No charts available in request tracker installed from source

RTIR
1

Hi list,

I’ve installed requesttracker 4.2.8 on Ubuntu 14.04, using the tar.gz provided on bestpractical.com.
My configure line was the following:

# RT was configured with:
#   $ ./configure --enable-graphviz --enable-gd --enable-gpg --enable-smime --with-db-rt-pass=secret --with-web-user=www-data --with-web-group=www-data

Dependency-check doesn’t report any missing deps.

I understand that the charts are created using gd, while e.g. connections between tickets are drawn using graphviz.

I’ve the following GD packages installed:
dpkg -l |grep gd
ii libgd-dev:amd64 2.1.0-3 amd64 GD Graphics Library (development version)
ii libgd-gd2-perl 1:2.46-3.1build1 amd64 Perl module wrapper for libgd - gd2 variant
ii libgd-graph-perl 1.44-6 all Graph Plotting Module for Perl 5
ii libgd-text-perl 0.86-8 all Text utilities for use with GD
ii libgd3:amd64 2.1.0-3 amd64 GD Graphics Library
ii libgdbm3:amd64 1.8.3-12build1 amd64 GNU dbm database routines (runtime version)
ii python3-gdbm:amd64 3.4.0-0ubuntu1 amd64 GNU dbm database support for Python 3.x

When I access RT in a browser to display charts, the browser only shows an icon where the graph should be, looking like a broken graphic.
Neither the rt log in debug mode nor the apache logfiles contain any error or warning concerning this issue, so I’m completely lost now.

What can I do to track down the reason for the missing graph feature?

Thanks,
Marek

Sitz der Gesellschaft / Corporate Headquarters: Lufthansa Systems Aktiengesellschaft, Kelsterbach, Registereintragung / Registration: Amtsgericht Darmstadt 84307
Vorsitzende des Aufsichtsrats / Chairperson of the Supervisory Board: Simone Menne
Vorstand / Executive Board: Stefan Hansen (Vorsitzender / Chairman), Dr. Gunter Kuechler

2

When I access RT in a browser to display charts, the browser only shows an icon where the graph should be, looking like a broken graphic.
Neither the rt log in debug mode nor the apache logfiles contain any error or warning concerning this issue, so I’m completely lost now.

What can I do to track down the reason for the missing graph feature?

Right click on the broken image and see what is served.
You may need to use your browser’s dev tools to get the actual
content/headers of the request. Alternately, get the URL for the
image and use curl to make a request for it (borrowing your session
cookie).

-kevin

3

Hi Kevin,

thanks for your reply.
The link to the graphic is http://my-rt-host/rt/Search/Chart?Cache=6258d99d5617b18c47df56914efcdfa3&ChartFunction=COUNT&ChartStyle=bar&Class=RT%3A%3ATickets&Format=&GroupBy=Queue&Height=&Query=Owner%20%3D%20'Nobody'%20AND%20Status%20%3D%20'new'&Rows=10&SavedSearchId=RT%3A%3ASystem-1-SavedSearch-11&SearchType=Chart&ShowNavigation=0&Width=&hideable=1

The search produces results as expected, only the chart won’t display.
Another bug is that when I try to change the graphic in the top right corner using the theme customization, I end up with no graphic there at all.
I’ve already re-run the RT installation, now running “make upgrade” as the last step, without any result.

Shouldn’t there be any kind of error message somewhere when RT fails to run the chart generator code?

marek-----Original Message-----
From: rtir [mailto:rtir-bounces@lists.bestpractical.com] On Behalf Of Kevin Falcone
Sent: Wednesday, October 15, 2014 10:55 PM
To: rtir@lists.bestpractical.com
Subject: Re: [Rtir] no charts available in request tracker installed from source

On Wed, Oct 15, 2014 at 02:47:36PM +0000, marek.kreul@lhsystems.com wrote:

When I access RT in a browser to display charts, the browser only shows an icon where the graph should be, looking like a broken graphic.
Neither the rt log in debug mode nor the apache logfiles contain any error or warning concerning this issue, so I’m completely lost now.

What can I do to track down the reason for the missing graph feature?

Right click on the broken image and see what is served.
You may need to use your browser’s dev tools to get the actual content/headers of the request. Alternately, get the URL for the image and use curl to make a request for it (borrowing your session cookie).

-kevin

4

The link to the graphic is http://my-rt-host/rt/Search/Chart?Cache=6258d99d5617b18c47df56914efcdfa3&ChartFunction=COUNT&ChartStyle=bar&Class=RT%3A%3ATickets&Format=&GroupBy=Queue&Height=&Query=Owner%20%3D%20'Nobody'%20AND%20Status%20%3D%20'new'&Rows=10&SavedSearchId=RT%3A%3ASystem-1-SavedSearch-11&SearchType=Chart&ShowNavigation=0&Width=&hideable=1

If you curl -v this URL (you’ll likely need to steal your browser’s
cookies) what do the headers say?

Another bug is that when I try to change the graphic in the top right corner using the theme customization, I end up with no graphic there at all.

