Search - User list
Full Version: Cannot open Houdini 18 in MacBook Pro 16 Inch
Root » Technical Discussion » Cannot open Houdini 18 in MacBook Pro 16 Inch
subph
I just bought a new MacBook Pro 16 inch in Japan and after I installed Houdini Apprentice, it cannot open, just keep jumping and not responding in activity monitor.
Even though the 17.5 can just run normally. I also installed Houdini 18 in my old MacBook Pro Touch Bar 15 inch 2015 and it also run normally. Both using the new OS Catalina.
Even opening License Administrator is very slow in the new MacBook.
Refreshing the License Administrator also make it not responding for severals minutes.
I tried to find the solution in Internet but cannot find any.
Does anyone also have the same problem?
Thank you
Len
I'm also currently struggling to figure out what's wrong with my new 16"MBP and H18.
It launches fine but has serious issues getting an interactive render started.
On my old mid-2015 MBP, running 2-version older OS, the render window updates are near instantaneous.
With this hot, new MBP, the Render takes about 10 seconds, just rotation my camera view. It's a mystery.
Not quite your problem but related. Could be Catalina-related or MBP HW.
Len
If there's any word from SideFX on whether the new MBP is a non-starter for Houdini use I would like to know ASAP.
I may return this machine if it there's no hope in the near future. And it would generally be a shame to have the flagship “powerhouse” Apple laptop not be compatible.
edward
Have you tested Houdini 17.5 on the new MBP? In anycase, you should ask support to see if there are any known issues.
Len
Thanks for the suggestion Edward. I'm trying that now…will update this with the result.

Nope…Same problem. Switching between views takes a full second and Render View updates (for a single Torus at the origin) are about 10 seconds.
I'm assuming this has to do with Metal vs OpenGL…but just a guess.
953u6015t
I have similar issue with Houdini 18.0 too. Submitted a ticket but they couldn't replicate the issue.

So far, Houdini 17.5 runs the best in terms of loading speed and initiating any related app. Houdini 17.5 takes 10 sec to start and render to MPlay are instant while Houdini 18.0 takes 30 sec to start while render to MPlay, starting standalone MPlay or opening License Administrator adds additional 10 sec or so.

The only thing I noticed on Catalina's Console is when Houdini 18.0 launches, it prints something like “initiating malware scan…” which I don't see during Houdini 17.5 launch and I suspect there's where additional time is going.

Anyhow I couldn't provide more info so I asked them to close the ticket and settled for Houdini 17.5 for now.

Hopefully SideFX get to test is on a MBP 16" eventually.
sekow
I have no issues with the new MacBook 16", Radeon 5500 M.(well Ive had couple mishaps in lops, but not render related)
Houdini was the first thing I've installed after booting that brick up.
I know not very helpful but at least I can confirm its working.
edward
Then this issue is just macOS Catalina in general as opposed to particular to MBPs? Looking at the image on this page, https://eclecticlight.co/2019/06/12/grokking-gatekeeper-in-catalina/ [eclecticlight.co] , it looks like it should stop doing the malware scan once it's actually completed. Maybe Houdini needs to remain open long enough for it to finish?
Len
@sekow, so you have no noticeable delay switching between persp/front/back/top views?
And your Render View updates mostly instantly?
If so, very interesting…Unfortunately I don't have another Catalina machine to test on so I'm only assuming it's the hardware here.
sekow
len
@sekow, so you have no noticeable delay switching between persp/front/back/top views?
And your Render View updates mostly instantly?
If so, very interesting…Unfortunately I don't have another Catalina machine to test on so I'm only assuming it's the hardware here.
damn there is a delay when switching between views.
I can confirm that. But not in the Render View
Len
Ok…update from a recent random discovery: my Render View update slowness is related to my internet connection!
Just went to a cafe, didn't have the password for their WiFi and my Render View started updating fast!
Got the password, logged in, relaunched H18 and the updates are still fast.
I'm guessing this is related to Catalina and some kind of net access when mantra spins up.
Will test when I'm home.
However, I'm still a bit bummed by the delay when switching camera viewports (which persists). I like to jump between camera views fast and it really throws an annoying slowdown into the workflow. Hope that can be improved.

