WCG-TPU Cruncher's Hardware/Tech Support Discussion Thread

phill · Oct 14, 2019

VulkanBros said:
I am about to re-install one of my WCG machines and stumbled over this: BoincOS

Anyone tried that - and if yes, is it good?

EDIT: I have downloaded the 2 PC vesions and will give them a try tonight - I´ll post back with some info.

Looks good and positive

Might have to give it a try!!

Lorec · Oct 14, 2019

loving the idea of just popping in a usb stick to a pc and crunching.
one thing tho, i have one of those usb win10 installs and problem is, to run it You need a fast enough usb drive and those tend to get quite hot in short period of time...
oh well but if its just installed normally itd be k.

Aquinus · Oct 14, 2019

Lorec said:
loving the idea of just popping in a usb stick to a pc and crunching.
one thing tho, i have one of those usb win10 installs and problem is, to run it You need a fast enough usb drive and those tend to get quite hot in short period of time...
oh well but if its just installed normally itd be k.

It's not uncommon to do this sort of thing for `/boot` on a linux server, particularly if root is a software raid array or something that requires the kernel to be loaded before root is mounted. It's really no different than using an eMMC drive for a `/boot` partition. You have to remember that Linux is far more flexible when it comes to describing how your system should work. Not everything in the OS has to be on the same disk, only the kernel does.

yotano211 · Oct 14, 2019

I wonder if the Boinc OS could be faster vs a windwos 10 Cruncher install. The processor will have extra resources not used up by Windows.

Aquinus · Oct 15, 2019

yotano211 said:
I wonder if the Boinc OS could be faster vs a windwos 10 Cruncher install. The processor will have extra resources not used up by Windows.

I think there are already a number of people who have experienced better performance crunching in Linux. I would expect BoincOS to be no different since it's just a flavor of Linux.

thebluebumblebee · Oct 15, 2019

yotano211 said:
I wonder if the Boinc OS could be faster vs a windwos 10 Cruncher install.

Most of the time, yes.

Aquinus said:
I would expect BoincOS to be no different since it's just a flavor of Linux.

Can I remember the correct terminology..., it's just a vertical integration of Arch Linux for running BOINC. Then again, running BOINC on Linux is very easy anyway. DL (you're preferred flavor of) Linux, install, go to Software Manager (or something similar), install BOINC and then run BOINC. Now their USB version looks neat, but past experience is that BOINC wears out USB sticks.

Aquinus · Oct 16, 2019

thebluebumblebee said:
Most of the time, yes.

Can I remember the correct terminology..., it's just a vertical integration of Arch Linux for running BOINC. Then again, running BOINC on Linux is very easy anyway. DL (you're preferred flavor of) Linux, install, go to Software Manager (or something similar), install BOINC and then run BOINC. Now their USB version looks neat, but past experience is that BOINC wears out USB sticks.

The real question is if BOINC would perform better on Clear Linux with all of the optimizations that Intel has done to it. A lot of benchmarks at Phoronix show it doing exceptionally well.

Edit:

https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=win10-debian101-intel

phill · Oct 16, 2019

Aquinus said:
The real question is if BOINC would perform better on Clear Linux with all of the optimizations that Intel has done to it. A lot of benchmarks at Phoronix show it doing exceptionally well.

Edit:
View attachment 134235
https://www.phoronix.com/scan.php?page=article&item=win10-debian101-intel

'Clear Linux'? Not heard of that before... Is that another distribution of Linux on top of Mint, Redhat etc.??

Aquinus · Oct 16, 2019

phill said:
'Clear Linux'? Not heard of that before... Is that another distribution of Linux on top of Mint, Redhat etc.??

Yeah, it's:

Clear Linux OS is an open source, rolling release Linux distribution optimized for performance and security, from the Cloud to the Edge, designed for customization, and manageability.

https://clearlinux.org/
The fun bit:

The Clear Linux team uses multiple methods to optimize for performance on Intel products: kernel configurations, compiler flags and automatic use of optimized binaries and libraries.
...
On Intel's CPUs with AVX512 instructions, the AVX512 optimized library is auto-selected at application startup.

phill · Oct 16, 2019

Aquinus said:
Yeah, it's:
https://clearlinux.org/
The fun bit:

Ooooh, so this could be a good thing to use for my Intel crunchers then?? Might it give them a bit of a speed increase over my Linux Mint installs?

