[BUG] Updates during maintenance - Downloaded from the Wizards Community, all coding removed by Solauren

[BUG] Updates during maintenance

Post/Author/DateTime Post
#1
Xathrus
May 12, 2009 13:15:57 During maintenance today I attempted to use one of my Character Builder updates. It failed, due to the maintenance and I was informed such. I tried again later, 3 or four times, with the same result. This is understandable, and even expected.

Later, however, I tried again and was told I had used all of my updates for this period. Previously, I had only used two updates (5 is the limit, no?). It appears that every time I tried to update and failed, it counted that against my update limit.

This isn't a "ZOMG I'm pulling my subscription" bug, but it can be very frustrating. It would be good to be looked into and fixed.
#2
jhanzur
May 12, 2009 19:04:44
During maintenance today I attempted to use one of my Character Builder updates. It failed, due to the maintenance and I was informed such. I tried again later, 3 or four times, with the same result. This is understandable, and even expected.

Later, however, I tried again and was told I had used all of my updates for this period. Previously, I had only used two updates (5 is the limit, no?). It appears that every time I tried to update and failed, it counted that against my update limit.

This isn't a "ZOMG I'm pulling my subscription" bug, but it can be very frustrating. It would be good to be looked into and fixed.

I believe if you contact CS they can reset your update count for you, as long as you have a reasonable excuse.
#3
ORC_Wyvern
May 13, 2009 11:03:13 Hi,
I'm sorry to see that you are having this issue, but Jhanzur is correct. Simply contact Customer Service using this link: Customer Service

Chose the "Email Us" tab, then for topics, choose "Role-Playing Games">"D&D Insider">"D&D Insider Account">"Account Information" then specify in the subject line and the body of your email that you need more updates and why.

Hope that helps!
#4
charliebananas
May 24, 2009 17:25:03 Is there anywhere Wizards actualy post when CB will be down for maintanance, I joined today and have not been able to update fron the free CB, I keep getting the message "update interupted" I'm probably going to find by the time I can access it I've used all my tries and it still isn't giving me full access. If you could direct me to where the schedule is that would be great.

All the best
Mike
#5
madoffler
May 24, 2009 21:09:17 Just seconding CHARLIEBANANAS' request for some sort of schedule. I've been an DDI subscriber for a while and just today had call for rolling up a new character for the first time in 3 years. I was so excited to use the CB and am totally crest fallen to find that I can't create a character above 3rd level until who knows when.

When do you expect that I can use the service?
#6
vahara
May 25, 2009 2:12:43 I have been trying all day *Sunday May 24.
Is the server still down for maintenance or is it an installation issue?
#7
charliebananas
May 25, 2009 4:12:42 Glad I'm not the only one, dont want to try again incase I lose my last chance to update, anyone know if the server is still down?
#8
madoffler
May 25, 2009 12:38:20 It was down at 2 am pc time, I haven't tried since then. After digging around I found this on their "help" page:

If Character Builder is not updating correctly, please try the following:

1. Delete the file "C:\Program Files\Wizards of the Coast\Character Builder\CharBuilderFull.version".

2. Start the Character Builder and click "Continue Update." Read and accept the EULA.

3. The update should now complete. If it does not, it is possible repeating this process will help, as more progress is made toward completion each time.

If you have successfully downloaded and installed Character Builder but are seeing unexpected behavior, like showing blank panels or crashing, you may try the following. Please note that the following procedure involves editing your system's registry. Wizards of the Coast cannot be responsible for any changes made to your system, so please be careful. If you are uncomfortable doing this, call Game Support so we can talk you through the process.

1. Open RegEdit and navigate to the key: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wizards of the Coast\2a1ddbc4-4503-4392-9548-d0010d1ba9b1"

2. Double click on the "InstallStage" property name and change "Complete" to "Download"

3. Delete the file "C:\Program Files\Wizards of the Coast\Character Builder\CharBuilderFull.version".

4. Start the Character Builder and click "Continue Update." Read and accept the EULA.

If you are still having trouble, please contact customer service.

