Newbie - help with setting up system/folding pls

[doublestorm]

Hi everyone,
I actually joined the program a couple years ago and did some folding with the old single cpu software.
I have a couple of newer laptops (about a year old) that I would like to put to work for a bit of time each day.
I just installed 7.3.6 on each of them and I have a question - probably pretty 'duh' to most of you

I noticed that it assigns each cpu different work. Is it possible to have it work on just ONE work unit ONLY - and have both (or more) cpus working on that ONE work unit to get it done faster? The reason is...I don't have the laptops on for the most part, but would like to start and finish at least one work unit each day. <--- A little bit of OCD at work here! Turn the laptop on...do a unit, then shut it off for the night.

Simply put...how can I configure it to work on a single work unit using the capabilities of one or more CPUs on that single work unit?

I'm not a computer/software whiz...so if you could dumb-down your answer, it would be greatly appreciated!

[TheWolf]

Sounds like it maybe setup using uniprocessor instead of SMP work units.
You'll have to remove the uniprocessor slots and make a new slot using SMP.

[P5-133XL]

v7.3.6 should automatically configure one CPU and one GPU slot. The CPU slot should use all the CPU cores together. The GPU and the CPU slots, at this time, not combinable and multiple laptops are also separate.

If I misinterpreted your question or want to have the configuration looked at to see if it is optimum you can paste a copy of the log (including the system portion and config portion) here and people will look at it to see if it can be improved.

[doublestorm]

Thanks...I got that all sorted out.
However, I do have a different issue on my second laptop: it appears that it isn't running at all. After installation and running for about 30 mins it was still at 0.00% so I closed the application and restarted it - it then showed 0.36% and has been there for the last half hour. I have the Folding Power set to MEDIUM and the CPU to 75% (the same as my first laptop which is now halfway done it's initial WU)
I checked the CPU useage in Task Manager and it is showing at ~35%

Code: Select all

*********************** Log Started 2013-04-14T22:55:16Z ***********************
22:55:16:************************* Folding@home Client *************************
22:55:16:      Website: http://folding.stanford.edu/
22:55:16:    Copyright: (c) 2009-2013 Stanford University
22:55:16:       Author: Joseph Coffland <joseph@cauldrondevelopment.com>
22:55:16:         Args: --open-web-control
22:55:16:       Config: C:/Users/Tom/AppData/Roaming/FAHClient/config.xml
22:55:16:******************************** Build ********************************
22:55:16:      Version: 7.3.6
22:55:16:         Date: Feb 18 2013
22:55:16:         Time: 15:25:17
22:55:16:      SVN Rev: 3923
22:55:16:       Branch: fah/trunk/client
22:55:16:     Compiler: Intel(R) C++ MSVC 1500 mode 1200
22:55:16:      Options: /TP /nologo /EHa /Qdiag-disable:4297,4103,1786,279 /Ox -arch:SSE
22:55:16:               /QaxSSE2,SSE3,SSSE3,SSE4.1,SSE4.2 /Qopenmp /Qrestrict /MT /Qmkl
22:55:16:     Platform: win32 XP
22:55:16:         Bits: 32
22:55:16:         Mode: Release
22:55:16:******************************* System ********************************
22:55:16:          CPU: AMD E-450 APU with Radeon(tm) HD Graphics
22:55:16:       CPU ID: AuthenticAMD Family 20 Model 2 Stepping 0
22:55:16:         CPUs: 2
22:55:16:       Memory: 3.75GiB
22:55:16:  Free Memory: 2.64GiB
22:55:16:      Threads: WINDOWS_THREADS
22:55:16:  Has Battery: true
22:55:16:   On Battery: false
22:55:16:   UTC offset: -5
22:55:16:          PID: 1888
22:55:16:          CWD: C:/Users/Tom/AppData/Roaming/FAHClient
22:55:16:           OS: Windows 7 Home Premium
22:55:16:      OS Arch: AMD64
22:55:16:         GPUs: 1
22:55:16:        GPU 0: ATI:4 Wrestler [Radeon HD 6320]
22:55:16:         CUDA: Not detected
22:55:16:Win32 Service: false
22:55:16:***********************************************************************
22:55:16:<config>
22:55:16:  <!-- Folding Core -->
22:55:16:  <core-priority v='low'/>
22:55:16:  <cpu-usage v='75'/>
22:55:16:
22:55:16:  <!-- Folding Slot Configuration -->
22:55:16:  <cause v='CANCER'/>
22:55:16:  <power v='medium'/>
22:55:16:
22:55:16:  <!-- Network -->
22:55:16:  <proxy v=':8080'/>
22:55:16:
22:55:16:  <!-- User Information -->
22:55:16:  <team v='0'/>
22:55:16:  <user v='Tom143'/>
22:55:16:
22:55:16:  <!-- Folding Slots -->
22:55:16:  <slot id='0' type='GPU'/>
22:55:16:  <slot id='1' type='CPU'/>
22:55:16:</config>
22:55:16:Trying to access database...
22:55:16:Successfully acquired database lock
22:55:16:Enabled folding slot 00: PAUSED gpu:0:Wrestler [Radeon HD 6320] (waiting for idle)
22:55:16:Enabled folding slot 01: READY cpu:1
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:Starting
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:Running FahCore: "C:\Program Files (x86)\FAHClient/FAHCoreWrapper.exe" C:/Users/Tom/AppData/Roaming/FAHClient/cores/www.stanford.edu/~pande/Win32/AMD64/Core_a4.fah/FahCore_a4.exe -dir 00 -suffix 01 -version 703 -lifeline 1888 -checkpoint 15 -cpu 75
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:Started FahCore on PID 5092
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:Core PID:2944
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:FahCore 0xa4 started
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:*------------------------------*
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Folding@Home Gromacs GB Core
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Version 2.27 (Dec. 15, 2010)
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Preparing to commence simulation
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:- Looking at optimizations...
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:- Files status OK
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:- Expanded 790029 -> 1490352 (decompressed 188.6 percent)
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Called DecompressByteArray: compressed_data_size=790029 data_size=1490352, decompressed_data_size=1490352 diff=0
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:- Digital signature verified
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Project: 2974 (Run 241, Clone 10, Gen 12)
22:55:16:WU00:FS01:0xa4:
22:55:17:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Assembly optimizations on if available.
22:55:17:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Entering M.D.
22:55:23:11:127.0.0.1:New Web connection
22:55:23:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Using Gromacs checkpoints
22:55:23:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Mapping NT from 1 to 1 
22:55:23:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Resuming from checkpoint
22:55:23:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Verified 00/wudata_01.log
22:55:23:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Verified 00/wudata_01.trr
22:55:23:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Verified 00/wudata_01.xtc
22:55:23:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Verified 00/wudata_01.edr
22:55:24:WU00:FS01:0xa4:Completed 9610 out of 2500000 steps  (0%)
22:55:51:WARNING:Exception: 15:127.0.0.1: Receive error: 10054: An existing connection was forcibly closed by the remote host.
22:55:51:WARNING:Exception: 16:127.0.0.1: Receive error: 10054: An existing connection was forcibly closed by the remote host.
22:55:51:WARNING:Exception: 17:127.0.0.1: Receive error: 10054: An existing connection was forcibly closed by the remote host.
22:55:52:WARNING:Exception: 21:127.0.0.1: Send error: 10054: An existing connection was forcibly closed by the remote host.
22:55:58:WARNING:Exception: 22:127.0.0.1: Send error: 10054: An existing connection was forcibly closed by the remote host.