Aquinus · Oct 16, 2019

phill said:
Ooooh, so this could be a good thing to use for my Intel crunchers then?? Might it give them a bit of a speed increase over my Linux Mint installs?

Possibly. I'm uncertain if the same kinds of gains can be had with older CPUs. Clearly CPUs that can't do AVX512 won't benefit from it, but the other improvements might be worth it. I'm just not sure.

VulkanBros · Oct 16, 2019

Hmmm...have tried to install BOINC OS, and tried to run it from a stick - no luck.

When I Google some of the entries from the log, it seems, that it stalls on the AMD GPU (A10 - 8750B R7) or the chipset.
Given up and are now running the latest Debian version.......

phill · Oct 16, 2019

Aquinus said:
Possibly. I'm uncertain if the same kinds of gains can be had with older CPUs. Clearly CPUs that can't do AVX512 won't benefit from it, but the other improvements might be worth it. I'm just not sure.

Be nice to test it but I think the newest CPUs I have are V3 X99... Not yet got anything to go into my X299 board... If I can test it, I will do my best to report back

thebluebumblebee · Oct 16, 2019

Ubuntu/Mint or any other mainstream desktop distros are optimized for ease of use, not performance, Debian, upon which Ubuntu is based, is a fairly close second to Clear, performance wise. Clear does have an easy way to get BOINC: https://clearlinux.org/software/bundle/boinc-client

Lorec · Oct 17, 2019

Holy Crap!
my stock r7 1700 build (8gb of 2133 CL14 ram, mind You) running Ubuntu 18.04
is ripping through open zika!
22k ppd
I guess no point in getting any better ram after all

thebluebumblebee · Oct 17, 2019

Ryzen + Linux + OZ = sex

XZero450 · Nov 10, 2019

Anyone in Connecticut running an x99 setup? I sent my brother my 2650v3/MSI X99S awhile ago, but we finally put it together when I was visiting last week and the darned thing wont boot with a code of 00. Would like to test the CPU to determine which component is bad(My odds are on the motherboard, but..).

phill · Nov 10, 2019

XZero450 said:
Anyone in Connecticut running an x99 setup? I sent my brother my 2650v3/MSI X99S awhile ago, but we finally put it together when I was visiting last week and the darned thing wont boot with a code of 00. Would like to test the CPU to determine which component is bad(My odds are on the motherboard, but..).

I have that same problem with my current MSI board.. It seems to think that my 5960X is not working but shutting it off at the PSU and then turning it on shortly afterwards (5 to 10 seconds at most before pressing on) it works and goes straight through to 19 which is when it goes through the cycle fine.. I wish I could understand what it was doing or why it was getting stuck but I have no clue...

Has the board previously worked ok? Have you tried re-seating the CPU/checked for any damaged pins or pads on the back of the CPU?? (Possibly already done but just a thought

)

XZero450 · Nov 11, 2019

We tried everything, inspected the socket and CPU, re-seated. Attempted with and without a heatsink on it. This particular configuration was my main machine for a few years and was working when I took it apart to send to him.

thebluebumblebee · Nov 11, 2019

Dead battery?

phill · Nov 11, 2019

XZero450 said:
We tried everything, inspected the socket and CPU, re-seated. Attempted with and without a heatsink on it. This particular configuration was my main machine for a few years and was working when I took it apart to send to him.

Maybe worth grabbing a cheap Xeon from Ebay and testing it in the board? If it's the same issue/s, then board is doo doo

thebluebumblebee said:
Dead battery?

Damn good shout, certainly worth a try

swhite4784 · Feb 14, 2020

Has anyone done any testing with SMT off vs SMT on? im wondering if i should be using SMT off on my Xeons......

mstenholm · Feb 14, 2020

Shane White said:
Has anyone done any testing with SMT off vs SMT on? im wondering if i should be using SMT off on my Xeons......

Yes, and as I remember I got around 70 % on my old i7 970.

xvi · Feb 17, 2020

I generally saw a 30% improvement in multi-threaded performance with HT/SMT on. This seemed pretty true across the few generations I've tested it on.

swhite4784 · Feb 17, 2020

Sounds good, I’ll leave it enabled.

