Mac Pro 5,1 (mid 2012) randomly shutdowns

[Caesar_091]

Dear all,

the Mac Pro in my signature since a few month just randomly shutdown. In the last days this happened so frequently that I just stopped using it to avoid any further damage to any of its components and to my data too of course.

I first thought about an UPS issue but these shutdowns happens when the computer is directly connected to the power line bypassing any UPS too (usually the Mac Pro is protected by an APC Back-UPS Pro 1500 and the three monitors are connected to an APC Back-UPS Pro 900). So I assume it is not an issue related to any UPS.

Not only the Mac Pro just shutdown suddenly and independently of the ongoing workload (could happen while the computer is in idle or while a demanding CPU/GPU task is running), it makes the fail-safe circuit breaker of my apartment to disconnect. So I have to plug back the power line of the whole apartment each time this happens.

I suspect it's a power supply issue. What do you think?
Should I go for a new power supply? Should I go for an additional power supply dedicated to the GPU? Should I go for both of these solution?

Any idea/suggestion will be much appreciated!

 

[Alex Sanders74]

Have you tried a completely different wall plug in your apartment? It could be that circuit is overloaded causing the main breaker to kick out. I know you said you were using a UPS, which would generally flip to battery in the case of the mains flipping off... I would try a different outlet in your apartment and see if that issue continues. It would eliminate that as a possible culprit.

You have a 6 pin power connector on your Radeon 480 (or 8pin, can't recall what those require)? Maybe the GPU is drawing too much power?

 

[Caesar_091]

Have you tried a completely different wall plug in your apartment? It could be that circuit is overloaded causing the main breaker to kick out. I know you said you were using a UPS, which would generally flip to battery in the case of the mains flipping off... I would try a different outlet in your apartment and see if that issue continues. It would eliminate that as a possible culprit.

Thanks for the suggestion but I already tried connecting the Mac Pro to different wall plugs and in different rooms too (each room have been cabled independently so I have one breaker for each room and a main breaker which control the whole apartment). So I think that the problem is the Mac Pro (I trust the power supply only and not some other component on the mainboard).

You have a 6 pin power connector on your Radeon 480 (or 8pin, can't recall what those require)? Maybe the GPU is drawing too much power?

Yes, it's a 6 pin power connector... but will an excessive power request from the GPU should result in a suddenly shutdown? Would this happen even if the GPU is in idle?

I can afford both a replacement power supply for the Mac Pro and a new one dedicated to the GPU but I just would like to avoid any useless work.

 

[tsialex]

Did you checked if you have any corrosion on the backplane and CPU tray? Usually where humid air circulate near exposed PCB areas and components. Corrosion can cause your symptoms.

 

[bsbeamer]

Yes, it's a 6 pin power connector... but will an excessive power request from the GPU should result in a suddenly shutdown? Would this happen even if the GPU is in idle?

What macOS version are you on?

I've seen strange things happen with older generation Radeon GPUs suddenly drawing more power than would ever really be needed when doing random "light" work in High Sierra. (Something as small as Word documents or web browsing.) If the cable is bad, or there is an issue with supply from ONLY connecter #1, it could trigger this type of shutdown.

Many people suggest balancing the load between BOTH on-board GPU connectors (mini 6-pin) to your GPU regardless of the GPU pin connections required. It's been awhile since I've looked for a dual mini 6-pin to single standard 6-pin cable, but they did exist at one time.

Unsure if that "spike" would have been addressed in Mojave, but would assume not since 4XX is technically not supported:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208898

 

[Caesar_091]

Did you checked if you have any corrosion on the backplane and CPU tray? Usually where humid air circulate near exposed PCB areas and components. Corrosion can cause your symptoms.

Just spent half of the morning disassembling the Mac Pro and checking for sign of corrosion and I didn't find any. Should those be small spots or something easily to see/identify?

Anyway thanks for the suggestion.

 

[tsialex]

This is a extreme example, a far gone 2010.

 

[Caesar_091]

What macOS version are you on?

I've seen strange things happen with older generation Radeon GPUs suddenly drawing more power than would ever really be needed when doing random "light" work in High Sierra. (Something as small as Word documents or web browsing.) If the cable is bad, or there is an issue with supply from ONLY connecter #1, it could trigger this type of shutdown.

I'll try using the second 6 pin connector on Mac Pro motherboard. Right now I'm checking the watts usage from the display of the UPS and it's 210-260W. Under heavy CPU load jumps up to 460W (24 "yes > /dev/null" tasks on terminal). Adding a Valley benchmark (extreme settings in window mode 3840x2160) the power jumps up to 560-580W. Right now it's about half an hour that the system is running like this in full load and no issue at all.