Interesting. That’s a totally different codepath. Would you also
curl -v that result?

I’ve already re-run the RT installation, now running “make upgrade” as the last step, without any result.

This is unlikely to do anything.
Was this a fresh install or an upgrade?

Shouldn’t there be any kind of error message somewhere when RT fails to run the chart generator code?

There should, however until we see what is actually returned to the
browser (using something like curl) it’s hard to say why it’s failing.

For reference, our 4.2.8’s aren’t showing this (you should be able to
log in as guest on issues.bestpractical.com) so I’m having trouble
replicating.

-kevin

5

There should, however until we see what is actually returned to the
browser (using something like curl) it’s hard to say why it’s failing.

For reference, our 4.2.8’s aren’t showing this (you should be able to
log in as guest on issues.bestpractical.com) so I’m having trouble
replicating.

Someone else who was running into a similar problem was running
RT-Authen-ExternalAuth. You don’t mention it, but it causes breakage
identical to what you’re describing.

If you were running it and forgot to mention it, please upgrade to
0.25 which was shipped to CPAN this evening.

-kevin

6

Hi Kevin,

interesting - I would have never thought that such an “unrelated” plugin could cause such an issue.
You’re right, we are using ExternalAuth (and RT::Extension::ExtractCustomFieldValues), and I’ve upgraded the plugin to ExternalAuth 0.25 today - without success (checked by accessing the “theme” config page → message “GD is disabled or not installed. You can upload an image, but you won’t get automatic color suggestions.”
Then, I tried disabling all plugins in RT_SiteConfig.pm, which solved the issue.
Re-Enabling ExternalAuth broke the charting again, so I guess the bug in correlation with ExternalAuth still exists.

Is there anything I can provide to help troubleshooting the issue?

Marek

Sitz der Gesellschaft / Corporate Headquarters: Lufthansa Systems Aktiengesellschaft, Kelsterbach, Registereintragung / Registration: Amtsgericht Darmstadt 84307
Vorsitzende des Aufsichtsrats / Chairperson of the Supervisory Board: Simone Menne
Vorstand / Executive Board: Stefan Hansen (Vorsitzender / Chairman), Dr. Gunter Kuechler-----Original Message-----

From: rtir [mailto:rtir-bounces@lists.bestpractical.com] On Behalf Of Kevin Falcone
Sent: Thursday, October 16, 2014 11:18 PM
To: rtir@lists.bestpractical.com
Subject: Re: [Rtir] no charts available in request tracker installed from source

On Thu, Oct 16, 2014 at 11:25:41AM -0400, Kevin Falcone wrote:

There should, however until we see what is actually returned to the
browser (using something like curl) it’s hard to say why it’s failing.

For reference, our 4.2.8’s aren’t showing this (you should be able to
log in as guest on issues.bestpractical.com) so I’m having trouble
replicating.

Someone else who was running into a similar problem was running RT-Authen-ExternalAuth. You don’t mention it, but it causes breakage identical to what you’re describing.

If you were running it and forgot to mention it, please upgrade to
0.25 which was shipped to CPAN this evening.

-kevin

7

Short update: Also with all plugins disabled and the charting and logo-selection working, the theme customization page shows the “GD is disabled or not installed” message.

Marek

Sitz der Gesellschaft / Corporate Headquarters: Lufthansa Systems Aktiengesellschaft, Kelsterbach, Registereintragung / Registration: Amtsgericht Darmstadt 84307
Vorsitzende des Aufsichtsrats / Chairperson of the Supervisory Board: Simone Menne
Vorstand / Executive Board: Stefan Hansen (Vorsitzender / Chairman), Dr. Gunter KuechlerFrom: KREUL, MAREK
Sent: Monday, October 20, 2014 11:50 AM
To: rtir@lists.bestpractical.com
Subject: RE: [Rtir] no charts available in request tracker installed from source

Hi Kevin,

interesting - I would have never thought that such an “unrelated” plugin could cause such an issue.
You’re right, we are using ExternalAuth (and RT::Extension::ExtractCustomFieldValues), and I’ve upgraded the plugin to ExternalAuth 0.25 today - without success (checked by accessing the “theme” config page → message “GD is disabled or not installed. You can upload an image, but you won’t get automatic color suggestions.”
Then, I tried disabling all plugins in RT_SiteConfig.pm, which solved the issue.
Re-Enabling ExternalAuth broke the charting again, so I guess the bug in correlation with ExternalAuth still exists.

Is there anything I can provide to help troubleshooting the issue?

Marek

8

interesting - I would have never thought that such an “unrelated” plugin could cause such an issue.

Plugins (and any local customizations) can always cause problems like
this.

You’re right, we are using ExternalAuth (and
RT::Extension::ExtractCustomFieldValues), and I’ve upgraded the plugin
to ExternalAuth 0.25 today - without success (checked by accessing the
“theme” config page → message “GD is disabled or not installed. You
can upload an image, but you won’t get automatic color suggestions.”

So, that doesn’t mean Logos are broken, it just means you have GD
installed without png, jpeg or gif support. I’m not quite sure how
you’ve managed that. Perhaps look for additional gd- packages you
should have installed.

