Docking Ports wont Undock

[Hrd12Beat]

I have an issue that just started a few days ago. I have searched for another post and looked at possible hotkeys that i may have pushed with no luck. My Clamp-O-Tron Docking ports won't undock. They will still dock ok but not undock. I have reloaded and even loaded an older quicksave and still no luck. Any ideas? I do have Konstruction installed but i have not started building with its ports yet. 

I am running  version 1.3.9.

Loaded Mods:

Community Category Kit  Ver 2.0.1.0

Community Resource Pack  Ver. 0.7.1.0

Easy Vessel Switch  Ver. 1.3.0

Firesplitter Core  Ver. 7.6.0

KAS ver. 0.6.3.0

KIS  Ver. 1.5.0

Konstruction  ver. 0.2.1.0

MechJeb 2   ver. 2.6.1.0

MechJeb and Engineer for all   ver.1.2.0.0

Module Manager  ver  2.8.1

USI Tools  ver. 0.9.2.0

[FancyMouse]

Picture? Right click both docking ports and none of them give you Undock button? Or is it there's no effect when clicking Undock? Is there Autostrut running through this pair of docking ports?

[Weywot8]

And also, have you tried the debug menu (Alt-F12), "clear input lock" fix? Rather silly to ask as well but just checking all the bases - those are stock docking ports and not Konstruction ports?

[bewing]

Try this tool. 

 

[Hrd12Beat]

To clarify, when i select on the 2 docked ports. the one on the main ship side gives me the option to Undock but i get no action when i press it. That option disappears but the ports stay attached. the mated port in the attached ship does not give me the option to Undock but as i have checked other docked ships this seems to be normal. However it shows Locked before and after i have pressed the Undock button on the other port. And no struts on or near ports and they are the Clamp-o-Tron default ports.

I loaded an old save from weeks before the issue started and this issue now exist in that instance also. This affects all docking ports on all of my current ships.

But to add a level of ???? if I build a new ship the ports function correctly but they give the the option to decouple node and not undock until i have separated them once and then redocked. But even after that they still function properly.

 

I can't seem to get the debug window to come up using alt-F12 or alt-FN-F12 but if this is unrelated it is for another time.

 

I am going to look into "bewing's" answer and see if this helps.

 

Thank you all for your post!

[Tex_NL]

40 minutes ago, Hrd12Beat said:

I am going to look into "bewing's" answer and see if this helps.

If @bewings suggestion does not fix things there is an other option: Sever the connection between the two ports with KAS. According to your list you've already installed it so there is no reason not to use it.

Edited July 21, 2017 by Tex_NL

[genericeventhandler]

1 hour ago, Hrd12Beat said:

To clarify, when i select on the 2 docked ports. the one on the main ship side gives me the option to Undock but i get no action when i press it. That option disappears but the ports stay attached. the mated port in the attached ship does not give me the option to Undock but as i have checked other docked ships this seems to be normal. However it shows Locked before and after i have pressed the Undock button on the other port. And no struts on or near ports and they are the Clamp-o-Tron default ports.

I loaded an old save from weeks before the issue started and this issue now exist in that instance also. This affects all docking ports on all of my current ships.

But to add a level of ???? if I build a new ship the ports function correctly but they give the the option to decouple node and not undock until i have separated them once and then redocked. But even after that they still function properly.

 

I can't seem to get the debug window to come up using alt-F12 or alt-FN-F12 but if this is unrelated it is for another time.

 

I am going to look into "bewing's" answer and see if this helps.

 

Thank you all for your post!

alt gr - F12

The reason you have this bug, is you staged after you docked two ships together, you need KML to fix your save game. 

HTH

GEH

 

 

 

[Spricigo]

2 hours ago, Tex_NL said:

If @bewings suggestion does not fix things there is an other option: Sever the connection between the two ports with KAS. According to your list you've already installed it so there is no reason not to use it.

Worth trying but I see a possible problem there: the docking ports may be well in the middle of the stack for what the game is concerned and KAS don't allow to detach a part with other parts attached to it.

Ship save splicer can be a good option for a quick fix, allow you to save a ship in flight, edit in the VAB/SPH  to correct the issue and load the corrected ship.

 

2 hours ago, Hrd12Beat said:

I can't seem to get the debug window to come up using alt-F12 or alt-FN-F12 but if this is unrelated it is for another time.

Chances are that some other program sequestered that key-binding. Have you tried both right alt and left alt?

[Kerbal101]

@Hrd12Beat

This is known. I had this. I suspect the issue of this is saving during docking port state change, that happened with small dock ports to me.

This is how to solve. You only need a text editor and few minutes:

 

Its interesting to see that you don't have KER installed (as some claimed it caused the issue). USI can't be causing it. Must be stock bug.
There was a tool within the Stock Bugfix Modules, to Force-Undock the ports, but that mod is not supported anymore

[Tex_NL]

19 minutes ago, Spricigo said:

... and KAS don't allow to detach a part with other parts attached to it.

This USED to be true. Since several versions ago KAS allows you to grab/connect/disconnect multi-part segments. (KIS won't let you store multi-part segments however.)
And even though the multi-part segment is more than likely too heavy for a single Kerbal to lift (s)he can still detach it. I've don it in the past my self. Just try it, it will work.

