X-KeyPad Crashes X-Plane 12 beta version 12.4.0-b1 when opening json file in configuration editor

[waltbarrow]

I just installed the X-Plane 12 beta version 12.4.0-b1 and updated X-KeyPad to its beta version 1.7. When I am editing a json file with the confiuration editor and try to open another json file from the Open menu item, X-Plane 12 makes a popping sound and crashes to the desktop. Is this a known problem? If so, is there a workaround for it?

I can edit and save the json file opened when the plane loads, but any time I try to open another json file, the crash occurs. I checked the log.txt file, but all it says it that the application has crashed.

I am running X-Plane on a MacBook Pro with the M2 chip set using Max OS X Sequoia 15.7.1.

I also tried simply saving the current json file to a directory and that, too, caused X-Plane to crash to the desktop.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Log.txt

[markcellis]

I can't seem to reproduce this. One thing I noticed that was a bit odd is that X-Plane 12 is inside another X-Plane 12 folder:

X-System folder:'/Users/barroww/X-Plane 12/X-Plane 12/', case sensitive=0

Has your system always been like that?

Can you do a file append? I suspect that is not working either.

All I can think of is that there is something odd in your X-Plane root folder that X-KeyPad is having an issue with when it tries to build the file list. Hopefully, there is not some kind of odd circular folder shortcut.

Maybe we can set up a time for me to take a look at your system. Contact me here:

[waltbarrow]

Mark, Thanks for your prompt reply. Somehow, when I first installed X-Plane, I wound up with the nested X-Plane 12 directories. I’ve run with this the whole time, so I don’t think that is the problem. However, to be sure, I re-structured things so I have a single X-Plane 12 directory with everything inside. I pared everything down by removing all plugins (except X-KeyPad) and all custom planes so I now have the simplest version of software to try and debug this issue. I also removed all older json files and started from scratch. This is a work in progress. I’ll keep you updated with my progress. I have found some weird behavior, but I need to work on it a little more. Thanks! Walt Barrow

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On Dec 22, 2025, at 1:55 AM, Mark Ellis ***@***.***> wrote: markcellis left a comment (markcellis/X-KeyPad#141) <#141 (comment)> I can't seem to reproduce this. One thing I noticed that was a bit odd is that X-Plane 12 is inside another X-Plane 12 folder: X-System folder:'/Users/barroww/X-Plane 12/X-Plane 12/', case sensitive=0 Has your system always been like that? Can you do a file append? I suspect that is not working either. All I can think of is that there is something odd in your X-Plane root folder that X-KeyPad is having an issue with when it tries to build the file list. Hopefully, there is not some kind of odd circular folder shortcut. Maybe we can set up a time for me to take a look at your system. Contact me here: <https://stickandrudderstudios.com/contact-us/> — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#141 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/B32IHNXE2C7PJNHRK7RFSHT4C6WXNAVCNFSM6AAAAACPWYLOPGVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZTMOBRGA4DIOJXGA>. You are receiving this because you authored the thread.

[waltbarrow]

Also, I found out that when I try to open an existing json file, it is being accessed okay, but something happens just after that that causes X-Plane to crash. When I removed all other plugins, I started getting some error messages in the log.txt file identifying missing datarefs, commands, whatever. So, I think the file is being read okay, and for a brief moment I see the virtual device windows pop up just before the program crashes. I have some business to take care of this afternoon, but I’ll send you a more detailed description of what I’m seeing later on. Thanks! Walt Barrow

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On Dec 22, 2025, at 1:55 AM, Mark Ellis ***@***.***> wrote: markcellis left a comment (markcellis/X-KeyPad#141) <#141 (comment)> I can't seem to reproduce this. One thing I noticed that was a bit odd is that X-Plane 12 is inside another X-Plane 12 folder: X-System folder:'/Users/barroww/X-Plane 12/X-Plane 12/', case sensitive=0 Has your system always been like that? Can you do a file append? I suspect that is not working either. All I can think of is that there is something odd in your X-Plane root folder that X-KeyPad is having an issue with when it tries to build the file list. Hopefully, there is not some kind of odd circular folder shortcut. Maybe we can set up a time for me to take a look at your system. Contact me here: <https://stickandrudderstudios.com/contact-us/> — Reply to this email directly, view it on GitHub <#141 (comment)>, or unsubscribe <https://github.com/notifications/unsubscribe-auth/B32IHNXE2C7PJNHRK7RFSHT4C6WXNAVCNFSM6AAAAACPWYLOPGVHI2DSMVQWIX3LMV43OSLTON2WKQ3PNVWWK3TUHMZTMOBRGA4DIOJXGA>. You are receiving this because you authored the thread.

[markcellis]

Can you zip up the JSON file and attach it. I'll see if it dies when I try to load it.

Mark

[waltbarrow]

Mark, Attached please find the Cessna 172SP json file I have created. Here is a simple scenario to demonstrate the problem:

1. Unzip the json file and place it in the root folder of X-Plane 12 for easy access.
2. Start X-Plane 12 and select the default Laminar Cessna 172.
3. When the plane is loaded, use the plugin menu to bring up the X-KeyPad configuration editor.
4. From the main menu, select the Open menu option.
5. Select the X-Keys_Cessna_172SP.json file.
6. Then press the Open button to open the file. It should load properly, displaying some errors (since various datarefs I have been using don't exist because I don't have FlyWithLua installed at the moment). If you open the log.txt file, you should see these errors there.).
7. From the main menu, select the Close menu option. X-Plane will crash, or at least it does on my computer. On my system, I hear a faint static pop after I choose the Close menu option and then I get the crash screen. I'm not sure what causes the static popping sound, but I have noticed this many times before just before X-Plane crashes while in normal usage.

X-Keys_Cessna_172SP.json.zip

Another scenario you can try is the following:

1. Remove any json file from the Cessna plane directory.
2. Start up X-Plane 12 and let X-KeyPad create an empty json file.
3. Open the configuration editor and create a single unit and virtual device. You should see a device window with no buttons defined show up on the screen.
4. Save this empty device using the Save As menu option. On my system, X-Plane crashes, but not until after it saves the file.

And, just to make sure we're both on the same page, I am running the X-Plane beta version and the 1.7 beta 21 version of X-KeyPad. Will the 1.7 beta X-KeyPad plugin work with the official X-Plane release, or is it just for the beta version? Or am I totally confused :) I had no problems with X-KeyPad before I installed the X-Plane beta version.

Anyway, try these scenarios and see what happens on your end and please let me know what you find.

Thanks, again for your help!

Walt Barrow

[waltbarrow]

A quick update. I managed to resurrect the non-beta version of X-Plane 12 and get the 1.7 beta version of X-KeyPad installed on it. It works fine. I can open and save files as I have been able to all along. So, it seems that the 1.7 beta version only has problems (at least in my configuration) when I use it with the X-Plane 12 beta version. Not sure if that helps, but it's a data point to consider.

[markcellis]

So I have the problem reproduced. I'm working with Laminar to see if they can fix X-Plane or if I need to do things differently now. Stay tuned. You will need to work with the X-Plane 12.3 version until we resolve this issue.

[waltbarrow]

I'm glad you were able to reproduce the problem, that's good news. Btw, I really appreciate what you've created with X-KeyPad. I've spent many hours creating cockpit interfaces for the planes I fly and X-KeyPad has made my "flying" experience much, much better. It's hard for me to click the controls and switches with the mouse and fly at the same time. Also, being a retired computer programmer, building cockpits is kind of like coding, again. Keep up the good work! If there's anything I can do, let me know. Thanks!