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What do you think is the source of the graphics issues on Mac Pro (Late 2013) ?

  • Hardware

    Votes: 67 52.3%
  • Software

    Votes: 28 21.9%
  • Hardware & Software

    Votes: 32 25.0%
  • Other

    Votes: 1 0.8%

  • Total voters
    128

bax2003

Cancelled
Original poster
Dec 25, 2011
947
203
Ok, at last back at the machine. I have compiled a newer version of memtestCL and here it is:

View attachment 538120

Again, at the Terminal command line, one would type the following for the D300 equipped machines:

./memtestCL 2048

This version is reporting no errors for my GPUs so far. The code for this newer version was grabbed from here:

https://github.com/ihaque/memtestCL

Note: if you test the graphics card used for your monitor, you may notice some interface stuttering.

Note 2: I don't know if you have tried the Apple Hardware Test. If not, maybe worth a try?

https://support.apple.com/kb/PH18765?locale=en_US


After choosing OpenCL device, this is what i get:

Error building CL kernels:
Error returned by cvms_element_build_from_source
Trace/BPT trap: 5

By the way.....Mac Pro is still working fine on Mavericks 10.9.5.
 

Infrared

macrumors 68000
Mar 28, 2007
1,714
64
After choosing OpenCL device, this is what i get:

Error building CL kernels:
Error returned by cvms_element_build_from_source
Trace/BPT trap: 5

By the way.....Mac Pro is still working fine on Mavericks 10.9.5.

I'm guessing that's because it's being run on Mavericks, whereas I am on Yosemite. I've tried building against the Mavericks SDK (complete guess), but I cannot guarantee this will work:

View attachment memtestCL.zip

At some point, if these issues continue, I may also consider reverting to Mavericks. I've not actually used that OS yet, but it was the one that came with the machine - first thing I did was to erase it and put Yosemite on :)

Hopefully 10.10.3 will be out soon. When that arrives, I may do a complete reinstallation.
 

bits

macrumors member
Mar 18, 2015
37
2
Ok, at last back at the machine. I have compiled a newer version of memtestCL and here it is:

View attachment 538120

Again, at the Terminal command line, one would type the following for the D300 equipped machines:

./memtestCL 2048

This version is reporting no errors for my GPUs so far. The code for this newer version was grabbed from here:

https://github.com/ihaque/memtestCL

Note: if you test the graphics card used for your monitor, you may notice some interface stuttering.

Note 2: I don't know if you have tried the Apple Hardware Test. If not, maybe worth a try?

https://support.apple.com/kb/PH18765?locale=en_US

Thanks for compiled version.

I just run tests (uptime 8 days). No errors on my D300.
 

bax2003

Cancelled
Original poster
Dec 25, 2011
947
203
I'm guessing that's because it's being run on Mavericks, whereas I am on Yosemite. I've tried building against the Mavericks SDK (complete guess), but I cannot guarantee this will work:

View attachment 538123

At some point, if these issues continue, I may also consider reverting to Mavericks. I've not actually used that OS yet, but it was the one that came with the machine - first thing I did was to erase it and put Yosemite on :)

Hopefully 10.10.3 will be out soon. When that arrives, I may do a complete reinstallation.

Unfortunately, i get the same "Error building CL kernels" error :(

My Mac Pro came with 10.10.0 installed. I am looking forward to 10.10.3, but first it is going to bootable USB 3 drive for testing. I do not want to unnecessary erase PCIe SSD any more.

I reported this problem to AppleCare team and sent them a bunch of gpuRestart logs.
 

twomartoe

macrumors member
Mar 15, 2015
74
9
I posted here a few weeks ago on the exact same problem. System lock up, sound and moving mouse ok. And then I'll do the restart dance with pram, smc reset etc....

Interestingly, I tried switching off and on my monitor, only monitor, and everything started working again. Very weird.

I have a u2711 and another 24in dell. Connected to display port and hdmi respectively.

I notice the freeze happens mostly during full screen vlc, or chrome video.

My hunch is software. I suspected hardware before, but doubt it because it responded by reseting the monitor. I think its down to the infamous lack of software quality apple has been going through lately. Things no longer just works unfortunately. More disappointing because this is a pro machine.
 

bax2003

Cancelled
Original poster
Dec 25, 2011
947
203
I posted here a few weeks ago on the exact same problem. System lock up, sound and moving mouse ok. And then I'll do the restart dance with pram, smc reset etc....

Interestingly, I tried switching off and on my monitor, only monitor, and everything started working again. Very weird.

I have a u2711 and another 24in dell. Connected to display port and hdmi respectively.

