altuit-bug-01

How to troubleshoot a Blender Add-on

There is a description in detail of the steps below but here is an outline of the troubleshooting process for identifying problems in Blender with an addon.

flowchart TD Start([Start]) Verify["Verify:
• Latest public Blender
• Add-on supports that Blender version
(Confirm on Superhive)"] Note["Note:
No support for Blender beta builds"] Portable["Create a temporary “portable” Blender
(to test with default settings)"] Steps["Steps:
1) In blender.exe folder, create empty folder named “portable”
2) Launch Blender (defaults)
3) Drag & drop add-on to install
4) Test the issue"] Solved{"Issue solved
in portable test?"} DeletePortable["Delete the “portable” folder
(return to original config)"] Contact["If portable test did NOT help:
Contact support on Discord with:
1) Blender version + OS + machine specs
2) Exact repro steps (video helps)
3) Console output/logs
Also see: cw1.me/helpushelpyou"] Retest["Re-test in original config"] Reinstall["If still failing:
• Delete add-on in Preferences
• Close Blender
• Relaunch
• Reinstall by drag & drop
• Enable add-on"] StillIssues{"Still issues?"} Causes["Likely causes to check:
A) Add-on conflict (test other add-ons 1-by-1)
B) Corrupt startup scene (rebuild startup)
C) Corrupt prefs (reset prefs & rebuild)"] ResolvedABC{"Resolved
after A/B/C?"} FreshBuild["Try a fresh Blender build:
Download latest ZIP, unzip, run from folder,
then test again"] End([End]) Start --> Verify --> Note --> Portable --> Steps --> Solved Solved -- Yes --> DeletePortable --> Retest --> Reinstall --> StillIssues Solved -- No --> Contact --> End StillIssues -- No --> End StillIssues -- Yes --> Causes --> ResolvedABC ResolvedABC -- Yes --> End ResolvedABC -- No --> FreshBuild --> End

First off, make sure you’re using the latest publicly released version of Blender and that the add-on currently supports that released version of Blender. You can check that by going to Superhive and seeing what versions of Blender are supported.

We do not test our add-ons on beta versions of Blender– nor do we provide support for beta versions of Blender.

It’s important to first test on a default configuration of Blender. There are 5 possible issues which can affect the addon:

  • A corrupt startup file (this is often the culprit)
  • A corrupt prefs file
  • A conflict with another addon
  • A corrupt version of Blender
  • A bug in the addon

The easiest way to troubleshoot is to take the existing version of Blender that you use and temporarily turn it into a “portable” version.

To do this, create a “portable” folder:

  • Inside the folder where blender.exe is located, create a new empty folder and name it “portable”.
  • This ensures Blender stores all user settings and add-ons within this folder, making it fully portable. And when you remove this portable folder, everything is back as you left it.

Now launch Blender and it will appear in its default mode. Drag drop your add-on onto the window and let it install and then test it. This way you can test it without any possible conflicts or corruption from other user settings.

Don’t forget to delete this portable folder when you’re done testing to go back to your original configuration.

If creating the portable folder solves the issue:

Then delete the portable folder and you will be returned to your original configuration.

Check again the issue and if still not working, try deleting the addon in prefs. Then close Blender and relaunch it. Next reinstall the addon by drag dropping it onto Blender. Make sure you enable it in preferences to turn it on.

If there are still issues then the chances are you have one of the following:

  1. a conflict with another addon (you can test each addon 1 by 1 to confirm which is conflicting)
    2. a corrupt startup scene (create a new startup scene from scratch)
    3. a corrupt prefs file (reset your prefs file and rebuild from scratch)

If after troubleshooting a, b, c above, it still does not work, consider downloading a new version of Blender and checking it there. You can download a zip version and unzip it on your desktop and go into the folder and run it straight from there. You can get the zip version of the latest Blender at:
Previous Versions — blender.org

If creating the portable folder doesn’t solve the issue:

If it is still not working then you will need to contact us at http:/cw1.me/discord with:

  1. The version of blender and OS and machine specs you are using.
  2. The steps you use in creating the issue. A video often helps.
  3. Any console output that may help us in debugging the issue.

If you need more help, please help us help you. You can do this by checking out http://cw1.me/helpushelpyou

Finally

You can always receive support at:

DISCORD CHANNEL
http://cw1.me/discord