Photoshop CS6, Nik Collection & High Sierra

[SFL]

Hi

 

Does PS CS6 still crash when you use NIK plugins with High Sierra?

 

I am aware that my question is not going to be of any interest to most people, but I am certain that amongst some of the regular people in the forum, NIK collection is a important part of their workflow.  Therefore any recent experience in this matter will be valuable to me.  It is inevitable that I will have to upgrade to High Sierra at some point so I want to be prepared.  I don't use NIK Collection all the time but I use it in certain circumstances.

 

Someone suggested me that I can run two operating systems (with a partition).  It sounds fairly easy and a good idea.  But how practical & easy is it to jump between two operating systems?  

 

For example, you work on an image in PS with High Sierra and reopen it in PS with Sierra in order to put it through NIK Collection, then bring it back to High Sierra?  Is it fairly simple straight forward? Or is it very cumbersome process?

 

Any advice or experience will be very much appreciated.

 

Many thanks

Sung

 

 

 

[ReeRay]

DXO are now proclaiming all is fine with the latest Mac OS X system and PS CS6. Assuming you'd like to spend $59.99 with them.

 

I'll check until others report back

 

In between I'm staying with Sierra.

 

 

 

 

[Malcolm Park]

I run CS6 with Nik Collection on Sierra 10.12.6 with no problems, it also ran fine prior to the 10.12.6 upgrade. I’m currently not upgrading to High Sierra as I don’t wish to lose CS6.

[SFL]

4 hours ago, ReeRay said:

DXO are now proclaiming all is fine with the latest Mac OS X system and PS CS6. Assuming you'd like to spend $59.99 with them.

 

I'll check until others report back

 

In between I'm staying with Sierra.

 

 

 

 

Thanks. I didn’t know that DOX actually said so. But I’m with you. I might wait a bit longer till their claim prove to be correct. 

Sung

[SFL]

4 hours ago, Malcolm Park said:

I run CS6 with Nik Collection on Sierra 10.12.6 with no problems, it also ran fine prior to the 10.12.6 upgrade. I’m currently not upgrading to High Sierra as I don’t wish to lose CS6.

 

I’m in the same boat as you. 

Sung

[Colin Woods]

I'm on High Sierra with CS5 and Nik works perfectly. No idea about CS6 though.

[M.Chapman]

On 21/09/2018 at 11:38, SFL said:

Someone suggested me that I can run two operating systems (with a partition).  It sounds fairly easy and a good idea.  But how practical & easy is it to jump between two operating systems?  

 

For example, you work on an image in PS with High Sierra and reopen it in PS with Sierra in order to put it through NIK Collection, then bring it back to High Sierra?  Is it fairly simple straight forward? Or is it very cumbersome process?

 

This should work fine using Parallels. I've run PSE inside a Windows 7 Virtual Machine running under Mac High Sierra which was set up using Parallels. I still use this setup today for other programs although I now have Mac PS CC. File transfer between the two OS is seamless. My Mac Pictures and Documents etc. folders appear as networked drives inside Windows 7. The two operating systems are running at the same time, no need to reboot, no need for partitioning. Parallels will allow creation of Mac OS Virtual Machines running on a Mac OS. e.g see examples here http://blog.parallels.com/2017/02/09/older-versions-mac-os-x-with-macos-sierra/. Parallels is dead easy to use, there's almost nothing to set up, the wizards do everything for you. Coherence mode allows seamless swapping between windows that are open in both systems at the same time. I've been very impressed with Parallels and use it everyday to access my old Windows programs (MS Office,  MS Money and Breezebrowser) inside a VM on my Mac which is running High Sierra. All my files are stored in the Mac filing system.

 

Mark

[SFL]

6 hours ago, Colin Woods said:

I'm on High Sierra with CS5 and Nik works perfectly. No idea about CS6 though.

 

Fairly soon after High Sierra was released, I upgraded from Sierra.

 

I don't remember exactly, but I think when I tried to save what I had done with NIK Collection as a layer, it crashed every time.  I searched on the internet and found that a lot of people's experiences  were the same.  So I reverted back to Sierra, hoping that the issues would be dealt with by the relevant company/companies in future.

 

I am wondering if the issues are now resolved, hence the question again.  (Recent internet searches bring up only old posts.)

 

Thanks, Colin for sharing your experience.

