The Revit Clinic

Revit 2013 \ 2012 Contextual Panels do not display or update

We’ve had a few users report missing panels or contextual panels one command behind in Revit 2012 and 2013.  The symptom looks similar to the image comparison below:

Revit 2013 – Incorrect Result

Notice on selection the expected contextual panels are not displayed.  See the image below for the expected result:

Revit 2013 – Expected Result

This behavior can be reproduced when a pre-release or beta version of Microsoft® .NET® is installed, typically the Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 Beta.

If you are experiencing this behavior with Revit 2012 or 2013 we recommend uninstalling .NET Framework 4.5 Beta from the Windows Control Panel and reinstalling the latest .NET 4.0 release.

After .NET Framework 4.5 is uninstalled you can reinstall \ repair .NET 4.0 from the Revit product media or download from Microsoft directly:

Microsoft .NET Framework 4 Client Profile (Web Installer)

.NET 4.0 Update:

Update 4.0.3 for Microsoft .NET Framework 4 – Runtime Update (KB2600211)

File is being accessed by someone else and is not available

This post is contributed by Niranjan Kamath who supports Revit on our team in India.  

While working with a workshared file, Revit will report an error whereby the central file is not accessible.

 

This issue occurs only when the clients had a different OS version. We could not recreate the file access issue if the clients were both W7, or both XP for example.

The reason being:  Windows 7 client communicates with the server using SMB2, while the Windows XP client uses SMB. This difference in version may cause some file handling issues.

To resolve this issue disable SMB2 from Server and Win 7 users.

To disable SMB 2.0 for Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 systems that are the “client” systems, run the following commands:

sc config lanmanworkstation depend= bowser/mrxsmb10/nsi

sc config mrxsmb20 start= disabled

Note there's an extra " " (space) after the "=" sign.

To enable back SMB 2.0 for Windows Vista or Windows Server 2008 systems that are the “client” systems, run the following commands:

sc config lanmanworkstation depend= bowser/mrxsmb10/mrxsmb20/nsi

sc config mrxsmb20 start= auto

Again, there's an extra " " (space) after the "=" sign.

In order to disable SMB 2.0 on the server-side computer, follow these steps:

Warning!
This document contains instructions for editing the registry. If you make any error while editing the registry, you can potentially cause Windows to fail or be unable to boot, requiring you to reinstall Windows. Edit the registry at your own risk. Always back up the registry before making any changes. If you do not feel comfortable editing the registry, do not attempt these instructions. Instead, seek the help of a trained computer specialist.

• Run "regedit" on Windows Server 2008 based computer.
• Expand and locate the sub tree as follows.

HKLM\System\CurrentControlSet\Services\LanmanServer\Parameters

• Add a new REG_DWORD key with the name of "Smb2" (without quotation mark)
  
  Value name: Smb2
  Value type: REG_DWORD
  0 = disabled
  1 = enabled

• Set the value to 0 to disable SMB 2.0, or set it to 1 to re-enable SMB 2.0.
• Reboot the server.

And the Revit.ini file strikes again...

You may remember a few posts about the Revit.ini file and Revit 2012:

• Deploying Revit 2012 with a Customized Revit.ini file
• Revit 2012 Network Deployment Utility: Custom Revit.ini Settings and Content Supression
• Who moved my Cheese (Files) ? - Important File location changes for Revit 2012

Before diving into this post, I recommend you check out the above posts if you haven't already.

With UR1 for Revit 2012 products, the way the UserDataCache Ini file (C:\Program Files\Autodesk\Revit Architecture 2012\Program\UserDataCache\Revit.ini) propagates to the users directory (%USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Autodesk\Revit\Autodesk Revit Architecture 2012\Revit.ini) have changed with the addition of a new Update tag.  

There are also some important details to understand about the hostname field that will impact your ability to roll out company wide changes to your users Revit.ini files.  

