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Author Topic: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro  (Read 8478 times)

sanfairyanne

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Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« on: April 05, 2017, 02:54:22 pm »

I have a 2015 Macbook Pro 15'' and I find the battery can run down at the rate of 1-2% a minute when I'm using Lightroom CC due to the fan spinning so fast. It's so irritating I sometimes just slap the computer shut because I can't focus on processing. I've contacted Apple but they say there's nothing wrong. To be honest I'm not entirely sure it's a Lightroom issue because the fan will often start spinning fast even when I'm checking something for example on You Tube. I Googled the fan issue and discovered some other people were complaining about the problem when using Lightroom but nobody seemed to have a solution. I wondered if anyone here has experienced this and knows what to do about it.
Incidentally I have nearly 200 gigs spare of a 512gb SSD drive.

Many thanks in advance. >:(
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Paul2660

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #1 on: April 05, 2017, 03:05:11 pm »

Can't offer much help, however I have a late 2015 15" that cam with El Capitan, and I have left it there. 

Fan gets going during processing in LR, mainly HDR, Pano, or Export, but not too much for adjustment brush action.  And once export or HDR or pano is done, fan spins back down.

You can try SMC fan control, it will over ride the MAC speeds I have used it for years. 

Paul Caldwell
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sanfairyanne

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #2 on: April 05, 2017, 03:11:43 pm »

Paul, thanks I'd considered this SMC fan control but it appears to be outdated software, we're now on Sierra whereas SMC fan control is tested only as late as Snow Leopard. It also comes with a scary warning about it's usage.
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sanfairyanne

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #3 on: April 05, 2017, 03:28:42 pm »

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Hans Kruse

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #4 on: April 05, 2017, 03:39:46 pm »

I have a 2015 Macbook Pro 15'' and I find the battery can run down at the rate of 1-2% a minute when I'm using Lightroom CC due to the fan spinning so fast. It's so irritating I sometimes just slap the computer shut because I can't focus on processing. I've contacted Apple but they say there's nothing wrong. To be honest I'm not entirely sure it's a Lightroom issue because the fan will often start spinning fast even when I'm checking something for example on You Tube. I Googled the fan issue and discovered some other people were complaining about the problem when using Lightroom but nobody seemed to have a solution. I wondered if anyone here has experienced this and knows what to do about it.
Incidentally I have nearly 200 gigs spare of a 512gb SSD drive.

Many thanks in advance. >:(

Hi, I had the same issue with a MBP 2015 and the problem was that it was filled with dust and also the cooling paste for the cpu had dried out. So the repair shop put in new cooling paste and cleaned it for dust and then problem disappeared. They told me this is a common problem with laptops and the more you run CPU heavy processing the worse it gets. So this is the solution.

sanfairyanne

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #5 on: April 05, 2017, 03:43:28 pm »

Thanks Hans, It's a good idea, truthfully I don't think I have any dust in the computer and in any case i remember the fan starting driving me nuts from the moment I bought the laptop. It's just got to the point where I get so wound up about it I turn it off rather than try to process. I'm currently considering using Mac Fan Control https://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control, I just need to look into this thoroughly, thanks for the cooling paste tip, I will mention that if I have to take it in to a dealer.
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Hans Kruse

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #6 on: April 05, 2017, 04:27:21 pm »

Thanks Hans, It's a good idea, truthfully I don't think I have any dust in the computer and in any case i remember the fan starting driving me nuts from the moment I bought the laptop. It's just got to the point where I get so wound up about it I turn it off rather than try to process. I'm currently considering using Mac Fan Control https://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control, I just need to look into this thoroughly, thanks for the cooling paste tip, I will mention that if I have to take it in to a dealer.

You should not use fan control especially not to decrease the fan speed. When the cpu's are hot they need the cooling. As I said, this solved the problem for me. The cooling paste gets dried out pretty quickly if you run your system hot. Lots of people are not aware of this. You should look for a repair shop and not a dealer.

Before I got the machine cleaned the fan also was running when not running Lightroom. Average CPU utilization of about 10-20% was enough for the fan to make noise although not at full speed of the fans. After the cleaning it was silent. The MBP 2016 model I now have is more silent but still the fans make noise when I'm editing in the develop module. I would also say it gets worse if you have a high resolution external screen. With the 2015 I used a 4K screen and now with the 2016 model I use the LG 5K screen. 15MP of screen pixels to render.
« Last Edit: April 05, 2017, 04:33:43 pm by Hans Kruse »
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Hoggy

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #7 on: April 06, 2017, 02:20:41 am »

If the dust isn't severely caked in there, you should be able to just take it outside and blow the hell out of the fan areas..  And/or use a can of compressed air with the straw-type nozzle attached.  This needs to be done every so often, as dust can accumulate rather quickly depending on your environment.

If the dust is caked, you might be able to open up the bottom and poke it through the fins - and then blow it out afterwards.
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Hans Kruse

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #8 on: April 06, 2017, 06:38:42 am »

If the dust isn't severely caked in there, you should be able to just take it outside and blow the hell out of the fan areas..  And/or use a can of compressed air with the straw-type nozzle attached.  This needs to be done every so often, as dust can accumulate rather quickly depending on your environment.

If the dust is caked, you might be able to open up the bottom and poke it through the fins - and then blow it out afterwards.

Yes, and another approach is simply to purchase the screw drivers that fit with the screws on the MBP to take off the bottom plate and do the cleaning yourself. That won't fix the cooling paste issue but still a lot better.