 

Sung

 

[SFL]

2 hours ago, M.Chapman said:

 

This should work fine using Parallels. I've run PSE inside a Windows 7 Virtual Machine running under Mac High Sierra which was set up using Parallels. I still use this setup today for other programs although I now have Mac PS CC. File transfer between the two OS is seamless. My Mac Pictures and Documents etc. folders appear as networked drives inside Windows 7. The two operating systems are running at the same time, no need to reboot, no need for partitioning. Parallels will allow creation of Mac OS Virtual Machines running on a Mac OS. e.g see examples here http://blog.parallels.com/2017/02/09/older-versions-mac-os-x-with-macos-sierra/. Parallels is dead easy to use, there's almost nothing to set up, the wizards do everything for you. Coherence mode allows seamless swapping between windows that are open in both systems at the same time. I've been very impressed with Parallels and use it everyday to access my old Windows programs (MS Office,  MS Money and Breezebrowser) inside a VM on my Mac which is running High Sierra. All my files are stored in the Mac filing system.

 

Mark

 

When I migrated from PC to Mac in 2013, I also bought Parallels Version 8 mainly to run my very old Quicken (2004) and Quickbook Pro 2003, both of which run on Windows XP.  Since I have not upgraded Parallels to a later version for the fear that I may not be able to use the above mentioned programmes any longer as Paralles stopped support XP.

 

So I am well aware of Parallels’ seamless integration with Mac OS, but it never occurred to me that you can also use Parallels to run another Mac OS too.  Certainly it is an option and food for thoughts but do you think you can run Windows and two Mac OSs?  

 

I will learn to use apps and programmes by necessity but I am not very technically minded.  So it seems very complicated....

 

Thank you for your reply, Mark.

 

Sung

[MDM]

I think you could run into memory (RAM) problems using full Photoshop on Parallels (morevover using the Nik plugin which will need even more memory). It's one thing running an old version of Elements like Mark and another running full Photoshop which does need plenty of RAM for effective performance. Performance will also depend on what image files you are processing. If from a large MP camera, then I would not even entertain the thought. 

 

EDIT: this is assuming you have other apps open on the main MacOS. Perhaps it might work if you allow Parallels to use loads of RAM but that would defeat the purpose of running it in the first place. 

 

If you are only using Nik occasionally, then you would almost certainly get better performance running a proper native MacOS on a separate partition or drive. It's not difficult to install a separate OS and it just requires a restart when you want to use it. I'm thinking of doing this and installing an older OS (probably Mavericks) so I can use Filemaker Pro as the version I have is compromised (for want of a better word - it runs but not properly) on Sierra and High Sierra. Partitioning a drive with an existing  OS might be a problem though and I am thinking of installing on an external Thunderbolt drive which is very fast anyway. 

[SFL]

1 hour ago, MDM said:

I think you could run into memory (RAM) problems using full Photoshop on Parallels (morevover using the Nik plugin which will need even more memory). It's one thing running an old version of Elements like Mark and another running full Photoshop which does need plenty of RAM for effective performance. Performance will also depend on what image files you are processing. If from a large MP camera, then I would not even entertain the thought.

 

If you are only using Nik occasionally, then you would almost certainly get better performance running a proper native MacOS on a separate partition or drive. It's not difficult to install a separate OS and it just requires a restart when you want to use it. I'm thinking of doing this and installing an older OS (probably Mavericks) so I can use Filemaker Pro as the version I have is compromised (for want of a better word - it runs but not properly) on Sierra and High Sierra. Partitioning a drive with an existing  OS might be a problem though and I am thinking of installing on an external Thunderbolt drive which is very fast anyway. 

 

Thank you, MDM, for your reply.

 

The main reason why I asked the question is that I could or will be forced (?) into Adobe CC subscription because my ageing CS6 may be no longer run on new OS in future.  As you might have noticed, I am very slow to upgrade hardwares as well as softwares in this fast moving image making world.  Hence I was thinking about partitioning, etc.

 

I have had 16RAM installed at the time of purchasing my iMac and my main camera is a D800. But at the moment, my Mac HD shows 820GB space available, as nearly all my data is stored in external HDs.

 

So assuming that I install Sierra on an external drive and upgrade to High Sierra on my iMac with all the data stored in another HDs (all USB), may I ask you the following?

1. Will a drive with USB3 be ok? or Thunderbolt is a must?
2. What size ext drive would you recommend? My iMac is 1TB. (edit) I would use Sierra OS only for CS6, Nik Collection and Parallels (for XP accounting programmes).
3. How do you bring an image file back to High Sierra Lightroom environment once I finish working in CS6 in Sierra?
4. Am I correct to think that as I store all images files, Lightroom 6 backup files, etc on an ext HD, when I restart, say, in Sierra, will the HD will show up (if it is connected of course)?  (It looks pretty obvious, but just in case)

Trying to think about various eventualities in advance makes my head spinning…….