Many people suggest balancing the load between BOTH on-board GPU connectors (mini 6-pin) to your GPU regardless of the GPU pin connections required. It's been awhile since I've looked for a dual mini 6-pin to single standard 6-pin cable, but they did exist at one time.

I'll try to find that and I'll give it a try, thanks!

Unsure if that "spike" would have been addressed in Mojave, but would assume not since 4XX is technically not supported:
https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208898

I'm running Mojave 10.14.2 (18C54) since a few weeks and this is the only "new" thing since this issue is becoming way too frequent.
[doublepost=1546687341][/doublepost]

This is a extreme example, a far gone 2010.

View attachment 814170View attachment 814171View attachment 814172

Oh I see... fortunately no problem like this neither on the motherboard nor on the CPUs board.

 

[tsialex]

Ho to balance that? Shoud I use a dual 6pin to single 6 pin cable?

Yes.

A really big problem with early RX-480 GPUs is that they consume more than 75W from the PCIe slot. AMD changed drivers settings and that got better, but the problem only got fully resolved after the PCBs were redesigned, with two PCIe 6-pin or a single 8-pin.

 

[Caesar_091]

...and even worse that dual 6-pin to single 6pin cable looks no more available online
Maybe it's time to go for a 580?

 

[Caesar_091]

Yesterday, while checking for any corrosion sign I took the opportunity to use some compressed air spray can to clean the Mac Pro. This is something I usually do no more than a few times each year (in winter and in summer time usually). It was not that dirty... but since yesterday the computer is up and running... no more shutdowns.

Can dust cause these problems?

 

[bsbeamer]

Did you disconnect and reconnect anything?

 

[Caesar_091]

Only the daughter board with CPUs and RAM modules.

 

[Alex Sanders74]

Dust can raise temps overall if it’s quite bad. It will help if there was some in there and you’ve blown it out. Sounds like your GPU is the culprit. Didn’t know they could spike so much!

 

[bsbeamer]

If the PSU was filled with dust it could contribute. The CPU/RAM temps rarely impact GPU with the way the case is designed.

Any chance your CPU was causing this shutdown?

 

[Caesar_091]

Dust can raise temps overall if it’s quite bad. It will help if there was some in there and you’ve blown it out. Sounds like your GPU is the culprit. Didn’t know they could spike so much!

But I still can't understand why now the Mac Pro is up and running since a few days (h24) and still no shutdowns.
I run a few GPU intensive benchmarks (LuxMark, Geeks 3D GPUTest, Unigine Valley/Heaven), some free games from Epic (UT4/Fortnite) and I also compiled a lot of stuff and run many CPU intensive tasks with no issue at all

If the GPU is the culprit I would definitely go for an RX580 or for a double 6 pin to single 6pin cable (if I will never find one online).

Don't really know how to figure out this one...
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If the PSU was filled with dust it could contribute. The CPU/RAM temps rarely impact GPU with the way the case is designed.

Any chance your CPU was causing this shutdown?

I always run a resource monitoring utility (XRG) on one of my secondary display and I never had temp issues, as far as I have been looking at it of course.

 

[bsbeamer]

Are your 2x4TB WD40EZRZ drives in RAID within 10.14.2?
Is the Samsung 830 SSD your primary OS drive? Did you ever update it's firmware?
Are you running DriveDx? If so, any reports of possible issues?
Any warning signs in SMART status?

 

[Alex Sanders74]

I was probably a bit hasty in solely blaming your current GPU as the main issue. It sounds like more is going on here than just that.

I would try Macs Fan Control and monitor your temps to see if that is a contributing factor, especially if you were cleaning the case out. https://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control
EDIT: Saw you're running XRG, which I've not used or heard of and looks to be similar to Macs Fan Control....

bsbeamer has some valid questions in his post above as well.

Found a dual mini 6 to 6 pin on Amazon, but not sure if they ship to Italy....
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matter...546878029&sr=8-3&keywords=6+pin+to+dual+6+pin

 

[bsbeamer]

Found a dual mini 6 to 6 pin on Amazon, but not sure if they ship to Italy....
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matter...546878029&sr=8-3&keywords=6+pin+to+dual+6+pin

Do not think that is the right cable. It's a "Y" splitter with standard 6-pin and would be wrong gender for the GPU side, so adapters would be needed.

If the part cannot be found, I would consider going with a standard dual mini 6-pin cable to standard 8-pin. Then find a standard 8-pin to 6-pin adapter cable to the GPU. This should load balance between both dual mini 6-pin's appropriately and could easily be changed to use a card with 8-pin power requirements.

