Super laggy timelines and extremely slow render/export....again

OTF,

System: Windows 10 Intel(r) Core (TM) i5-2500k CPU @3.30GHZ 3.60 GHZ RAM: 16.0 GB Type: 64 bit os, x64-based processor Graphics Cards: 2 NVIDIA 1050 Ti's Monitors: 1 LG Ultrawide and 1 HP 2159 Series Wide LCD Plugins: RED Giant(yes, yes I know people say plugins can cause issues, but it has the effects I want to use. Also, it has been running pretty great up until the last two days)

Thank you for the system info.

Problem: extremely laggy and barely playable timeline. Exporting is back to taking hours for projects

OK.

....that a week ago, would've taken a few minutes.

The first thing I would want to know is "what changed" over the past week?

Usually this means that (perhaps last week) you updated your Premiere Pro project file and that old media cache is still associated with your previous version of Premiere Pro. It can also indicate a project that has been corrupted. Larger or complex projects might have this effect.

- Yes I updated the NVIDIA drivers.

Make sure you have updated these drivers from the NVIDIA website only.

Reboot the computer after you've updated them.

Yes, today, I updated both Adobe CC and Premiere. Yes, I have made new sequences and moved footage to them.

This is likely your issue, as I indicated earlier. My advice is that if you need to continue on with this project, delete media cache and see if you have better performance.

If you still have performance issues; now that your media cache is empty, create a new project and import the old project into the new one. This might repair the corrupt project.

If you do not need to update this project, try a test with a brand new project and import the footage into the new project and report back on the performance of the clips.

What am I missing here?

I give this advice as an editor, not as a member of the support staff working here at Adobe....

The rule of thumb for editors is to always be protecting your project file.

• One such technique to protect that file is to avoid updating project files when you update the application (if indeed, that was the issue).
  • One should keep the original version of the project file with the version of Premiere Pro it began in.
  • If a new version of Premiere Pro is released and you want to check it out, install the second version side by side with the version you are still working with—finishing up older projects.
  • If you removed the previous version accidentally, you can usually reinstall it.
• Another technique is to make frequent backup of the project file in addition to those saved in your Auto Save folder. Create a folder and use the Save As function to create your project file backups.

Are there any steps I can take from here on out that will help me be able to edit and export more smoothly from now on?

Maintenance:

• The project management tips I outlined above are a great place to start.
• Delete media cache between major projects: FAQ: How to clean (delete or trash) media cache files?
• Check R/W Permissions after OS updates and between major projects.
• Standard periodic disk maintenance.
• Oddball behavior: trash preferences

System:

• A better balanced system:
  • Faster CPU: If I'm not incorrect, your CPU is 8 years old and only offers 4 cores.
  • Add RAM: 32 GB is suggested for 4K workflow
  • Media and Media Cache should be each on separate high speed drives if they are not already

Workflow:

• For Long GOP source footage (and especially with underpowered systems): always create and work with proxies
• For exporting (especially with underpowered systems), use the smart rendering workflow.

I hope this helps you. Please return with any questions.

Thanks,
Kevin