iCamSouce Pro crashing iMac's

[MBL]

I have 2 iMacs at 2 separate locations running iOS 10.12.1 Sierra and iCamSource Pro 1.3 that have both been experiencing the same problem for around the past 2 weeks.  Once or twice throughout the day (could be after hours of using the computer, or within minutes) the computer slows to almost a halt.  I get the colored spinning wheel and most of the time have to hard reboot the computer, because it takes forever to even close apps to restart properly.  I’ve been shutting down different programs to see what’s causing the issue and today I found that iCamSource Pro is the issue.  I set up my activity monitor and every time the computer starts acting up, I see that iCamSource Pro is not responding.  It takes some time to get the computer to finally respond, but if I can quit iCamSource Pro, the computer will start functioning correctly again.

[Stefan]

Hmm. It sounds like the iCamSource Pro is using up some resource on your Macs that are causing them to grind to a halt.

Do you know what the % CPU and memory usage of the iCamSource Pro application is in the Activity Monitor when this occurs?

How many (and what kind) of cameras are you connecting to from the iCamSource Pro? Are they USB or network IP cameras?

We do have a new version of the iCamSource Pro for you to try that addresses a couple of crashes and bugs, so I would also be curious if one of those fixes would be a help to your problem: http://skjm.com/icampro/iCamSourcePro1.3.0.3.dmg

Please let us know how that new version works for you.

Thanks!

[MBL]

I will try and get you that info, but unfortunately it locks up the computer, so it's not easy.  % cpu was 2.2, but I did not get the memory at that time.  Both computers are running the built in iMac camera, plus one Foscam FI8910W network IP camera.  I've been running these same exact setups for years at both locations.  The only thing that has changed on my end is software updates for both the computers and iCamProSource.

I downloaded the new version of the software, but when I click on iCamSourcePro1.3.0.3.dmg, nothing happens.  I have it sitting on my desktop.  Am I supposed to be doing something other than trying to open it?

[Stefan]

I downloaded the new version of the software, but when I click on iCamSourcePro1.3.0.3.dmg, nothing happens.  I have it sitting on my desktop.  Am I supposed to be doing something other than trying to open it?

Double-clicking the dmg file should open a Finder window to allow you to copy the iCamSource Pro to your Applications folder. You may try re-downloading it if the dmg file is not opening correctly.

[MBL]

It worked after I re-downloaded it.  I will let you know if it fixes the problem.

I did quit iCam for the entire day and no more computer crashes, so iCam (or at least the old version) was definitely causing the computer to crash.

[MBL]

The new version brought my iMac to a screeching halt again.  It happened after the display had been off.  Don't know if that means anything, but a couple of times when the computer started to freeze, it was after I used the mouse to wake the screen.  But, it also happens when I'm actively using the computer.  Only my screen goes to sleep, I have the "put hard disks to sleep when possible" unchecked.  Don't think the screen issues is the problem, but thought it was worth mentioning.

Here's what activity monitor showed when iCamProSource was unresponsive and crashing the computer.
%CPU 0.5
Memory 7.21 GB

[MBL]

Another update.  My previous post was from my home computer.

With the new version installed on my work computer, it just crashed the computer while I was working on it.

%CPU 0.3
Memory 5.78 GB

Normal when not locked up
%CPU 22
Memory 76 mb

[Stefan]

Thank you for the updates.

It definitely seems like there is a memory leaking issue, as the iCamSource Pro should not be using gigabytes of memory.

You had mentioned that the issue occurred after updating to macOS Sierra and to the latest iCamSource Pro (1.3).

If you re-download the previous version (1.1.1) of the iCamSource Pro from our website (http://skjm.com/icampro/iCamSourcePro1.1.1.dmg), does it still consume more than 1 GB of memory after running for a while?

That will help us track down the cause of the issue if we can determine which update (macOS or the iCamSource Pro) is causing the memory leaking issue.

Thanks!

[MBL]

Ok, I've downloaded 1.1.1 on both computers and I'm running them now.  I will report back if either unit crashes.  We only get that crazy gigabites of memory, when the unit is crashing.

