Monoprice Select Mini SDcard USB Wireless Connection Issues

[Nifty]

Are you printing from Pronterface?

Yes, but all the stuff I'm printing is relatively small and I haven't had a single problem with the PC cutting out in the middle. If I do a print that's going to be an hour or two plus, then I'll go to the trouble of putting it on the card. Otherwise, working direct from the PC is a dream!

 

[Nifty]

BTW, today I started getting the error again:

... but I might have stumbled onto something. A few posts online said that the "could not open port" and "access is denied" error could be due to something else using the port. So, I did some digging and used "task manager" to kill some processes. I saw "repetier host" running, killed it, and Pronterface was able to start working / printing again via USB!

I'm not going to claim victory just yet, but I'm crossing fingers hoping that uninstalling repetier will free up the port.

 

[stratman]

I saw "repetier host" running, killed it, and Pronterface was able to start working / printing again via USB!

Nice find, Nifty. With effort one can usually find an answer or workaround with Google.

Does Pronterface use repetier host? If not, what does?

This could be two apps, or two copies of the same app, running at the same time, each competing for the same COM port. By killing the one app or process you now can access the port by the other.

This could be a function of improper termination of a process after closing the app or something similar.

 

[stratman]

The Pi connects to the printer via USB, but unlike streaming from a Windows PC (via Cura, Repetier host, Pronterface) you won't have to worry about the job being interrupted by a Windows update etc.

Concerning Windows 10 updating itself without your approval...

There were various workarounds for this Windows (dys)function such as turn on metered connection or, if you were using Pro 10 version (and not Home 10) you could defer updates (non-critical ones) for up to 4 months. Things are changing with the latest Feature Update called Creators Update or Windows 10 version 1703 that wants to install itself on my computer right now, some good, some maybe not so good.

From https://www.thurrott.com/windows/windows-10/107195/updating-windows-10-version-1703-win-lose

For starters, the ability to defer updates is going away. Instead, you will be able to pause updates, and only for up to 7 days. This may sound like semantics—aren’t defer and pause basically the same term?—and of course we’re losing that four-month window. But this new pause feature is arguably more useful in that it pauses all updates. So if you want to work uninterrupted for days at a time, you can actually schedule that and be sure you won’t be surprised one morning by a clean desktop and lost work.

Second, Microsoft has expanded the active hours window you can configure, to up to 18 hours each day. During this window, Windows 10 will not reboot to install updates. And during this window, Windows 10 will now check with you to see if you are in fact using the PC. And if so, you can “snooze” the pending update so you can keep working. So that’s a net win.

Finally, Windows 10 Home users will be treated even more poorly after installing the Creators Update. That metered connection workaround I mentioned earlier is being defanged in Windows 10 version 1703 so that such a network will still allow for the install of “updates required to keep Windows running smoothly,” by which I assume Microsoft means critical security fixes. What this means to you is that, yes, some of these updates may trigger a PC reboot. (Not to mention that those really paying for bandwidth—which is the point of a metered network—will have to pay to download these updates.)

I believe the first two paragraphs are for Windows 10 Pro users only while the paragraph is for Home version users.

So, Pro version users can delay all updates for 7 days at a time, ie no rebooting surprises while 3D printing. Configuring an update scheduled for a specific time range was not perfect functioning previously. Maybe it will work better now. Windows 10 Home users are screwed in that a reboot caused by a critical security or other non-Feature update may be unstoppable.

The old solution to all of this in a Windows 10 environment was and still is to install Windows 10 Enterprise version that allows you to turn off updates. Maybe there are 3rd party fixes, patches or apps that can mimic this behavior in other version of Windows 10. I do not know.

 

[stratman]

More on delaying Windows 10 updates from https://www.cnet.com/how-to/windows-10-tips-best-features/

"Hit the snooze button on updates

When an update is ready to install, Windows will display a large notification with three options: Restart now, Pick a time or Snooze. The notification won't go away until you pick one. Hitting the snooze button lets you pause the update for three days, and you can hit this snooze button as many times as you want. If you have managed to snooze an update for 35 days, Microsoft still won't push the update to you without you agreeing first, but it will change the Snooze button to a Remind Me Tomorrow button, upping the frequency with which you'll need to continue snoozing the update."

 

[Nifty]

Does Pronterface use repetier host? If not, what does?

I installed it (along with a few other programs) in my attempts to get things to work, but it seems it *might* have been adding to the existing problems

Concerning Windows 10 updating itself without your approval...

Yup, I got tired of Windows updates breaking things that were already working, so now I have it require my approval so I can image / backup my PC before applying the "fixes".

 

[FryingSaucer]

Yup, I got tired of Windows updates breaking things that were already working, so now I have it require my approval so I can image / backup my PC before applying the "fixes".

Yet more on this. I have The Creators Update on Win10Pro. I'm pretty sure I had updates disabled for much longer than 7 days a few weeks ago. Certainly the setting screen for Windows Update has longer periods, and shows that they can be paused for 35 days. Unfortunately none of this helps anyone on Windows 10 Home. Microsoft obviously thinks that anyone using Windows 10 Home doesn't use their PC for anything important

 

[ninj]

I think Linux is ideal for operating a 3d printer (not so much for a 2d printer) - no drivers to install, updates fully under your control, easy and secure software installs from a central repository, vastly less worry about viruses, no one spying on you, etc. You can simply install and boot from a USB drive (no changes to your PC) or install in parallel with Windows. My preferred distro: https://getfedora.org/

 

[stratman]

I think Linux is ideal for operating a 3d printe

I was thinking the same thing given the penchant of Windows to surprise reboot, the added steps to remember to delay updates, and the prolonged printing times for 3D, and I am not a Linux fan.

The requirements are fairly low for Fedora: https://docs.fedoraproject.org/en-U.../chap-Virtualization-System_requirements.html so an old computer may fill the bill nicely. My question is how much additional app installation or OS set up would be required after installing Fedora?

 

[PeterBJ]

I think Linux is ideal for operating a 3d printer.....

That would be a good use for that old Windows XP computer one might have kept.