Troubleshooting AVS Device SDK Common Issues
Having trouble with the Alexa Voice Service (AVS) Device SDK? The following page provides possible resolutions for common issues on all platforms, Linux, macOS, Raspberry Pi and Windows. If you run into another AVS Device SDK problem that's not listed here, create a new issue on the SDK GitHub page.
All platforms
Issue: the SDK doesn't load
Symptoms
This problem can occur if your AlexaClientSDKConfig.json file doesn't reference the correct databases. You might see the following error message:
miscDatabase:E SQLiteMiscStorage:createFailed:reason=Could not load config value,key=databaseFilePath
.
Try this
To determine if your databases are linked
- Open your AlexaClientSDKConfig.json file.
-
Find the
databaseFilePath
entries and make sure they link to the appropriate databases.For example, the following json object lists the database path for
cblAuthDelegate
. This path must be valid.{ "cblAuthDelegate": "databaseFilePath":"${SDK_CBL_AUTH_DELEGATE_DATABASE_FILE_PATH}" },
Issue: Amazon Music won't play
Symptoms
This problem can occur if your device isn't set with the correct date. Incorrect time settings cause certificate issues when contacting Amazon server. You might see the following error message:
curlEasyPerformFailed:error=Peer certificate can't authenticate with the provided CA certificates
.
Try this
To change the date on your device
- In your terminal, run the following commands with the correct date.
- Change the date:
date +%Y%m%d -s "20180131"
- Change the time:
date +%T -s "16:11:00"
- Change the date:
Issue: The SDK doesn't output audio
Symptoms
This problem can occur if the SDK doesn't reference the correct audiosink
in the AlexaClientSDKConfig.json file – sometimes the SDK automatically tries to select the best audio sink based on your system configuration. This automatic setting can cause issues depending on how you build the SDK.
Try this
To check if your audiosink
is working
- In your terminal, run the following command:
gst-launch-1.0 -m audiotestsrc ! autoaudiosink
.- If the system is working, a test tone plays.
- If the system isn't working, a test tone doesn't play.
-
If a test doesn't play, use
-m
to determine which audio sink you've set up. For example:autoaudiosink0-actual-sink-osxaudio" (tag): GstMessageTag, taglist=(taglist)"taglist\,\ description\=\(string\)\"audiotest\\\ wave\"\;;
- Run the following command
gst-launch-1.0 -m audiotestsrc ! alsasink
- If you hear a test tone, you must modify the value on line 589.
Replace the existing audio_sink
values
m_pipeline.audioSink = gst_element_factory_make("autoaudiosink", "audio_sink");
With the following audio_sink
values
m_pipeline.audioSink = gst_element_factory_make("alsasink", "audio_sink");
Ubuntu
Issue: No sound when using the Plantronics speaker box
Symptoms
There is no audio output when using the sample app. This problem can occur if the gstreamer
is incorrectly configured.
Try this
To update GStreamer
- In your terminal, run the following command:
sudo apt install gstreamer1.0-alsa
. - Test GStreamer with the following command:
gst-launch-0.10 audiotestsrc ! autoaudiosink
. If GStreamer is working, you hear a constant tone sound.
To configure audio settings
If audio is still not working after you install GStreamer, you might have to adjust some system settings.
- Disable the onboard audio with a deny list:
sudo echo "blacklist snd_bcm2835" > /etc/modprobe.d/alsa-blacklist.conf
. - Set your USB / DAC card as the default audio device.
sudo echo "options snd-usb-audio index=0" > /etc/modporbe.d/alsa-base.conf
.
Issue: CMake version 3.10.2 doesn't work with libcurl version 7.67.0
Symptoms
CMake version 3.10.2 – which is the default version of CMake that ships with Ubuntu 18.04 – is incompatible with libcurl version 7.67.0.
Try this
CMake version 3.18.2 is compatible with libcurl version 7.67.0.
- Uninstall the default version provided by the Ubuntu package manager.
sudo apt-get purge cmake
- Download and extract the latest version of CMake from the official CMake webpage.