CatOne

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #9 on: April 06, 2017, 10:28:01 pm »

I have a 2015 Macbook Pro 15'' and I find the battery can run down at the rate of 1-2% a minute when I'm using Lightroom CC due to the fan spinning so fast. It's so irritating I sometimes just slap the computer shut because I can't focus on processing. I've contacted Apple but they say there's nothing wrong. To be honest I'm not entirely sure it's a Lightroom issue because the fan will often start spinning fast even when I'm checking something for example on You Tube. I Googled the fan issue and discovered some other people were complaining about the problem when using Lightroom but nobody seemed to have a solution. I wondered if anyone here has experienced this and knows what to do about it.
Incidentally I have nearly 200 gigs spare of a 512gb SSD drive.

Many thanks in advance. >:(

You have your cause and effect wrong.

The fans spinning are not running the battery down. The CPU is running hot because it's doing a lot of work to process images. This is also what is burning the battery. The fans are running to cool the CPU.

If you are doing image editing, you'll probably get about 2 hours of battery life on a MacBook Pro. I'd suggest being plugged in during this; normally a CPU is running at 5% to 10% capacity doing email, web surfing, word processing, etc. That's why you get 10+ hours of battery life. However, LR can do 100% CPU (actually, more than that if you have multiple CPUs), and that will make it run hot and burn battery really fast. This is all normal.

I don't suspect dust, and I don't think you need to open up the computer to do anything at all. In fact I'd strongly suggest you NOT do that.
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Hans Kruse

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #10 on: April 07, 2017, 07:12:26 am »

You have your cause and effect wrong.

The fans spinning are not running the battery down. The CPU is running hot because it's doing a lot of work to process images. This is also what is burning the battery. The fans are running to cool the CPU.

If you are doing image editing, you'll probably get about 2 hours of battery life on a MacBook Pro. I'd suggest being plugged in during this; normally a CPU is running at 5% to 10% capacity doing email, web surfing, word processing, etc. That's why you get 10+ hours of battery life. However, LR can do 100% CPU (actually, more than that if you have multiple CPUs), and that will make it run hot and burn battery really fast. This is all normal.

I don't suspect dust, and I don't think you need to open up the computer to do anything at all. In fact I'd strongly suggest you NOT do that.

Well, he says the fans are spinning when even doing light work on the MBP, so therefore I responded with my experience and solution. I'm quite sure that is his problem. But (of course) when running a high load on the machine like editing in Lightroom the fans must spin. Opening the machine to clear out dust can be done without a problem if you know what you are doing, but it will be difficult to get all dust removed so my recommendation to go to a repair shop and get the cooling paste changed and the machine cleaned for dust is the right solution.

Alan Goldhammer

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #11 on: April 07, 2017, 03:29:34 pm »

As one who builds computers as a past time, the number one problem of running hot is dust getting inside the case.  Most laptops also have some venting to allow air to get inside and any time there is an opening, dust can get in also.  Too much dust allows heat to build up and the fan(s) will spin but not much cooling is achieved.  The thermal paste that is between the fan and the CPU is pretty heat stable but it can dry out causing higher than normal temperatures as Hans noted.  A 2015 laptop should be able to run LR without it getting too hot.  LR is not as CPU hungry as PS. 

The OP's problem is that she on a ship and does not have access to a repair shop.  I would not recommend running a fan control as that will only mask the problem and might cause permanent damage to the CPU is it is not cooled properly.  One thing to try is use a hair dryer on the high setting with no heat and blow air into the ventilation holes to see if you can get some of the dust (if there is any) out of the innards.  Unless you really know what you are doing, don't take the case apart.

Even though my workstation has dust filters on the intake fans, dust still gets in.  I blow it out once a year with a Datavac duster (it's not a vacuum cleaner despite the name).  https://www.metrovacworld.com/product/DataVac_Electric_Duster/overview
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BAB

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #12 on: April 07, 2017, 09:29:38 pm »

If you are using a second monitor while heavy CPU tasks are engaged or if your using 100 % view the fans will spin!
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CatOne

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #13 on: April 09, 2017, 11:40:00 pm »

As one who builds computers as a past time, the number one problem of running hot is dust getting inside the case.  Most laptops also have some venting to allow air to get inside and any time there is an opening, dust can get in also.  Too much dust allows heat to build up and the fan(s) will spin but not much cooling is achieved.  The thermal paste that is between the fan and the CPU is pretty heat stable but it can dry out causing higher than normal temperatures as Hans noted.  A 2015 laptop should be able to run LR without it getting too hot.  LR is not as CPU hungry as PS. 

... https://www.metrovacworld.com/product/DataVac_Electric_Duster/overview

This is simply false. Opening up Activity Monitor and viewing it will clearly show that Lightroom can use up to 400% CPU when it is importing raw files and generating previews. And building desktop Windows PCs doesn't really quality you to comment on the heat management abilities of a MacBook Pro.

I can tell you that a MacBook spinning up the fans when using Lightroom (especially when it's building previews) is totally normal, and does not indicate dust. If the MacBook is spinning the fans heavily when it is NOT running Lightroom, there could be an issue, but LR uses a LOT of CPU. And that's fine. And the Mac will run the fans. That, too, is normal.

Taking apart the machine to try and blow dust out is not impossible, but it's about the 5th thing I would check.
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Hans Kruse

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Re: Lightroom killing the fan on my Macbook Pro
« Reply #14 on: April 10, 2017, 06:19:08 am »

Yes, clearly Lightroom an drive the CPU utilization to 100% for certain functions like generating 1:1 previews. Also editing in the develop module will make fan audible and depending on the resolution of the camera and the resolution of the screen use for editing the fan will spin more or less.

As I wrote sone posts back in this thread I had a 2015 MBP than were spinning the fans quite a bit with even light load. I took to the repair shop and they found it was full of dust! Cleaning it and adding new cooling paste solved the problem.
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