First off, having to go into regedit to fix a non-beta release product is pretty ridiculous especially for something that just amounts to a spreadsheet when it comes down to it.

Secondly, I am still having trouble but I can't contact "customer service" because whenever I click on the email us tab I get a message that says "A technical error has occurred. Please close your browser and try again."

I'm sure you can guess if closing my browser helped.

I understand that none of this is anyone's fault per-say, I'm sure whatever circumstances led wizards to release a less than optimal product also prevent are out of their hands. I understand. I'm sure if they had it their way DDI would be miles from where it is now. I'm willing to support them, the game means a lot to me and I'm willing to pay to help it grow. I would however, like a bit more transparency when it comes to these things. It wouldn't be very hard to have a sticky at the top of this forum with a maintenance schedule or a simple post alerting subscribers to unscheduled maintenance.

Maybe it IS published somewhere and I've simply overlooked it in the 3+ hours I've been looking for an answer.
#9
orc_kirin
May 25, 2009 13:08:16 If you find you cannot access the help system, try clearing private information from your browser. If you need help with that, our Knowledge Base has a helpful article on the subject:

http://wizards.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/wizards.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=1377

If that doesn't do the trick (or you find you can't enter the Knowledge Base), please make a post here:

http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1133626

Your post will allow the staff to begin tracking down whatever is causing your issue.
#10
charliebananas
May 25, 2009 14:53:43 I can't contact customer services, because CB reports that the servers are down, which is the problem I'm trying to find out about, are the servers down or is this a bug?
#11
orc_tao
May 26, 2009 11:33:00
I can't contact customer services, because CB reports that the servers are down, which is the problem I'm trying to find out about, are the servers down or is this a bug?

There is a server issue that is currently preventing many, but not all, of our subscribers from updating. It is a known issue and is currently our top priority to get it fixed. We will try to keep you updated as things occur.

Sorry again for the inconvenience.
#12
charliebananas
May 26, 2009 13:26:44 No problem, I'm enjoying my new DDi subscription by reading Dragon and Dungeon magazine, so I'm happy! :D

Thanks for keeping me in the loop
MIKE
#13
storyist2005
May 27, 2009 6:30:01 So are the updates availible now? Cause my character builder is still showing that they have no updates availible.
#14
orc_tao
May 27, 2009 9:54:31 The problem preventing people from updating has been resolved as of last night. However, the May update will not be going live until June 2nd as per the announcement made by Trevor a few weeks back.

Hey all. I know we’re all ravenously awaiting DDI information and I was fortunate enough to get my hands on some details I think you’d like to have.

Character Builder/Compendium Update - Starting on Tuesday, June 2nd, we will release new updates for the D&D Character Builder and the D&D Compendium on the first Tuesday of every month instead of the fourth Tuesday. The scheduled May 26th update will be moved to June 2nd, and updates will fall on the first Tuesday of every month going forward.

Hybrid Classes – Originally we held off on including the Hybrid Class rules in the Character Builder because of the heavy playtest nature of the rules. You guys have given us a lot of feedback and R&D is behind it too, so it looks like we’ll be seeing Hybrid Class rules in the June update to Character Builder.

Monk Playtest – With the way information is compiled and added to the Character Builder and Compendium, it generally takes four to eight weeks to get Dragon content into the tools. We all want to get our hands on the monk, and the devs must love us because it looks like we’ll be getting the Monk in the Character Builder and Compendium on the June 2nd update.

The info I glanced over had some more stuff about the basic data updates we get every month and some neat things such as resizing windows on your character sheet, but you’ll have to wait for the official announcement to read more on those and the things I already mentioned above. That official announcement goes up the week before the update hits and we’ll make sure to link it for you. Of course, we’re still a few weeks out and things could change, but I wanted to give you guys a peek at what’s on the docket.

