Coffee Cup of Death - network issues?

[steve4446]

We have been using Filemaker for quite some time on a single computer in our non-profit organization - and have experienced no problems. Within the past year, we bought two new computers, networked them together and upgraded to Filemaker Pro 8.5. Since then, we have had a problem with the slave computer suddenly crashing (for apparently no reason) while using Filemaker. The crash goes like this... the coffee cup suddenly appears followed by a blank grey screen - and the whole computer freezes.

Is this network related? We are also running ZoneAlarm and Safe Eyes on both of these computers. Could one of these pieces of software be creating a conflict that causes this crash?

Edited January 1, 2008 by Guest

[Søren Dyhr]

Within the past year, we bought two new computers, networked them together

How is it networked, sharing files or opening up against protocol?

--sd

[steve4446]

I believe that it is sharing files. Would this be the source of our problem?

[Søren Dyhr]

Yes, and a pretty sure recipe for corrupted data over time, shared solutions should always be opened via "Open Remote" in the File menu. The directory where file(s) behind the solution resides, must be pulled out of shared drives!

A way to make a sort of alias to the solution, which can be stored on each users desktop, should be an "Opener"

http://filemaker.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/filemaker.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=5296&p_created=1119021717&p_sid=fIwmyMUi&p_accessibility=0&p_redirect=&p_lva=&p_sp=cF9zcmNoPTEmcF9zb3J0X2J5PSZwX2dyaWRzb3J0PSZwX3Jvd19jbnQ9Nzg1LDc4NSZwX3Byb2RzPTAmcF9jYXRzPSZwX3B2PSZwX2N2PSZwX3BhZ2U9MSZwX3NlYXJjaF90ZXh0PW9wZW5lcg**&p_li=&p_topview=1

--sd

[steve4446]

I may have given the wrong answer to your last question, because you have described our current process in your latest reply.

Currently, we open the file on the Master computer first thing in the morning. Once we have done this, we load Filemaker Pro on the slave computer, click "Open Remote", select the Master Compter ("Adam") and file that we wish to open. Is this the proper way? If so, then we already doing this - so the problem must be related to something else.

Do you have any other solutions? I do appreciate your help so much.

[Søren Dyhr]

The reasons a computer goes down is next to a zillion, it's obivous the networking follows the flush down, you have only witnessed it during a filemaker session. Is filemaker to blame here or the other tools running simultaneously to blame?

Not directly, but if the RAM in your newly bought workstations have "holes" or dead spots will the measure of workload sometimes hit them, and sometimes not.

Virus is another fairly common candidate for unpredictability! The permutations are unfortunately endless here. But Filemaker bugs are discovered pretty fast by a pretty substantial community's tear an wear.

There is no clear answer to your problem, other than you might to get the engines checked both for ram errors as well as virus.

--sd