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Thread: Core i7 Folding - how to increase your PPD

  1. #1
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    Exclamation Core i7 Folding - how to increase your PPD

    So I've been playing around with 2 Core i7 rigs and wanted to share my experiences on how maximize your PPD on them.


    Here is one of my setups:


    Core i7 920 @ 3.7GHz
    ASUS P6T
    6GB DDR3
    Dual 9800GX2 Vid cards




    Now here was my main issue:
    If you run SMP under linux, you get a MASSIVE PPD boost compared to SMP under windows (even with the Dual SMP and SMP affinity changer tricks we have come up with). The main reason for the big PPD difference is that the Linux client will fold work units with the new A2 core, where all other OSes but OSX are limited to the older and less efficient A1 core. The new A2 core can spawn a full 8 threads using the "-smp 8" command variable. Something we can only dream of with Windows SMP folding right now. Using the A2 core w/ the SMP8 command gets you about 9000 PPD off a single core i7 CPU with hyperthreading on. Nothing to sneeze at to say the least.

    Great, install linux and get folding, you say, right? Not so fast.

    Doing so would effectively make the two 9800GX2 cards I have installed useless for folding. There are some reports of FAH GPU2 working under Linux using WINE for emulation, but I have not been impressed and the setup seemed rather tedious, to say the least. And, frankly, I'm in love with Win7 and don't want to give it up.

    So, Linux and SMP or Windows and GPU w/ crippled SMP? Well, I don't like either of those choices.

    How about running Linux under VMWare while in Windows? Now that is a possibility, but VMWare limits your Guest OS to just 2 cores. Would 4 VMWare sessions running the Linux SMP A2 core do as well as one native session running A2 with the SMP 8 command? Time to find out.


    Since I really really hate setting up linux, and wanted something I could distribute across multiple machines, I decided to go for a pre-set folding@home distro made by Notfred.

    Here is the distro, all ready to be run in VMWare player:
    Folding Virtual Appliance

    Here is what is necessary to do what I set out for:
    0) You MUST be running a 64-bit Operating System for this to work (sorry, but the Linux VM SMP client is 64-bit only).
    1) TURN ON Virtualization (VT) in your computer's BIOS if it is not already on.
    2) Download VMWare player (Google this, latest version is 2.5).
    3) Install VMWare player, reboot required.
    4) Download Notfred's Virtual Disk Image file from the above link and unzip to a separate folder.
    5) Make 4 copies of the folder unziped in Step 4 (I called my VMfold-1, VMfold-2, etc.).
    6) Rename the two files in each of the 4 folders from folding.xxx to VMfold-1.xxx. This is CRITICAL because you really don't want 4 VMPlayer sessions running with the same name.
    7) Open VMfold-1.vmx with your favorite text editor and make the following 3 changes:
    - change the line:
    memsize = "640"
    to
    memsize = "1152" <------- 1.125GB RAM (the A2 core has a tendency to stall out at the end of WUs if you run less than this)
    ------------------------------------
    - change the line
    displayName = "Folding@Home"
    to
    displayName = "VMfold-1"
    ------------------------------------
    - change the line:
    ide0:0.fileName = "folding.vmdk"
    to
    ide0:0.fileName = "VMfold-1.vmdk"
    ------------------------------------
    8) repeat step 7 for EACH of the 4 VM disk folders you created in Step 5, adjusting the names accordingly.

    9) open VM Player and direct it to open VMfold-1, let the session boot on it's own (it will select the proper folding client after a pre-set timeout, generally the entire boot takes about 90 seconds or so).
    10) on the VM Player screen take note of the IP address assigned to the VMWare session and open a web browser and type this IP address in the address bar. You should see a Folding@home web page with different data listed and options for configuration changes.
    11) click on "Reconfigure this host and any USB drives".
    12) change the USERNAME and TEAM NAME to match your user and team.
    13) change the SMP PER INSTANCE to 2.
    14) click on the RECONFIGURE button.
    15) click on the "here" link to go back to the main page.
    16) click on Reboot enabled: enabled link.
    17) click on "here" to reboot the VM Player machine so that you start folding under your username and team.

    18) repeat steps 9-17 for each VM Player.


    That's it, not as hard as it might sound and my PPD on the two Core i7 systems I fold on jumped from 4500 to 9200 PPD. Not bad for just a "software" upgrade. I also see substantial PPD increases out of a Q9550 (compared to dual Windows SMP) as well as an E6600 and a T7600 (laptop).



