Modified SETI MB CUDA + opt AP package for full GPU utilization

[elec999]

I have a quad core Q6600 + 9800 GT, the gpu is running beutiful. But I cannot get my cpu cores to do any work. They are sleeping.
My cc file
- <cc_config>
- <options>
  <ncpus>5</ncpus>
  </options>
  </cc_config>
Can someone suggest please. The Q6600 are also excellent for seti.
Message when Boinc Runs
   Host   Project   Date   Message
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Preferences limit # CPUs to 5
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Preferences limit disk usage to 30.62GB
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Preferences limit memory usage when idle to 1637.17MB
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Preferences limit memory usage when active to 1023.23MB
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Reading preferences override file
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   General prefs: no separate prefs for home; using your defaults
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Computer location: home
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   General prefs: from SETI@home (last modified 02-Feb-2009 16:06:57)
   b3   SETI@home   2/15/2009 00:46:43   URL: http://setiathome.berkeley.edu/; Computer ID: 4737399; location: home; project prefs: default
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   CUDA device: GeForce 9800 GT (1024MB, est. 60GFLOPS)
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Not using a proxy
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Local time is UTC -5 hours
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Disk: 38.28 GB total, 30.88 GB free
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Memory: 2.00 GB physical, 3.35 GB virtual
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   OS: Microsoft Windows XP: Professional x86 Editon, Service Pack 3, (05.01.2600.00)
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Processor features: fpu tsc pae nx sse sse2 mmx
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:43   Processor: 4 GenuineIntel Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU    Q6600  @ 2.40GHz [x86 Family 6 Model 15 Stepping 11]
   b3   SETI@home   2/15/2009 00:46:42   Found app_info.xml; using anonymous platform
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:42   Running under account Administrator
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:42   Data directory: C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\BOINC
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:42   Libraries: libcurl/7.19.2 OpenSSL/0.9.8i zlib/1.2.3
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:42   log flags: task, file_xfer, sched_ops
   b3   ---   2/15/2009 00:46:42   Starting BOINC client version 6.6.4 for windows_intelx86

Thank you

[Raistmer]

What applications do you use for crunching? Stock? Optimized ?

[elec999]

What applications do you use for crunching? Stock? Optimized ?

The Optimized cuda package found in this thread.
Thank you

[bloort]

i'm experiencing the same issue as elec999, with 2 similar configurations, and being new to this, i suspect user error on setup.  So here's what i did.  Installed boink 6.4.5 (widgets version 2.8.7) fresh on machine one, and repair install on machine 2.  then unpacked Raistmer's_opt_package_V7.rar with overwrite  into project dir (C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\BOINC\projects\setiathome.berkeley.edu\).  Then created a new file C:\Documents and Settings\All Users\Application Data\BOINC\cc_config.xml    with the line <ncpus>3</ncpus> for my dual core intel cpu with single nVidia 8800 GTX, and <ncpus>5</ncpus> for my other machine which is Quad core intel with dual nvidia 8800 GTX.  I fired up Boink and MAAAAAN those Work Units just flew...i figure about 18 minutes each...or less.  All three cards were happily crunching away at blistering speeds.  AMAZING speeds.  CPUs are asleep.  

Next, I scoured nVidia's site for a monitoring tool to watch the temps.  My single card setup runs about 82Celcius and i'm assuming the fan is idling at 60%.  (nvidia states that normal op specs for the 8800 GTX are up to 85C, and they've run them as high as 145C before the magic smoke left).  Just a note, that the default alarm level in the nvidia software is 127C)  This box is vented, but not as well as the other machine.  The dual card machine saw the top card running a bit hot and reaching the upper limit or 85, so i bumped the fan on the top card from 60% to 80% and top and bottom now run about 80C and 78C respectively.

Now one machine has the older nVidia system monitor with the grey panels, and the other machine has the newer with the slick transparent ones.  I've had the cuda processing seemingly grind to a halt overnight with the nvidia monitors left running.  Restarting boink brought it back to blistering speed, and with the monitoring software shut down, there doesn't appear to be any slowdowns yet.

now with my cpus essentially not being utilized, this works out Ok for me... i've even rendered video compliations through the cpu, while 2 gpu's cruch seti..and the results were perfect.

From my observation, GPU processing appears (i'm just estimating) to be about 16X faster than what the CPU can manage.  so at that score, it doesn't much matter other than in principle if the cpu's stay asleep...those units are flying by on GPUs alone.  but if i've done something in my setup that is wrong, and may be a common mistake..maybe here is where it can be corrected and clarified.

My hardware is a strange brew middle of the road pizza type from Dell.  They have  intel CPU, w nvidia chipset...which i find to be strange combo anyhow...so i'm wondering if the sleepy CPUs have something to do with that.  SLI works yes, but hyperthreading is not an available option in the bios although it's a feature in both CPUs, yet i see 4 and 2 cpus on each machine respectively, which i find confusing.

Well, i think that's about my story to date.  I type quite fast, yet 3 units have been processed by the GPUS while typing...and when i point the towers exhaust to vent under my desk...it keeps my toes warm.!!  Nice bonus for a northern canadian in mid winter!

Oh yes, a couple of observations which are just that, I don't know if they mean anything.

