Addon Organizer breaks SODE

[Sethos 4,304]

Hey,

Every time I open Addon Organizer, it decides to break SODE. These red crosses show up at each jetway;

Then I need to re-install SODE for it to work again. What's happening and how do I stop Addon Organizer from doing this / Set up SODE correctly, as I assume AO is trying to do something with the .xml files?

[abranpuko 369]

hello, while they are correcting that error, i have discovered that if a switch on sode platform manager, and let it opened and minimized window, all is good. try it if you want;:)

holds.

[vadriver 247]

interesting ..... i have been having "hangs" on scenario load many times recently & traced (?) to a "sode fault" subsequently fixed by a sode uninstall / install.

i now realise it has been after using LAO that the above happens.(v139b06).

hope to hear more soon ?

Edited May 31, 2019 by vadriver

[Lorby_SI 2,036]

Hi @ll,

sorry, no idea, this doesn't happen on my end.

If P4AO breaks something, then it is the add-on.xml from SODE or the reference to it. AFAIK the red crosses mean that SODE is running, but the simobjects that it wants to display aren't there (=the simulator can't see them). So not the whole reference is broken, but just a part of it? Very strange. Is that a special airport? Are these stock SODE jetways or have they been installed with a different product?

I need more information, I can only fix errors that happen on my computers too - and this one doesn't. Could one of you please contact me by email? I require the two files

C:\ProgramData\Lockheed Martin\Prepar3D v4\add-ons.cfg
C:\Program Files (x86)\12bPilot\SODE\P3Dv4\add-on.xml

in the working and the broken state. The address is on the last page of the users manual.

Best regards

 

Edited May 31, 2019 by Lorby_SI

[FSMicroX 4]

8 hours ago, Sethos1988 said:

Hey,

Every time I open Addon Organizer, it decides to break SODE. These red crosses show up at each jetway;

Then I need to re-install SODE for it to work again. What's happening and how do I stop Addon Organizer from doing this / Set up SODE correctly, as I assume AO is trying to do something with the .xml files?

Hi!

Happen to me also with Aerosoft Bergen Flesland. After searching a little I found out that it installed Simobject folder in Misc folder. Look in your X:\Flightsimfolder\Simobjects\Misc if you see a simobjects folder there try to move all content out of that folder in Simobjects\Misc folder. That was the trick for me. Hope it helps

Regards
Jan-Erik

[Sethos 4,304]

3 hours ago, Lorby_SI said:

Very strange. Is that a special airport?

I have now seen it happen at Vidan's Billund X, FlightBeam's KMSP and where the above is taken; FlightBeam KSFOHD. Guessing it there's a lot more if I decided to check.

In any case, I have sent you an email with the two files in their before and after the opening of AO state.

[Lorby_SI 2,036]

16 minutes ago, Sethos1988 said:

I have now seen it happen at Vidan's Billund X, FlightBeam's KMSP and where the above is taken; FlightBeam KSFOHD. Guessing it there's a lot more if I decided to check.

In any case, I have sent you an email with the two files in their before and after the opening of AO state.

Hi,

I got the files, but unfortunately there is nothing to see, they are practically identical.

Judging from your screenshot, SODE is actually working, because that is where the red crosses come from. But the simulator can no longer see the objects that are supposed to be on the addon airports. 

Are you certain that reinstalling SODE fixes this problem? What version of SODE is that? (just to make sure that I have the same one)

Best regards

[Sethos 4,304]

Well, had some email correspondence with Oliver trying to sort the issue but unfortunately, we didn't reach a meaningful conclusion. Raised a lot of questions though.

I did, however, get it sorted but what exactly did it is a mystery. I uninstalled AO 1.40 b06 and installed 1.41 b01. Re-installed SODE and switched around the package numbers with AIGAIM Ai Traffic in the add-ons.cfg, making SODE Package 1 and AIGAIM Package 0. Doubt that had any effect but it's the only two things I changed. Maybe it was the old version of AO doing something. Not even 100% certain it's fixed, I will have to do further testing but I was able to open AO, hit save, boot up the same and see no red crosses.

If I see it again, I was asked to replace the SODE's add-on.xml with the original AO creates, see if that does anything. We'll see!

Thanks for the help, Oliver.

[tubbsds1 41]

On 5/30/2019 at 3:23 PM, Sethos1988 said:

Hey,

Every time I open Addon Organizer, it decides to break SODE. These red crosses show up at each jetway;

Then I need to re-install SODE for it to work again. What's happening and how do I stop Addon Organizer from doing this / Set up SODE correctly, as I assume AO is trying to do something with the .xml files?

This also happens to me every time I run Addon Organizer and save my configuration.  Re-registering SODE fixes it for me.  Just have to remember to do that after using the Organizer.

Dave

[Lorby_SI 2,036]

8 minutes ago, tubbsds1 said:

This also happens to me every time I run Addon Organizer and save my configuration.  Re-registering SODE fixes it for me.  Just have to remember to do that after using the Organizer.

Dave

Hello Dave,

What does "Re-registering" mean exactly? What is it that you do?