 

Sung

[MDM]

Hi Sung

 

First of all I would recommend anybody using Adobe imaging software profesionally or semi-professionally to go for the subscription as there are signifcant enhancements in Lightroom including speed boosts as well as some neat new stuff in Photoshop. You might be saving a few ££ on the subscription but losing on speed and efficiency. 

 

I did vaguely recall you said before you use a D800 so I think the Parallels idea would not be realistic as these are big files. 

 

However, that aside to answer your questions,

 

1. USB3 is fine for backup but Thunderbolt is far faster. I am running Thunderbolt 1 drives as working drives where I have my images but the OS is on an SSD internal drive. I did some tests a few years ago and found that Thunderbolt 1 external on my 2014 Mac is almost as fast as internal SSD for Lightroom and Photoshop -  there is a little difference in write speed when saving files but it is insignifcant for my work. USB3 is way slower so I would not run an OS from it.

 

2. Really depends on what you want. Thunderbolt drives are expensive. I use G-Technology and they are excellent  4 years and I have never had a problem. I don't know how they will work with a 2012 machine or if they are even compatible. If not you could use an external SSD drive (around the same price as a mobile Thunderbolt). 

 

3. I think you have answered the next two questions yourself more or less. The images are not stored in the OS. Store them externally and access them at will from any OS. You would use a  Lightroom catalog in the main OS and the files should be available when you switch back. You may have to import the PSDs. I don't know how it would work if you start opening the catalog in the second OS. Make sure you set the catalog to write the data into xmp immediately and no harm should ensure anyway. 

 

I should say that I don't use the NIK collection. One day when I get time I might.

 

 

 

 

 

[M.Chapman]

9 hours ago, SFL said:

When I migrated from PC to Mac in 2013, I also bought Parallels Version 8 mainly to run my very old Quicken (2004) and Quickbook Pro 2003, both of which run on Windows XP.  Since I have not upgraded Parallels to a later version for the fear that I may not be able to use the above mentioned programmes any longer as Paralles stopped support XP.

 

I'm running Parallels 13 and can still run Windows XP in a VM. If you have any doubts, you could try the 14 day free trial of Parallels 14.

 

Mark

[M.Chapman]

8 hours ago, MDM said:

I think you could run into memory (RAM) problems using full Photoshop on Parallels (morevover using the Nik plugin which will need even more memory). It's one thing running an old version of Elements like Mark and another running full Photoshop which does need plenty of RAM for effective performance. Performance will also depend on what image files you are processing. If from a large MP camera, then I would not even entertain the thought. 

 

Good point. However with 16GB of RAM I wouldn't expect too many problems. I'm currently running PS CC and LR CC under Mac High Sierra and Windows 7 MS Office (all open at the same time) with 16GB RAM on a MacBook Pro and am very happy with performance, but I'm not running Nik plugins and my images aren't huge MP (Sony RX100).

 

One way to find out is to download the free 14 day Parallels 14 trial and try it, as everyone's hardware, requirements and expectations may be different.

 

Mark

[MDM]

2 hours ago, M.Chapman said:

 

Good point. However with 16GB of RAM I wouldn't expect too many problems. I'm currently running PS CC and LR CC under Mac High Sierra and Windows 7 MS Office (all open at the same time) with 16GB RAM on a MacBook Pro and am very happy with performance, but I'm not running Nik plugins and my images aren't huge MP (Sony RX100).

 

One way to find out is to download the free 14 day Parallels 14 trial and try it, as everyone's hardware, requirements and expectations may be different.

 

Mark

 

It would probably run in Parallels but I am not sure it would be comfortable with D800 (36MP) files. It depends on what one is doing really. 16-bit D800 files with layers may not be happy in PS unless a lot of memory is allocatd to PS which I think defeats the purpose of Parallels but I am always willing to be proved wrong.

[SFL]

19 hours ago, MDM said:

Hi Sung

 

First of all I would recommend anybody using Adobe imaging software profesionally or semi-professionally to go for the subscription as there are signifcant enhancements in Lightroom including speed boosts as well as some neat new stuff in Photoshop. You might be saving a few ££ on the subscription but losing on speed and efficiency. 

 

I did vaguely recall you said before you use a D800 so I think the Parallels idea would not be realistic as these are big files. 