    For those wanting to custom name your the Windows Network name of your VMs, haysdb came up w/ the following work around:

    First, you need to assign static IP addresses to the VMs. Then you can give the shares less cryptic names than FOLD-xxxx.

    There are two lines that need to be changed in the .vmx VM Virtual Machine Configuration file:
    Code:
    #--------------------------------------------------------------------
    # The default behavior is to get an IP address dynamically assigned
    # by DHCP. That's OK but then we never know for sure what the IP
    # addresses are going to be except within a range. And the share
    # name becomes something like fold-933C or fold-B03D. Not very
    # meaningful. With "Static DHCP" the router will assign a specific
    # IP address based on the MAC Address and also a host name such as
    # VMfold-1, which then becomes the share name in Windows.
    #--------------------------------------------------------------------
    #ethernet0.addressType = "generated"
    ethernet0.addressType = "static"
    #--------------------------------------------------------------------
    # The MAC address must be different for each instance.
    # It must be in the range 00:50:56:00:00:00 to 00:50:56:3f:ff:ff
    #--------------------------------------------------------------------
    #ethernet0.generatedAddress = "00:0c:29:cf:93:3c"
    ethernet0.Address = "00:50:56:00:00:01"
    In my router configuration, in the Static DHCP section, I entered the MAC addresses, the IP address I wanted them to have, and Hostname, which I named the same as the folders: VMfold-1 thru VMfold-4.

    Now in FahMon the locations are:
    \\VMfold-1\c\etc\folding\1\
    \\VMfold-2\c\etc\folding\1\
    \\VMfold-3\c\etc\folding\1\
    \\VMfold-4\c\etc\folding\1\
    1: Main Rig - eVGA Classified SR-2 | 2 x Xeon X5670 @ 4.05GHz | 12GB Mushkin PC3-1600 DDR3 | OCZ IBIS 240GB RAID SSD | ATI Radeon 5770 1GB | Dual Dell 3007WFP-HC Monitors
    2: Server - eVGA X58 SLI | L5640 @ 4GHz | 6GB OCZ PC3-1866 DDR3 | Intl X25-M G2 80GB OS Drive | 6 x 1.5TB Seagate 7200.11 RAID 10



  2. #2
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    NOSTROMO: Intel Core i5 3750K | MSI R9 290 | Fractal Design Define Mini | ASRock Z77 Pro4-M | Antec Kuhler H2O 620 | 120gb OCZ Vertex III MaxIOPS | PCP&C Silencer 750w

    F@H Box / Server: Intel Core i7 2600K @ 4.4ghz | CSX Wraith #51 of 300 | Custom Water Cooling | 2x 3TB WD Caviar Green HDDs | 4x 3TB Seagate 7200RPM HDDs

    Interested in Folding@Home? Visit the XCPUs Folding@home page!

  3. #3
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    Wow, very nice.
    New build due 2011 ish....ish

    Desktop: Mac Mini MC270LL/A | C2D @ 2.4GHz | 2GB PC3-8500 | Nvidia 320M 256MB | Gateway 24" 1920x1200 | OSX 10.6 Snow Leopard

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  4. #4
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    "SMP8 command gets you about 9000 PPD off a single core i7 CPU with hyperthreading on. "
    :O and there are 4 cores, meaning 36k ppd?
    Desktop:
    Core i5 2500K @ 4.4GHz / TRUE120 / 8GB DDR3 1333MHz / Z68A-G43 / Crucial MX100 256GB / Fractal Define R4 / R9 290X / GS600W / X-Star DP2710

  5. #5
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    What? No 9000PPD is with 8 threads running. He didn't mean a single-core i7 CPU, he meant a single Core i7 CPU
    i7 920 D0 | MSI X58 Pro-E | Zotac GTX 275 | 3x2GB G.Skill DDR3-1333 9-9-9-24 | Corsair HX-520 | 640GB WD Caviar Black


  6. #6
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    Update:

    A pair of VMs on a Q9550 at 3.4GHz is pulling down about 6200PPD.


    Gents, we need to deploy this update NOW!
    1: Main Rig - eVGA Classified SR-2 | 2 x Xeon X5670 @ 4.05GHz | 12GB Mushkin PC3-1600 DDR3 | OCZ IBIS 240GB RAID SSD | ATI Radeon 5770 1GB | Dual Dell 3007WFP-HC Monitors
    2: Server - eVGA X58 SLI | L5640 @ 4GHz | 6GB OCZ PC3-1866 DDR3 | Intl X25-M G2 80GB OS Drive | 6 x 1.5TB Seagate 7200.11 RAID 10



  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by brentpresley View Post
    Update:

    A pair of VMs on a Q9550 at 3.4GHz is pulling down about 6200PPD.


