Hi Guys. For the past several days, I have experienced high temp problems. I've been crunching QMC as team's POTM & have found that QMC increase heat & power usage. Rather than abort, set web based prefs to 2 cores maximum on QMC & set other 2 cores to crunching Seti with 2 cores max.

However, for the past several hours, both projects have been switching over every 60 min & crunching using all 4 cores.

Computer based prefs have been cleared to allow web based prefs to take precedence. However, it's not working.

How do I get both projects to only use 2 cores?

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Hi Guys. For the past several days, I have experienced high temp problems. I've been crunching QMC as team's POTM & have found that QMC increase heat & power usage. Rather than abort, set web based prefs to 2 cores maximum on QMC & set other 2 cores to crunching Seti with 2 cores max.

However, for the past several hours, both projects have been switching over every 60 min & crunching using all 4 cores.

Computer based prefs have been cleared to allow web based prefs to take precedence. However, it's not working.

How do I get both projects to only use 2 cores?

Hmmm... okay, what does BOINC say in your messages tab for the following lines:

- General prefs: from ________(<-fill in Project) (last modified dd-mmm-yyyy hh:mm:ss)
- Host location: _____ (either work, school, home or none)
- General prefs: using separate prefs for _____ (or similar)
- Reading preferences override file (does this line exist?)

Or, could you copy the first 30 or so lines from your messages tab and paste them here?

Andy

11/06/2008 13:47:47||Starting BOINC client version 5.10.45 for windows_x86_64
11/06/2008 13:47:47||log flags: task, file_xfer, sched_ops
11/06/2008 13:47:47||Libraries: libcurl/7.18.0 OpenSSL/0.9.8e zlib/1.2.3
11/06/2008 13:47:47||Data directory: C:\\Program Files\\BOINC
11/06/2008 13:47:48|SETI@home|Found app_info.xml; using anonymous platform
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Processor: 4 AuthenticAMD AMD Phenom(tm) 9500 Quad-Core Processor [AMD64 Family 16 Model 2 Stepping 2]
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Processor features: fpu tsc pae nx sse sse2
11/06/2008 13:47:49||OS: Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64 Edition: , Service Pack 2, (05.02.3790.00)
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Memory: 3.50 GB physical, 5.28 GB virtual
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Disk: 232.88 GB total, 217.26 GB free
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Local time is UTC +1 hours

11/06/2008 13:47:49||General prefs: from QMC@HOME (last modified 11-Jun-2008 14:34:58)
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Host location: home
11/06/2008 13:47:49||General prefs: using separate prefs for home
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Preferences limit memory usage when active to 2686.50MB
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Preferences limit memory usage when idle to 3582.00MB
11/06/2008 13:47:49||Preferences limit disk usage to 93.13GB


Can't locate any prefs overide file.

Prefs for all attached projects...

11/06/2008 13:47:49|ABC@home|URL: http://abcathome.com/; Computer ID: 45632; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|3x+1@home|URL: http://allprojectstats.com/collatz/; Computer ID: 1615; location: (none); project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|rosetta@home|URL: http://boinc.bakerlab.org/rosetta/; Computer ID: 766564; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|malaria|URL: http://boinc.cs.uct.ac.za/malaria/; Computer ID: 184; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|Poem@Home|URL: http://boinc.fzk.de/poem/; Computer ID: 8423; location: (none); project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|Riesel Sieve Project|URL: http://boinc.rieselsieve.com/; Computer ID: 38430; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|superlinkattechnion|URL: http://cbl-boinc-server2.cs.technion.ac.il/superlinkattechnion/; Computer ID: 8617; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|Einstein@Home|URL: http://einstein.phys.uwm.edu/; Computer ID: 1144007; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|Hydrogen@Home|URL: http://hydrogenathome.org/; Computer ID: 3736; location: (none); project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|BOINC alpha test|URL: http://isaac.ssl.berkeley.edu/alpha/; Computer ID: 2571; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|lhcathome|URL: http://lhcathome.cern.ch/lhcathome/; Computer ID: 9685627; location: (none); project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|Milkyway@home|URL: http://milkyway.cs.rpi.edu/milkyway/; Computer ID: 16416; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|orbit@home|URL: http://orbit.psi.edu/oah/; Computer ID: 2611; location: (none); project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|QMC@HOME|URL: http://qah.uni-muenster.de/; Computer ID: 96620; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|SETI@home|URL: http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/; Computer ID: 4242395; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|Spinhenge@home|URL: http://spin.fh-bielefeld.de/; Computer ID: 113336; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|Cosmology@Home|URL: http://www.cosmologyathome.org/; Computer ID: 20830; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|malariacontrol.net|URL: http://www.malariacontrol.net/; Computer ID: 88947; location: home; project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|yoyo@home|URL: http://www.rechenkraft.net/yoyo/; Computer ID: 10947; location: (none); project prefs: default
11/06/2008 13:47:49|World Community Grid|URL: http://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/; Computer ID: 521220; location: home; project prefs: home

Rather than abort, set web based prefs to 2 cores maximum on QMC & set other 2 cores to crunching Seti with 2 cores max.