This whole issue is so weird. I have studied Sethos' files up and down, to no avail. There is nothing that I can find that would warrant this behavior -  and it still doesn't happen on my computers.

Would you mind sending me these two files, the next time that it stops working? And another copy what they look like when they are working? But I'm afraid that without the help of the author of SODE I don't stand a chance anyway. The only thing that P4AO does is, that it rewrites the add-on.xml of SODE in the "extensive" XML format -  just like ever other add-on-xml. This has worked for years now, with SODE too - I have no idea why SODE suddenly decided that it doesn't like this anymore

C:\ProgramData\Lockheed Martin\Prepar3D v4\add-ons.cfg
C:\Program Files (x86)\12bPilot\SODE\P3Dv4\add-on.xml

If I'm right about SODE not liking its own config file, please try this first, before you reinstall SODE:

-> Replace "C:\Program Files (x86)\12bPilot\SODE\P3Dv4\add-on.xml" with the original file "C:\Program Files (x86)\12bPilot\SODE\P3Dv4\add-on.xml.orig".

Many thanks and best regards

Edited June 1, 2019 by Lorby_SI

[tubbsds1 41]

1 hour ago, Lorby_SI said:

Hello Dave,

What does "Re-registering" mean exactly? What is it that you do?

This whole issue is so weird. I have studied Sethos' files up and down, to no avail. There is nothing that I can find that would warrant this behavior -  and it still doesn't happen on my computers.

Would you mind sending me these two files, the next time that it stops working? And another copy what they look like when they are working? But I'm afraid that without the help of the author of SODE I don't stand a chance anyway. The only thing that P4AO does is, that it rewrites the add-on.xml of SODE in the "extensive" XML format -  just like ever other add-on-xml. This has worked for years now, with SODE too - I have no idea why SODE suddenly decided that it doesn't like this anymore

C:\ProgramData\Lockheed Martin\Prepar3D v4\add-ons.cfg
C:\Program Files (x86)\12bPilot\SODE\P3Dv4\add-on.xml

If I'm right about SODE not liking its own config file, please try this first, before you reinstall SODE:

-> Replace "C:\Program Files (x86)\12bPilot\SODE\P3Dv4\add-on.xml" with the original file "C:\Program Files (x86)\12bPilot\SODE\P3Dv4\add-on.xml.orig".

Many thanks and best regards

I'm on it.  Will report back in a bit.

[Lorby_SI 2,036]

Hello @ll,

I finally figured it out. I have fixed the issue in P4AO version 1.42 b01, which is ready for download now.

Now for the long story:

The issue is the encoding of the add-ons.cfg file in "C:\ProgramData\Lockheed Martin\Prepar3D v4". You can check it with the button Tools -> "Check encoding": it will tell you that the file has an incorrect encoding.

When either you or an installer have edited the add-ons.cfg, and saved it in ASCII encoding, then P4AO will change that to UTF-8 BOM (call that a bug, should be UTF-16) - which apparently SODE cannot read. That is where the error comes from. What the internal mechanisms of SODE are, I cannot fathom. But I made sure that P4AO doesn't change the encoding anymore, even if it is wrong.

To stress that point: NEVER should either of the add-on.cfg files be edited, neither by the user nor by an installer. Use the P3D CLI or autodiscovery to add packages to the sim. If you want to fix the add-ons.cfg when it is already broken, open it in Notepad++ (As Administrator), go to the top menu "Encoding" and select "Encode in UCS-2 LE BOM". Save.

Best regards

 

 

Edited June 1, 2019 by Lorby_SI

[Sethos 4,304]

Fantastic, thanks for all your work Oliver and thanks to tubbs for bringing additional clarity to the issue.

[tubbsds1 41]

Oliver,

I just tried version 1.42 b01 and unfortunately it does the same thing.. it "unregisters" SODE.  

 

Before running Addon Manager:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/c38zk530glq547t/registered.JPG?dl=0

After running Addon Manager:

https://www.dropbox.com/s/fv27tdh3kw49o0s/not registered.JPG?dl=0

 

So I figured out the how to manually fix it without reregistering.... In C:\ProgramData\Lockheed Martin\Prepar3D v4, revert the add-ons.cfg.P4AOBAK back to add-on.cfg.

 

 Here are the two add-on files.  The add-on.cfg is the broken one...

 

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/drdrh5wbet9dbdm/AAA57j8umQxQFtn8VGUaivera?dl=0

 

Let me know what else I can do to help?

 

Dave

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited June 1, 2019 by tubbsds1

[Lorby_SI 2,036]

Hello Dave,

your add-ons.cfg still has UTF-8 BOM encoding. I am not sure why, it probably had it before too. I don't dare change the encoding automatically with P4AO. I could, but worst case that can also screw up the file completely. 

You must change it to UCS-2 LE BOM with Notepad++ or send it to me via email so I can change it. And I need it in the "non-broken" state too, just to make sure.

Are you using any other config addons that might do this?

Best regards 

 

Edited June 1, 2019 by Lorby_SI