    Gents, we need to deploy this update NOW!
    I'm going to try this.

    Hopefully the linux machines aren't blocked on SMP WU download like windows is.

    NOSTROMO: Intel Core i5 3750K | MSI R9 290 | Fractal Design Define Mini | ASRock Z77 Pro4-M | Antec Kuhler H2O 620 | 120gb OCZ Vertex III MaxIOPS | PCP&C Silencer 750w

    F@H Box / Server: Intel Core i7 2600K @ 4.4ghz | CSX Wraith #51 of 300 | Custom Water Cooling | 2x 3TB WD Caviar Green HDDs | 4x 3TB Seagate 7200RPM HDDs

    Interested in Folding@Home? Visit the XCPUs Folding@home page!

  8. #8
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    Not sure if you have any dual core machines, but would this help for those kinds of rigs?

    Gaming: i5 2500k @ 4.8GHz | EVGA P67 FTW | 16GB | SLI MSI GTX 970s | 240GB Corsair Force 3, 500GB Velociraptor | Modded 800D | DIY H20 | Windows 8.1
    Linux: i5 3450 | Gigabyte H77 | 16GB | Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition | 120GB Vertex 3 MI (boot), 3 x 3TB WD Red (ZFS RAID-Z) | Fractal Design Arc Mini | Linux Mint
    HTPC: Athlon II X2 260 | Gigabyte 880G | 4GB | 500GB WD Blue | Silverstone SG02 | Ubuntu 13.10 + XBMC

  9. #9
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    Haven't tried a dual core yet, so I don't know.

    EDIT - I suspect Dual Cores will also pull down more PPD, since they would be able to take advantage of the A2 core as well. I'll let you know once I deploy it on the laptop or the HTPC.
    1: Main Rig - eVGA Classified SR-2 | 2 x Xeon X5670 @ 4.05GHz | 12GB Mushkin PC3-1600 DDR3 | OCZ IBIS 240GB RAID SSD | ATI Radeon 5770 1GB | Dual Dell 3007WFP-HC Monitors
    2: Server - eVGA X58 SLI | L5640 @ 4GHz | 6GB OCZ PC3-1866 DDR3 | Intl X25-M G2 80GB OS Drive | 6 x 1.5TB Seagate 7200.11 RAID 10



  10. #10
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    Quote Originally Posted by brentpresley View Post
    How about running Linux under VMWare while in Windows?
    I have now been vindicated for all the times I was berated for using Linux VM's to boost PPD on my machines...
    Folding@Home: Fighting diseases 1 WU at a time.

    DFI LP Jr. P45 | Xeon X3320 | XFX 4770 | Corsair HX620 | Thermalright SI128SE | Other stuff | Lian-Li PC-V350B

  11. #11
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    It might be more efficient if you run F@H on WINE. Virtualization costs CPU cycles to run. Whilst, if you install WINE, the windows libraries will be executed without the CPU cycle consuming VM. Its more PPD Brent.
    "Katyr+" Phenom II X3 @ 3.2Ghz| Gigabyte 880GMA-USB3| EVGA GTX 660 2GB| 16GB DDR3| Crucial m500 240GB| Toshiba 3TB| WD Green 3TB| TruePower 650W| 2x Dell Ultrasharp U2311H| Win7
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  12. #12
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    There's a tradeoff you see. PPD vs working with Linux.
    i7 920 D0 | MSI X58 Pro-E | Zotac GTX 275 | 3x2GB G.Skill DDR3-1333 9-9-9-24 | Corsair HX-520 | 640GB WD Caviar Black


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    Linux is ok, its not that hard to use!
    "Katyr+" Phenom II X3 @ 3.2Ghz| Gigabyte 880GMA-USB3| EVGA GTX 660 2GB| 16GB DDR3| Crucial m500 240GB| Toshiba 3TB| WD Green 3TB| TruePower 650W| 2x Dell Ultrasharp U2311H| Win7
    "Sophia" Thinkpad Yoga| Core i3 4010U| Intel HD 4400| 4GB DDR3| Samsung 830 128GB| Intel 2x2 7260 802.11ac| 12.5" IPS semi-matte display| Wacom digitiser| Win8.1 U1
    "Scoot" Black Nexus 5 D820 32GB| Android 4.4.4| Sennheiser CX 300-II