[bruce]

Welcome back, doublestorm.

Your laptop has two devices which can fold.

22:55:16:Enabled folding slot 00: PAUSED gpu:0:Wrestler [Radeon HD 6320] (waiting for idle)
22:55:16:Enabled folding slot 01: READY cpu:1

By default, your HD6320 GPU will pause until the machine is considered idle and then it will start to fold -- provided your battery saving settings don't cause the machine to sleep or hibernate.
Your AMD CPU has two cores, and by default only one will be allocated to FAH.

As a general rule, laptops are not as powerful as desktop machines AND they have limited ability to dissipate the heat generated from continuous processing. In an attempt to limit the heat, both of these settings are less than the maximum processing that it might achieve. If the heat can be managed, you can adjust the default settings for increased performance. Also, I notice you have reduced your CPU setting to 75% which only makes sense if it was overheating already. (That's 75% of a single of your CPU cores ... which is 37%.

I'd have to see the previous log (which can be found in the logs subdirectory of FAH's data directory) to know how long you folded already but you did make a small amount of progress, as you suggested. You completed 9610 out of 2500000 steps (in ?? Minutes) which is about 0.38 %.

Project 2974 has a timeout of 13.30 days.

[doublestorm]

It is the WU that is assigned to the CPU that is at 0.36% and has been working for about 1.5 hours
My first laptop (also set at 75% for the CPU) shows a CPU useage of 70% (mind you, that is a quad core...not sure how the math works out for that?)

I did some poking around and noticed something peculiar...maybe?
Folding slots ID
0 = GPU
1 = CPU
WORK QUEUE ID
0 = CPU
1 = GPU
SLOTS (under the configure menu)
0 = GPU
1 = CPU

Now if I look at my first laptop, those numbers match up perfectly in all 3 areas
0 = GPU
1 = CPU

Could this be a factor?

Since my last post, I switched the folding power to HIGH...still no change in the progress after 30 mins

[bruce]

No, this is not a factor. Each slot will download a WU which will be assigned an unused WU number. When that WU finishes and another is downloaded, the next WU will get a different number but it will be processed in the same slot.

In the portion of the log you posted, you see both numbers reported. :WU00:FS01: WU 0 is being processed by slot 1. When the next WU downloads, it can't be called WU 0 because WU 0 will not yet have finished uploading so the new one might be WU 1 or might be WU 2, depending on what's happening to the WU that happens to be in Slot 0.

[bruce]

Assuming you processed that WU for MORE THAN 30 minutes and completed 0.38 %, it might take you 131 hours of continuous processing to finish it, or 5.5 days. (I don't trust your 1.5 hours without seeing a log.) When you ran for "about 30 minutes and then restarted, the .38% had been checkpointed. Was that actually computing at 37% for a complete 15 minutes or 30 minutes or 45 minutes?

Anyway, 5.5 days is faster than 13.30 days so even with all of the slowest possible assumptions, you can finish it well before it times out. Let it run a day and we'll know a lot more.