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Synchronizing stalled

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rwik

11 Mar, 2020 06:30 AM

Running BeaTunes 5.2.6 which I downloaded several days ago. Today I upgraded my mac to 10.15.3 "Catalina". Attempting to synchronize. Progress bar stalled at about 30%. I have tried re-starting both BeaTunes and the Music App. I have also done a Database repair of BeaTunes. Since it is now late in the evening here, I will see if there is a change in the morning.

Any suggestions?

1. 1 Posted by rwik on 11 Mar, 2020 06:36 AM

   

   I just noticed that and important smart playlist in my music app is not listed in BeaTunes. Perhaps that information would be useful.

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2. Support Staff 2 Posted by hendrik on 11 Mar, 2020 10:39 AM

   

   Hi,

   please upload you logs via Help -> Upload Logs from within the application. Perhaps it contains information that lets me diagnose the issue.

   Thanks,

   -hendrik

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3. 3 Posted by niftydormouse on 11 Mar, 2020 04:19 PM

   

   Hendrik,

   Just sent you the logs as requested. The Synchronization apparently finished during the night. /the progress bar is gone but the list is a mess. There are several folders and playlists that are duplicated and that playlist I mentioned previously is still missing.

   Thank you for your help.

   Rwik

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4. Support Staff 4 Posted by hendrik on 12 Mar, 2020 09:38 AM

   

   Hi,

   can you please try to run synchronization via the File menu again and if asked, do a forced synchronization? If that does not help, does restarting and syncing again via the File menu perhaps help?

   What's the name of the playlist that is still missing?

   Thanks,

   -hendrik

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5. 5 Posted by niftydormouse on 12 Mar, 2020 04:27 PM

   

   Hendrik,

   Just now I re-started BeaTunes and synchronization, it went very fast but nothing changed, I immediately started a second one from the file menu and when asked, did a forced synchronization. It is proceeding very slowly. I will report later on the results.

   The missing playlist is called “Now”. As mentioned, it is an Apple smart playlist. Although I use BeaTunes to build my playlists I still play them from Apple’s music app. The “Now” playlist starts the day empty because it is only used as a filter on the playlist I have built for that day.

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6. 6 Posted by niftydormouse on 12 Mar, 2020 04:52 PM

   

   Hendrik,

   The latest synchronization seems to have stalled at the very end. That is, the progress bar is at 100% but nothing further is happening.

   Since I tried a repair of the database even before writing you on the subject, perhaps I should go ahead and try a rebuild of the database?

   Thanks
   Rwik

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7. Support Staff 7 Posted by hendrik on 12 Mar, 2020 06:06 PM

   

   Could you please upload a fresh set of logs?

   Also, what about that one playlist you’ve mentioned? Problem solved? If not, what’s the name of the list?

   Thanks!

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8. 8 Posted by niftydormouse on 12 Mar, 2020 06:34 PM

   

   Hendrik,

   Just sent a fresh set of logs. The most recent synch now shows the missing playlist titled “Now”. However, there are several duplications in the updated list. I have attached a couple screen shots of the
   BeaTunes sidebar

   Rick

   • Screen_Shot_2020-03-12_at_11.28.55_AM.png 52.1 KB
   • Screen_Shot_2020-03-12_at_11.29.21_AM.png 12.7 KB
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9. Support Staff 9 Posted by hendrik on 12 Mar, 2020 07:21 PM

   

   Thanks for the logs.

   The "stalling" you observe is a side effect of how certain properties are handled under 10.15. They cannot be imported in a fast way, but must be obtained using a script (see also this article). When you "force" a synchronization or you sync for the first time, this will take a while, in your case (with 34509 tracks) multiple minutes. Not "forcing" a sync should avoid this issue.

   Regarding duplicated playlists, I am puzzled. It seems that that's what the ITLibrary Framework by Apple is reporting.

   -hendrik

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10. 10 Posted by niftydormouse on 12 Mar, 2020 08:46 PM

    

    Hendrik,

    Based on your last response I have begun carefully deleting the duplicate folders from beaTunes. I thought it would be useful for you to know that they all seem to pertain to a pair of audiobooks (not podcasts) that I have not listened to for a while. I have confirmed that while the files are still in the finder, they are not in the Music app.

    I have moved these files to a folder outside the music folder on my external drive.

    As for the “missing” playlists, it appears that when Apple playlists (at least Smart Playlists) are empty, they do not show up in beaTunes. The “Now” playlist referred to before, since it is currently populated, shows up. On the other hand, I have a folder called “b. Grouping” which in the Music App contains 8 Smart Playlists. All of them are currently vacant in Music, so they are not seen in BeaTunes, only the vacant folder.

    Finally, there are two Smart Playlists near the bottom of the beaTunes list that pertain to the only podcast I own. Since they are Smart Playlists they can’t be deleted from beaTunes even though they don’t appear in Music. Any suggestions?

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11. Support Staff 11 Posted by hendrik on 17 Mar, 2020 09:36 AM

    

    Hi Rwik,

    thanks for your detailed report and sorry about my late reply.

    I thought it would be useful for you to know that they all seem to pertain to a pair of audiobooks (not podcasts) that I have not listened to for a while. I have confirmed that while the files are still in the finder, they are not in the Music app.