 

However, that aside to answer your questions,

 

1. USB3 is fine for backup but Thunderbolt is far faster. I am running Thunderbolt 1 drives as working drives where I have my images but the OS is on an SSD internal drive. I did some tests a few years ago and found that Thunderbolt 1 external on my 2014 Mac is almost as fast as internal SSD for Lightroom and Photoshop -  there is a little difference in write speed when saving files but it is insignifcant for my work. USB3 is way slower so I would not run an OS from it.

 

2. Really depends on what you want. Thunderbolt drives are expensive. I use G-Technology and they are excellent  4 years and I have never had a problem. I don't know how they will work with a 2012 machine or if they are even compatible. If not you could use an external SSD drive (around the same price as a mobile Thunderbolt). 

 

3. I think you have answered the next two questions yourself more or less. The images are not stored in the OS. Store them externally and access them at will from any OS. You would use a  Lightroom catalog in the main OS and the files should be available when you switch back. You may have to import the PSDs. I don't know how it would work if you start opening the catalog in the second OS. Make sure you set the catalog to write the data into xmp immediately and no harm should ensure anyway. 

 

I should say that I don't use the NIK collection. One day when I get time I might.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you MDM

 

Wow, Thunderbolt hard drives are really expensive. A lot more than I anticipated.

 

I had a look at the back of my iMac.  There are 2 Thunderbolt ports.  So it looks like I can use one.

 

My main working drive is a G Technology desktop hd (on your recommendation a while ago) but with USB3.  All my images and other files as well as Lightroom catalog are stored in this drive.

 

When I download NEFs to Lightroom, they are converted to DNGs, therefore no XMPs. Am I correct?

 

Firstly I need to get my head around this set up before I can visualise what I will be doing, which means more questions.  I am sorry for this.  I know you are busy so I don’t expect your answers quick.  Any info is very much appreciated.  If it is getting too much, please tell me so.

 

If I go down the route of having an ext hd with Sierra installed, does it become a kind of another Mac machine (with no monitor)?  Does it mean that if I want any old programmes which may not be run under new/latest/future OS, I install them on this ext hd?

 

Ah!! You said earlier that you are thinking of doing the same with Mavericks & Filemaker Pro. Where would you install Filemaker Pro?

 

I remember you saying that you have kept the latest updates of Lightroom 6 in case you stop the subscription of PS & Lightroom CC for some reason.  What is your strategy? Is it again an ext hd with older version of OS?  Where and how would you re-install Lightroom 6 and PS6?

 

If I use an ext hd purely for Sierra, PS6 & Nick Collection, will a 500GB - 1TB drive be big enough as long as it’s SSD or Thunderbolt?

 

I remember also you saying Nik Collection is on your long list but nearer to the bottom.  I think if you are a (very) advanced PS user, you will be able to do a lot of things in PS that Nik plugins offer.  But over all Nik plugins are very useful and powerful tools in my humble opinion.

 

Thank you again for your time.

 

Sung

[SFL]

19 hours ago, M.Chapman said:

 

I'm running Parallels 13 and can still run Windows XP in a VM. If you have any doubts, you could try the 14 day free trial of Parallels 14.

 

Mark

 

Thank you, Mark. I didn’t know that current version of Parallels will work with XP programmes.  I think I sent them an email about this a long time ago.  Perhaps I misread what they said.  Anyway it is useful to know.

 

Sung

[M.Chapman]

7 hours ago, SFL said:

 

Thank you, Mark. I didn’t know that current version of Parallels will work with XP programmes.  I think I sent them an email about this a long time ago.  Perhaps I misread what they said.  Anyway it is useful to know.

 

Sung

 

You're welcome.

 

Parallels website, (https://download.parallels.com/desktop/v12/docs/en_US/Parallels Desktop User's Guide/33321.htm) shows a list of the Guest Operating Systems that Parallels 12 supports. So far as I'm aware Parallels 13 supports the same list. I haven't tried Parallels 14.

 

You may also find this of interest as it describes getting Quicken 2004 running on Windows 7, 8 and even 10..

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-windows_programs/can-you-install-quicken-2004-on-windows-7/bb517821-35e9-4fbe-a88a-b1c8a22cc83f

 

Running Quickbook Pro 2003 may not be so easy.

 

Mark

 

 

[MDM]

17 hours ago, SFL said:

 

 

When I download NEFs to Lightroom, they are converted to DNGs, therefore no XMPs. Am I correct?