Other option might be the EVGA Powerlink, IF it will fit your GPU properly. Search this forum for some install tips and suggestions for users that have installed with more powerful GPUs.

 

[startergo]

I was probably a bit hasty in solely blaming your current GPU as the main issue. It sounds like more is going on here than just that.

I would try Macs Fan Control and monitor your temps to see if that is a contributing factor, especially if you were cleaning the case out. https://www.crystalidea.com/macs-fan-control
EDIT: Saw you're running XRG, which I've not used or heard of and looks to be similar to Macs Fan Control....

bsbeamer has some valid questions in his post above as well.

Found a dual mini 6 to 6 pin on Amazon, but not sure if they ship to Italy....
https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matter...546878029&sr=8-3&keywords=6+pin+to+dual+6+pin

That is not dual 6mini pin just the regular PC 6 pin

 

[Caesar_091]

Are your 2x4TB WD40EZRZ drives in RAID within 10.14.2?

No, they aren't.

Is the Samsung 830 SSD your primary OS drive? Did you ever update it's firmware?

No 830 model right now. I moved it to my MacBook 5,1 (late 2008).

Right now I have the following HD congifig:

• Samsung SSD 850 EVO 500GB (Revision: EMT01B6Q, bought in 2015) in HD slot 1 as primary drive (Mojave);
• APPLE SSD SM128 (Revision: VAM0BA1Q, original drive from my MacBook bought in 2008) in HD slot 2 as Bootcamp drive (Windows 7);
• 2 x 4TB WD40EZRZ (Model: WDC WD40EZRZ-75GXCB0, Revision: 80.00A80; both bought lees than 5/6 months ago) in HD slot 3 and 4 as data drives.

Are you running DriveDx? If so, any reports of possible issues? Any warning signs in SMART status?

Just downloaded and no issue at all. Also SSD Life Time Left indicators are very good (>96%). No S.M.A.R.T. alerts.
[doublepost=1546954996][/doublepost]The only thing changed since the last time the Mac Pro collapsed is that I unplugged and replugged the power cord a few times... maybe the female plug on Mac Pro's power supply is getting faulty?

 

[bsbeamer]

What is occupying your PCIe slots?
Any chance you have an older or faulty USB device connected?
Using any Firewire devices?

Power cord is a cheap and easy fix. I'd replace that immediately if there is any concern with it.

 

[Caesar_091]

What is occupying your PCIe slots?
Any chance you have an older or faulty USB device connected?
Using any Firewire devices?

My config hasn't changed since 6 moths (WD 4T HDs installation) and before that upgrade probably 6-8 more moths since I installed an Inatek KT4006 USB3.0 PCI-E card. But this issue started only 2-3 months ago.

Using any Firewire devices?

The FW800 port on the motherboard is connected to the Apple Cinema Display HUB via a FW400 to FW800 adapter. The only FW device I use (once or two a week) is an Apple iSight (yep, the old and original one!). I used it already this week and the system is working flawlessly.

I repeat: no changes on my config was made in the last 6 months.

Power cord is a cheap and easy fix. I'd replace that immediately if there is any concern with it.

I mean the female plug on Mac Pro's power supply not the power cord itself (anyway I changed the power cord after the first shutdown 2-3 months ago... you know, just in case!).

 

[Alex Sanders74]

Do not think that is the right cable. It's a "Y" splitter with standard 6-pin and would be wrong gender for the GPU side, so adapters would be needed.

If the part cannot be found, I would consider going with a standard dual mini 6-pin cable to standard 8-pin. Then find a standard 8-pin to 6-pin adapter cable to the GPU. This should load balance between both dual mini 6-pin's appropriately and could easily be changed to use a card with 8-pin power requirements.

Other option might be the EVGA Powerlink, IF it will fit your GPU properly. Search this forum for some install tips and suggestions for users that have installed with more powerful GPUs.

You're correct. My apologies on posting that incorrect part. I looked at the Powerlink, but was unsure if it would fit the 480..

 

[bsbeamer]

You're correct. My apologies on posting that incorrect part. I looked at the Powerlink, but was unsure if it would fit the 480..

Totally unsure if the Powerlink would lineup natively. I've never personally used a 480 GPU on Mac. With enough adapter or extender "dongles" I'm sure it could work in some fashion if it does not directly connect or lineup as needed. Was just another option to balance the load between both mini 6-pins on the board.

The dual mini 6-pin to standard 6-pin cable does not appear to be made or stocked anymore. Not shocking since the majority of MacPro users are now on dual 6-pin or single 8-pin GPUs, especially after the RX580 was officially recommended. PC users do not need that cable as the majority have standard sized connectors.

Sounds like OP has resolved issues, so doubt worth exploring much further.