When I try to update my events and projects, the application crashes - why?

Question

When I try to update my events and projects, the application crashes - why?

Hi - I haven't been using FCPX for over a year (when it was working fine) and since then I have upgraded my OSX from Snow Leopard to Mountain Lion (10.8.4). I have also just updated FCPX to version 10.0.9.

Now when I start the program I am prompted to update my projects and events, the full message being as follows:

<b>Projects and Events must be updated to work with this version of final Cut pro.

Updated Projects and Events cannot be opened in earlier versions of Final Cut Pro. To update your Projects and Events, click OK.

To leave your Projects and Events untouched, click Ignore. (You will be prompted to update the next time you open the application.)</b>

However, if I choose to update, the program crashes and a window appears stating "Final Cut pro quit unexpectedly'. I have tried this several times and the result is the same. If I open FCPX without updating, it opens normally. So what might be going on? Any ideas anyone?

Many thanks, John.

Final Cut Pro X, OS X Mountain Lion (10.8.4)

Posted on Sep 2, 2013 2:05 PM

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Answer 1

Russ H

Level 7

22,432 points

Sep 2, 2013 3:21 PM in response to johnfrombanchory

Trash preferences with Preference Manager.

Repair Permissions with Disk Utility.

Russ

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Answer 2

Sep 3, 2013 12:38 AM in response to Russ H

Thanks russ, I tried all that and it still doesn't work. I restarted my Mac and Digital Rebellion's Preference manager has been removed from my applications folder and dock (to be replaced by a question mark).

Any further suggestions, please?

And now a rant..."why, oh why is it necessary to do all this (even when it does work)? Can this amazing software that is OSX / FCPX not deal with these internal matters??? Thank you."

So, still stuck and feeling frustrated. Is there a particular version of Pref.man that works with Mountain Lion? I seem to remember when I was with Snow Leopard (now there's an animal!) that this freeware similarly disappeared. Hmm....

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Answer 3

Sep 3, 2013 4:22 AM in response to johnfrombanchory

Delete preferences as Russ said. Download the application again.

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Answer 4

Russ H

Level 7

22,432 points

Sep 3, 2013 4:47 AM in response to johnfrombanchory

The Preference Manager version should be 4.0.1.

Have you recently installed any third party software, effects, fonts?

As to why things sometimes work, there is a list a mile long that includes hardware and software.

Even with Macs, systems differ widely. People install different stuff and configure their directories differently. They download all sorts of things. Some of this can cause conflicts. Corruption of files happens.

An application like FCPX, is very complex and resource intensive. Little glitches in the system that might not cause noticeable problems in another app, get magnified in Final Cut.

It's actually more the wonder that the majority of users don't have similar problems. (If that weren't the case, these discussion boards would not be functional because of the traffic.)

Russ

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Answer 5

Sep 4, 2013 12:17 AM in response to Russ H

Thanks Russ. Still no joy but someone elsewhere has suggested I delete all my render files and I've asked them whether that means I can delete the folder or if I have to go into all the sub-folders to delete the data (more involved).

I am also planning on installing Snow Leopard on a separate drive on my Mac Pro - can I have two OSXs residing on the same machine but on different physical hard drives? - Anyone know?

If I can do that, then I have another question - can I have a duplicate copy of FCPX running under that OS? I guess my question is - and perhaps this should be a new thread? - can i have multiple copies of the same App running on a single Mac Pro?

As for what you say about the complexities of running FCPX at all, I guess computers still aren't that smart - just better and better number crunchers, oh well.... 😉

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Answer 6

Russ H

Level 7

22,432 points

Sep 4, 2013 5:52 AM in response to johnfrombanchory

No harm to the projects in trashing render files. Drag the render folder for a specific project to the trash. (However, I'd be surprised if this were the cause of your crashes.) Maybe do it for one and then hide all the other projects. See whether it still crashes.

You can have a dual boot system (I run one) with FCPX on each. I've found, however, that the App Store sometimes gets confused if both are mounted at the same time – so it's possible it may balk at downloading if it sees the other. As I recall (it was a while ago) I installed by using a copy of the app.

FWIW, I find that FCPX runs faster and is more stable on 10.8 than on 10.6.

Returning to your crash problem: Hide your projects in a temp folder. Open FCP and create a new event and import some media. Create a new project. Hopefully that will open OK.

Then close FCP and move one of the hidden projects to the main FC Project folder. Open FCP and see whether it functions OK. Keep repeating, as we're looking to identify a corrupt project.

Russ

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Answer 7

Sep 4, 2013 1:56 PM in response to Russ H

Thanks for all that, Russ. I'm reviewing all my old projects and thinking that I may not need to access them again as the work has been done and I have copies of completed movies. I obviously still have access to all the raw material (Original Media folders), so perhaps I can sidestep this whole issue and free up a lot of disk space, too.

Out of interets, how useful is the Preference Manager when working with FCPX? I don't really understand the need for it (useful for bigger / multiple projects?). What exactly are 'preferences' in this context?

Thanks.

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Answer 8

Sep 14, 2013 5:45 PM in response to johnfrombanchory

Sorry for the bump; I only just found this thread.

The reason Preference Manager disappears when you restart your computer is because you didn't actually install it. To install it, you need to drag the app from the disk image to your Applications folder, then launch it and add it to the Dock.

Preferences are different from projects and events. They contain user settings and other internal FCPX data, which can cause problems when corrupt. So trashing preferences is a quick and safe troubleshooting method when things go wrong. Preference Manager is useful because it can backup your prefs when they are working correctly so that you can restore them again when things go wrong, saving you the need to set everything up again.

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