In related sneak peek news, we are working on another project in the same vein as the XML output version for Character Builder, with the intention of getting more information into the hands of people who want to make tools that interact with the Character Builder and Compendium. You can check out Don’s blog to get an idea of the type of information you might see included in this project. I have no clue when we’ll have something like this compiled and ready for people, but I knew some of you would be interested to hear about it

Hopefully this is something I can keep bringing your way. Until then, feel free to discuss the information above in this thread.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
#1 Xathrus May 12, 2009 13:15:57	During maintenance today I attempted to use one of my Character Builder updates. It failed, due to the maintenance and I was informed such. I tried again later, 3 or four times, with the same result. This is understandable, and even expected. Later, however, I tried again and was told I had used all of my updates for this period. Previously, I had only used two updates (5 is the limit, no?). It appears that every time I tried to update and failed, it counted that against my update limit. This isn't a "ZOMG I'm pulling my subscription" bug, but it can be very frustrating. It would be good to be looked into and fixed.
#2 jhanzur May 12, 2009 19:04:44	During maintenance today I attempted to use one of my Character Builder updates. It failed, due to the maintenance and I was informed such. I tried again later, 3 or four times, with the same result. This is understandable, and even expected. Later, however, I tried again and was told I had used all of my updates for this period. Previously, I had only used two updates (5 is the limit, no?). It appears that every time I tried to update and failed, it counted that against my update limit. This isn't a "ZOMG I'm pulling my subscription" bug, but it can be very frustrating. It would be good to be looked into and fixed. I believe if you contact CS they can reset your update count for you, as long as you have a reasonable excuse.
#3 ORC_Wyvern May 13, 2009 11:03:13	Hi, I'm sorry to see that you are having this issue, but Jhanzur is correct. Simply contact Customer Service using this link: Customer Service Chose the "Email Us" tab, then for topics, choose "Role-Playing Games">"D&D Insider">"D&D Insider Account">"Account Information" then specify in the subject line and the body of your email that you need more updates and why. Hope that helps!
#4 charliebananas May 24, 2009 17:25:03	Is there anywhere Wizards actualy post when CB will be down for maintanance, I joined today and have not been able to update fron the free CB, I keep getting the message "update interupted" I'm probably going to find by the time I can access it I've used all my tries and it still isn't giving me full access. If you could direct me to where the schedule is that would be great. All the best Mike
#5 madoffler May 24, 2009 21:09:17	Just seconding CHARLIEBANANAS' request for some sort of schedule. I've been an DDI subscriber for a while and just today had call for rolling up a new character for the first time in 3 years. I was so excited to use the CB and am totally crest fallen to find that I can't create a character above 3rd level until who knows when. When do you expect that I can use the service?
#6 vahara May 25, 2009 2:12:43	I have been trying all day *Sunday May 24. Is the server still down for maintenance or is it an installation issue?
#7 charliebananas May 25, 2009 4:12:42	Glad I'm not the only one, dont want to try again incase I lose my last chance to update, anyone know if the server is still down?
#8 madoffler May 25, 2009 12:38:20	It was down at 2 am pc time, I haven't tried since then. After digging around I found this on their "help" page: If Character Builder is not updating correctly, please try the following: 1. Delete the file "C:\Program Files\Wizards of the Coast\Character Builder\CharBuilderFull.version". 2. Start the Character Builder and click "Continue Update." Read and accept the EULA. 3. The update should now complete. If it does not, it is possible repeating this process will help, as more progress is made toward completion each time. If you have successfully downloaded and installed Character Builder but are seeing unexpected behavior, like showing blank panels or crashing, you may try the following. Please note that the following procedure involves editing your system's registry. Wizards of the Coast cannot be responsible for any changes made to your system, so please be careful. If you are uncomfortable doing this, call Game Support so we can talk you through the process. 1. Open RegEdit and navigate to the key: "HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wizards of the Coast\2a1ddbc4-4503-4392-9548-d0010d1ba9b1" 2. Double click on the "InstallStage" property name and change "Complete" to "Download" 3. Delete the file "C:\Program Files\Wizards of the Coast\Character Builder\CharBuilderFull.version". 