Electron CPU usage

Mykle1

I doubt it goes worse on some late version

With all due respect, I have to disagree. New versions can break existing installations in any software, not just MM. It’s the very reason for many patches. However, we don’t know the reason for this issue, and it may well be that electron isn’t the cause, but some users have had a small measure of improvement with earlier versions.

loctruong96

@TiemenMoesker HOLY MOLLY, I am having this exact problem you guys are having. I double checked my hardware and revision. which are
hardware =BCM2835
Revision= a02082
and I DO have this problem, it seems nothing you guys tried work except downgrade , so I’m going to ask arrow to send me a replacement since i actually ordered BCM2837 not BCM2835. Let’s hope it work out! (mean while I will try the downgrade option, seemed to improve performance drastically for others)

Mykle1

@loctruong96 said in Electron CPU usage:

(mean while I will try the downgrade option, seemed to improve performance drastically for others)

Please keep us posted

loctruong96

OK, I can here by confirm that using MM 2.1.0 + Electron 1.4.15 improved performance massively. Each new transition now only uses 10-13% of CPU power (and very, very smooth). Even better than earlier report of 40%. For the specs of my pi 3 b
hardware = BCM2835
Revision = a02082
micro sd card - 16gb - class 4 (that’s right, only 4)
mouse + keyboard currently plugged in - no lag
OS = RASPBIAN STRETCH WITH DESKTOP
Thank you so much @Mykle1 for sharing your finding. Otherwise, I would be still trying to narrow down a potential work around.

For those who not sure how to do this:

Create a fresh install of RASPBIAN STRETCH WITH DESKTOP, connect to wifi, then run sudo apt-get update.
sudo apt-get install npm
sudo npm install electron@1.4.15 -g
WAIT PATIENTLY FOR ELECTRON TO LOAD IN THE BACKGROUND
a new line appear indicate electron has finished installing
Go to your download folder, exact Magic Mirror 2.1.0
Go to the newly exacted forlder, open another folder named config
Change the file name Config.js.example to Config.js inside the config folder
open terminal , cd Download/, cd MagicMirror-2.1.0, (OR whatever your location for the Magic Mirror 2.1.0 package is), npm install && npm start
9.5 If encounter error “404”, try “npm install npm@latest -g” (NOTE: some users experienced issues since they do not have the latest npm as global variable) @Reotch2 @EventHorizon
DONE!

Hopefully I will be able to return my pi 3 for a better hardware version to use with the latest Magic Mirror package but here is an acceptable work around for the time being.

Mykle1

@loctruong96 said in Electron CPU usage:

Thank you so much @Mykle1 for sharing your finding.

You are most welcome. :^)

I would like to give credit to everyone that is participating in this topic. By putting our heads together we’ve eliminated some possibilities but we haven’t pinpointed the problem, yet. We have narrowed it down a bit, though, and this workaround is helping some people. I’m glad you’re one of them.

EventHorizon

Just a quick post in an attempt to re-create the above steps. I get to the part where I have to type “npm install && npm start” and I get an error 404 ‘Not Found’. ‘types/node’ is not in the npm registry. ‘It was specified as a dependency of ‘electron’’

Any idea what I’m doing wrong?

Thanks.

strawberry 3.141

@EventHorizon it should be @types/node

EventHorizon

@strawberry-3.141 thank you for the quick reply. Just to confirm: where am I entering @types/node. Sorry for being a noob at this. Thanks for your help!

EDIT: I got the node/type to work by updating using sudo npm install npm@latest -g

Now when I run sudo npm install in the magic mirror folder I get an error code LIFECYCLE. errno 1. “electron@1.7.6” postinstall ‘node install.js’.

‘failed at the electron@1.7.6 postinstall script’.

Any ideas?

EDIT2: used sudo npm install -g electron --unsafe-perm=true.

This seemed to work. I will monitor performance and let you all know.

EDIT3:

Been monitoring it for an hour or so now. CPU temp has not gone over 50. While before it was around a constant 60 - 65.
Compliments and Newsfeed animations are SUPER SMOOTH.

I can confirm that using MM 2.1.0 with Electron 1.4.15 has insanely improved performance! Thanks to everyone in this thread and to @Mykle1 for pointing this thread out for me.

I just have ONE final question guys. I used my custom.css file from my newer build and all was fine after I removed the ‘everyday’ segment of the code from the compliments module. HOWEVER…I notice in the background (If i tab to terminal) This message pops up:

“Fatal: not a git repository (or any of the parent directories): .git”

However, it does not seem to affect the mirror? Or not in any way I can see? Is there any way I can pinpoint how this message is being generated? Like I said, it does not appear to affect any of my modules.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Cheers all!