I notice the freeze happens mostly during full screen vlc, or chrome video.

My hunch is software. I suspected hardware before, but doubt it because it responded by reseting the monitor. I think its down to the infamous lack of software quality apple has been going through lately. Things no longer just works unfortunately. More disappointing because this is a pro machine.

I am pretty shure that software is causing all our problems.
Did you try 10.9.5 or this last 10.10.3 Beta 7 ?
 

edanuff

macrumors 6502a
Oct 30, 2008
577
258
The other thing that people with similar problems on the Apple support forums found helped out was to make sure the mDP to DVI or HDMI adapters they were using were Eyefinity-compatible active adapters (the Apple adapter is not an active adapter). You might want to give that a try if you're using the Apple passive DVI adapter to connect to your monitor.

edit: I see bax2003 is using Thunderbolt monitors so this doesn't apply, but twomartoe appears to be using DVI monitors
 

twomartoe

macrumors member
Mar 15, 2015
74
9
I am pretty shure that software is causing all our problems.
Did you try 10.9.5 or this last 10.10.3 Beta 7 ?


I'm on the latest stable release 10.10.2. Try switching off and on the monitor next time it crashes. Only the monitor
 

avkdm

macrumors regular
Feb 14, 2012
159
42
I'm on the latest stable release 10.10.2. Try switching off and on the monitor next time it crashes. Only the monitor

Try disconnecting your display adapters if using hdmi from the Mac Pro and plugging them back in- it could be an EDID issue.
Make sure your refresh rate matches the monitors you are using.
Also I'm not sure if you can do it on a Mac- is there any way to downclock your GPU core or memory 50mhz - this can fix lockups as well.
 
Last edited:

Infrared

macrumors 68000
Mar 28, 2007
1,714
64
The maddening thing is that there are a thousand and one possible explanations. It is not very satisfactory having to try out random solutions in the hope that they will cure this, knowing that there can never be any certainty that a genuine cure has been found, because we do not know the underlying cause.

For the record: I am using a mDP to DVI adapater and one ACD.
 

bax2003

Cancelled
Original poster
Dec 25, 2011
947
203
The maddening thing is that there are a thousand and one possible explanations. It is not very satisfactory having to try out random solutions in the hope that they will cure this, knowing that there can never be any certainty that a genuine cure has been found, because we do not know the underlying cause.

For the record: I am using a mDP to DVI adapater and one ACD.

My Mac Pro is just sent to my local Authorized Service Provider.
Official Apple Support Chat team said that there are no logged cases like this, which is odd, really. Considering that my machine now has problems even under Mavericks, I had no other solution but to take it to service center. Mac Pro is just 2 weeks old, and I am just wasting my time.

I paid good money not to think about hardware, compatibility and problems like this.
 

voyager77

macrumors member
Jun 25, 2012
80
27
Mac Pro just froze (GUI stopped responding) in 10.10.3 Beta 7.

Monitor 1 - VLC
Monitor 2 - Safari, Skype and Twitter

And, the final straw, it is broken :(
Mavericks 10.9.5 video / window flicker.....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i6StCH8DCcE&feature=youtu.be

Ouch, that looks bad.
But at least it's a clear warranty case now, lets hope they fix it.
This does make me think it's more a hardware problem than a software/osx problem.
 

Infrared

macrumors 68000
Mar 28, 2007
1,714
64
@bax

Good luck and please let us know if this is resolved for you.

Cheers.
 

damezumari

macrumors member
Dec 6, 2014
56
10
The maddening thing is that there are a thousand and one possible explanations. It is not very satisfactory having to try out random solutions in the hope that they will cure this, knowing that there can never be any certainty that a genuine cure has been found, because we do not know the underlying cause.

My nMP has been unstable on resume (GPU resets, occassional panic due to GPU) ever since I got second 4k display (last September), but under Mavericks it only did bad things once every week or two.

Under Yosemite, it has been much worse, and I tried to have it repaired based on Apple customer service advice, but the outcome was "sorry, cannot reproduce it". I have also experienced some sporadic USB related issues, not sure if they relate to this.

So I have been experimenting with..

- fresh install of 10.10.2, no software (=> worked fine for a week, couldn't be bothered to boot to it every night after that). may be due to lots of free GPU RAM in this case, perhaps, or something..

- old install, no kexts (=> problems)

- no USB3-hub, no KVM, different keyboard, .. (=> problems)

Now I am experimenting just using single 4k display. We shall see what the verdict is on this.