First, here are the details about how these fields work in the ini to propagate changes:

2012 behavior for RAC, RME or RST at startup as product is initializing:

Note: all keys are read from the [Install]  section of Revit.ini for either the user's file or UserDataCache (UDC) file.

If Hostname key in user's file does not match UDC Hostname key:

no further processing, InstallGUID and ReinstallGUID are skipped

If InstallGUID key exists in UDC and value does not match InstallGUID key in user's file

• delete all files in user's roaming profile folder (top level files only, no subfolders processed)
  • %USERPROFILE%\AppData\Roaming\Autodesk\Revit\<product name> e.g.   C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\Autodesk\Revit\Autodesk Revit Architecture 2012
• re-copy all files from UDC into user’s roaming profile folder

else if Update key exists in UDC and value does not match Update key in users’ file  (new for UR1)

• parse list of Section/Key pairs and overwrite user’s values for any non-null values in UDC Update key
  • i.e.  for each UDC Section/Key read the value, and overwrite the user’s Section/Key value
    • e.g.  Update=Documentation|OnlineHelpServer
    • format:  Update=Section|Key;Section|Key;Section|Key
• write UDC Update value into user’s file

else If ReinstallGUID key exists in UDC and value does not match ReinstallGUID key in user’s file

• overwrite user’s values for these keys for any non-null values in UDC file (hard-coded list only)
  • FamilyTemplatePath
  • DataLibraryLocations
  • DefaultTemplate
• write UDC ReinstallGUID value into user’s file

The first item is probably the most important one for you if you want to roll out changes to a lot of users at once (after you have already installed).  It turns out that the hostname field is the first check Revit makes when comparing the UserDataCache ini with the ini in the users directory.  

If the names don’t match, then nothing else parsed through in the ini file.  The Hostname check was added because of roaming profiles so as a user logged into different machines their Revit.ini wouldn’t get overwritten due to different InstallGUIDs per install.  

In case you need to roll out changes to your user ini files from one source there are two options you can look at:

1. If you remove the Hostname entry from *all* user’s Revit.ini files and from the UDC Revit.ini, then you can more easily propagate changes and/or overwrite entire Revit.ini files.  
2. If you delete all user’s Revit.ini files on all machines, and update all UDC Revit.ini with the new settings and remove the Hostname entry, then a new Revit.ini file would be copied from the UDC the next time the user runs Revit.

Both of these options should have the desired affects and allow you to roll out changes to other users. Happy INI ing...

 

Shared Parameter Text File: could not be read, or is not a valid shared parameter file

I wanted to outline a potential error dialog and 2 scenarios where this could occur related to the shared parameters text file:

The file ‘XX’ could not be read, or is not a valid shared parameter file.

In these 2 scenarios, the text file is read fine in Revit 2011 and 2012.  However Revit 2010 generates this message.

This can occur in the 2 examples below:

1.  Load Classification Type

In a Revit MEP Family > Manage > Shared Parameters > New > Discipline > Electrical > Type of Parameter > Load Classification.

This will add this parameter to the shared parameter file.

2.  Divided Surface Type

In the Conceptual Mass Environment > Manage > Shared Parameters > New > Type of Parameter > <Divided Surface Type><Curtain Panels>.

This will add this parameter to the shared parameter file.

In both cases above, Revit 2010 [or earlier releases] did not have the same type of parameters.  So when the file is initially read, Revit does not recognize the lines and generates the error message.

For 2010 or earlier releases you can save a copy of the shared parameter text file, and search for the following:

Load Classification Type  - Search for:

LOADCLASSIFICATION

Divided Surface Type – Search for:

DIVIDEDSURFACETYPE

You can either take note of the parameters you need to remove in the copy for Revit 2010, or remove the lines in the text file.  Once the applicable parameters are removed in the copy, it will be read as expected in Revit 2010 or earlier releases.

Removing and Replacing Models on Revit Server

Should you need to remove and replace a model on Revit Server I have included the recommended process below for 2011 and 2012.  Special thanks to Michael Brian Lee for this process!

