Out of Memory, and .fbx export crashing

[iamreavis]

Sorry this is a double post, also in Hardware / OS Issues...
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Trying to open two medium sized files from a client, expressly to create .fbx files for import to Max. I am having major problems trimming the files down for export... and then actually performing the export.

To begin: My computer is a Dell Precision M6300, 4GB RAM, Win XP 32 (I'm getting to that...), Revit 2010 and 2011. I do Revit work all the time in 2010 and -11 with no problems, up to and exceeding the file sizes I'm talking about here (109 and 40 MB).

My problems are: Revit can barely finish the export to .fbx operation on either file without crashing. The timing of the crash is totally random, sometimes when I start exporting, sometimes a minute or so after Revit has generated the .fbx file (which is almost always only 1 or 2 Kb in size) Only once, for both files each, have I gotten a valid .fbx file saved to disk. Then Max crashed when I tried to import either. Once I was able to see the geometry for about a half second.

My questions are: will upgrading to Windows 7 64 bit and 64 bit apps be a magical cure-all, or is it possible that corruption in the file is responsible? I have Audited, Detached from Central, Saved As New Central, everything I can think of. I have managed to get both files open in Revit 2010 (only the smaller file in 2011) and deleted all views, sections, sheets, Purged, etc. anything I could think of, and resaved. The smaller file actually increased in size after this treatment by 300 Kb, while the larger file went from 109 MB down to 60 MB.

File 1 40 MB ====> purge & resave 40.3 MB ====> .fbx file 144 MB
File 2 109 MB ====>purge & resave 60 MB ====> .fbx file 86 MB

I don't think I'm crazy, but the jury's still out...

Please tell me this has happened to one of you before!

[m20roxxers]

Export them in pieces then merge back together in max.

So break up walls, slabs, to openings etc.

[Scott D Davis]

See response in other post.

[iamreavis]

Double posted in Hardware / OS
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I installed Windows 7 64 bit, and Revit 64 bit, and all of my problems have cleared up! I didn't put in any more RAM (I had 4 GB before, of which Windows XP 32 bit could use only around 3.5 GB). I kept a close eye on the resource monitor while I did some tests, and, amazingly, nothing crashed or broke. The RAM utilization hovered around 77% during the export process, yet never quite got to 100%, even when rendering a high quality image. I was able to open the larger file in Revit 2011 (could not open it at all in 2011 before), move, pan, rotate, etc., and export a .fbx file which was 78 MB as opposed to 144 MB when exported from Revit 2010 under the 32 bit OS. I don't even know if that larger .fbx file was valid since I couldn't import it into Max without crashing, but I suspect it wasn't (valid).

All in all, a very enlightening experience with the OS upgrade. I highly recommend that those of you having difficulties such as the ones I was encountering make the switch. Cost me around $200, which I'll be able to make up by completing this job for my client. No way to do that, before!

Now I'm off to install Max 64 bit to see what happens...