Author Topic: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight  (Read 3896 times)

falcon71

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 20
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #15 on: March 18, 2024, 01:10:23 pm »
I too have this problem with every flight now since the last update. The previous version worked fine apart from some random crashes. It happens somewhere between pushback and taxi in.
I'm using Windows 11 and I do not have Fenix2GSX installed. Happens with every aircraft. The Couatl.err lists no errors, but the event viewer shows:

Code: [Select]
Application: couatl64_MSFS.exe
Framework Version: v4.0.30319
Description: The process was terminated due to an internal error in the .NET Runtime at IP 00007FFFE95A88AC (00007FFFE9500000) with exit code 80131506.

Code: [Select]
Faulting application name: couatl64_MSFS.exe, version: 4.8.0.5390, time stamp: 0x65ef1a93
Faulting module name: clr.dll, version: 4.8.9181.0, time stamp: 0x64b85478
Exception code: 0xc0000005
Fault offset: 0x00000000000a88ac
Faulting process id: 0x0x12B8
Faulting application start time: 0x0x1DA791A88E7483A
Faulting application path: F:\Program Files (x86)\Addon Manager\couatl64\couatl64_MSFS.exe
Faulting module path: C:\Windows\Microsoft.NET\Framework64\v4.0.30319\clr.dll
Report Id: 3c2ab4c0-fcea-49cd-a450-671a2c6ecbe8
Faulting package full name:
Faulting package-relative application ID:

virtuali

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51439
    • VIRTUALI Sagl
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #16 on: March 18, 2024, 03:33:31 pm »
It would be useful if everybody that posted here reporting a crash in midflight, provided the following information:

- If you use Windows 10 or 11

- If you closed the GSX Toolbar menu after takeoff, as suggested in the manual.

- If this improves if you re-enable Windows 8 Compatibility option for the Couatl engine.

DFWSupertrooper

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Posts: 82
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #17 on: March 18, 2024, 05:01:19 pm »
I use Windows 10. I do always close the GSX toolbar.

Haven't had the opportunity to test the compatibility setting yet but did just change it - will retest ASAP.

nobleord

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 14
    • Noble Air - ORD Hub
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #18 on: March 18, 2024, 05:35:47 pm »
The information you requested:
  • I use Windows 10. 
  • I did not close the GSX toolbar on the last flight (sometimes forget to do that). 
  • I do not have the Windows 8 compatibility set.

Thanks.

Brittanix

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Posts: 51
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #19 on: March 18, 2024, 07:39:25 pm »
It would be useful if everybody that posted here reporting a crash in midflight, provided the following information:

- If you use Windows 10 or 11

- If you closed the GSX Toolbar menu after takeoff, as suggested in the manual.

- If this improves if you re-enable Windows 8 Compatibility option for the Couatl engine.

- Windows 11
- Yes. Also tried with the option after 10k both ways (on and off), still the same.
- Yes

Problem seems consistent since one of the last two updates. Was fine (most of the time) before update.

DFWSupertrooper

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Posts: 82
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #20 on: March 20, 2024, 01:58:13 am »
I can confirm that at least for me, rechecking the box to force Win 8 compatibility seems to alleviate the bug on repeated flights. I'm not sure that's the best permanent fix, because I feel like the sim has gotten a little laggy since I did that. Maybe it's something else, I dunno, but I've done nothing else to mess with anything really, so I'm thinking maybe that is causing it. But at least it does fix the specific bug - that much I can say. I may switch it back after a few flights and see if the lag disappears (I know the bug reappears because I tested that).

For further info, I am using the Fenix A320 exclusively and the error is occurring regardless of how I engage with GSX (using the integrated loading or using manual GSX loading process). GSX worked virtually flawlessly prior to the last update for me for a very long time.

Hope all this helps you isolate the issue! Thanks.

virtuali

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51439
    • VIRTUALI Sagl
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #21 on: March 20, 2024, 10:51:44 am »
I'm not sure that's the best permanent fix, because I feel like the sim has gotten a little laggy since I did that. Maybe it's something else, I dunno,

Compatibility mode on the Couatl program, which is a separate .EXE, cannot affect the simulator itself, because they run on completely separate threads so, even if for some reason our code would run slower, it won't have any effect on how the sim performs.

As an example, if GSX needs to calculate some pathfinding, to have a remote vehicle like Catering or Deicing coming to your airplane, if that calculation normally takes (this is just a made-up figure) 100msec (1/10th of a second) to make and, for some reason, the code became twice as slow, requiring 200msec, the only effect on the sim, would be the vehicle will appear and arrive 100msec later than normal, which of course nobody would be able to notice.

