Common Issues & Errors

Important

This list will be updated as issues and errors are discovered or fixed.

Note

If the information on this page fails to resolve the roadblocks that you are experiencing, please contact us using the contact information listed under the Tracktable Contacts section. Include a description of your problem, the OS and version you’re using, details of your Python/Anaconda environment, and any screenshots and error messages you can capture.

Installation

  • Pip fails to install Tracktable

    Look carefully at the error message. It is most likely an error while trying to install Cartopy, a map rendering toolkit that tracktable uses to render images. This will show up as a complaint about a GEOS version or a request for Proj 4.9.0.

    The solution is to install Cartopy and its dependencies yourself before you try to install Tracktable.

    • If you’re using Anaconda:

      The command conda install --channel conda-forge cartopy should resolve the issue.

    • If you’re using pip:

      Tip

      We highly recommend using Anaconda to install and manage Tracktable and its dependencies.

      • Install the Cartopy required dependencies

      • Once the dependencies are in place, the command pip install cartopy should succeed.

    • If neither of the above worked, then please refer to the Cartopy installation instructions for additional ways to install Cartopy.

    After you have installed Cartopy, retry pip install tracktable.

  • Python reports one of the following error messages when importing tracktable:

    • "Error importing C Python extension example..."

    • "Error importing Boost.Python example..."

    • "Error importing core Boost libraries..."

    • "Error importing Tracktable's core types library..."

      • This is an OS-specific compiled library issue. See the Shared Library bullet below describing this issue in more detail.

  • Errors about client certificates, certificate validation, or connections timing out while trying to install anything with Conda or Pip.

    • This is a proxy/SSL issue and outside the scope of this document.

  • Pip tries and fails to build Cartopy

    • If at all possible, please use Anaconda. The developers of Cartopy provide binary packages for Anaconda.

    • If you absolutely can’t use Anaconda and your operating system’s package manager does not include Cartopy, refer to the “Pip fails to install Tracktable” section above.

Build Time

Note

For more information about building Tracktable from source, please refer to the Installing Tracktable From Source guide. These issues and others are covered there.

  • Boost import targets not found

    • This happens when your installed version of CMake is too old for your installed version of Boost. Please upgrade CMake to at least 3.19.

  • Anaconda CMake package doesn’t include ccmake

    • This is a known bug that has been fixed in conda-forge but has not yet propagated to the main distribution. Install cmake from the conda-forge channel as follows:

      conda install --channel conda-forge cmake

  • Old Boost version found in /usr/lib or /usr/lib64

    • Set the Boost_INCLUDE_DIR variable in CMake to point to the location of the include files for your preferred Boost installation. The filenames for the compiled libraries will be updated the next time you press c or Configure.

Runtime

  • Python throwing an error similar to “ModuleNotFoundError: No module named ‘tracktable’”

    • If you installed Tracktable using pip, this error indicates that the Python interpreter you just started is probably not the one for which you installed Tracktable. If you are using virtual environments, make sure the correct one is active.

    • If you installed Tracktable from source, add Tracktable’s installation directory (for example, /usr/local/Python) to the front of your PYTHONPATH environment variable.

  • Python throwing an error similar to “ModuleNotFoundError: No module named ‘<package name>’” that is unrelated to Tracktable

    • If Python can’t find a package that isn’t tracktable it’s possible that the package isn’t installed in the environment. If you are using virtual environments, make sure the correct one is active. If the problem persists, use one of the following commands to install the missing package:

      conda install --channel conda-forge <package name>

      conda install <package name>

      pip3 install <package name>

      Tip

      We highly recommend using Anaconda to install and manage tracktable and it’s dependencies.

  • Shared Library Errors, Python throwing one of the following errors when attempting to import Tracktable

    • "Error importing C Python extension example..."

    • "Error importing Boost.Python example..."

    • "Error importing core Boost libraries..."

    • "Error importing Tracktable's core types library..."

    These errors occur when the Python interpreter is unable to find a shared library required by Tracktable, such as Boost or Tracktable’s compiled libraries. Below is additional information about the error messages as well as some additional tips that may resolve them.

    • Error Descriptions:

      1. "Error importing C Python extension example..."

        This error indicates that Tracktable was unable to import a module that was built using Python’s builtin C/C++ extension module creation. Typically, this indicates that there is an issue with either the Tracktable _c_python module missing from the Tracktable installation or the module not being referenced on the system’s path.

      2. "Error importing Boost.Python example..."

        This error indicates that Tracktable was unable to import a module that was built using Boost.Python module creation. Typically, this indicates that there is an issue with the Tracktable _tracktable_hello module missing from the Tracktable installation, the module not being referenced on the system’s path or the given Boost installation is missing the Python library from it’s installation.

      3. "Error importing core Boost libraries..."

        This error indicates that Tracktable was unable to import the core Boost libraries Outline in the C++ Dependencies section. Typically, this indicates that there is an issue with the Tracktable _boost_libs module missing from the Tracktable installation, the module not being referenced on the system’s path or the given Boost installation is missing the required libraries from it’s installation.

      4. "Error importing Tracktable's core types library..."

        This error indicates that Tracktable was unable to import it’s main compiled library core_types. Typically, this indicates that there is an issue with the Tracktable _core_types module missing from the Tracktable installation or the module not being referenced on the system’s path.

    • Possible Resolutions:

      • Verify that the Python installation being used was installed correctly.

      • Verify that correct Tracktable installation is being referenced on the system’s path if their is more then one Tracktable version installed on the system.

      • Verify that the system and/or Python path contains references to Boost and Tracktable’s compiled libraries.

      • Verify that the system’s Boost installation contains all of the libraries that are required by Tracktable.

      • Microsoft Windows:

        The C++ runtime library may be missing. It can be downloaded from the Microsoft’s Visual C++ downloads page.

      • MacOS:

        The ICU library may be too recent. Tracktable 1.5 and newer was built using ICU version 64. If you’re using Anaconda, run the following command to install the correct version:

        conda install --channel conda-forge icu=64

        Note

        If Anaconda reports a conflict from the above command, you may need to remove and recreate the environment. Conda can often resolve version conflicts when an environment is created. Specify icu=64 as one of the arguments to conda create. Refer to Anaconda Virtual Environment section for further instruction.

      • If you built one or more dependencies from source, they may need to be manually added to your environment.

        • Windows

          Add the package’s library directory to the PATH environment variable.

        • Linux

          Add the package’s library directory to the LD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variable.

        • MacOS

          Add the package’s library directory to the DYLD_LIBRARY_PATH environment variable.