Mykle1

@EventHorizon said in Electron CPU usage:

I can confirm that using MM 2.1.0 with Electron 1.4.15 has insanely improved performance! Thanks to everyone in this thread and to @Mykle1 for pointing this thread out for me.

If you read this entire thread then you know that I’ve been at this for three weeks. It started as a question from a single user and grew quickly and substantially. 148 posts and 6.0k views later showed there was/is an issue affecting many users, yourself included. I’m glad this workaround has helped you. Enjoy!

“Fatal: not a git repository (or any of the parent directories): .git”

I get these, too, when I do a manual installation of a module, or the MM software itself. What type of installation did you do?

In any event, it does not affect the operation of the MM software. Perhaps someone will give us a more detailed description of why it appears.

EventHorizon

@Mykle1 Thank you for the quick reply!

For the custom modules I used the git commands however, for the magic mirror module I just downloaded it and unzipped it, as I wasn’t sure if I could use a git command to request a specific version of magic mirror. Is there a way of using git to call MM 2.1.0? Just out of pure curiosity!

Mykle1

@EventHorizon said in Electron CPU usage:

for the magic mirror module I just downloaded it and unzipped it, as I wasn’t sure if I could use a git command to request a specific version of magic mirror. Is there a way of using git to call MM 2.1.0?

That’s how I do it, as well. I’m old and somewhat set in my ways when it comes to some things.

I’m really not sure if you can call an earlier version through git. It would be nice if we could do something like this:
https://github.com/MichMich/**MagicMirror210**.git

I never tried it. Anyone else have an answer to this?

As it is, the link to the earlier version looks like this:
https://github.com/MichMich/MagicMirror/archive/v2.1.0.zip

strawberry 3.141

@Mykle1 you can go to every commit you’d like to go, but it’s easier to choose a specific tag

git clone ...
git checkout v2.1.0

Mykle1

@strawberry-3.141 said in Electron CPU usage:

you can go to every commit you’d like to go, but it’s easier to choose a specific tag
git clone …
git checkout v2.1.0

And there you have it. Thanks :^)

EventHorizon

@Mykle1 We learn something new everyday! :) I’ve only started my magic mirror this week and I find this forum is so engaged and passionate about the mirror and all of its amazing stuff I love it.

I think my plan of action now will be: if at some point there is an update to fix this issue with the newest version I’ll just buy another SD card and keep this one as a backup.

Mykle1

@EventHorizon said in Electron CPU usage:

I’ll just buy another SD card and keep this one as a backup.

Fantastic idea. You can also make a backup of the SD card itself. I have a couple in storage.

Mykle1

Got a few spare SD cards so I installed a fresh new Jessie and MagicMirror-develop(which installed Electron 1.7.6). Well, I’m sad to report that Electron 1.7.6 gags on a default installation of MM. Using nmon for stats, Electron CPU usage soared over 225% every time there was a transition of both the Compliments module and the newsfeed module. When either made a transition by themselves, CPU usage was well over 140%. There was not much “at rest” time because newsfeed rotates pretty quickly by default. However, rare moments of “at rest” time showed near normal CPU usage of about 15%.

I did this as a test, to satisfy my own curiosity, because my Pi3 doesn’t have the issues discussed here. Using the same Pi3 that hosts my mirror, running Jessie and MM 2.1.0 and Electron 1.4.15, it performs amazingly well, with no outrageous CPU usage or heat issues (fan installed).

The same Pi3, with the newest develop installation of MM, which installs Electron 1.7.6, is hard pressed to handle the default of 4 modules adequately.

Needless to say, I’m going back to my original SD card, with Jessie, MM 2.1.0 and Electron 1.4.15

EventHorizon

@Mykle1 Brilliant work and testing mate :)

Mykle1

A few words of caution about Raspbian Stretch

I’ve been doing some testing recently, mostly concerning CPU usage with different versions of Raspian and MM. Once I got bluetooth to work, I continued testing with newer and newer versions, until I got to Raspbian Stretch.

The firmware update that accompanies Stretch disabled my Wifi and Bluetooth, and no amount of backward flashing to earlier firmware versions is fixing the issue. When I say disabled, I mean the Pi doesn’t recognize its own Wifi or Bluetooth adapter, as if it doesn’t have them. Google it BEFORE you attempt this upgrade.

r3z3

I’ve just downgrade to the electron@1.4.15 version : no more high CPU usage !
Thanks !

Mykle1

@r3z3 said in Electron CPU usage:

I’ve just downgrade to the electron@1.4.15 version : no more high CPU usage !
Thanks

That’s fantastic! I’m really happy with the results of this topic. We put our heads together and came up with a workaround that works for most people. Kudos to everyone that participated and continues to participate.

I only cooked one Pi3 during my testing. Can anyone help me to reflash a Pi3 B to a firmware version dated about January, 2017?