P: Photoshop hangs when using smart objects

[Andreas Resch]

Unfortunately with the recent updates Photoshop becomes slower and more buggy. Expecially when using smart objects. Sometimes when I drag a smart object from one canvas to another, Photoshop hangs for several seconds. This has never happened before. It also sometimes hangs when I just move smart objects around. Sometimes Photoshop won't response any more at all and I have to kill the task. Weirdly enough the GPU usage is as about 70% for Photoshop all the time in those situations. So something is going on. Again - something that only started to happen recently.

Any ideas what's going on here? I don't want to have to revert to an older version again. 

[Andreas Resch]

While fiddling around with PS2022 to see if it makes any difference (it doesn't), I stumbled ovet this, which might explain why it was fast on your computer. 

When I drag a flattened image into my test file, it is instantly dropped. But when I drag a transparent layer (as you can see in my screencast) it takes a long time to drop. So you probably dragged a flat layer into my test file. Please try it with a transparent layer. Just create a new file with a transparent background. Scribble something on it, and drag that layer over.

[TheDigitalDog]

The test I tried used a layer with transparency. Then flattened as described. Both fine.

[Andreas Resch]

Then I'm clueless what this could be. As you can see in my video, it's really bad on my PC.

[Kevin Stohlmeyer]

@J453 sounds similar to this post:

https://community.adobe.com/t5/photoshop-ecosystem-bugs/camera-raw-problem-with-smart-objects/idc-p/...

[Andreas Resch]

It may be somehow related, but it's not the same. I don't need to go into Camera RAW for it to freeze. Mine freezes ouside of Camera RAW.

Can you test the sample file that I've uploaded earlier? Would be interesting to have more test feedback.

[Kevin Stohlmeyer]

I'm on a Mac so my experience would be different. I did try and don't experience the same lags you are noting.

[Andreas Resch]

Thanks for trying. That's really disappointing. The experience shouldn't be that different. I'm working on quite a powerful machine as well. I guess I will have to file that as a bug then. Not sure what else can be done.

[Andreas Resch]

I've now installed Photoshop 2023 on my second PC to see if there are any differences - different GPU, Windows 10 as well. And the issue is the same. The same lag when I drag a transparent layer into the test file. So this is not an issue of my main PC, it definitely is a bug.

[TheDigitalDog]

So this is not an issue of my main PC, it definitely is a bug.
By Andreas Resch

A bug between what and what? 
We can't get to the bottom of this until we can replicate it and so far, not the case. Don't assume that whatever is the cause of the issue affects a large number of users OR is not a common conflict on both of your systems! If there is a software conflict with say, antivirus software on both of your machines, yeah, it's a bug with the software but not Photoshop alone. 

You have a lot more work to do than just the installation of Photoshop on a 2nd machine. 
Now make a completely clean install of the OS and just PS and test; what is the result? That kind of testing provides useful data towards a resolution.

[Andreas Resch]

I answered this in the other thread. It's a clean install. And the other side of the tests are on two Mac machines, which isn't a great benchmark either. But if this happens on two differnt PCs, there's something to it, right?

[Kevin Stohlmeyer]

@Andreas Resch I've requested this be combined with the other thread. We're duplicating/overlapping efforts with two split threads for the same issue.

[Andreas Resch]

That's fine. As long as the thread stays in the "Bug" section.

[TheDigitalDog]

You said exactly where that you did a complete clean install of the OS in either threads?

https://www.techtarget.com/searchitchannel/definition/clean-install?amp=1

[Andreas Resch]

I did another test on a modified sample file. I've swapped all the Camera Raw smart filters for Nik Color Efex smart filters. These are a bit slower to calculate and they show a progress bar when they update as well. So the sample file now has around 20 smart object layers and a Nik smart filter on each on them. 

I did two tests now. I started Photoshop fresh each time, openend the sample file and a little file showing a camel. 

Test 1 - Dragging the camel into the sample file. As you can see in the screencast (link below) each layer recalculates its smart filter, which in the case of this Nik filter takes quite a time in total. After all that is done, I dragged the camel over again. This time it's placed in an instant.

Test 1 - Screencast 

Test 2 - I flattened the camel file before dragging it into the sample file. As you can see in the second screencast, the placement happens instantly.