To be clear, I've been having the problem for about 3 weeks now.  The computers were upgrade to Sierra some time ago, very shortly after it came out.  As far as updating to the latest iCamSourcePro, that was done whenever the pop up came up that there was a new version available.

Thanks,
Marc

[Stefan]

Thanks for the update.

iCamSource Pro 1.3 was released last month, so it may be the cause of the issue. We have not received any other reports of a memory leak with the new version, but if the issue is present in 1.3 but not in 1.1.1 then we should be able to track it down and fix it.

[MBL]

The computers do not crash with 1.1.1 installed.

[Stefan]

Thank you for the update.

Since your iMacs are not experiencing the memory leak when running 1.1.1, it must be a change that went into 1.3.

There are some intermediate versions of the iCamSource that were not publicly released between 1.1.1 and 1.3, and they contained bug fixes for a number of minor issues.

If you could download version 1.1.1.3 (http://skjm.com/icampro/iCamSourcePro1.1.1.3.dmg) this version contained bug fixes for both USB / Built-In and Wireless IP cameras. If the memory usage of that version grows beyond 100-200 MB within 2-3 hours, then it is likely one of those bug fixes that is causing the issue. If 1.1.1.3 is not leaking, then it is one of the many changes and additions added to 1.3.

If 1.1.1.3 is not leaking memory after a few hours, then I would try running 1.3 again on one of your computers with only one camera (either the Built-In webcam or the Foscam IP camera). This is in order to narrow down whether or not it is specific to the logic of one type of camera. Once determining whether or not the single camera runs for 2-3 hours without leaking above 100-200 MB, then I would remove that camera and add back the other one, to determine whether or not it is isolated to one camera type. If so, then that information will help us determine what code changes may be suspect.

Thank you again for your help and patience!

[MBL]

So here are my findings:

1.1.1.3 did not have memory leak.  Stayed at around 32mb for hours

1.3 with only Built-In webcam running rose to 400mb in 10 minutes
1.3 with only Foscam IP camera running rose to 400mb in 1 hour
1.3 with both camera's running rose to 400mb in 6 minutes
With each configuration that memory number would have steadily gone up, I just decided to cap it at 400mb.

Hope this helps.

[jwilker]

FWIW, seeing the exact same behavior on a Mac mini (Late 2012, 16gb RAM)

I've had to resort to quitting the app every 2-3 hours and restarting it. This all started with 1.3 and cloud update.

[Stefan]

So here are my findings:

1.1.1.3 did not have memory leak.  Stayed at around 32mb for hours

1.3 with only Built-In webcam running rose to 400mb in 10 minutes
1.3 with only Foscam IP camera running rose to 400mb in 1 hour
1.3 with both camera's running rose to 400mb in 6 minutes
With each configuration that memory number would have steadily gone up, I just decided to cap it at 400mb.

Hope this helps.

Thank you for that additional information, and I do apologize for the delay in responding. I did not receive an email notification from the forum when you replied. 

FWIW, seeing the exact same behavior on a Mac mini (Late 2012, 16gb RAM)

I've had to resort to quitting the app every 2-3 hours and restarting it. This all started with 1.3 and cloud update.

So also a thank you to jwilker for posting and kicking off a forum notification email.

It looks like it doesn't matter what type of camera (USB / Built-In or IP camera) that causes this memory leak.

If you guys are not currently using the iCam Pro Cloud service, you should be fine to use the previous version until this issue is resolved.

jwilker, what type and how many cameras are you using with your Mac mini?

Also, do either of you have Motion and / or Sound detection enabled? If you temporarily disable them when running version 1.3, does the memory leak stop? Are either of you guys using the iCam Pro Cloud service?

Another thing to try is to close the iCamSource Pro Preferences window (thereby hiding the video preview of the cameras) if you are leaving the window open to see if that has any affect on the leak.

MBL, what model of iMac (Early- / Mid- / Late- 20xx) are you running? You can see this by clicking on the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the menu bar and choosing About This Mac.