[Spricigo]

Just now, Tex_NL said:

This USED to be true. Since several versions ago KAS allows you to grab/connect/disconnect multi-part segments. (KIS won't let you store multi-part segments however.)
And even though the multi-part segment is more than likely too heavy for a single Kerbal to lift (s)he can still detach it. I've don it in the past my self. Just try it, it will work.

 

Was unaware of this, good to know.

Was a long time since I used  KAS (since I found the functionalities  I'm interested better provided by other mods. A matter of taste.).

[bewing]

6 hours ago, genericeventhandler said:

The reason you have this bug, is you staged after you docked two ships together

Oooh! Thanks for the reproduction info! I'll try it and see what happens.

[Kerbal101]

@bewing In my case, I have not staged and got this bug. However, I did something which was expressed in this thread to possibly be the case:

Basically, the game gets confused about vehicle ids once they separate, if the root item of the docker (the one who docks) has no control authority. They do not necessary have no control authority, its that that control authority (drone package or capsule) is not root.

This can happen, if during assembly of payload/launcher combo - the payload is attached to launcher as a subassembly, hence payload has root node below and control authority(which is usually above) itself ends up being not root. The giveaway of such vehicles, is that user has to constantly click and switch control autority ("control from here") after switching to it.

I had an "orbital worker" that had a control drone but was incorrectly rooted for similar reason, with incorrect root set as normal docking port in the end of the vehicle. That vehicle got this issue as it docked with small docking port of the very simple space fuel can (with drone too), but I deorbited it after getting improved model into orbit.

[bewing]

2 minutes ago, Kerbal101 said:

@bewing In my case: the root item of the docker (the one who docks) has no control authority.

 

The thing is, I do that all the time. I have plenty of ships where the root part is an engine or a docking port or something -- because I have used merging to create the ship from smaller pieces. And I've never seen this bug in my life. So it has to be something more than just that. But I never stage ships after they've docked! And in any case, if I can find any way at all of making this bug happen reliably then I can show to the devs and get it fixed.

 

[Kerbal101]

@bewing Thanks a lot bewing!! This is a bug that is definitely here, it would be great job if you could! Perhaps we should ask the community to upload such vehicle, or ask them to share the time they got it.

I have uploaded my savegame in corrupt and non-corrupt state above in the linked thread, but I don't have that specific craft (craft file) anymore. I can upload "edit:second (improved) version," if you wish (it requires USI mod pack though, possibly but unlikely also Dr.Jet Chopshop)

Edited July 22, 2017 by Kerbal101

[Hrd12Beat]

I have resolves the issue. It seems that some how that some of the ports were in the wrong state. I thank you all but would like to give special thanks to genericeventhandle for his recommendation of KML.

KML not only made it easy to fix the issue but it detected the issues when I loaded the save file. The issue was more widespread than I thought affecting about 30 ports on several different ships.

 

Brewing

I can link my saves with the issue and after the issue was resolved but i am guessing that wont help as it appears we know what the file will look like once the issue exist. I will keep an eye out for it again and give as much detail leading up to it as a novice can.

[Egdod]

I get this problem from time to time.  The easiest and quickest fix I have found is to:

1) Set the docking port on the part you want to un-dock from to disable cross-feed (this makes it easier to find in step 3) and ensure that is the only port on that ship that is set to disabled.

2) Quit the game and backup your persistent.svs save. 

3) Edit the save with notepad, search (Cntrl+F) for "Crossfeed = False", scroll up to make sure it's the right ship (since you may have disabled crossfeed on a different ship as well).

4) Scroll back to the port and look for "State = Disengage".  That's your culprit right there. Change it to "State = Docked (docker)"

5) Save the change in notepad, restart your game, and you should be able to un-dock just fine.  This fix has worked for me many times.

Edited March 14, 2018 by Egdod

[maddog59]

On 7/21/2017 at 11:21 AM, genericeventhandler said:

The reason you have this bug, is you staged after you docked two ships together, you need KML to fix your save game. 

 

I know this thread is more ~3.5 years old, but I wanted to let anyone know who's looking for a solution that this worked for me just great. I'm running KSP 1.10; I closed the problem game, and as soon as I started KML and opened the persistant file, it displayed the warnings on all of the problem docking ports; right-clicked and selected repair on each warning, saved, and re-start the game and all was glorious; the sun came out, the birds started singing, and I heard angels singing.

Thank you THANK you THANK YOU, Lister (and Mythos and genericeventhandler)   

[Noah Simons]

Sorry, a little late to the discussion! But I have not so much a fix, more of an unethical but effective-ish way to get around the docking port not undocking.

Destroy it! Specifically, use the object launcher to throw a very light (1.0 mass), very small (0.1 size), but very fast (70 speed) cube right at either of the two docking ports you want undocked. Obviously, this destroys the port, but it does keep every single other part around it intact as long as you aim correctly. If you no longer need the docking port, then problem solved. If, however, you still need to use the port for another docking, a crewed vessel can use an engineer and bring whichever docking port you need in the crew module's storage (the clamp o tron senior might not fit? I haven't checked) and simply attach another docking port.

Anyway, the work around is about as brute force as you can get, but I just got it to work a couple times with some simple space shuttle-style missions that only needed one or two dockings. Hope this helps somebody 7 years later lmao.