    This is very enlightening.

    As you certainly know, with macOS 10.15, Apple decided to split up iTunes into multiple different apps. This effectively killed the concept of having podcasts, audiobooks, and music in one playlist. Apple made that impossible. The fact that you are seeing these strange playlists is probably an artifact of the transition.

    As for the “missing” playlists, it appears that when Apple playlists (at least Smart Playlists) are empty, they do not show up in beaTunes. The “Now” playlist referred to before, since it is currently populated, shows up. On the other hand, I have a folder called “b. Grouping” which in the Music App contains 8 Smart Playlists. All of them are currently vacant in Music, so they are not seen in BeaTunes, only the vacant folder.

    Indeed beaTunes does not import empty Smart Playlists. This is to avoid displaying empty standard lists like "Music Videos" or "TV & Movies", which Music.app internally presents like Smart Playlists to beaTunes.

    Finally, there are two Smart Playlists near the bottom of the beaTunes list that pertain to the only podcast I own. Since they are Smart Playlists they can’t be deleted from beaTunes even though they don’t appear in Music. Any suggestions?

    If you want to get rid of them, I'd delete them via AppleScript.

    Cheers,

    -hendrik

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12. Support Staff 12 Posted by hendrik on 08 Dec, 2020 12:30 PM

    

    Hi there,

    I believe I may have found a workaround for the issue and it's part of the just released beaTunes 5.2.16.

    If you're updating, please let me know how that goes.

    Thanks so much,

    -hendrik

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13. 13 Posted by niftydormouse on 08 Dec, 2020 05:52 PM

    

    hendrik,

    I just accidentally uploaded my logs to you. There is no issue and no need to. Blame my poor eyesight.

    Regards
    Rwik

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14. Support Staff 14 Posted by hendrik on 09 Dec, 2020 07:11 AM

    

    No worries.
    This happens quite often.
    Logs without error description are typically ignored, as I would not know what to look for anyway.

    -hendrik

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15. 15 Posted by niftydormouse on 09 Dec, 2020 06:34 PM

    

    Hendrik,

    Now I am frustrated. 5.2.16 has indeed cleared up the “extra” playlists that I had a problem with. On the other hand it seems to have seriously slowed synchronizing with iTunes. I am considering reverting to 5.2.14, which is my last previous version. I am still running Catalina, would upgrading to Big Sur help?

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16. Support Staff 16 Posted by hendrik on 09 Dec, 2020 08:31 PM

    

    Frankly, it surprises me quite a bit that sync got so much slower. Is this reproducible or a one off effect?

    Btw: One of the major time factors during sync is waiting Music.app to deliver some data towards the end of sync (roughly at 90%).

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17. 17 Posted by niftydormouse on 10 Dec, 2020 03:00 AM

    

    Hendrik

    Definitely an ongoing effect. It is slower overall, and seems to stall for quite a while with about 20% remaining on the progress bar..

    It does eventually complete the sync but I’ve never watched it to the end.

    I did try a database repair earlier today and might try starting a rebuild before I go to bed.

    Thanks, by the way for your prompt responses.

    Rick

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18. 18 Posted by niftydormouse on 10 Dec, 2020 03:05 AM

    

    One more note: I just got this message:

    Perhaps I need to adjust this upward?

    PS: My music collection has about 35,000 items.

    Rick

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19. Support Staff 19 Posted by hendrik on 10 Dec, 2020 09:41 AM

    

    For 35000 items 5GB heap should be way more than enough. Something is definitely odd. If rebuilding/repairing the database does not help, please let me know.

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20. 20 Posted by niftydormouse on 10 Dec, 2020 05:29 PM

    

    Hendrik

    Just completed a rebuild. Took about an hour and a half for 35000 items. Synch still painfully slow.

    What should we try next?

    Rick

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21. 21 Posted by niftydormouse on 10 Dec, 2020 10:46 PM

    

    Hendrik,

    Sorry, just trying to give you as much info as I can about my current issue. I did try a rebuild this morning after a full restart of my Mac. Then tried a synch which was very slow. I have been plying my regular playlist called “Gathered” all day. BeaTunes locked up twice with a Java memory error and had to be force quit. Both times it was playing music - not synching - and what alerted me of course was that the music stopped. I’ve uploaded my most recent logs.

    Do you think for the time I should revert to 5.2.14? Or would that just make things worse. Reminder I am still running Catalina.

    Rick

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22. Support Staff 22 Posted by hendrik on 11 Dec, 2020 02:20 PM

    

    Hey Rick,

    for the moment, it might be a good idea to revert to 5.2.14.

    I'm looking into unintended side-effects of a recent change and it seems to me that it is responsible for what you're observing.

    I will post a dev snapshot as soon as I got a grip on this.

    -hendrik

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23. Support Staff 23 Posted by hendrik on 11 Dec, 2020 09:36 PM

    

    Hey Rick,

    could you please try out https://www.beatunes.com/download/beaTunes-5-2-17-SNAPSHOT.dmg — I hope this dev snapshot solves the issue.

    Kind regards,

    -hendrik

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24. Support Staff 24 Posted by hendrik on 15 Dec, 2020 03:13 PM

    

    Just FYI: the final v5.2.17 is out. It should solve the sync issue you reported.

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