System Name	Not so complete or overkill - There are others!! Just no room to put! :D
Processor	Ryzen Threadripper 3970X
Motherboard	Asus Zenith 2 Extreme Alpha
Cooling	Lots!! Dual GTX 560 rads with D5 pumps for each rad. One rad for each component
Memory	Viper Steel 4 x 16GB DDR4 3600MHz not sure on the timings... Probably still at 2667!! :(
Video Card(s)	Asus Strix 3090 with front and rear active full cover water blocks
Storage	I'm bound to forget something here - 250GB OS, 2 x 1TB NVME, 2 x 1TB SSD, 4TB SSD, 2 x 8TB HD etc...
Display(s)	3 x Dell 27" S2721DGFA @ 7680 x 1440P @ 144Hz or 165Hz - working on it!!
Case	The big Thermaltake that looks like a Case Mods
Audio Device(s)	Onboard
Power Supply	EVGA 1600W T2
Mouse	Corsair thingy
Keyboard	Razer something or other....
VR HMD	No headset yet
Software	Windows 11 OS... Not a fan!!
Benchmark Scores	I've actually never benched it!! Too busy with WCG and FAH and not gaming! :( :( Not OC'd it!! :(

System Name	Nilin
Processor	Ryzen 9 5800x
Motherboard	Asus Rog Crosshair VIII Hero Wifi
Cooling	Lian Li Galahad AIO 360
Memory	G. Skill TridentZ Neo 32gb 3600Mhz CL16-16-16-36
Video Card(s)	Asus TUF RTX 3080
Storage	Samsung Evo 960 250gb (System), Samsung Evo 860 500gb (Misc), ADATA SX8200PNP (Games)
Display(s)	LG 27" UHD IPS, LG Ultragear 27" WQHD Nano IPS
Case	InWin 303 (7x Fractal Prisma 120mm)
Power Supply	Tt Toughpower Grand RGB 850W
Mouse	Razer Viper Ultimate
Keyboard	SteelSeries Apex 3
Benchmark Scores	https://www.3dmark.com/fs/21022952 (old system)

System Name	Apollo
Processor	Intel Core i9 9880H
Motherboard	Some proprietary Apple thing.
Memory	64GB DDR4-2667
Video Card(s)	AMD Radeon Pro 5600M, 8GB HBM2
Storage	1TB Apple NVMe, 4TB External
Display(s)	Laptop @ 3072x1920 + 2x LG 5k Ultrafine TB3 displays
Case	MacBook Pro (16", 2019)
Audio Device(s)	AirPods Pro, Sennheiser HD 380s w/ FIIO Alpen 2, or Logitech 2.1 Speakers
Power Supply	96w Power Adapter
Mouse	Logitech MX Master 3
Keyboard	Logitech G915, GL Clicky
Software	MacOS 12.1

System Name	MSI GP76
Processor	intel i7 11800h
Cooling	2 laptop fans
Memory	32gb of 3000mhz DDR4
Video Card(s)	Nvidia 3070
Storage	x2 PNY 8tb cs2130 m.2 SSD--16tb of space
Display(s)	17.3" IPS 1920x1080 240Hz
Power Supply	280w laptop power supply
Mouse	Logitech m705
Keyboard	laptop keyboard
Software	lots of movies and Windows 10 with win 7 shell
Benchmark Scores	Good enough for me

System Name	Apollo
Processor	Intel Core i9 9880H
Motherboard	Some proprietary Apple thing.
Memory	64GB DDR4-2667
Video Card(s)	AMD Radeon Pro 5600M, 8GB HBM2
Storage	1TB Apple NVMe, 4TB External
Display(s)	Laptop @ 3072x1920 + 2x LG 5k Ultrafine TB3 displays
Case	MacBook Pro (16", 2019)
Audio Device(s)	AirPods Pro, Sennheiser HD 380s w/ FIIO Alpen 2, or Logitech 2.1 Speakers
Power Supply	96w Power Adapter
Mouse	Logitech MX Master 3
Keyboard	Logitech G915, GL Clicky
Software	MacOS 12.1

