iServer stops sending to remotes.

[neilhooper]

Hi All,

I don't know if anybody is reading these forums anymore but here's hoping.

I didn't know whether to post here or in the xAP forum but I may try both.

The problem that I'm having is that for some reason iServer stops sending to remotes and I can't pin down why. I can close it and restart it, restart xFx Hub service, try shutting them both down and restarting them one by one but the only thing that works is a PC restart.

The strange thing is that it will work sometimes for weeks, then maybe days and then sometimes only a few hours but today it was 45 minutes. I know if I do another PC restart it will work straight away but I don't know how long it will last before it stops again.

I'm running Windows 8.1 and have successfully run it on XP and Windows 7 throughout the last few years.

- Neil.

[Kevin]

Hi Neil.

Still here...

Which version number of iServer are you running ? Does iServer crash ? Is iServer still sending heartbeats ?

If it is crashing it is likely because some xAP device on your network is sending a malformed xAP message or possibly a message with too much data in a parameter - often you can isolate it to happening immediately after receipt of some 'rogue' xAP message. If you can find the xAP message that brings it down, and send me a copy I can try and fix it in the code. (Assuming I can still locate a copy).

I now no longer use the Windows version of iServer and instead use Brett's C iServer version - mine running on a HAH platform. Some people run this instead on a Raspberry Pi or BeagleBone. It has slightly less features that the Windows version but is more resilient running for months on end.

K

[dbzoo]

Neil,
Run my iServer. I run this 24/7 and I've never once had to power cycle the hardware for a crash or lock up for many years.
Instructions for running the portable distribution of HAH on livebox hardware are found at http://www.dbzoo.com/livebox/portable
I know it says Alpha but I've been running it for a very long time on a Beaglebone but it will work on any flavour of Linux.

Or just buy a livebox if they are still around. Should be less than a 10'er these days on ebay.
Brett

[neilhooper]

Hi Kevin / Brett,

I've been waiting for it to happen again and it did this morning. I don't think it is anything to do with iServer as it was still showing as receiving messages. However when I went to look at messages in xFxViewer - nothing, no messages being shown. This made me think it was xFxHub so I stopped the service and restarted it as I have before; still nothing. I stopped it again and left it stopped and started the console version and everything sprang into to life. I've just been looking around on Ebay and see quite a few Liveboxes for sale so I think I'll get one ordered and get it setup.

- Neil

[Kevin]

Is it possible your PC rebooted overnight, perhaps to install an update ? You don't have dual IP network interfaces on this PC do you ?

A xAP hub must be the very first xAP application to start on a PC as only one application can acquire the xAP listen port (3639). The symptom of a hub not working is that xAP applications become deaf but can still send xAP messages as a hub is not required to transmit. The fact that iServer could still receive messages indicates that either the hub was still working or that iServer had started before the hub.

If you look in the heartbeat message from a xAP application you can see what port it is using.

xap-hbeat
{
v=13
hop=1
uid=FF.0637E9CA:0000
class=xap-hbeat.alive
source=xFx.Hub.Server
interval=60
port=3639
}


The only xAP application using port 3639 should be the xAP hub. If iServer was using this port, as evidenced in its heartbeat then it started before the xAP hub. iServer, if started first, acquires port 3639 to listen and in doing so would block all other xAP applications on that PC from hearing xAP traffic. This behavior was the norm for xAP applications allowing a single xAP application to run without a hub, but is now discouraged. xFX Viewer used to do this too but now in the latest version requires a hub or it will display no xAP traffic.

Running xFX Viewer on a different PC (+ a hub) is a good way to monitor xAP traffic if you suspect hub issues.

Regardless - the fact that the console version of xFX Express hub worked when the service version didn't is very strange pointing to some other issue. That just shouldn't be the case. Bear in mind though that the hub only knows what applications it needs to forward xAP packets to when those applications register with the hub, which they do when they send a heartbeat, so a newly launched hub needs to run at least 60 seconds before it is settled. Possibly you decided it wasn't working before that time elapsed ? If by any chance iServer was stopped when you launched the console version that would explain it too. A newly launched xAP appplication sends its heartbeat at startup and so registers itself immediately with a hub.

There is the mcsxAPhub too as an alternative to xFX but running Bretts iServer makes things so much easier. Aside from having an extra 'box' I would recommend this for a set and forget installation. Importantly it does support xAP filter registration so only relevant xAP traffic is forwarded over the TCP connections. xAP Flash is also inbuilt within the LiveBox HAH.

K

[neilhooper]

No reboot overnight, only one Network interface.

This is very strange as it doesn't happen on a reboot or startup it just happens randomly like it did this morning. It was working fine at 9.10 and not at 9.11

I did a little test earlier; I stopped iServer, stopped the console version of the hub, started up the service version of the hub, started iServer. I already had the Viewer running. iServer showed messages being received from remotes, the viewer showed no messages even after 10 minutes. I shut down iServer, stopped the Hub service, started the console version of the Hub, started iServer; everything fine again !!!

Am I right in thinking that I need the hub running on my Cortex PC at all times or just somewhere on the network ?

- Neil

[Kevin]

Am I right in thinking that I need the hub running on my Cortex PC at all times or just somewhere on the network ?

- Neil

A xAP hub needs to be started first and remain running on each and every PC that has any xAP application running. xFX Viewer counts as a xAP application.

Are there any errors logged by the service version of xFX Express hub ? What you are saying in the previous post is that currently the xAP service hub is consistently not functioning now, only the console version works.

xFX Viewer and iServer are being run on the same Cortex PC too ?

K

[neilhooper]

If the log is in the XFX > xfx-express hub folder there doesn't appear to be any log file there.

Yes, the service version will now not function at all; the console version has been running since my last post. I know if I reboot the service version will work OK.

xFX Viewer and iServer are being run on the same Cortex PC too ?
K

Yes.

Another question; I've installed the hub and viewer on my Laptop. The only messages that I'm seeing are the heartbeat for the hub and the viewer is that correct ?

- Neil