UPDATE: Matt from SideFX has been helping me and noticed that my integrated Intel graphics were still being used by Houdini for OpenCL, despite confirming the correct GPU in Houdini Preferences/Miscellaneous. This was probably the culprit. No idea why my Wifi connectivity had anything to do with it…possibly coincidence.

UPDATE2: Sadly, problem has resumed now at home. I've tried every variant of network/WiFi changes I can think of and the telltale signs are still there:
1) Very slow launch of Houdini (about 15 seconds)
2) Very slow Render View update (about 15 seconds also) when moving camera or making any other IPR change.
953u6015t
@len - Can you toggle off “Display reference plane/orto grid” and try switching the viewport camera if that fixes the lag?

@edward - I've used the Houdini 18.0 for testing here and there but the “initiating malware scan” never stopped.
Len
@953u6015t, you were right! Hiding the ref plane and ortho grid made the viewport swaps very fast!
That's a nice trick…but why is it now necessary, do you know?
Thanks!

The main remaining problems for H18 on the new MBP:
1) Slow launch (~30 sec)
2) Slow Render View updates (~22 sec)
Len
For posterity: I've solved my issues with my new MacBook Pro 16" and H18!
It's working quite nicely now.

The fix in brief: Turn on File Sharing in the OS X Prefs Sharing panel.

Here's the background, that may affect whether this help you or not:
I got a new MBP and used Time Machine to transfer my old MBP's apps and user into onto it.
When that finished (after many hours) it said it could not transfer the entire user account correctly. It was a little unclear what went wrong, but I ended up with two accounts: a new one and the old one, which really was just a folder with all the data inside.
Now I launch H18 (from the new account) and have to return the licenses from the old computer to accommodate the new one. This was accompanied by me changing the computer's share name, in order to distinguish it from the old one. This was probably a very bad idea.
The key sign of the problem was the License Admin tool not showing a valid IP address for the server. It was unclear why.
But when I turned File Sharing on, it must have allowed the server to finally read a config file or something similar.
Instantly H18's launch time became a few seconds and my Render View updates are near instantaneous.
I can't explain why it worked for an hour while sitting at a cafe with no internet access….that's a mystery.
Hope you don't run into this problem!
Len
By the way, @sekow, I discovered that the lag when switching camera views is not caused by the reference grid but by the reference grid RULER. Turn off the ruler, but keep the reference grid, and view switching is as fast as my old machine.
Which begs the question: Why does my new GPU hate the ruler?
edward
On macOS, the computer's hostname has been known to change under various conditions. My guess is that it somehow changed in a way that causes very bad behaviour perhaps but making it unreachable. I wonder if the reference grid ruler is slow on macOS Catalina in general or just particular video cards. (I've got no testable Mac)
953u6015t
@len - Turning on “File Sharing” fixes it! Thank you! Yep, you are right about the ruler too
filipw
Hi, I currently have a 15" MBP 2017 that is way to slow in the viewport and wonder if it is worth upgrading to the MBP 16 for this reason? Right now looking at a 22 M point cloud that updates at about 250 ms (about 4 fps).
Any experiences and conclusions now that there has been some new point releases both to catalina and houdini? (a windows or linux laptop is not an alternative)
/Filip
Len
For what it's worth, I just scattered 22M points inside the rubber toy model and it updates somewhere between 1.5-2fps on the new MBP 16 (H 18.0.338), wireframe view. Doesn't sound like an improvement.
anon_user_37409885
For reference, a 1060ti in a Windows laptop gets 16fps for your test. Unfortunately, as mentioned many times, if the hardware isn't supported by SideFx you will be at the mercy of running an unsupported system that will exhibit problems.

Edit: as a test. please boot your MacBook into Windows and test Houdini. In theory, you should see remarkable gains in performance. This will then confirm that it is a MacOs driver issue.
This is a "lo-fi" version of our main content. To view the full version with more information, formatting and images, please click here.
Powered by DjangoBB