For both Revit Server 2011 and 2012:

[1a] Open Revit Server Administrator and place a lock on the model to be replaced.  This will give users notice that the model is under maintenance.

[1b] When the lock is successfully applied, in Revit Server Administrator, unlock the model.

[2] Immediately after unlocking the model, select the model and delete it.  This will remove the model from the Central server.

[Note: Steps 1a and 1b are not strictly necessary, but can be more user-friendly to the Revit end users]

For Revit Server 2011 Only:

For each local server…

[3] Shut down the Autosync service:

        [3a] Invoke the Administrative Tools dialog.

        [3b] Open the Services dialog.

        [3c] Locate the service “Revit Server Autosync” service.

        [3d] Stop the service.

        [3e] Invoke Windows Task Manager and confirm that there is no process         running DataStorageAutoSyncService.exe.  If there is, end the process.

[4] Locate the Cache root folder.

[5] Navigate to the folder corresponding to the deleted model and delete this as well.

[6] Restart Autosync from the Services panel.

For Revit Server 2012 only:

[3] Wait 5-10 minutes.

For each local server…

[4] Locate the Cache root folder.

[5] Verify that the folder corresponding to the deleted model has been deleted [cleaned up by Autosync].

[6] If it has not been deleted, perform the steps described above for “2011 only”.

For both Revit Server 2011 and 2012:

[7] At this point, the model will have been deleted from the Central server and the Caches cleared of any pre-existing state.  It is then safe to use Revit to save a new model with the same name to Revit Server.

Revit Local Server Down: Next Steps and Data Collection…

Your Revit Local server goes down, or you cannot connect to your Local Revit server to synchronize.  Whatever the scenario, you may be looking for the next step to take; I’ve included a list of items to test [and what to collect should the troubleshooting need to go to the next level].  Keep in mind this post is targeted towards a Revit Local Server that was working as expected, not one being initially configured.  If doing initial configuration, first visit my previous post here for initial troubleshooting.

1.  Verify Central Server is Online

Before testing anything have a user temporarily connect to the Central Server under Collaborate > Synchronize > Connect to Revit Server.  This way we can confirm this is just the Local server and not the entire server network.

2.  All Users \ Models or Some Users \ Models?

Next verify how widespread the issue is.  Aside from the first user who reported the issue, have a few other users attempt to either synchronize or connect to the same Local server.  We want to verify if this issue affects all users and all models on the Revit server. 

If all users are experiencing the issue, move onto step #3.

If it only affects one or a few users [not all of them], verify if any of these users have experienced this dialog:

If so, and you are running Revit Server 2011 or the initial release of Revit Server 2012 [update 1 not yet applied] have them take the following steps:

[A]  In Windows Explorer, navigate to the Projects folder on the Central server.

[B]  Delete the contents of the Users_Temp folder for the user experiencing the issue.  This directory is located at [Revit Server Project Root]\[myModel]\Users_Temp\[my User].

For example, if a user “UserA” is having trouble syncing with the model “File.rvt” located in the folder “AllProjects,” and Revit Server’s project root is “d:\programdata\autodesk\revit server\projects” the contents of the folder "d:\programdata\autodesk\revit server\projects\AllProjects\File.rvt\users_temp\UserA" should be deleted.

[C]  Repeat the same process for the Local Server.  See if the specific user can connect \ synchronize with the server afterward.  

3.  Can you Connect via Revit Server Administrator or Remote Desktop?

Assuming no users can connect to a specific server through Revit, first attempt to open Revit Server Administrator from a client workstation.  For example, they would open Internet Explorer and enter the following address, substituting <RevitLocalServerName> with their Revit Server name:

http://<RevitLocalServerName>/Revitserveradmin

If nothing comes up the RevitServerAppPool may be stopped or the entire server may be physically down; ping the server to ensure it is up and running, and restart it if necessary.  In addition make sure to verify the network integrity, and VPN connection if in place.