This is because the code itself is not running on the same process, so it's automatically running on a different thread, which in most cases means an unused core of a multi-core cpu the OS will assign it to, that without any special coding on our side. Even if we purposely slowed down our code, for example adding intentional pauses, even several seconds long, between each task, you won't see any effect on the sim, just our things will proceed with pauses in between.

In brief, we are UNABLE to "slow down the sim" with code.  The only way we could slow down the sim is by populating it with too many objects at the same time and/or spamming it with so much Simconnect traffic, unti it breaks, which is something we are always careful not to.

In case, yes, the Windows 8 Compatibility mode is not a permanent fix, which I don't trust, both because there's no reason why it should work better but, most importantly, it's not very clear what it does, and in many cases, enabling it caused crashes in worse places than during a flight (where you don't even need GSX to begin with).

We are testing a completely different solution, quite like what Fenix does, of using a small and extremely simple "bootstrapper", which doesn't do anything other than starting the Couatl engine itself (instead of relying on MSFS), and it would just monitor it, and auto-restart it in case it crashes, all automatically. And will exit as soon MSFS quits, so it won't be resident in Windows.

FerrevmVnion

  • Jr. Member
  • **
  • Posts: 88
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #22 on: March 20, 2024, 12:14:26 pm »
- If you use Windows 10 or 11

Windows 11


- If you closed the GSX Toolbar menu after takeoff, as suggested in the manual.

Yes, its closed

- If this improves if you re-enable Windows 8 Compatibility option for the Couatl engine.

Without Windows 8  Comp ode -> Crash, all the time .... with activated Win 8 -> NO CRASH, never since re-enabling.

Sansemiano

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 18
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #23 on: March 20, 2024, 08:04:36 pm »
With the Windows 8 compatibility setting no crash indeed.

virtuali

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51439
    • VIRTUALI Sagl
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #24 on: March 20, 2024, 11:43:28 pm »
EDIT:

Version 2.9.6 has been released officially, no need for the Beta installer anymore.
« Last Edit: March 21, 2024, 09:54:51 pm by virtuali »

Sansemiano

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 18
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #25 on: March 21, 2024, 10:21:54 am »
Ran the installer and exe.xml seems to be configured correct. It mentions now couatl64_boot.exe instead of the couatl script engine.

But the couatl script engine was not started after firing up the sim. Trying to start couatl64_boot-exe manually did also not start it. Starting the script engine manually did.

Starting the scripting engine manually first and then starting couatl64_boot.exe manually does work. Then both processes are running.

At the end of the flight the script engine was still running and functional.

But this all was with the Windows 8 compatibility still configured. So maybe not a good test.

Removed the Windows 8 compatibility setting. Same behavior. As for not starting the couatl64_boot.exe nor the scripting engine.
« Last Edit: March 21, 2024, 02:58:22 pm by Sansemiano »

virtuali

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51439
    • VIRTUALI Sagl
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #26 on: March 21, 2024, 05:24:07 pm »
We had two updates today, try downloading it again now.

Sansemiano

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 18
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #27 on: March 21, 2024, 06:56:27 pm »
The startup process seem to work fine now. Couatl64_boot.exe and the scripting engine are both running now after starting the sim.

At the end of the flight Couatl was available, but only by calling it from the menu on top. Not with the shortcut in TouchPortal.
« Last Edit: March 21, 2024, 09:18:18 pm by Sansemiano »

virtuali

  • Administrator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Posts: 51439
    • VIRTUALI Sagl
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #28 on: March 21, 2024, 09:44:31 pm »
At the end of the flight Couatl was available, but only by calling it from the menu on top. Not with the shortcut in TouchPortal.

Couatl is never called from the top menu, which will only open the GSX Menu so, if GSX is running (and from your report it seems it is), there's no reason why it wouldn't start if the top menu is controlled by another app.

Unless, this TouchPortal you are referring to, has a function to start Couatl directly, so it's unrelated to the top menu. If this is the case, you should either change it (if possible) to start or stop the couatl64_boot.exe instead, because if another app tries to stop couatl by itself, it will be re-started by the couatl64_boot.exe.

And yes, of course you can still close the Couatl engine if you need to but, you can do it ONLY from the "Exit" button of the Traybar notification area icon right-click menu. The couatl64_boot.exe recognizes it was intentionally closed in the proper way (so it wasn't an accidental quit/crash), so it won't restart it in this case.

Sansemiano

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Posts: 18
Re: COUATL Crashing mid flight - Every flight
« Reply #29 on: March 21, 2024, 09:53:43 pm »
Yes, you are right of course. The top menu does not start the script engine. Only the menu. I defined a shortcut for that and call that from TouchPortal. Maybe the sim was not in focus and that was the reason it didn't seem to work.

So, looking fine i think. Maybe some more people come with feedback.