Knowledgebase
DesignBuilder crash when trying to show CFD slice
Posted by Luis Sousa on 27-Jul-20 02:44 PM
In some cases CFD results display can fail due to memory issues. This is more likely to occur when running long DesignBuilder sessions. See below for our suggestions to address this.

1. First check that DesignBuilder is running with the high spec GPU (dedicated graphics card). 

Running with the low spec integrated card will cause some of DesignBuilder's core memory to be used to run graphics processes, reducing the memory available to DesignBuilder for processing results and potentially causing issues.
To enable the dedicated card see the KB article: How to check if the computer has a dedicated graphics card?

2. If after following the above steps the model still fails to load the CFD results then a possible workaround is:

a. After the calculation is completed, close the CFD Calculation Options dialog,
b. Without placing any slice or displaying the results, save the project with the results,
c. Exit DesignBuilder
d. Open a new session and then reload the model
e. Only display one slice of vectors at a time. Delete the previous slice before adding a new one.

Please note that if placing new slices does not show data in a new session then you will need to open the CFD calculation dialog and press the Resume button for a couple of iterations. Then press Pause and return to the CFD screen.
After this clear the previous slices and place the new slices. The CFD results should be displayed.


3. Importing and exporting the CFD results to a *.CFD file can also help to keep the file size smaller and reduce the amount of memory used on the project.
https://designbuilder.co.uk/helpv6.0/#CFD_Results_Manager.htm