Then, I tried disabling all plugins in RT_SiteConfig.pm, which solved the issue.
Re-Enabling ExternalAuth broke the charting again, so I guess the bug in correlation with ExternalAuth still exists.

So, since you keep referring to the GD Is disabled message, which is
different from “is broken” can you be specific about what kind of
“breakage” you see with charting? I had thought you meant that the
graph doesn’t show up at all, or is a broken image link, but since you
claim that RT-Authen-ExternalAuth 0.25 still breaks it, I find that
hard to believe.

This may all be tied to your lack of gd library support referenced
above.

-kevin

9

Hi Kevin,

understood.
I’ve uploaded a screenshot of how the broken graphics look like here:

and here:

I’ve also tried installing additional gd packages, which didn’t bring any results - which is obvious, because as soon as ExternalAuth is disabled, graphing works.
So it clearly must be correlated with the ExternalAuth package.

Kind regards,
Marek

Sitz der Gesellschaft / Corporate Headquarters: Lufthansa Systems Aktiengesellschaft, Kelsterbach, Registereintragung / Registration: Amtsgericht Darmstadt 84307
Vorsitzende des Aufsichtsrats / Chairperson of the Supervisory Board: Simone Menne
Vorstand / Executive Board: Stefan Hansen (Vorsitzender / Chairman), Dr. Gunter KuechlerFrom: rtir [mailto:rtir-bounces@lists.bestpractical.com] On Behalf Of Kevin Falcone
Sent: Tuesday, October 21, 2014 11:31 PM
To: rtir@lists.bestpractical.com
Subject: Re: [Rtir] no charts available in request tracker installed from source

interesting - I would have never thought that such an “unrelated” plugin could cause such an issue.

Plugins (and any local customizations) can always cause problems like this.

You’re right, we are using ExternalAuth (and
RT::Extension::ExtractCustomFieldValues), and I’ve upgraded the plugin
to ExternalAuth 0.25 today - without success (checked by accessing the
“theme” config page → message “GD is disabled or not installed. You
can upload an image, but you won’t get automatic color suggestions.”

So, that doesn’t mean Logos are broken, it just means you have GD installed without png, jpeg or gif support. I’m not quite sure how you’ve managed that. Perhaps look for additional gd- packages you should have installed.

Then, I tried disabling all plugins in RT_SiteConfig.pm, which solved the issue.
Re-Enabling ExternalAuth broke the charting again, so I guess the bug in correlation with ExternalAuth still exists.

So, since you keep referring to the GD Is disabled message, which is different from “is broken” can you be specific about what kind of “breakage” you see with charting? I had thought you meant that the graph doesn’t show up at all, or is a broken image link, but since you claim that RT-Authen-ExternalAuth 0.25 still breaks it, I find that hard to believe.

This may all be tied to your lack of gd library support referenced above.

-kevin

10

I’ve uploaded a screenshot of how the broken graphics look like here:
Dropbox - Error - Simplify your life

I’ve never seen the graphic break like this, but it may just be how
your browser renders it.

Download your logo (right click) and save it with and without
ExternalAuth enabled. Compare them. If the broken image has a
leading newline then you’ve not upgraded RT-Authen-ExternalAuth
properly.

and here:
Dropbox - Error - Simplify your life

I’ve also tried installing additional gd packages, which didn’t bring any results - which is obvious, because as soon as ExternalAuth is disabled, graphing works.
So it clearly must be correlated with the ExternalAuth package.

Based on this, which is the broken behavior I’ve seen caused by
RT-Authen-ExternalAuth, I’m guessing your upgrade to 0.25 didn’t happen
cleanly. Did you clear your mason cache after upgrading?

-kevin

11

Hi Kevin,

clearing the mason cache did the trick, the charts and logo is working now!

Thanks again!
MarekFrom: rtir [mailto:rtir-bounces@lists.bestpractical.com] On Behalf Of Kevin Falcone
Sent: Friday, October 24, 2014 3:49 PM
To: rtir@lists.bestpractical.com
Subject: Re: [Rtir] no charts available in request tracker installed from source

I’ve uploaded a screenshot of how the broken graphics look like here:
Dropbox - Error - Simplify your life
t%20a%20glance.png?dl=0

I’ve never seen the graphic break like this, but it may just be how your browser renders it.

Download your logo (right click) and save it with and without ExternalAuth enabled. Compare them. If the broken image has a leading newline then you’ve not upgraded RT-Authen-ExternalAuth properly.

and here:
Dropbox - Error - Simplify your life
d%20search%20results.png?dl=0

I’ve also tried installing additional gd packages, which didn’t bring any results - which is obvious, because as soon as ExternalAuth is disabled, graphing works.
So it clearly must be correlated with the ExternalAuth package.

Based on this, which is the broken behavior I’ve seen caused by RT-Authen-ExternalAuth, I’m guessing your upgrade to 0.25 didn’t happen cleanly. Did you clear your mason cache after upgrading?

-kevin