1. On the dual core single GPU, the boink manager progress shows a bar.  In the quad dual GPU it's numeric only.
2. not knowing what the Raistmer's_opt_package_V7_VLAR_kill was, I attempted to try that in the same methad as above to see if that would wake up the CPUs, and boink generated results as computational errors.  Actually I just overwrote the Raistmer's_opt_package_V7.  No doubt, my bad.

My machines are dell XPS 710 quad nvidia chipset and 2 x 8800 GTX , and the earlier Dell dimension 9150 dual core intel chipset and single 8800 GTX.  driver 1.81.22. no fancy overclocking for me.  just the fans. lol

So hopefully that will help, and if anyone needs more info i'll be lurking.  ty Hippy Dave.

[Raistmer]

What applications do you use for crunching? Stock? Optimized ?

The Optimized cuda package found in this thread.
Thank you

Link on your host?

[Raistmer]

i'm experiencing the same issue as elec999, with 2 similar configurations, and being new to this, i suspect user error on setup.  So here's what i did.  Installed boink 6.4.5 (widgets version 2.8.7) fresh on machine one, and repair install on machine 2.  then unpacked Raistmer's_opt_package_V7.rar

With V7 pack your CPU will capable doing only AP SETI. And now servers send very small amount of AP tasks. Maybe it's worth to connect to another CPU-oriented project like Einstein@home.
On host with single GPU V8a should be used, not V7 one.

[bloort]

Yup...hold the press...there it is : 2 cudas and one astropulse running at the same time.  Absolsolutely fantastic.  I'm fascinated.  Cudos Raistmer, cudos and cudas!!

[Raistmer]

Yup...hold the press...there it is : 2 cudas and one astropulse running at the same time.  Absolsolutely fantastic.  I'm fascinated.  Cudos Raistmer, cudos and cudas!!

Actually, for dual core + dual GPU host it should be 2 CUDA MB + 2 AP tasks if all was installed correctly

You have quad with 2 GPUs so it should be 4 AP tasks and 3 CUDA MB tasks.

[bloort]

Yes I would assume that would be the case, but there was only one Astropulse unti available on my list.  I was stunned to find on the quad core that the unit was completed in 10 hours cpu time.  normally a unti would take days.  I'm still finding that cuda processing speed decays overnight.  After returning to the consoles after 12 hours, dual gpu processing which normally ticks at 0.100 or more, has slowed to 0.010..and for the first time the single gpu machine had stopped and was "waiting to start'.  Restarting boink brought everything up to speed again.  Both boinks are set to 'run always.  not sure why it's doing that, but i'll roll back the single gpu machine to 6.4.5 and report what happens.

Quad CPU and dual GPU should present 4 Astropulse and 2 cudas correct?  (just wondering if you made a typo)


Dual gpus on nvidia chipset, single gpu on intel chipset.

[Stoffe]

Running the V7 app. my CPU-cores won't do any work, like Raistmer stated, but my problem is that my 9800gx2 will only run one core (and Boinc also reporting only 1 GPU core).
After reading Bloort's post about GPU-speed I get even more confused. It takes about 20 minutes for my GX2 to run one WU. Bloort talking about 8 minutes, on a 8800 GTX (witch is an older card than my 9800gx2).

What have I done wrong?
Using 181.22 drivers, SLI-mode disabled, Vista 32bit, Q6600.

[bloort]

Typo - Bloort Bad.  somewhere around 18 minutes give or take.  original post edited.

[Stoffe]

Typo - Bloort Bad.  somewhere around 18 minutes give or take.  original post edited.

Thanks! You saved me further worries. 

[Stoffe]

Clocked my WUs now. Running 4 an hour on each GPU-core. I think I should be satisfied with that... 
Now, I'm only hoping for a miracle to make the AP WUs finish in a few hours a piece in stead of the current, close to ten. 

[bloort]

you know, on the quad, i finally had a couple of AP units going at the same time.  they were finished in 8.  that was cool.  What kind of temps does your GPU when running.  Mine is doind 82, and nvidia monitor says it's managing the fan...seems to be.  And as far as I know 85 is upper limit...so it's within spec right?  temp keeps my toes warm lately, but don't want too much.

I've experienced some slowdowns (or possible reversions back onto the CPU) a few times that i've noticed.  I think for now i'm going to blame that on microsoft remote desktop access interfering with the GPU and me being lazy and not grabbing the other keyboard off to the side.

[efmer (fred)]

you know, on the quad, i finally had a couple of AP units going at the same time.  they were finished in 8.  that was cool.  What kind of temps does your GPU when running.  Mine is doind 82, and nvidia monitor says it's managing the fan...seems to be.  And as far as I know 85 is upper limit...so it's within spec right?  temp keeps my toes warm lately, but don't want too much.

I've experienced some slowdowns (or possible reversions back onto the CPU) a few times that i've noticed.  I think for now i'm going to blame that on microsoft remote desktop access interfering with the GPU and me being lazy and not grabbing the other keyboard off to the side.

Don't worry 80-90 should be average. http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/page-253599_15_0.html
My machine (8800GTX) is well cooled and goes up to 72C (65-72) running SETI. When I query the card with my program, the max temp is 127. But that is probably the shutdown temperature.