-
Update the version and build variables with the following command.
version=3.x build=3 mkdir ~/temp cd ~/temp wget https://cmake.org/files/v$version/cmake-$version.$build.tar.gztar xzvf cmake$version.$build.tar.gz cd cmake-$version.$build
- Install the extracted source.
./bootstrap make -j4 sudo make install
macOS
Issue: The SDK fails to build
Symptoms
This problem can occur if your build is missing required dependencies. The SDK won't compile and throws an error related to the dependency you are missing.
Try this
To update your dependencies
To fix any missing dependencies, run the brew install
command for each missing dependency.
Issue: The sample app failed to build
Symptoms
This problem can occur if your version of curl
doesn't support HTTP/2. This problem can occur if curl installs with incorrect settings.
Try this
- In your terminal, run the following command:
brew uninstall curl
. - Re-install curl as described in Set up your MacOS environment.
Raspberry Pi
Issue: No option to output sound to a USB sound card
Symptoms
The SampleApp uses the default input and output for audio.
Try this
To use a USB sound card, install the dsnoop
and dmix
plugins. Paste this code into .asoundrc
, and into asound.conf
.
Issue: Microphone doesn't work
Symptoms
You get the following error rec FAIL formats: can't open input default: snd_pcm_open error: No such file or directory
when testing the Raspberry Pi during the microphone set up.
This problem can occur when the .asoundrc file isn't configured correctly for the voice input hardware.
Try this
-
In your terminal, type
arecord -l
to list the correct card number and device number to record audio. Take note of the numbers that followcard
anddevice
, you need them later.For example
**** List of CAPTURE Hardware Devices **** card 2: Device [USB Audio Device], device 0: USB Audio [USB Audio] Subdevices: 1/1 Subdevice #0: subdevice #0
- Open the .asoundrc file.
- In the
capture.pcm
object, find theslave.pcm
value. -
Add the card number and device number that you generated in step one in the following format
hw: <card number>, <device number>
.For example
If you use the values from the example shown in step one, your
capture.pcm
object has a card number of2
and a device number of0
. Note that different Raspberry Pi models might have different hardware numbers.... capture.pcm { type plug slave.pcm "hw:2,0" } ...
Issue: No audio output when using the 3.55mm audio jack
Symptoms
You are running the Sample App and the Alexa wake word is triggering, however, you don't hear any audio out of your speaker that's connected to a 3.5mm audio jack.
This problem can occur if the .asoundrc file isn't configured correctly for the voice input hardware.
Try this
-
In your terminal, enter
aplay -l
to list the correct card number and device number for audio playback. Take note of the numbers that followcard
anddevice
, you need them later.For example
**** List of PLAYBACK Hardware Devices **** ***....*** card 1: Headphones [bcm2835 Headphones], device 0: bcm2835 Headphones [bcm2835 Headphones] Subdevices: 4/4 Subdevice #0: subdevice #0 Subdevice #1: subdevice #1 Subdevice #2: subdevice #2 Subdevice #3: subdevice #3
- Open the .asoundrc file.
- In the
playback.pcm
object, find theslave.pcm
value. -
Add the card number and device number that you generated in step one in the following format
hw: <card number>, <device number>
.For example
If you use the values from the example shown in step one, your
playback.pcm
object has a card number of1
and a device number of0
. Note that different Raspberry Pi models might have different hardware numbers.... playback.pcm { type plug slave.pcm "hw:1,0" } ...
Windows
Issue: The system can't locate libwinpthread-1.dll
Symptoms
Windows can't find the libwinpthread-1.dll
library because it's not installed or it's not in the path environment variable. This error typically occurs when trying to start the sample app.
Try this
Verify that the library exists and that the files are nested within the proper path on your local machine, such as c:/msys64/mingw64/bin
.
Issue: The sample app hangs when it starts
Symptoms
The sample app fails to load and hangs when it starts. The CPU might run high. This can occur if Gstreamer 1.14 or later is missing directsoundsink
.
Try this
To apply a workaround to fix this problem
- Delete
INetCache
in the registry. -
Restart the sample app. The
Directsoundsink
should reappear.For more details about this problem, see the following Gstreamer troubleshooting page.