4770k Poor PPD

[shaneo88]

Hey all.

I have been folding for a while now, but have never bothered with getting huge PPD. I more or less just fold when I remember and don't when I don't.
I have recently started wanting to make the most of what I have however and I currently don't know what else to do

I upgraded my computer last week and have started folding again, but I am kind of disappointed with the results so far

CPU: i7 4770k @ 4ghz (had a 1090T @ 3.8ghz)
MOBO: Asrock Z87 Extreme6 (had Crosshair IV Extreme)
RAM: Corsair Vengeance LP 4x4gb 1600mhz 9-9-9-24 kit
GFX: 1. Radeon HD6970 2gb, 2. BFBC2 Radeon HD6970 2gb
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate x64
CCC: 13.12
That's about all that matters for folding I think

I am getting between 28k and 39k PPD. Currently my CPU is at 12929 PPD and GPU1 is at 7346 PPD and GPU2 is at 7343 PPD. With the CHIVE and 1090T I was getting around 45k PPD.

I have read of people getting upwards of 40k PPD for just a 4770k @ around 4.3ghz.
What should a 4770k and 2xHD6970s be worth PPD wise? Would anyone be able to help me out on this, it has me baffled

Stuff/Info
- CPU is set to use 6 threads, leaving 1 for each GPU (is it possuble to set a CPU affinity for the GPUs. I vaguely remember being able to do something like that in the old command line client)
- GPU Index on both is set manually to 0 and 1
- GPUs are using Client-type=Advanced (just changed to this, likely won't notice until I get new WUs for them)
- Both GPUs are at stock clock/mem speed
- CPU is folding Core A3 WUs
- GPUs are folding Core 17 WUs (currently anyway)
- Crossfire is turned off in Vision/CCC
- Only the CPU and Mainboard were upgraded, everything else was from my previous build. OFC I did a fresh install of Windows as well
- both the FAHClient folder in my user/app data/roaming folder and FAH program folder are excluded by my virus scanner
- I have a Terraria server running in the background which is normally empty

Thanks for any help
Shane

edit: My user page

[bollix47]

Welcome to the folding@home support forum shaneo88.

Are you using a passkey and have you completed at least 10 work units while maintaining an 80% success rate? Without one you won't get the Quick Return Bonus which will reduce your PPD significantly. Is your folding username the same as your forum name? I see no significant results using your forum name.

[X1900AIW]

What should a 4770k and 2xHD6970s be worth PPD wise? Would anyone be able to help me out on this, it has me baffled

Stuff/Info
- CPU is set to use 6 threads, leaving 1 for each GPU (is it possuble to set a CPU affinity for the GPUs. I vaguely remember being able to do something like that in the old command line client)
...
- CPU is folding Core A3 WUs
...
- I have a Terraria server running in the background which is normally empty

I think you should control CPU usage with taskman, pause the CPU slot and each GPU slot to see the CPU usage for OpenCL calculation on that GPUs. You can link cores to processes for better illustration. If they draw more CPU ressources you have perhaps an overload of CPU ressources sratching 100+ percent. This struggling reduces IMO all PPDs, CPU and both GPU. Same with other background processes if they demand CPU ressources periodically at full load level.

PPD over A3 is slightly different between the projects, with 3770K@4 Ghz (cpu:6) HFM shows ~18-20 kPPD. But I had some GRO_A3 with 22-24-27 kPPD. Your 4770K at same speed should be faster ~10-15 percent.

Which AMD drivers (OpenCL) do you use ? Newer versions have higher CPU usage.

Examples with cpu:6 and cpu:7, two GPUs running background BOINC (FAHcore a3 at core 1-6 resp. 1-7; OpenCL at core 7 with analog peaks like in FahCore17, CUDA at core 8, second sreenshot with both at core 8)

[bruce]

In Windows, you can set affinity for the GPU core, but it only persists until the current WU finishes or pauses. Taskman can manually adjust affinity and priority when a FahCore again when it is (re)started. Consider Process Explorer or something like it.

[shaneo88]

Thanks guys.

I currently have Catalyst 13.12 installed and with it OpenCL driver 10.0.1348.5
I am aware of being able to set cores to processes in taskman, but as Bruce has said the affinity resets after every WU.
I have tried setting the affinity in taskman and have shut down the terraria server. After a few minutes it is sitting around 39.5k PPD. This is mind you with my web browser open (chrome always starts about 1000 processes when you open it) and things like steam still running etc

Welcome to the folding@home support forum shaneo88.

Are you using a passkey and have you completed at least 10 work units while maintaining an 80% success rate?

My page I knew I forgot something haha

[shaneo88]

Just an update....

- I added max-packet-size=big to CPU and GPUs, though I won't see anything until they start new WUs

- I stopped a few things and set affinity for CPU to cores 0-5 and GPUs to 6 and 7. Although without an external program I will have to redo this with every WU

- I added core-priority=normal to each client

- I exited a video playing on my other screen I forgot about

- the only things using processor in task man are fahcore_a3 (~75) and 2x fahcore_17 (~10)

Since I've done these things it has jumped from around 30k ppd to 56k ppd as it is now

CPU is getting ~11k ppd
GFX1 is getting ~16k ppd
GFX2 is getting ~16k ppd

Il give it a day or two but I'm still a bit disappointed with it

Thanks for the replies so far

[bruce]

- I added core-priority=normal to each client

First, "normal" shouldn't be a valid option. My understanding is that you have a choice of "low" and "idle" (even lower than low).

Second, That setting currently non-functional https://fah-web.stanford.edu/projects/F ... ticket/978

If it had worked, it would probably produced severe lags when you try to do normal things with the computer and added nothing to FAH. Tasks which use 100% of a CPU should only be run at low priority. Setting it to "normal" wouldn't speed it up.

Priority doesn't change the speed, it just decides which task gets worked on first when there's a choice to be made. By the time your foreground activities have finished, FAH would have made the exact same amount of progress. Only it it prompted you to close the forgotten video sooner, would it have left more resources for FAH.

[shaneo88]

I had a feeling setting the priority above low wouldn't do much. I'm only playing atm based on things people have said have helped in other threads and through googling.

May as well go back and change things to the way they were. In regards to priorities messing with me using my computer normally though, I only fold while sleeping or at work.

Ah well. Thanks anyway. Off to work now

[7im]

Only folding part time will reduce the points, so your total won't be up to what full time folders report.

The client defaults are usually close to max performance and little to no tweaks are needed.