Next attempt to make a remote desktop connection to the server.  Can you connect normally through Remote Desktop?  If Remote Desktop is not configured, have a user physically log onto the Local server to verify.

Assuming you can connect via remote desktop from a client workstation [or log onto Local server] move onto step #4.

4.  Verify the RevitServerAppPool and Autosync Service are Up and Running

Once connected to the Local server via Remote Desktop, verify the following areas:

[A]  Open Internet Information Services Manager [Start > Run > INETMGR].  Expand Server name > highlight Application Pools > highlight RevitServerAppPool.  Verify Status reads Started; if not click Start.

[B]  Open Administrative Tools > Services [Start > Run > Services.msc].  Locate Revit Server AutoSync.  Verify Status reads Started.  If not right-click > Start.

Specifically related to [B] Autosync, it is also a good idea to take a look at the LocalService.log file in “C:\ProgramData\Autodesk\Revit Server\Logs”.  If you see numerous repeating lines for the same model \ same process it may indicate that Autosync is not functioning properly.

Once you verify the items above check out, move onto step #5.

5.  Has Anything Changed?

Before collecting data, step back and verify if anything has changed.  Such as:

[A]  Power \ Network Connectivity?
[B]  Windows Updates?
[C]  Did any users check Compact File when synchronizing with central?
[D]  All users have unique usernames?
[E]  Was this Local server recently brought online, or a large number of linked files saved to the server at once?
[F]  What was the last successful action?
[G]  And are there any project .lock files larger than 0 KB [See the page here for additional information]

6.  Data Collection

If you get here and the server is still outside communication, data collection and analysis are most important.  It is essential to collect data from a small period of time, focusing on recreating the issue.

Collect the following files using the attached process:

[A] Shut down Revit.
[B] Shut down Revit Server.
[C] Archive the logs on the Revit Server and then empty the Log folder [you can archive to another folder].
[D] Restart Revit and the Revit Server, then perform the action [that does not work] and then capture the log files and Revit journal file.

Additional information to include:

-The Revit Central and Local server names and IP addresses. 
-Paths specified during installation if other than default.
-Confirm if they are physical or virtual servers.  And if possible include their physical geographic locations.
-Windows Server 2008 or 2008 R2

Conceptual Energy Analysis Login Through Proxy Servers

We have been seeing some reports lately of users having problems logging into the Conceptual Energy Analysis (CEA) tool when connected to their networks. To use CEA through proxy servers with Authentication enabled, enable access to the following URLs in the proxy without Proxy Authentication (anonymous access through the proxy):

*.autodesk.com
*.google-analytics.com
*.cloudfront.net

 For example, the following screenshots illustrate the rule on a proxy server (Microsoft ISA proxy) to enable All Users to Autodesk CEA sites without authentication:

 
 
 

 

In addition, here are some other related questions & answers:

Why can’t we use IPs for the firewall rules?

The Single Sign-On solution from Autodesk takes advantage of Akamai for network route optimization. Because the Akamai network has many (1000s) of edge nodes which change over time, it is not advisable to filter based on IP addresses. If filtering is required, then it should be done by URL (*.autodesk.com).

Why should we enable special rules in the proxy server for certain URLs?

Some components within CEA don’t send authentication information to the proxy server; hence an exception rule is required on the proxy to enable these communications anonymously.

Should we enable the proxy server within Conceptual Energy Analysis?

If Internet Explorer is configured to use the proxy (either manually or automatically), then Conceptual Energy Analysis will use the same proxy settings.

What if we don’t use proxy servers and access the control list directly on the firewall?

If the rules can be added with DNS names you could use the above mentioned URLs to allow the traffic.

 

Special thanks to Autodesk's Hashim Mundol for this great CEA information!

