How to Troubleshoot Common Issues in MOOS Project ViewerMOOS Project Viewer is a useful tool for browsing, managing, and inspecting MOOS (Mission Oriented Operating Suite) projects and their components. Like any specialized software, users can encounter a variety of issues — from installation and configuration problems to runtime errors and unexpected behavior. This article walks through common problems, diagnostic steps, and practical fixes so you can get back to work quickly.
1. Preparation: collect basic diagnostics
Before diving into fixes, gather information that will speed troubleshooting and help you reproduce the problem:
- MOOS Project Viewer version and the version of any related tools (e.g., MOOS-IvP, pMarineViewer).
- Operating system and version (Windows, macOS, Linux distribution).
- Exact error messages (copy-paste logs; take screenshots if GUI-only).
- Steps to reproduce the issue, including sample project files if applicable.
- Recent changes — software updates, configuration edits, or new files.
Common places to check for logs:
- Application log files (Viewer’s log directory or user home).
- Console output when starting the viewer from a terminal/command prompt.
- System logs (e.g., Windows Event Viewer or syslog on Linux/macOS).
2. Installation and startup issues
Symptom: Viewer won’t install, or it fails to start (no window, immediate crash, or an error on launch).
Checks and fixes:
- Verify system requirements: ensure required libraries and dependencies (for example, Qt, OpenGL drivers) are installed and compatible with your OS and the Viewer version.
- Run the viewer from a terminal to capture stdout/stderr — many errors are printed there but not shown in GUI.
- On Windows: ensure Visual C++ Redistributables (or other runtime libraries specified in the Viewer docs) are installed.
- On Linux: check for missing packages (use package manager to install qt5/qt6 or other GUI libs). Use ldd on the executable to find missing shared libraries:
ldd /path/to/moos_project_viewer - On macOS: verify Gatekeeper didn’t block the app; try launching from Terminal to see messages; ensure correct architecture (x86_64 vs arm64) or use Rosetta when needed.
- If the app complains about OpenGL, update graphics drivers. For headless servers, ensure a virtual framebuffer or software renderer (e.g., Mesa llvmpipe) is available.
- Reinstall the Viewer and, if available, try the latest stable version. If using a package manager or distribution package, consider installing from official binaries to avoid packaging issues.
3. Problems loading projects or files
Symptom: Project files fail to load, missing assets, or the viewer shows incomplete project structure.
Checks and fixes:
- Confirm file paths: relative vs absolute paths can cause missing files. Open projects from their root directory or adjust project settings to point to correct locations.
- File format/version mismatch: verify that the project file’s format is supported by your Viewer version; upgrade Viewer or convert files if necessary.
- Inspect file permissions: ensure the user has read permission for project files and directories.
- Corrupted files: try opening the project on another machine or restore from backup. Run validators if the Viewer includes a project validator tool.
- Missing dependencies (e.g., shared libraries, external tool outputs): ensure external tools referenced by the project are installed and reachable in PATH.
- If assets reference network locations, confirm network access and resolve URL or credential issues.
4. UI glitches, slow performance, or rendering artifacts
Symptom: The interface is sluggish, UI elements don’t render correctly, panels overlap, or map/graphics are corrupted.
Checks and fixes:
- Check system resources: CPU, memory, and GPU usage. Close other heavy apps to free resources.
- Update GPU drivers — many rendering issues are driver-related.
- In Viewer settings, reduce rendering load: lower refresh rate, disable unnecessary overlays, turn off anti-aliasing, or reduce map/mesh detail.
- If using large projects, increase available memory or split projects into smaller modules.
- For UI layout corruption, reset Viewer settings or remove (rename) its configuration file so it recreates defaults.
- On multi-monitor setups or high-DPI displays: try changing display scaling or run with environment variables forcing a particular DPI mode (Qt apps often require QT_SCALE_FACTOR or QT_DEVICE_PIXEL_RATIO adjustments).
- If the viewer uses OpenGL, try forcing a different backend (software rendering) to see if artifacts persist.
5. Connectivity and data-stream issues
Symptom: Viewer can’t connect to MOOSDB, misses incoming messages, or loses connection intermittently.
Checks and fixes:
- Verify MOOSDB is running and reachable at the configured hostname/IP and port.