 

Firstly I need to get my head around this set up before I can visualise what I will be doing, which means more questions.  I am sorry for this.  I know you are busy so I don’t expect your answers quick.  Any info is very much appreciated.  If it is getting too much, please tell me so.

 

If I go down the route of having an ext hd with Sierra installed, does it become a kind of another Mac machine (with no monitor)?  Does it mean that if I want any old programmes which may not be run under new/latest/future OS, I install them on this ext hd?

 

Ah!! You said earlier that you are thinking of doing the same with Mavericks & Filemaker Pro. Where would you install Filemaker Pro?

 

I remember you saying that you have kept the latest updates of Lightroom 6 in case you stop the subscription of PS & Lightroom CC for some reason.  What is your strategy? Is it again an ext hd with older version of OS?  Where and how would you re-install Lightroom 6 and PS6?

 

If I use an ext hd purely for Sierra, PS6 & Nick Collection, will a 500GB - 1TB drive be big enough as long as it’s SSD or Thunderbolt?

 

I remember also you saying Nik Collection is on your long list but nearer to the bottom.  I think if you are a (very) advanced PS user, you will be able to do a lot of things in PS that Nik plugins offer.  But over all Nik plugins are very useful and powerful tools in my humble opinion.

 

Thank you again for your time.

 

Sung

 

Hi Sung - I don't use DNG, I just use the NEFs but as far as I know yes to the DNG question as the metadata is embedded in the DNG.

 

Basically the idea is to have two operating systems available and you can switch between them - as simple as that. The disk on which they are held can be the same drive (partitioned) or two separate drives. Run older apps on the older OS. So if I do install Mavericks or whatever, I would run FIlemaker on that.

 

A 500GB drive would be more than adequate for running a MacOS. You could try it on your G-Tech USB3 drive. It might be fast enough for your purposes as the G-Tech drives are fast in my experience but it won't be as fast as SSD or Thunderbolt.

 

I don't have a strategy for giving up the CC subscription as I have no intention of doing so.  I do have the perpetual licenses for LR6 and CS6 but it would be a big backward step now if I had to go back.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SFL]

17 hours ago, M.Chapman said:

 

You're welcome.

 

Parallels website, (https://download.parallels.com/desktop/v12/docs/en_US/Parallels Desktop User's Guide/33321.htm) shows a list of the Guest Operating Systems that Parallels 12 supports. So far as I'm aware Parallels 13 supports the same list. I haven't tried Parallels 14.

 

You may also find this of interest as it describes getting Quicken 2004 running on Windows 7, 8 and even 10..

https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/forum/windows_7-windows_programs/can-you-install-quicken-2004-on-windows-7/bb517821-35e9-4fbe-a88a-b1c8a22cc83f

 

Running Quickbook Pro 2003 may not be so easy.

 

Mark

 

 

 

Thank you so much.  Very useful interesting information about Quicken 2004.

 

With Quickbook, I did upgraded a couple of times, but the frequency and the price increases really put me off.  So I stopped upgrading.  Moreover, your old accounts data became unreadable by new version unless you keep up with it.  Very sharp practice.  They now offer subscriptions.  There is a surprise!!!!

 

Thank you again for the time your spent.

 

Sung

 

 

[SFL]

8 hours ago, MDM said:

 

Hi Sung - I don't use DNG, I just use the NEFs but as far as I know yes to the DNG question as the metadata is embedded in the DNG.

 

Basically the idea is to have two operating systems available and you can switch between them - as simple as that. The disk on which they are held can be the same drive (partitioned) or two separate drives. Run older apps on the older OS. So if I do install Mavericks or whatever, I would run FIlemaker on that.

 

A 500GB drive would be more than adequate for running a MacOS. You could try it on your G-Tech USB3 drive. It might be fast enough for your purposes as the G-Tech drives are fast in my experience but it won't be as fast as SSD or Thunderbolt.

 

I don't have a strategy for giving up the CC subscription as I have no intention of doing so.  I do have the perpetual licenses for LR6 and CS6 but it would be a big backward step now if I had to go back.

 

 

Hi MDM

 

Now I have a much better idea of how things will be run thanks to your replies.

 

With regard to the last paragraph, my apologies.  I must have mixed up with someone else.  

 

Thank you again for your time.

 

Sung

[MDM]

 

 

No problem Sung. I am keeping the perpetual license versions but I hope I never have to use them and it is very hard to imagine going back or using other software. It would take a very radical change in policy and price from Adobe to make me do so.