4. Start the Character Builder and click "Continue Update." Read and accept the EULA. If you are still having trouble, please contact customer service. First off, having to go into regedit to fix a non-beta release product is pretty ridiculous especially for something that just amounts to a spreadsheet when it comes down to it. Secondly, I am still having trouble but I can't contact "customer service" because whenever I click on the email us tab I get a message that says "A technical error has occurred. Please close your browser and try again." I'm sure you can guess if closing my browser helped. I understand that none of this is anyone's fault per-say, I'm sure whatever circumstances led wizards to release a less than optimal product also prevent are out of their hands. I understand. I'm sure if they had it their way DDI would be miles from where it is now. I'm willing to support them, the game means a lot to me and I'm willing to pay to help it grow. I would however, like a bit more transparency when it comes to these things. It wouldn't be very hard to have a sticky at the top of this forum with a maintenance schedule or a simple post alerting subscribers to unscheduled maintenance. Maybe it IS published somewhere and I've simply overlooked it in the 3+ hours I've been looking for an answer.
#9 orc_kirin May 25, 2009 13:08:16	If you find you cannot access the help system, try clearing private information from your browser. If you need help with that, our Knowledge Base has a helpful article on the subject: http://wizards.custhelp.com/cgi-bin/wizards.cfg/php/enduser/std_adp.php?p_faqid=1377 If that doesn't do the trick (or you find you can't enter the Knowledge Base), please make a post here: http://forums.gleemax.com/showthread.php?t=1133626 Your post will allow the staff to begin tracking down whatever is causing your issue.
#10 charliebananas May 25, 2009 14:53:43	I can't contact customer services, because CB reports that the servers are down, which is the problem I'm trying to find out about, are the servers down or is this a bug?
#11 orc_tao May 26, 2009 11:33:00	I can't contact customer services, because CB reports that the servers are down, which is the problem I'm trying to find out about, are the servers down or is this a bug? There is a server issue that is currently preventing many, but not all, of our subscribers from updating. It is a known issue and is currently our top priority to get it fixed. We will try to keep you updated as things occur. Sorry again for the inconvenience.
#12 charliebananas May 26, 2009 13:26:44	No problem, I'm enjoying my new DDi subscription by reading Dragon and Dungeon magazine, so I'm happy! :D Thanks for keeping me in the loop MIKE
#13 storyist2005 May 27, 2009 6:30:01	So are the updates availible now? Cause my character builder is still showing that they have no updates availible.
#14 orc_tao May 27, 2009 9:54:31	The problem preventing people from updating has been resolved as of last night. However, the May update will not be going live until June 2nd as per the announcement made by Trevor a few weeks back. Hey all. I know we’re all ravenously awaiting DDI information and I was fortunate enough to get my hands on some details I think you’d like to have. Character Builder/Compendium Update - Starting on Tuesday, June 2nd, we will release new updates for the D&D Character Builder and the D&D Compendium on the first Tuesday of every month instead of the fourth Tuesday. The scheduled May 26th update will be moved to June 2nd, and updates will fall on the first Tuesday of every month going forward. Hybrid Classes – Originally we held off on including the Hybrid Class rules in the Character Builder because of the heavy playtest nature of the rules. You guys have given us a lot of feedback and R&D is behind it too, so it looks like we’ll be seeing Hybrid Class rules in the June update to Character Builder. Monk Playtest – With the way information is compiled and added to the Character Builder and Compendium, it generally takes four to eight weeks to get Dragon content into the tools. We all want to get our hands on the monk, and the devs must love us because it looks like we’ll be getting the Monk in the Character Builder and Compendium on the June 2nd update. The info I glanced over had some more stuff about the basic data updates we get every month and some neat things such as resizing windows on your character sheet, but you’ll have to wait for the official announcement to read more on those and the things I already mentioned above. That official announcement goes up the week before the update hits and we’ll make sure to link it for you. Of course, we’re still a few weeks out and things could change, but I wanted to give you guys a peek at what’s on the docket. In related sneak peek news, we are working on another project in the same vein as the XML output version for Character Builder, with the intention of getting more information into the hands of people who want to make tools that interact with the Character Builder and Compendium. You can check out Don’s blog to get an idea of the type of information you might see included in this project. I have no clue when we’ll have something like this compiled and ready for people, but I knew some of you would be interested to hear about it Hopefully this is something I can keep bringing your way. Until then, feel free to discuss the information above in this thread.