CompuServe Thread

#3D3 CRASHING

8 messages in this thread
#96984From: Jerry O'ConnorApr 13, 1994 8:36 PM
All, I have been having an ongoing problem with 3ds3 crashing while rendering. the problem is intermittent with no apparent pattern. some times it will not render a single frame without crashing, other times it may render 50-100 frames before crashing. I have tried the following test to no avail: 1. Disable Shadow ram 2. Removed all tsr's etc. from config.sys and autoexec.bat 3. Used qemm to remove memory segment of Targa+ card 4. Physically removed all peripherals from system (including targa and scsi controller) 5. Changed Vga cards 6. Rendered to Null device 7. Rendered with network que at this point i believe a replacement motherboard may be my only solution. the motherboard in this system is from a now defunct (Gecco) manufacturer and is probably not 100% compatible. Is this a logical assumption or am i missing something else?? the system is a 486/50 mhz with 32meg of ram and a 500 meg hd. 3ds3 crashes with out regard to page swapping.
#96998From: John TissavaryApr 13, 1994 10:25 PM
The MB may be the culprit, but did you try running 3DS for a completely clean system: config.sys files=x buffers=x nothing else! autoexec.bat mouse or tablet driver path statement vesa driver if needed If this doesn't work, then remove hardware and still try running with above clean configuration If it still doesn't run, then I guess the new MB is the only choice left. Sorry if you've done all this debug stuff already, but it wasn't clear from your message wether you had, and it is of UTMOST importance that this be a complete and thorough debug. John Tissavary (LUNA cie)
#97002From: Yost GroupApr 13, 1994 10:26 PM
486/50's are notoriously flaky. (I know from experience.) If you've tried all those other avenues, you'd be best just swapping the mb out with a 486/66. – G
#97113From: CSA/CAApr 14, 1994 12:30 PM
Jerry, While the quality of this particular motherboard manufacturer might be in question, I'm not sure you've been systematic enough in your diagnosis. You say the system "crashes", but that isn't specific enough. Does it lock up & halt, with no messages displayed? Is there a message indicating failure? Does it corrupt files? Is QEMM & the Targa+ really setup correctly (maybe I can help with this). My own thought is that you are still dealing either with a memory conflict, possible SCSI driver problem, or SCSI termination error. After you're sure you've coped weel with these, then let's trash the MB. Kevin Krell – Computer Support Associates
#97173From: Jerry O'ConnorApr 14, 1994 6:08 PM
kevin, perhaps because this has been an on going problem which i have discussed here before, i neglected to provide all of the details of the problem i have had and how i have delt with it. when i say that 3d studio "crashes" i mean that during a rendering session, wether a single frame or an animation, 3d studio will terminate and kick me back to the dos prompt with the following error message: "Memory Fault CS:EIP AAAFH…" i cannot get the exact text of the error because my graphics card is not returned to text mode when 3ds crashes. 1. i have limited my config.sys file and autoexec.bat to the following Config.sys files=xxx buffers=xxx shell=c:\command.com /e:1000 /p Autoexec.bat c:\mouse\mouse 2. i have physically removed my scsi card (my internal hd is IDE) and the associated drivers (see above config.sys and autoexec.bat) 3. i have physically removed the targa+ and all of it's drivers 4. the only remaining devices in the system are (2) com ports (1) parallel port (1) game port (1) 500meg IDE drive 32 meg of ram vga graphics card 5. i have disabled shadow ram 6. i have tried using qemm with the following setting (although this should'nt matter since the problem persists even with the targa card removed and the config.sys stripped. "Device=C:\qemm\qemm386.sys x=D000-DFFF"
#97177From: CSA/CAApr 14, 1994 7:50 PM
Jerry, OK, I apologize – you have already been pretty thorough. Well, it's not the Targa or SCSI. Keep QEMM out of the equation for now. Is the IDE controller built-in (if so, scratch that)? It looks like a memory problem of some sort. What type of graphics card is it, and what driver do you set for 3D Studio? Does it crash if you use set for straight VGA (640x480x16-color) in the Editor, render to 320×200? If so, consider the VGA adapter. If the VGA is a fancy one, look into where its extended BIOS lives and see if your MB BIOS designates that area as cachable (set to non-cache if possible). Check that memory SIMMs are well-seated, run test software if available. I must say I'm stumped. Kevin Krell – Computer Support Associates
#97264From: Jonas Ruikis [ADESK]Apr 15, 1994 9:01 AM
Jerry, << Does it crash if you use set for straight VGA (640x480x16-color) in the Editor, render to 320×200? >> I would also add the test: In 3ds vibcfg, driver=vibrant card=vesa compat. Same behaviour? Are you using the latest vibrant download, VIB3DS.zip found in section #9, "what's new"? jonas[aesk]
#97269From: David PopoffApr 15, 1994 9:29 AM
If your computer has a cache, you might try turning it off. I have found that I can't run 3DS on my computer with the cache turned on – I get similar error messages. David Popoff