- Confirm network connectivity (ping, telnet to port) and firewall settings. Allow Viewer and MOOSDB through OS firewalls.
- Check IP binding: if MOOSDB binds to localhost but Viewer expects a network interface address, adjust MOOSDB’s MOOS_HOST or Viewer settings.
- Time synchronization: large clock skew between machines can break time-sensitive features. Ensure NTP or another time sync is configured.
- Inspect message frequency and bandwidth: high message rates can overload the Viewer. Filter messages or reduce publish frequency in components.
- If connection drops persist, check router/network stability, and enable reconnect options if available in Viewer preferences.
6. Data visualization errors (incorrect values, missing plots)
Symptom: Charts, timelines, or map positions show wrong data or are blank.
Checks and fixes:
- Confirm the Viewer is subscribed to the correct variable names and namespaces used by your MOOS components.
- Check units and coordinate conventions — mismatches in coordinate frames (e.g., local vs. global, lat/lon vs. UTM) cause incorrect positions.
- Verify timestamps: out-of-order or missing timestamps in messages can break time-series plots. Ensure publishers attach correct times.
- If using data logs (e.g., .alog/.mooslog), verify log integrity and that the Viewer supports the log format version. Try replaying logs with moos-utilities to validate.
- For missing plots, ensure plotting modules are enabled and datasets are not being filtered out by time ranges or variable filters.
7. Plugin, script, or extension failures
Symptom: Custom plugins or scripts don’t load, throw errors, or crash the Viewer.
Checks and fixes:
- Ensure plugins are compiled against the same Viewer/API version. ABI/API mismatches commonly cause load failures.
- Check plugin paths and that the executable has permissions to read plugin files.
- Run Viewer with verbose/plugin debug mode to see load-time errors or symbol resolution failures.
- For script-based extensions (Python, Lua), confirm the interpreter version and module dependencies are available. Use virtual environments to manage Python dependencies.
- Rebuild plugins from source if Viewer or compiler settings changed (e.g., different Qt or C++ ABI).
8. Crashes and memory errors
Symptom: Viewer crashes, shows segmentation faults, or exhibits memory leaks.
Checks and fixes:
- Run Viewer under a debugger (gdb/lldb) or use crash dumps to capture stack traces showing where it fails.
- Update to the latest stable release — many crashes are fixed in newer versions.
- Reproduce with a minimal project to isolate whether a particular file or plugin triggers the crash.
- Disable plugins/extensions one-by-one to find the culprit.
- If memory usage grows without bound, capture a memory profile (valgrind, massif, or platform-specific profilers) to locate leaks.
- Submit a bug report with logs, backtraces, and reproduction steps to the Viewer’s issue tracker.
9. Permission and security-related problems
Symptom: Features fail due to access control, sandboxing, or permission restrictions.
Checks and fixes:
- On macOS and Windows, check whether the OS blocked certain permissions (access to files, network, microphone, etc.) and allow them via System Preferences/Settings.
- If the Viewer runs inside a container or sandbox, ensure necessary volumes and network ports are exposed.
- For shared project directories, confirm file ownership and group permissions allow the Viewer user to read/write as needed.
10. When to escalate: collecting a good bug report
If troubleshooting doesn’t resolve the problem, prepare an actionable bug report:
Include:
- Viewer version, OS and version, and hardware summary (CPU, RAM, GPU).
- Exact steps to reproduce, with sample project files or minimal reproducer.
- Console output, log files, and crash backtraces (symbolicated if possible).
- Configuration files, plugin lists, and environment variables.
- Network diagnostics if relevant (MOOSDB address, ping/traceroute outputs).
Attach files in compressed form if large. Provide timestamps and note any intermittent behavior patterns.
11. Helpful maintenance and prevention tips
- Keep Viewer and related tools up to date, but test updates on a staging setup before production.
- Maintain small, modular projects to reduce load and simplify debugging.
- Use version control for project files so you can revert to known-good configurations.
- Capture periodic logs and health metrics to spot issues before they become critical.
- Document your environment (dependencies, versions) so reproducing a working setup is straightforward.
If you want, I can:
- Help write a concise bug report template for your team.
- Walk through a specific error message or log you’re seeing (paste logs here).
- Provide platform-specific commands to collect crash logs or profiling output.
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