Increasing processor usage

[jrpower]

I have been using this program for awhile, however, i just bought a new computer and would like you utilize the New i7 i have in it fully. I have the usage in the options turned up all the way is there a way to increase the amount of CPU usage anymore then this?

[Zagen30]

Welcome to the forum, jrpower.

There are two options to use your entire processor:

1) Run multiple copies of the uniprocessor client (6.23). Since your i7 only has 4 physical cores (Hyperthreading makes it look like 8 cores, but there's only 4 real sets of computation hardware), it's recommended you only run 4 copies of the unicore client. See the installation guide for instructions on how to set up multiple copies of the client.
2) Run one copy of the SMP client (6.34, found on the high-performance download page), which will use all 8 of your i7's threads to crunch one unit at a time. As the install guide for it says, make sure to add the -smp flag, as without it it will most likely behave like a uniprocessor client.

Which option to go for depends on how much it will run. If you plan on folding most or all of the time, the recommendation is usually to go with the SMP client. If you only plan on folding a few hours a day, you're better off doing multiple single-core clients since the deadlines on those projects are much laxer than the SMP deadlines.

Additionally, you could try out the beta build of the v7 client, which is an all-in-one client that can handle any combination of unicore, SMP, and GPU slots (analogous to individual v6 clients) from one central location. The recommendation of multi-uni vs. SMP would remain the same since the client itself doesn't do any of the scientific processing (the clients just manage the transfer of work and the starting/stopping of the cores). At this point the beta is pretty stable, with most of the remaining issues in Windows being rather minor.

[Stonecold]

Running one SMP client is more efficient and gets work done faster than running multiple uniprocessor clients.

[jrpower]

Thanks the High - performance one is now installed but is there a way to run multiple high performance versions ... i just get an error that says i already have the program running and will now close

[Stonecold]

Thanks the High - performance one is now installed but is there a way to run multiple high performance versions ... i just get an error that says i already have the program running and will now close

Only one high-performance client can run at a time (in the case of SMP clients). If you were to force multiple ones to run it would severely decrease performance.

[jrpower]

the reason i ask is because even with it running right now i am only using 8% of my Processor and i would like to have it running around 60% or something like that when im out to justify leaving it running

[Stonecold]

the reason i ask is because even with it running right now i am only using 8% of my Processor and i would like to have it running aroun 60% or something like that when im out to justify leaving it running

Only 8%? If you want to use closer to 100% you should just switch to the SMP client (assuming your computer has more than one core).

[jrpower]

its an i7 it is hypertheaded so it can actually have 8 cores

[Stonecold]

That explains why you are only using around 8% with a uniprocessor client. Running multiple uniprocessor clients would use each core to process a single WU at lower speed, but running one SMP client allows every core to work on a single WU and finish it much faster. You can download the SMP client from here. If you really want to run multiple uniprocessor clients, then go ahead, but I don't know how to do that myself (I'm sure other people know though).

[jrpower]

i think ill try out the v7 client mentioned above it can supposedly do all of them see how much usage that will run

[Stonecold]

Yes, the v7 can do everything the other clients can, but it's still in beta so only use it if your fine with some bugs (it's getting a lot closer to the next beta stage, though).

[k1wi]

The v7 client is good - but make sure you do finish off the uni-processor WU you are currently folding...

As to "4 cores/8 cores", it has 4 physical cores and 8 threads (two threads per physical core) Windows reports it as 8 cores because... well... it's windows. If you are running the SMP version then you can use all 8 threads (-smp will by default) however if you are running multiple uni-proc clients (and there are some instances where this is preferable) then you should only run as many clients as you have physical cores as hyperthreading does not give a 100% increase in performance (it's more like 20-30%) and F@H wants you to return work units as fast as possible.

[jrpower]

True... I think ill just stay with the high performance at least until i water cool my processor ... it seems that the v7 maxed my pc and caused the temperature of my processor to spike to the point i got a warning ..

[7im]

What kind of computer did you buy that needs additional cooling when running at full power? Is the new computer overclocked?

[Zagen30]

If you did install 6.34 from the high performance page, and Windows was only reporting 8% CPU usage, then you must have forgotten to add the -smp flag; or added it in the initial configuration and, due to the way v6 needs to restart for flags to take effect, it downloaded a uniprocessor WU to start. Once the -smp flag is entered and takes effect, it will work your i7 just as hard as v7 did with an SMP slot. If you leave the -smp flag off, then the "high-performance" 6.34 is no different than one copy of 6.23.

What temperatures were you getting when it was running full-blast? I don't know what was giving you the warnings, but it may have been overly cautious in its definition of "too hot." The consensus I've seen online is that a desktop i7 can run up to 75-80 degrees C constantly without being at much risk of heat-related damage, and I've had my i7-930 running in that range for over a year and a half without any issues. Laptop processors can go up around 90C without risking much damage, though you need to be careful to not block laptops' CPU cooling vents. Everyone has their own definition of "uncomfortably hot," so ultimately it's your call as to what temperature's you're okay with, but if some program was telling you that 55C was too hot it was really erring on the side of caution.