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I started to run a workspace in FME Workbench (desktop, version 2015). The execution takes a long time (already 1 week, lasts 3 weeks).

Is it possible to do this (with my workbench I have already started)?

  1. pause the execution
  2. reboot the pc
  3. resume the execution (without let FME begin at the beginning)

The workspace is quite simple: Reader (ECW) > Reprojector > Writer (ECW).

Besides input and output files there are some temporary files fme has generated: enter image description here

I know that I am able to pause and resume a workspace with this tool. But as far as I know it does not work if I close FME:

enter image description here

I searched in FME help and web but I did not found a solution. I want to reboot the pc because our it department want to install updates to windos and/or to other software.

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  • To pause (or at least slow down to a point it is waiting) whilst running try the Decelerator Transfomer safe.com/transformers/decelerator
    – Mapperz ♦
    Jun 16, 2016 at 13:32
  • Thanks to @Mapperz. But FME has been running for 1 week. If I add the Decelerator Transfomer now (!) I assume that I have to start FME from the beginning!? I do not want to start at the beginning because then I lose 1 week.
    – Jens
    Jun 16, 2016 at 13:43

2 Answers 2

Reset to default
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I tried to pause a translation and exit FME, and it warned that the translation would stop.

fme workbench

When I reopened FME, it restarted the translation from the beginning. My understanding is that the translation state and some data is stored in RAM, and it is lost when you close the application, and definitely lost when you reboot.

This could be an idea for a future enhancement though, pausing the translation and saving the state so you can resume later. Paging @mark-ireland! ;)

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The above answer is correct that FME won't save the current state of a translation if you stop it. Once a translation is started you have to see it through to the finish.

I will file an enhancement request with the developers to see what they think. But I'd also like to discuss or suggest a few other options.

1) Have you had anyone check your workspace to see if it could run in less that that time? I know bulk raster handling can take ages, and sometimes there's no way to avoid a lengthy process, but you can always send your workspace and log file to safe.com/support and ask them to check. Or post it here if you like.

2) My thoughts about improving performance (without having seen your workspace) are that fanouts are expensive in terms of resources, so try to avoid those. So is reading (say) 1,000 raster files together, reprojecting them all, and then writing them back out to 1,000 new files. Maybe you can restructure the translation or reconfigure it in a way that avoids masses of data. For example, process one file at a time using a Master/Slave setup and the FMEWorkspaceRunner transformer. You can even run multiple slave processes simultaneously in such a scenario. See this example to find out how this is done.

3) You want to stop the translation because the machine is needed for something else, so have you considered FME Cloud? That way you have a dedicated machine that is used for FME and you won't need to interrupt it for updates, etc.

I hope something here is of use. Feel free to contact me directly, or post the same as a question on our knowledge centre, where other FME experts can chime in.

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  • 1
    Thanks for the confirmation of Mintix answer and for further information. My workspace is quite simple: Reader (1 ECW) > Reprojector > Writer (1 ECW). Previous raster processings (different workspaces) have lasted only a few hours or a few days. Therefore I had not planned a processing for weeks. I hoped that there is a possibility to use temporary files after a reboot to again. What I plan to do now: I hope that the IT department will put the reboot on hold until FME is complete. If not I will start a new Q how to speed up the processing.
    – Jens
    Jun 20, 2016 at 14:41
  • I spoke to our raster developer. If you'd like us to look into this he suggests you create a workspace that reads the raster file and sends it to a Logger transformer. Then send us the log file. That would be easier than trying to send us the entire dataset. If you do that, I'd suggest checking the Workspace parameter (in the Navigator window) called Max Logged Features to Record and set it to zero. Otherwise the Logger will write out the raster as a spatial log as well (and that wouldn't be useful)!
    – Mark Ireland
    Jun 21, 2016 at 14:24
  • Thanks. I send the log files to your support. ID is C117261.
    – Jens
    Jun 22, 2016 at 7:01
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    Thanks to FME support team and @Mark-Ireland: the problem was insufficient disk space in FME temporary folder. With more space the estimated processing time will be 2 days instead of 4 weeks.
    – Jens
    Jun 24, 2016 at 8:42

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