Question about the client

[Squeeks]

I'm using the command line client in windows, i picked yes for when it asked me if i wanted to use over 5megs of memory, but task manager says the client is only useing 4.7megs of memory, is there another option or setting i need to change somewhere? I remember in DF if you picked the option to use more memory it ran it faster, im just wondering if this is the case here as well.

[MikeTimbers]

What does task manager show for FahCore_??.exe as that is the actual bit that eats memory. Mine is showing over 100MB!

[pelligrini]

The FAH cores use differing amounts of memory based on which core is running and for which project. The client is just a frontend for several types of cores. If you select the bigger memory option, you'll get the bigger units. I've got one on my work machine and it's using about 100meg. You're not always guaranteed the large WU either. The large units don't necesseraly run faster with the large memory usage, but there is a bit of a point bonus for them.

[Squeeks]

the FaHCore_82.exe shows 4.4 megs

[TDKozan]

Prolly the unit you're processing. _78.exe on my personal box is showing 105MB on the slowest unit it's had since I got the newest client and told it to run as a service.

BTW, running FAH as a service does seem (subjectively) to speed up the runtime but the foreground app(s) take a noticible hit. Since the only apps I run these days are less important than FAH, this isn't an issue but it's worth noting.

TK

[pelligrini]

BTW, running FAH as a service does seem (subjectively) to speed up the runtime but the foreground app(s) take a noticible hit. Since the only apps I run these days are less important than FAH, this isn't an issue but it's worth noting.

TK
Really? I've never noticed a difference. From what I understand, the service it sets up is not really running any different then from what the command line client does when it is running in the taskbar. I'm wondering if you're really noticing the large memory usage by the client affecting your foreground apps instead.

[TDKozan]

<shrug>

Beats me. My day-to-day computer is a 1.7 GHz P4m Tecra with a GB of RAM. Memory use rarely gets above 500MB so that shoudn't be an issue. Nothing new installed in the same time frame either but I did see it develop noticible hesitation switching between apps, and at other times as well, once the service was up and running.

TK

[pelligrini]

Strange. Would you be willing to test your theory? You could stop the service and start the text client so it would show in the taskbar and see if you get the same hesitations. It's no big deal if you don't want to jack with it.

[TDKozan]

No problem. I'll yutz around with it this weekend between essay writing and chores. Maybe even dust off my old food source (Clipper compiler) and run a timing loop and logging routine to give objective numbers while running CLI vs. service and swapping things in and out.

If I don't have results by Monday, please nudge me. I'm easilly distracted these days.

TK

[pelligrini]

Cool, if you do use the timer you might run some tests with the client (gulp) off too.

[TDKozan]

Okay, real simple program, DOS-based managed by NTVDM which is a serious resource hog when it wants to be.

Work unit info:
Project: 1711 (Run 8, Clone 85, Gen 6)
Protein: p1711_TZ2_unf_r2880
Core: FahCore_78.exe

The program opens a log file, stores the number of seconds since midnight and starts counting. There are two loops; the inner one that does nothing but count to 100,000 as quickly as it can and the outer loop that compares the time it has been running. After ten minutes, it exits the outer loop, writes the number of seconds it ran, the number of loops completed, and the loops per second to two decimal places to the log file and quits after playing a stupid tune.

<drumroll>

Lots of Win apps running but no FAH gives 2.22 loops per second.

Same apps running but FAH running in the foreground gives 2.14 loops per second.

FAH loaded as a service, otherwise the same rips out an astounding 2.09 loops per second.

So, I'd have to say that the service does hog more CPU resources than the foreground app does. If I was really motivated, I'd log the time it takes to complete the same step as a service vs. foreground.

But I'm not.

I'm happy running the service because I have even less to manage and, if the computer is logged out or restarted, I loose less work.

Anyone want to time one step as a service, delete the work files and retime it in the foreground?

TK

[pelligrini]

Wow, thanks for the info.

After thinking about it, I don't believe I've had the same hardware setup where I went from the a foreground to a service on a computer I was actually using regularly. I went from foreground to service on my workstation at the office, but I also went to a P4-2.8-HT with a gig of RAM from a P4-1.7 with 512.

I did go from foreground to service at home, but I also did it at the same time I upgraded from dual XP-1800s to XP-2400s.

[Squeeks]

I have no idea what you guys are talking about, i just start the client whenever i turn the computer on.

[TDKozan]

If you get the latest text-based client, it has the option to run as a service you can pick under the configuration screens. If you pick that, it will load on startup without having to log in first. Nice timesaver with Win 2K and newer systems. Downside is that it slows down the other apps a bit more than the regular command-line version does. To be totally fair, I should install the graphical client and see how performance goes there but I'm not that motivated.

Anyhow, set it up as a service, it loads and runs before you've logged into the computer but it slows down everything else. If someone's really interested, the next test is to try running the same unit both as a service and with the text-based client to see if there's a speedup in processing time to offset the slowdown in system performance.

Clear as mud? I'll try to clear up anything I can but some days I just confuse myself.

TK

[MikeTimbers]

I can't say I've ever noticed any greater slowdown with any DC client over another. Consider that the cpu can switch from DC to "your app" in millionths of a second and only the OS's ability to switch contexts decides whether you see any slowdown. Always ensure your DC client is running at the lowest possible priority, then forget about it.

Also, always run the client as a service if possible since it will auto-start should your PC decide to re-boot just after you've gone to bed.