Zotero running hot (causing fan to run, presumably b/c more resource intensive) after update

penguinstenny
Hi-

Trying to figure out if this is an isolated issue. Since the last couple of updates, when I try running Zotero with other programs, it seems to be causing the computer to run hot, making the fan turn on quite loud. I know it can use a reasonable amount of battery with other things open, so I'm not inherently concerned about that, but the making the fan turn on loudly is a bit more concerning to me. I didn't know if there was something in the latest update that might have further caused it to be more resource intensive, or just a bad combination of things on my particular machine.

Running OSX standalone 5.0.47
  • dstillman
    Is this on a MBP with discrete graphics? We've seen some cases where, after saving snapshots on certain pages, the dedicated graphics card turns on and doesn't go off until Zotero is restarted, and we haven't been able to fix that yet.

    Generally you should be able to tell what's happening (CPU or GPU) from Activity Monitor.
  • dstillman
    (But no, it's not a general problem. E.g., right now for me Zotero in the background is using 0.0% CPU.)
  • penguinstenny
    It might have that -- I am definitely on a MBP. How would I know if it's discrete graphics? Not very good at the hardware side. My about mac says "Intel Iris Pro 1536 MB" as the graphics card.
  • dstillman
    This is a 15" MBP, right? Yeah, those are the models with separate discrete graphics cards. So check the link I provided above for determining whether the behavior I describe is happening for you after saving snapshots on certain webpages.
  • penguinstenny
    OK, I'll keep an eye out and report back at next occurrence -- thanks!
  • GTurk
    edited November 12, 2020
    This problem, Zotero activating the discrete GPU when taking a snapshot of some websites and keeping it activated until the program is restarted, is still occurring on a 2019 MBP. It's quite annoying as it drains the battery fast. Has any solution for this been found yet?
  • dstillman
    @GTurk: How are you reproducing it now? Starting last month, most snapshots are taken in the browser by the Zotero Connector, not in Zotero itself.
  • GTurk
    @dstillman: That's good news! Unfortunately, I'm not sure which snapshot caused the problem as I'm mostly working with an external monitor, in which case the dGPU is activated anyway. I only noticed it again yesterday when I was working without the external monitor and the dGPU was still activated. So the 'faulty' snapshot might well have been from before the update you mentioned. I'll keep an eye out for when/if it happens again though, thanks!
  • GTurk
    edited November 23, 2020
    @dstillman: I've now managed to reproduce the problem by saving a snapshot of this article https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/0009250967800472 via the Zotero browser extension (Safari 14.0.1).
  • dstillman
    edited November 24, 2020
    @GTurk: The beta Safari App Extension version of the Zotero Connector doesn't include the above change and isn't being updated while we wait for Apple to fix bugs in Safari 14, so if you're using Safari it will still save snapshots in Zotero itself, where this can occur. I'd recommend using the Zotero Connector for Firefox, Chrome, or Edge in the meantime, or disabling snapshots in the General pane of the Zotero preferences.
  • GTurk
    @dstillman: Thanks, that's helpful to know!

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