 

Revit Server 2012 Update Release 1

Autodesk Revit Server 2012 Update Release 1 is now available at the link below:

Revit Server 2012 Update 1

I have included the process to apply the service pack to all Revit 2012 Servers:

1.   Notify users that the Revit Server network will be taken offline for an update and that they should close all server-based models in Revit.

2.  Using Revit Server Administrator, apply a lock on the server to halt all Revit Server based activity.  If needed this process is included here.

3.   When the lock is successfully applied, for each server in the Revit Server network:

[3a] Shut down the server:

• Shut down the RevitServerAppPool application pool in IIS Manager 
• Stop the Revit Server Autosync Service in the services panel
• Use the processes tab in the Windows task manager to determine whether there are any processes named “w3wp.exe” or “DataStorageAutoSyncService.exe” still running; if there are, terminate them.

[3b] Install the Revit Server 2012 Update 1 Service Pack.

[3c] Restart the Revit Server:

• Start the RevitServerAppPool application pool in IIS Manager
• Stop the Revit Server Autosync Service in the services panel (it will appear to have restarted after installing the UR)
• Restart the Revit Server Autosync Service in the services panel

4.  After all Revit Servers have been updated, use Revit Server Administrator to release the lock on the server and notify users that the maintenance is complete.

Some of the major enhancements include the following:

• Several enhancements were made to improve stability of Revit Server under periods of high use and heavy load.
• Enhancements were made to Revit Server Administrator to provide information about model-level locks that may be orphaned.
• A change to reduce the rate of growth of the central file on the server.  [This change requires both Revit 2012 and Revit Server 2012 to have update 1 applied; if only one is updated no improvement will be implemented].
• An improvement to make RevitServerTool more reliable.  (The Revit Server 2012 update 1 release will update the server copy of this tool, and the Revit 2012 update 1 release will update the application copy of this tool).

Special thanks to Michael Brian Lee for this documentation!

Revit Server Operating System Requirement

Quick reminder for what we can and cannot support for Revit Server and operating systems.  

The officially tested and supported environments are available at the link here and included below:

• Microsoft® Windows® Server 2008 R2 64-bit
• Microsoft® Windows® Server 2008 64-bit
• VMware® Support
• Microsoft® Hyper-V™ Support (must be configured to use one virtual network adapter per virtual processor)

If creating a support case, please ensure your Local and Central Revit Server[s] are running Microsoft Windows Server 2008 R2, or Microsoft Windows Server 2008. 

Microsoft Windows 7 environments are not tested or supported under any circumstances.

Revit Globe Link – Adding Newer Versions of Google Earth for Publish Functionality

When using newer versions of Google Earth, and the Revit Subscription Globe Link Add-in, you may have noticed that while you can acquire from Google Earth you cannot publish.

Teresa Martin has a video for this process I wanted to first link below:

Google Earth Pro 6 and Revit 2012 - Fixing the link

I wanted to include the steps I took, for standard Google Earth version 6.0.2.2074 and Revit Architecture 2012 in text format for easy reference:

1.  From Google Earth > Help > About Google Earth > locate version number at top.  In this case I have version 6.0.2.2074.

2.  Next, open the GEVersions.dat file; for Revit Architecture 2012 it is in the following folder:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Autodesk\Globe Link for Autodesk Revit 2012

3.  Copy & add a line to the bottom for version 6.0.2.2074 similar to the image below:

4.  Next you need to find the GUID for this version to add to the brackets; open the Windows Registry Editor [Run > REGEDIT] and navigate to one of the following locations:

32-Bit OS: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Uninstall\

64-Bit OS: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Microsoft\Windows\
CurrentVersion\Uninstall\

5.  Search for Google Earth in this folder, and right-click > Export > to easily copy the GUID from the Selected branch line:

6.  Copy & paste the area in brackets back into the GEVersions.dat file so it looks similar to below:

7.  Save and close the GEVersions.dat file, and afterward you should be able to publish from Revit Architecture 2012 to Google Earth.