Overall, I am quite disappointed with the nMP quality; for example, due to lack of EFI support, no boot picture on 4k display feels so .. hackintosh-ish :p Not to mention these stability issues.

If hackintosh builds supported file vault, I would be probably there already, debugging this is so frustrating and the whole product bad value for money due to that from my point of view.
 

VirtualRain

macrumors 603
Aug 1, 2008
6,304
118
Vancouver, BC
My nMP has been unstable on resume (GPU resets, occassional panic due to GPU) ever since I got second 4k display (last September), but under Mavericks it only did bad things once every week or two.



Under Yosemite, it has been much worse, and I tried to have it repaired based on Apple customer service advice, but the outcome was "sorry, cannot reproduce it". I have also experienced some sporadic USB related issues, not sure if they relate to this.



So I have been experimenting with..



- fresh install of 10.10.2, no software (=> worked fine for a week, couldn't be bothered to boot to it every night after that). may be due to lots of free GPU RAM in this case, perhaps, or something..



- old install, no kexts (=> problems)



- no USB3-hub, no KVM, different keyboard, .. (=> problems)



Now I am experimenting just using single 4k display. We shall see what the verdict is on this.



Overall, I am quite disappointed with the nMP quality; for example, due to lack of EFI support, no boot picture on 4k display feels so .. hackintosh-ish :p Not to mention these stability issues.



If hackintosh builds supported file vault, I would be probably there already, debugging this is so frustrating and the whole product bad value for money due to that from my point of view.


My system with dual 4K monitors would KP often on 10.10.2 and has been back to normal on 10.10.3 beta.
 

bax2003

Cancelled
Original poster
Dec 25, 2011
947
203
Any progress, bax?

Cheers!

Mac Pro is still at my local Apple Authorized Service Provider, for, as far as I know, GPU replacement. The Apple procedure is change one suspect GPU, then testing, and then they order second GPU and so on, component by component. Who knows how much this will last....unfortunately I have no other ways to solve the problem :(

Don't worry, I'll keep you posted :)
 
Last edited:

bax2003

Cancelled
Original poster
Dec 25, 2011
947
203
Shouldn't take too long, only three main "parts"

First time Mac Pro Late 2013 came to their service center for this kind of problems, they got instructions from Apple agents to change parts this way:

1. Power Supply
2. GPU-1
3. GPU-2
4. Chipset board (bottom one)

Only after changing Chipset board, Mac Pro was fine.

Problem is that parts can arrive 5-7 working days after they are ordered (here in Serbia)....so I won't even think about that.
 
Last edited:

Bad Leopard

macrumors member
Jan 14, 2014
33
0
Not too long ago my nMP started having an issue where after any major update or when reloading the os, it would not boot and just give three beeps. You would then have to a hard reset to get it to boot.

Sounded like a clear case of a bad stick of memory, but after taking it to the local Apple service center they said the memory tested fine, and started in ordering one GPU at a time to replace. Two weeks later,after both of the GPUs had been replaced and they still had no idea what was wrong, I got a little impatient and asked them at what point can I just get a new machine?

To my surprise they said if I would like to request a new machine, then they would get me one. Seven days later I had a brand new machine and all has been good since. But yeah, troubleshooting by throwing new parts at it seems to be how they roll.
 

Infrared

macrumors 68000
Mar 28, 2007
1,714
64
Mac Pro (Late 2013) GPU (Driver) Issues

Thanks for the update, bax.

It seems a bit much that people would be without a machine for an indefinite time whilst this goes on. IMO, what they should do is replace the whole machine and then they can diagnose the fault at their leisure. Given the cost of these things, given that they are a premium product, people should not be inconvenienced.

I have spoken with Apple about the tests they might do and it seems their approach is to thrash the machine until the fault manifests itself. Is this acceptable, that people pay big money to get back a thrashed refurb unit? If you or I wanted a refurb, we could buy one with a sizeable discount (20% or so off).
 

edanuff

macrumors 6502a
Oct 30, 2008
577
258
Is this acceptable, that people pay big money to get back a thrashed refurb unit? If you or I wanted a refurb, we could buy one with a sizeable discount (20% or so off).

I don't think the "thrashing" is any sort of real physical wear on the computer. If anything, their diagnostic software seems to do a poor job of stressing the system since they're so often unable to replicate problems.
 

Infrared

macrumors 68000
Mar 28, 2007
1,714
64
If they're running this under sustained load for days, could that not shorten the lifespan of the machine?

Whether or not that is the case, the user still ends up with a refurb but without getting the refurb discount.

I think, for a newish machine (up to say 6 months or so), they should replace it without hesitation. These things should work right out of the box.
 
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