Unless you use a 3rd party BOINC version with CPU affinity, you cannot set up BOINC by telling it to run only project A on these CPUs and project B on those CPUs. Normal BOINC cannot do this.

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Sorry Ageless, I know nothing of cpu affinity, but I have had my quad running 2 projects with each one running 2 cores. Asides from the affinity question, the boinc web/local preferences does allow one to limit processors. Regardless of project, I've limited boinc to using 2 & it's been updated several hours ago & still using 4.

If what you say is correct, what is the point of boinc cpu limitation - I know it works under local prefs but that only allows 2 cores, full stop!

Edit....Currently running Astropulse but only d/l'ed 1 wu. Boinc restricted to 2 cores, yet QMC running 3 with Astropulse on 1.

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I thought you meant 2 cores for Project A and 2 for Project B on the same 4 core computer?

Are you trying to use two different venues for one computer? As as far as I know that doesn't work either (was fixed a long time ago).

When starting with zero debt for all projects, it is possible to run 2 CPUs on one project and 2 on another only. But after some time the debt for either of the projects will make this scheme go off road, unless you find two projects with exactly the same run times per task per CPU. As far as I know, an impossible task.

So you're seeing what the Work Scheduler does: one of your projects has a higher debt than the other and BOINC will now give more CPUs to the other project to allow it to catch up.

With CPU affinity you can set BOINC to ignore that and only use 2 CPUs on one project and 2 on another, indefinitely.

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Sorry Ageless, I forgot about LTD. It must have been a fluke when I 1st built the quad - I had 2 cores running QMC & 2 cores running ABC.

No, all my rigs run on the home location.

Thanks for the help.

Regards

PJ

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Heh, glad to be of help. Stupid program with all these bits and pieces to remember. ;-)

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I thought you meant 2 cores for Project A and 2 for Project B on the same 4 core computer?

Are you trying to use two different venues for one computer? As as far as I know that doesn't work either (was fixed a long time ago).

When starting with zero debt for all projects, it is possible to run 2 CPUs on one project and 2 on another only. But after some time the debt for either of the projects will make this scheme go off road, unless you find two projects with exactly the same run times per task per CPU. As far as I know, an impossible task.

So you're seeing what the Work Scheduler does: one of your projects has a higher debt than the other and BOINC will now give more CPUs to the other project to allow it to catch up.

With CPU affinity you can set BOINC to ignore that and only use 2 CPUs on one project and 2 on another, indefinitely.

Even if the run times are not the same, this can work. However the ratio of wall time allowed for the deadline to the CPU time required has to be fairly large to avoid having one of the projects need to borrow some CPU time. Once the CPU time has been borrowed once, then having evenly divided CPU resources all of the time is out the window - likely almost permanently.

What are your local settings for CPU usage set to?

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BOINC WIKI

Sorry for the delay John.

Don't use local settings, all projects use Web preferences (home).

100% use processors
100% use cpu time
75% in use (memory)
100% idle (memory)

Have finished Astropulse wu & suspended QMC. Tested again using 4 Magnetism@home wu's & temp only dropped 9c. CPU/Mobo temps okay but it's the power temp that bothers me.

Trying to figure out why so high as it's only drawing 146w On disabling Boinc, power temp drops to 35c. On running a video with several programs open in the background, temp tops 39c. It was suggested on N/C that psu maybe flakey so had it replaced - same problem.

Swapped psu's from Server & Desktop (Same model) - same problem. PSU from workstation put into Server then Desktop, PSU not faulty as they drop to normal.

At the moment, I'm thinking Airflow? Faulty mobo? It can't be Boinc as it ran 24/7 for 3 months without a problem. seriously thinking of rebuilding.

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It looks like a fellow team member may have solved the problem. Told me to update speedfan to latest version....



Now only have to figure out what made the computer lock up in the 1st place.

Thanks everyone for the help & advice. It really was appreciated.

Regards

PJ

Heh, glad to be of help. Stupid program with all these bits and pieces to remember. ;-)

After all that Ageless, Boinc itself provided the solution. QMC increases heat & temps anyway & with it being summer, it overpowered the cooling.

Boinc's simple answer - Reduce cpu % - Reduced it to 80 from 100. Temps now back to normal.

Lesson learnt..........Check out Boinc carefully before panicing!!!

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