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pmcdonald
Participating Frequently
May 29, 2024
Question

Ae comp window doesn't update

  • May 29, 2024
  • 4 replies
  • 2929 views

So I've been having this issue for a year or so now. I'll be working in Ae and after a period of time (usually a few minutes) the composition window won't update with the changes. It'll be stuck on the frame. Preview rendering doesn't help. I can see the green line rendering but the viewport doesn't update. The only solve is to restart Ae. It's getting a little old now, and happens on my work and home workstations. They're both Windows, both running the latest and greatest Ae, and both quite different spec: one has a 3080 Ti, the other a 1060. Anyone know what on earth is going on?

4 replies

Donavondb
Donavondb
Participant
October 10, 2025

Tried most other fixes to this to no avail, but something our tech team found that worked was Adjusting settings in the NVIDIA Control Panel:

 

NVIDIA Control Panel:

Manage 3D Settings -> Program Settings

Select After Effects, and set:

Preferred graphics processor: High-performance NVIDIA processor


Manage 3D Settings -> Global Settings

Set: Power management mode: Prefer maximum performance

 

M
Michel34098671842k
Participant
July 2, 2025

Having the same issue!!!
Reseted everything and still the problem!
What's the point of paying something so expensive that every time finds the way to screw you???

nishu_kush
nishu_kush
Legend
July 8, 2025

Hi Michel,

 

Do you mind sharing more details about the issue? Is there anything specific that triggers it? What are your system specifications (CPU, GPU, RAM, OS version) and version of After Effects you're using?

Let me know.


Thanks,
Nishu

E
edita_0533
Participant
August 1, 2025

I have same issue

My specs are:

i5 12400f 

rtx 5060

32 gb ddr5 ram

and windows 11

 

    OussK
    Community Expert
    OussKCommunity Expert
    Community Expert
    May 30, 2024

    try the below solution 

    Update Graphics Drivers:
    Ensure that the graphics drivers for both your NVIDIA GPUs (3080 Ti and 1060) are up to date. Visit the NVIDIA website and download the latest drivers for your specific GPU models.
    Check After Effects Preferences:
    Go to Edit > Preferences > Display and make sure that Hardware Accelerate Composition, Layer, and Footage Panels is enabled.
    In Preferences > Memory & Performance, ensure that RAM Reserved for Other Applications is set to a reasonable amount, leaving enough RAM for After Effects to operate smoothly.
    Purge Cache:
    Purge the cache in After Effects by going to Edit > Purge > All Memory & Disk Cache. This can help if the issue is related to cached data.
    Disable GPU Acceleration:
    Temporarily disable GPU acceleration to see if the issue is related to your GPU. Go to File > Project Settings > Video Rendering and Effects and set Use to Mercury Software Only. Restart After Effects and see if the issue persists.
    Reset Preferences:
    Reset After Effects preferences by holding down Ctrl + Alt + Shift while launching After Effects. This will reset preferences to their default settings, which can resolve various issues.

      P
      pmcdonaldAuthor
      Participating Frequently
      May 31, 2024

      Thank you for the suggestions. I've worked through all of them but still have the issue.

      ShiveringCactus
      Community Expert
      ShiveringCactusCommunity Expert
      Community Expert
      May 31, 2024

      I've seen this issue, but only when i'm using Element3D, it sort of soft-crashes.  Everything appears to be working, except the comp window does not update.  And restarting the PC was the only solution.

      One additional setting you could try, in Edit > Preferences > Import, uncheck Enable Hardware Accelerated Decoding.

       

      This also uses your GPU and I've had issues with Windows File Explorer having conflicts that were solved by unchecking this option.  My "problems" went away with that unchecked, although since then AE has been through updates and it is rechecked and I've not had the problem recur.

      nishu_kush
      nishu_kush
      Legend
      May 29, 2024

      That's not ideal. Do you get this issue in all the projects? Could you share some details on the projects with the issue? Any third-party plug-ins? Does clearing the cache help?

      Let us know. Moving the thread from Bugs to Discussions for troubleshooting.

       

      Thanks,

      Nishu

      P
      pmcdonaldAuthor
      Participating Frequently
      May 30, 2024

      Hi Nishu, thanks for the reply. Yes, I get the issue in all projects. They're usually nothing too complex: mostly all HD, just solids, vectors and some light Prores and H264/5 keying and VFX work. I do currently have the Maxon One suite installed, which can be a buggy so and so. I'll remove it and see what happens but I do tend to lean on a few of the filters a lot. Clearing the cache doesn't help.

      nishu_kush
      nishu_kush
      Legend
      June 11, 2024

      Do you get the issue if you don't use third-party plug-ins? Can you try running After Effects in Safe Mode with the third-party plug-ins disabled and see if you are still getting the issue?

      Let us know.

       

      Thanks,

      Nishu

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