloud Editor.

• Cases documented with versions 1.11.2.5 and 1.21. Version 1.22 adds «greater control over the saving process in order to detect saving errors»; that improves the detection of saving failures, but there is no record that it fixes the unexpected closures themselves.

Symptoms

• The application closes without warning in the middle of work and everything done since the last automatic save is lost.

• The closure happens when inserting an orthophoto.

• The closure happens when loading a large point cloud: in the documented case, an 18 GB cloud caused the closure after about 20 minutes of loading, without ever finishing; it had to be split into parts.

• After a bulk operation on all the clouds in the project, loss or simplification of the work is noticed: areas that disappear, classification that appears drastically simplified, or polylines of the drawing that are no longer there.

• The computer suffers power cuts while saving is in progress.

Cause

There is no single documented cause. What is established is:

• Automatic saving does not cover uncontrolled closures. The application saves the project every time elements are created or imported (clouds, meshes, surfaces, images) and whenever the project or the application is closed. If the application closes unexpectedly —or is forced to close from Task Manager—, that save is not carried out.

• The recorded cases concentrate in demanding projects: large clouds and operations that consume a lot of memory or graphics resources. Support needs the log files to determine the specific cause of each closure.

• A power cut during saving may leave a file corrupt or unsaved, with the resulting loss.

Solution

Case: reducing the risk of losing work

Measures recommended by technical support in order to work with less exposure to an unexpected closure:

1. Work with as few point clouds as possible in the same project.

2. If you work with large clouds, reduce their size before processing them: first delete the areas you are not interested in and then reduce the point density to a value acceptable for the particular job.

3. Make backup copies of the project frequently —or at least when you finish working— and check them once created to make sure they are correct.

4. Close the application when you stop working with it or, at least, close the open project: that forces the save.

5. Close other applications you do not need, especially those consuming a lot of memory or graphics resources.

6. Export the CAD drawing to a DWG or DXF file before closing or exiting, as a backup of the drawing. Check with a CAD application that the saved drawing is correct.

7. Export the point clouds to file once they have been cleaned or classified, as a backup of the processed clouds. You can create a new project and import the exported cloud to verify that everything is correct.

Case: the application closes when loading a very large cloud

1. Split the cloud into smaller parts and work on them separately; that is what solved the documented case with an 18 GB cloud.

2. Before loading it, delete the areas you do not need and reduce the density to the minimum value that is useful for the job.

3. Close any other applications consuming memory or graphics resources.

4. Provide support with the data in the next section: a closure when loading a specific cloud is the easiest case to diagnose, because it is reproducible with that file.

If the problem persists

So that support can diagnose the cause of the closures, it is best to provide all at once:

• The application log files, stored in C:\Temp. You can compress them all into a ZIP.

• Screenshots of the Windows Event Viewer for the times at which the closure occurred.

• The hardware and software specifications of the computer: processor, memory, hard drives, graphics card, video memory, operating system, CAD and antivirus.

• A description of the typical project: number of point clouds, sizes, operations you usually carry out and operations in which the incidents tend to occur.

• Download links to the projects you are having problems with, so that they can be analysed.

If the closures are frequent, support may also propose a video call in order to see the work on screen and check how the application is being used.

Category: Requirements and performance · Level: Basic