Mojave with eGPU

[airlied]

I have been using Blackmagic eGPU since this month, and there are some issues (perhaps bugs) with macOS Mojave.


1, You can't reboot MacBook Pro with eGPU plugged in (and with display lid closed).

Because eGPU will shut itself down during mac rebooting, so mac thinks there is no monitor connected then refuse to reboot (then shut down as well).
But it’s not 100% the case. Sometimes Mac does reboot if it does it fast enough before eGPU shuts down.


2, sometimes my MacBook Pro 15 (2018 model) can't detect eGPU.

If I plug in eGPU after OS boots up, there are chances that mac can't identify eGPU.
The chip icon still appears on menu bar, saying 'there is no external GPU', then disappears quickly.
However, if you go to system info, then go to Thunderbolt, the eGPU info is right there.
The only way to solve this so far is to reboot OS with eGPU plugged in.
(I don't know if this has something to do with Mojave or just 15' model only, my 13' MacBook Pro seems fine)


3, Sometimes the whole display just freezes.

I think this is because thunderbolt 3 couldn't provide enough bandwidth for eGPU.
40GB/s seems plenty but compare to what an internal PCIe offers it's very slow.
As another guy in this forum said, eGPU can't 'slow down' as hard drive does, it either works properly or doesn't.


4, Not all applications benefit from eGPU.

Most of the games do run better. But as we all know even Final cut Pro doesn't support eGPU yet. Some apps even refuse to open with eGPU attached.


5, If power nap is on, eGPU will be turned on as well.

If your mac has power nap on, then in sleep mode it will regularly check app updates, backup the OS or something once every hour. Then the eGPU will be turned on as well, even when there is no video outputs.

 

[WeezyWally]

That's a shame. I thought that Mojave was made to improve eGPU support.

 

[ncrypt]

But as we all know even Final cut Pro doesn't support eGPU yet

I think if you Get Info on Final Cut or any app in the applications folder, there's a checkbox to force using an eGPU

 

[airlied]

I think if you Get Info on Final Cut or any app in the applications folder, there's a checkbox to force using an eGPU

yes i tried. and it crashed final cut pro. I dont know if this is just mine mojave or a general bug.

 

[airlied]

I think if you Get Info on Final Cut or any app in the applications folder, there's a checkbox to force using an eGPU

And even some apps (not final cut pro) could be open when force using egpu is checked, the egpu is still idle during the app running.

 

[ncrypt]

 

[craig1410]

Hmm, I’ve been running Mojave on my 2016 MBP with Blackmagic eGPU for the last couple of days and not had any issues at all. In fact I’ve found the experience smoother and faster than High Sierra. I’m not doubting your experience but just reporting my own experience.

In case it’s relevant, my setup is a 2016 MBP with 460 dGPU and I am driving an LG 5K Ultrafine via the eGPU and sometimes a second LG 5K via the dGPU. I’m a web developer so I’m mainly running Safari, RubyMine, Slack, Skype, iTerm2, Mail, Messages and a bunch of other utility apps for 8+ hours a day. I use the MBP’s keyboard and trackpad and also the onboard display.

 

[airlied]

Hmm, I’ve been running Mojave on my 2016 MBP with Blackmagic eGPU for the last couple of days and not had any issues at all. In fact I’ve found the experience smoother and faster than High Sierra. I’m not doubting your experience but just reporting my own experience.

In case it’s relevant, my setup is a 2016 MBP with 460 dGPU and I am driving an LG 5K Ultrafine via the eGPU and sometimes a second LG 5K via the dGPU. I’m a web developer so I’m mainly running Safari, RubyMine, Slack, Skype, iTerm2, Mail, Messages and a bunch of other utility apps for 8+ hours a day. I use the MBP’s keyboard and trackpad and also the onboard display.

Thank you for sharing your experiences!
I feel that the latest two mojave updates did solve many issues, like unable to reboot or can’t identify egpu unless restart from scratch.
But my egpu still freezes time to time, and I believe that this is because I hooked up too many HDDs to egpu and they are sucking bandwidth.
But still, nice hearing your experience!

 

[airlied]

Hmm, I’ve been running Mojave on my 2016 MBP with Blackmagic eGPU for the last couple of days and not had any issues at all. In fact I’ve found the experience smoother and faster than High Sierra. I’m not doubting your experience but just reporting my own experience.

In case it’s relevant, my setup is a 2016 MBP with 460 dGPU and I am driving an LG 5K Ultrafine via the eGPU and sometimes a second LG 5K via the dGPU. I’m a web developer so I’m mainly running Safari, RubyMine, Slack, Skype, iTerm2, Mail, Messages and a bunch of other utility apps for 8+ hours a day. I use the MBP’s keyboard and trackpad and also the onboard display.

After many beta updates I'm still experiencing issues with eGPU.

The mac just stops working with egpu is attached, the whole OS went to a 'slow motion' mode, everything feels likerunning at 1 frame per MINUTE. If you click the mouse button it will response like 1 minute later. The OS is not crashed tho.

I believe this is due to the insufficient thunderbolt 3 bandwidth. If this is the case I think the only way Apple could do to 'fix' it is to reduce the bandwidth usage by sacrifice some performance.

How about your experience so far?

 

[craig1410]

After many beta updates I'm still experiencing issues with eGPU.

The mac just stops working with egpu is attached, the whole OS went to a 'slow motion' mode, everything feels likerunning at 1 frame per MINUTE. If you click the mouse button it will response like 1 minute later. The OS is not crashed tho.

I believe this is due to the insufficient thunderbolt 3 bandwidth. If this is the case I think the only way Apple could do to 'fix' it is to reduce the bandwidth usage by sacrifice some performance.

How about your experience so far?

No problems so far, and certainly nothing like what you are describing. I very much doubt that the TB3 connection is suffering from insufficient bandwidth but I have no way to prove that either way. I'm not sure if there are any utilities that can keep track of port bandwidth consumption or if there are any console messages which might indicate what is causing your problem.