Test 2 - Screencast 

So it seems that the same thing is happening to the original sample file with the Camera RAW filters. With the difference that one can't see the process of all the Camera RAW filters being updated.

So the question now is, why all the filters are being updated when I drag a transparent layer into the file - and only for the first time. This does not seem to happen on Macs which is interesting. Maybe this info helps to find a solution.

[J453]

OK. I was able to get the sample file. I am seeing the behavior where the first place of the Camel into the document with Smart Objects take a long time the first time and is instant the next time it is dragged and dropped.

That said, those progress bars (black box with yellow/orange progress bars) you're seeing aren't Photoshop's. Those are probably coming from a plug-in or panel.

I've asked an engineer to take a look at the slowness on first place issue.

[Andreas Resch]

Yeah. Those bars are from a Nik plugin. I just used it to better illustrate the sequential process of the individual smart filters being run through. That progress bar popping up helps with that. But it seems as if the same happens when the Camera Raw filter is used. Every individual instance is recalculated. It just happens without any visual feedback. Photoshop just seems to be stuck. It even happens on a Gaussian blur. It's just not that extreme as Gaussian blur is faster than Camera Raw or the Nik plugin.

Did you test it on a Mac or under Windows? It does not seem to happen on Macs. 

Thanks for forwarding it. 

[J453]

I reproduced it on macOS. So think it's happening on both.

[Andreas Resch]

Well that's interesting. One wonders now what prevents this from happening on some machines. Maybe we will have answers soon. Cheers. 

[Andreas Resch]

Once again an issue related to smart objects (and probably layer effects). I just wanted to duplicate a smart object layer within a group with a layer style active (just a stroke) by ALT-dragging the layer. Photoshop is hanging now. They white arrow marker was constantly active. After switching to another window, I can't switch back to Photoshop any more - the windows won't regain focus. Photoshop seems to do some calculations in the background as the GPU load is at about 10% all the time for the Photoshop task. 

It's not the first time that Photoshop is acting weidly when using smart objects and layer styles. This combination isn't only very slow it's also prone to errors. 

Here's a screenshot of the processes involved with Photoshop. Some crashpad handler is among them, but no crash report popped up.

[Mylenium]

What does the SO contain/ what is it composed of? It's imaginable that this is the content inside causing trouble, not the rasterized layer preview.

Mylenium 

[Andreas Resch]

No. It's not the content. It's a single layer of a small bitmap. One I use all the time. After I terminated Photoshop, I redid all the steps and then it did not crash (yet). It's a bug. Happened before, will happen again. 

[TheDigitalDog]

After I terminated Photoshop, I redid all the steps and then it did not crash (yet). It's a bug.

By Andreas Resch

If it is a bug, then why didn't this happen after you quit PS? 

If it crashed, do you have a crash log to send to Adobe? 

When Photoshop crashes, this is the first thing to do, try resetting your Photoshop preferences. Press and hold Alt+Control+Shift (Windows) or Option+Command+Shift (macOS) immediately after launching Photoshop. You will be prompted to delete the current settings. You can also reset preferences upon a quit if Photoshop is running by going into General Preferences>General>Reset on Quit.

If that doesn't fix the issue:
Go to Preferences > Performance... and uncheck Multithreaded Compositing - and restart Photoshop.
Still crashing? 
Go to Preferences > Performance... click Advanced Settings... and uncheck "GPU Compositing" - then restart Photoshop. Still crashing?  

Happened before, will happen again. 

Get a crash log for Adobe engineering. 

[Mylenium]

If it doesn't happen when you relaunch PS it may be more of a performance issue. Have you actually cleaned out the temp files and swap file remnants? Also, just a random thought, if you re-used the same image there may be a gazillion temp PSB files and PS may have messed up their numbering.

Mylenium 

[Andreas Resch]

It's not the exact same smart object just the kind of smart object that I use all the time. It's just as simple as it gets for a smart object.

I deleted as much temporary files as I could, 

[J453]

Do you have a PSD that reproduces this issue consistently? If so, can you share the file you're having trouble with? Post a URL to the file using CC files or dropbox, or something similar to share the file.