  14. #14
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    Windows is easier!
    i7 920 D0 | MSI X58 Pro-E | Zotac GTX 275 | 3x2GB G.Skill DDR3-1333 9-9-9-24 | Corsair HX-520 | 640GB WD Caviar Black


  15. #15
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    Not for some! [fedora fan]
    "Katyr+" Phenom II X3 @ 3.2Ghz| Gigabyte 880GMA-USB3| EVGA GTX 660 2GB| 16GB DDR3| Crucial m500 240GB| Toshiba 3TB| WD Green 3TB| TruePower 650W| 2x Dell Ultrasharp U2311H| Win7
    "Sophia" Thinkpad Yoga| Core i3 4010U| Intel HD 4400| 4GB DDR3| Samsung 830 128GB| Intel 2x2 7260 802.11ac| 12.5" IPS semi-matte display| Wacom digitiser| Win8.1 U1
    "Scoot" Black Nexus 5 D820 32GB| Android 4.4.4| Sennheiser CX 300-II

  16. #16
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    Quote Originally Posted by Violet_wind View Post
    Linux is ok, its not that hard to use!
    I'd rather eat bile than make Linux my primary OS.
    1: Main Rig - eVGA Classified SR-2 | 2 x Xeon X5670 @ 4.05GHz | 12GB Mushkin PC3-1600 DDR3 | OCZ IBIS 240GB RAID SSD | ATI Radeon 5770 1GB | Dual Dell 3007WFP-HC Monitors
    2: Server - eVGA X58 SLI | L5640 @ 4GHz | 6GB OCZ PC3-1866 DDR3 | Intl X25-M G2 80GB OS Drive | 6 x 1.5TB Seagate 7200.11 RAID 10



  17. #17
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    That's a lot of PPD! How does that compare to nvidia's cards again?
    Desktop: 27" iMac | Core i5-2500S | 12GB DDR3-1333 | Radeon 6770| 1TB HDD | 2560x1440 IPS LED | OS X 10.8 Mountain Lion
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  18. #18
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    Quote Originally Posted by Simul4ti0n View Post
    That's a lot of PPD! How does that compare to nvidia's cards again?
    The new WUs for the NV cards are horrible. The 8800GT is down to about 2500 PPD, so they have lost 50% of their value.


    Right now, the Core i7 is producing more PPD than two 9800GX2s.
    1: Main Rig - eVGA Classified SR-2 | 2 x Xeon X5670 @ 4.05GHz | 12GB Mushkin PC3-1600 DDR3 | OCZ IBIS 240GB RAID SSD | ATI Radeon 5770 1GB | Dual Dell 3007WFP-HC Monitors
    2: Server - eVGA X58 SLI | L5640 @ 4GHz | 6GB OCZ PC3-1866 DDR3 | Intl X25-M G2 80GB OS Drive | 6 x 1.5TB Seagate 7200.11 RAID 10



  19. #19
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    I'm getting DHCP errors when the notfred setup tries to connect to stanford.edu. Messed with it a little last night but didn't get anywhere. I'll play with it some more tonight.

    Gaming: i5 2500k @ 4.8GHz | EVGA P67 FTW | 16GB | SLI MSI GTX 970s | 240GB Corsair Force 3, 500GB Velociraptor | Modded 800D | DIY H20 | Windows 8.1
    Linux: i5 3450 | Gigabyte H77 | 16GB | Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition | 120GB Vertex 3 MI (boot), 3 x 3TB WD Red (ZFS RAID-Z) | Fractal Design Arc Mini | Linux Mint
    HTPC: Athlon II X2 260 | Gigabyte 880G | 4GB | 500GB WD Blue | Silverstone SG02 | Ubuntu 13.10 + XBMC

  20. #20
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    Quote Originally Posted by YMAA View Post
    I'm getting DHCP errors when the notfred setup tries to connect to stanford.edu. Messed with it a little last night but didn't get anywhere. I'll play with it some more tonight.
    Make sure the ethernet is set to BRIDGED mode in the VM Player configuration. NAT does not work with this setup.
    1: Main Rig - eVGA Classified SR-2 | 2 x Xeon X5670 @ 4.05GHz | 12GB Mushkin PC3-1600 DDR3 | OCZ IBIS 240GB RAID SSD | ATI Radeon 5770 1GB | Dual Dell 3007WFP-HC Monitors
    2: Server - eVGA X58 SLI | L5640 @ 4GHz | 6GB OCZ PC3-1866 DDR3 | Intl X25-M G2 80GB OS Drive | 6 x 1.5TB Seagate 7200.11 RAID 10



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