I’m running Roon core on 16Gb Mac Mini with Catalina OS 10.15.7. It’s worked fine until today. Music files are on external disk. Finder sees the disk. Safari browser works, so network is ok. Other stuff I’ve tried on Mini works fine. It’s just Roon.
When click on icon, it tries to start up and then nothing, it hangs. I forced a quit and tried again a couple of times, it always does the same. Rebooted, same thing, it doesn’t start up. It never gets to the point where it displays a window. Basically it does nothing.
Looked at Roon.app file and it was last updated April 13, 2022, so it’s recent version. I hadn’t used it for about a week, but it worked fine then.
I’m having the same issue on M1 Macbook pro. I have tried reinstalling and clearing out local roon data. Roon itself is running on a linux server. Other Roon clients, e.g. iOS, are working as usual.
Bill_Janssen
(Wigwam wool socks now on asymmetrical isolation feet!)
3
Usually the first thing to do is to use the log file viewer (aka Console.app) to see if it’s complaining about something.
Looked at log file and didn’t see anything obviously wrong. Roon core is unresponsive is all it says.
Does Roon run on the older Catalina Mac OS?
This is single purpose computer, so there’s been no need to update. One time I tried to update to Big Sur, but it failed to install (Apple was having problems with installing it on Mac-Mini and I didn’t want to fight the problem as long as everything was working)
Bill_Janssen
(Wigwam wool socks now on asymmetrical isolation feet!)
5
All right, now look at the Roon Server log file. Unfortunately, I don’t know where that lives on Macs. ~/Library/Roon/, maybe?
I uploaded a zip file with Roon logs called “David_Salguero_Logs.zip”.
I did a quick scan of a few of them. There are ones where it looked like Roon worked ok, and about log 6 or 7 there’s one that has a bunch of messages about authentication failed. After that it looks like it started hanging.
Of course, this is first time I’ve looked at your log files, so I don’t know what I’m looking at, and this is just a wild guess. I used to write software, so I know a little about log files, but that does little good as they are all specific to the software.
Thanks for looking into this for me. I have no idea what happened. I didn’t change anything or do anything different, it just started hanging a few days ago.
I’m sorry to hear you’ve been experiencing a problem launching Roon on your Mac Mini. While newer operating system will generally offer more stable performance, Roon’s minimum requirement is macOS 10.14+, so Catalina likely isn’t the root of the problem here.
I have a just a few questions and some troubleshooting steps to pin down what’s wrong and get your system working.
Would you please tell us a little bit about your network hardware and how it is connected? Please include the model name of your router and any switches, modems, or access points.
I’d also recommend setting aside your Roon database and performing a full uninstall/reinstall. We’ve released a new Build since April 13 when you last updated, and this will guarantee you’re running the latest version. Please follow the instructions below:
Thanks for your help. Your instructions were easy to follow.
Major progress. Having it redo the database and reinstall has it running and playing music. I’ve only tried a couple of things, but I’m very encouraged.
I have not setup Roon from scratch before, and I have question. When I play a single track from album, it plays. When it ends, it automatically picks a random track by the same artist and starts playing it. I don’t want this, and had it turned off in previous setup. I’ve forgotten what this is called and how to turn it off. How do I turn off this feature?
I know I’ll have to setup playlists and add some more source folders, but want to run as is for a while to verify it’s working the way it used to. All my music is on hard disk attached to Mac-mini. I don’t use Tidal or any other streaming service.
I have a very simple setup. My network is provided by att-uverse. The router is on a shelf up near ceiling in basement, so not easy to find out model number. It’s whatever they provide.
I use wireless to connect Mac-mini to network. I know you recommend hardwire, but wireless has worked ok since I don’t stream music. The Mac-mini runs Roon core software and outputs on Stellar DAC to pre-amp & amps. The mini is single purpose. The only thing I use it for is Roon, and I seldom turn on its display except for problems like this.
I connect to Roon core with Roon running on iPad. The iPad is not used for much else, just connecting to Roon and playing music.
It was Roon Radio. I found the switch and turned it off. Hope it stays off. I agree with all the comments about not wanting this feature. Default should be “off”, and an option in Settings to turn it on if you want it.
So far, everything is good. I’m planning to upgrade Mac-mini OS to Monterrey in the next day or two. I should have running the latest version. If problems, I’ll work with Apple to resolve.
Great to hear the reinstall has Roon up and running again. I’d be happy to answer any other networking or general questions you might have in the meantime.
Per @Robert_F and @Rugby’s suggestions, turning off Roon Radio (on each Remote) will prevent similar tracks being to your queue automatically during playback.
While we do recommend a hardwire connection to your Core, if you’ve experienced stable playback on all Remotes with this setup (other than this recent hiccup), feel free to continue using the wireless network for your Mac Mini.
I’ll be watching for your response to support in case anything else comes up! Otherwise, this thread will close automatically after a brief time.
Here’s latest update, just for your information. You’ll probably laugh (or groan). I should have followed the old saying “if it ain’t broke, don’t try to fix it”.
I tried upgrading mac-mini to latest OS and it failed. After 2+ hrs with Apple Support I got nowhere, plus ended up with a computer and no OS installed. So took it to local store that works on Mac’s to check hardware and install OS. He said even though mac-mini was older, it should run the latest OS. I haven’t used Apple Support very often, but this is first time I’ve been disappointed with them.
So when I get it back, it will be a fresh install of latest Mac OS, and I’ll have to do new install of Roon software. I think I can just go to your web site and download. Assume at some point I’ll have to login to Roon. And then after that it will be similar to what I just did to get it configured and running.
The Mac store installed the latest OS on my Mac-mini without any problems. Hardware checked out ok. I brought it home, hooked up everything, and restored files from my “Time Machine” backup disk. Everything is working now.
So I have latest Mac OS, latest Roon version, and it seems to be working fine.
Now after all that, I’m ready to sit back and listen!