Folding Forum

Hi Group,

I hve a Dell Inspiron 6000 with 2GB Ram and Win XP Pro and am currently running CPU Client v 6.23 on it. I see that there is a new version 7 available and was wondering if I should update my client. If so, does it perform any better than the old version?

Tnx,

James

That looks like a 2005-ish laptop with a with a 1.5 GHz (upgradeable up to 2.13 GHz) Intel Pentium M processor or a 1.3 GHz (upgradeable up to 1.5 GHz) Intel Celeron M processor, and an Intel Graphics Media Accelerator based on the Intel 915GM/PM chipset,. This is a single core processor without hyperthreading.

I have a slightly newer laptop (2005 Toshiba M45-S551 laptop w/2 GB mem, 160GB HDD;Pent M 740 CPU @ 1.73 GHz) that I've had folding for about two years now 24/7 - even in hotels when I was traveling with it. It's LCD display went south, so I have it hooked up to a monitor. I have it running in a back room 24/7 for what it's worth.

Bottom line - The max ppd since May (some 98 Project 6892 work units using the old Core78) is 122. Uniprocessor only. The GPU wont' support GPU folding, and with only one core and no hyperthreading, it will support only the uniprocessor. I'm not sure what CPU checks the client makes, but this won't pick up any of the Core a4 work units with quick return bonuses that I get on my old HP desktop with the same 2GB memory, but having a Pentium 4/HT single core hyperthreaded processor running a uniprocessor slot, along with a GPU slot which gets the lions share of the ppd.

So - it won't hurt anything to install a single uniprocessor client under V7 for it - and let it blast away (maybe fizzle away is a better metaphor) - consuming whatever power that this old a system would draw. You would probably get pretty the same profile of core 78 work units as I do.

Up to you.

Actually, v7 is likely to supply new A4 core WU's that have much shorter deadlines than core 78's. I'd stick with your older client.

GreyWhiskers wrote:... it will support only the uniprocessor. I'm not sure what CPU checks the client makes, but this won't pick up any of the Core a4 work units with quick return bonuses that I get on my old HP desktop with the same 2GB memory, but having a Pentium 4/HT single core hyperthreaded processor running a uniprocessor slot, along with a GPU slot which gets the lions share of the ppd.

So - it won't hurt anything to install a single uniprocessor client under V7 for it ....

The Core A4 will run on the V7 client, but it does have some limitiations. The CPU checks are the key and I don't know what it actually checks. I, too, have some old uniprocessor machines in a back room. One will be assigned Core A4 (which does run on a uniprocessor machine and which does have deadlines consistent with that CPU) and another will always be assigned Core 78. Assuming that your CPU passes whatever CPU check that makes that choice for you, you'll do significantly better running Core A4. If it doesn't pass that check, V7 will continue to give you the same performance that you've been getting.