ACAD 2009 Rendering issues...Autodesk claims Hardware issues

[eric_monceaux]

My company just purchased us new PCs and they are defiantly a step up from our previous machines. Granted our previous machines were decent, but we needed a little (understatement) more power. So when we were scouting for new machines we made sure that these PCs would be able to handle the memory hogging ACAD 2009.

So when our new eATX Dell Precision T7400 computers arrived (my profile shows stats of current PC) I was eager to get them up an running. After going through the tedious process of importing plot styles and CUI menus, one of the first things I did was render a complex model of a helical entry, and low and behold...I get a dialog box that says:

"AutoCAD Error Aborting
FATAL ERROR: Unhandled Access Violation Reading 0x0000 Exception 80a7ae55h"

So I went through the hoops with Autodesk, actually I am still going through them, and did as instructed.
1. Install most current Graphics Driver certified by Autodesk (169.39 Quadro WinXP64 International WHQL)
2. Install the most current "Maintenance Update" available.
-------> That didn't work
So I was instructed to UNINSTALL the "Maintenance Update" and try again.
-------> That didn't work
Then Tech Support recommended that I uninstall AutoCAD and REINSTALL it and try again.
-------> That didn't work

So I am at a loss as to what to do now. I have included my Performance log for review.

[ReMark]

Nice machine...too bad it doesn't work.

Have you gone into the nVidia control panel (Manage 3D settings)?

Are you experiencing problems with any other program besides AutoCAD?

[eric_monceaux]

Yeah...it's nice, but it ain't very good friends with AutoCAD...pity.

I have gone into the control panel and first changed the Global Settings to the "Autodesk AutoCAD" preset. AutoCAD still crashed. Then I tinkered with a few of the settings that are available to select, with no avail. I also powered down my PC and removed 3 of the DDR2 sticks and tried again. Nada.

Here is the real kicker:
I just remembered that I was a bit mistaken when I said that I haven't been able to render on this machine at all. When we first got the towers, I was originally able to render. I am going to try a System Restore back to when I first powered this bad baby on. I will see what happens then.

Wish me luck!

[ReMark]

I do wish you luck as nothing else seems to be working for you at the moment.

What happened between then (could render) and now (can't render without a crash)? Did you change some hardware or software? Has to be a reason behind the sudden slide into non-compliance by AutoCAD. You said you downloaded and install all service packs for 2009? I believe there were two.

[eric_monceaux]

I am not sure what happened. No hardware changes were made, and as far as software, the only changes that were made were driver updates for the Video Card, Standard Windows updates, and AutoCAD service packs (I am currently running the most recent update: Version 3)

[ReMark]

Well I'm tapped out for ideas at the moment. Keep us aprised of the situation as I am sure another unlucky CAD user may come along with a similar problem. Your experience, good, bad or indifferent, could be of great value. In the meantime I'll "sleep" on it. If something comes to mind I'll be back. Arnold told me to say that.

[eric_monceaux]

I will try doing a sys restore back to the original install date to AutoCAD. First I have to let my 20 hour back up finish (yeesh!).

I am also going to try and do a fresh install to a different hard drive in a 32-bit environment. Gonna try and isolate whether it is a hardware or software issue.

If I get any responses from Autodesk I will post their "tips" as well.

I should have more info on Monday.

Thanks for the help ReMark...I am glad you feel my pain!

[eric_monceaux]

Just a quick update....

I have reformatted my PC, re-installed CAD, and believe it or not...still can't render. However, to add to the twist, I CAN render if I am logged in as the administrator. When I am logged on as my user name I cannot.

Go figure.

[ReMark]

Is that considered an improvement then?

[eric_monceaux]

Yes and no. No because it isn't fixed and it is a time consuming process to fix. Yes because now at least I think I have isolated the problem.

However, I am not exactly sure where to start looking to fix that issue. I have a new support request into Autodesk, and I hope that they can help.