WCG-TPU Cruncher's Hardware/Tech Support Discussion Thread

phill

Moderator

Lorec

Aquinus

Resident Wat-man

yotano211

Aquinus

Resident Wat-man

thebluebumblebee

Aquinus

Resident Wat-man

phill

Moderator

Aquinus

Resident Wat-man

phill

Moderator

Aquinus

Resident Wat-man

VulkanBros

phill

Moderator

thebluebumblebee

Lorec

thebluebumblebee

XZero450

phill

Moderator

XZero450

thebluebumblebee

phill

Moderator

swhite4784

mstenholm

xvi

swhite4784

System Name	Main/DC
Processor	i7-3770K/i7-2600K
Motherboard	MSI Z77A-GD55/GA-P67A-UD4-B3
Cooling	Phanteks PH-TC14CS/H80
Memory	Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) LP /4GB Kingston DDR3 1600
Video Card(s)	Asus GTX 660 Ti/MSI HD7770
Storage	Crucial MX100 256GB/120GB Samsung 830 & Seagate 2TB(died)
Display(s)	Asus 24' LED/Samsung SyncMaster B1940
Case	P100/Antec P280 It's huge!
Audio Device(s)	on board
Power Supply	SeaSonic SS-660XP2/Seasonic SS-760XP2
Software	Win 7 Home Premiun 64 Bit

System Name	Commercial towing vehicle "Nostromo"
Processor	5800X3D
Motherboard	X570 Unify
Cooling	EK-AIO 360
Memory	32 GB Fury 3666 MHz
Video Card(s)	4070 Ti Eagle
Storage	SN850 NVMe 1TB + Renegade NVMe 2TB + 870 EVO 4TB
Display(s)	25" Legion Y25g-30 360Hz
Case	Lian Li LanCool 216 v2
Audio Device(s)	Razer Blackshark v2 Hyperspeed / Bowers & Wilkins Px7 S2e
Power Supply	HX1500i
Mouse	Harpe Ace Aim Lab Edition
Keyboard	Scope II 96 Wireless
Software	Windows 11 23H2 / Fedora w. KDE

System Name	Phobos/Cronus/Janus
Processor	3950x/1950x/3700x
Motherboard	Auros Ultra/Auros Gaming 7/Fatal1ty ITX/ac
Cooling	Custom Water
Video Card(s)	2x1070ti/4x2070 Super/RX5700
Case	STH10/TH10/Nano S
Power Supply	SeaSonic 1200w/SeaSonic 1200w PRIME + SeasSonic 1000w/eVGA 850 Bronze

System Name	Custom build by me
Processor	AMD 5800X3D
Motherboard	MSI
Cooling	Corsair H150
Memory	32 gigabytes Gskill 3800
Video Card(s)	AMD 6950XT
Storage	Sabrent Rocket PCIE 4.0 2TB
Display(s)	Samsung CHG70 32inch
Case	Corsair
Audio Device(s)	on board
Power Supply	Enermax 1000
Mouse	Logitech Prometheus
Keyboard	Logitech G19
Software	Windows 11 Pro
Benchmark Scores	What kind of benchmarks you want?

System Name	The work PC /2700x/5950x
Processor	3900X stock/ 2700x stock/ 5950x 4200 MHz fixed @ 1,056-1,08V
Motherboard	Gigabyte AORUS Master X570/2xMSI X470 M7 AC
Cooling	Custom WC XSPC RX480, Laing DDC, XSPC Laing DDC Top V3 and EK Velocity/NH15/NH-U12S SE
Memory	32 GB Viper 3600/14 /16 GB Trident Z F4-4000C18D-16GTZSW 3600 /32 GB G Skill Flare CL14 3400
Video Card(s)	2070 Super X MSI/GTX 970 MSI/ GTX 970 MSI
Storage	1 TB SSD+500 GB NVMe / 500 GB SSD/ 2 TB 990 Pro
Display(s)	Dell UltraSharp U2518D/2408WFP
Case	Corsair 800D / Lian test bench/NZXT 500
Power Supply	AX 850 Titanium/AX 860i/AX 760
Software	Dual boot/Win 10 / Linux / Win 10+Linux

System Name	Rainbow
Processor	Intel Core i7 8700k
Motherboard	MSI MPG Z390M GAMING EDGE AC
Cooling	Corsair H115i, 2x Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM
Memory	G. Skill TridentZ RGB 4x8GB (F4-3600C16Q-32GTZR)
Video Card(s)	ZOTAC GeForce RTX 3090 Trinity
Storage	2x Samsung 950 Pro 256GB \| 2xHGST Deskstar 4TB 7.2K
Display(s)	Samsung C27HG70
Case	Xigmatek Aquila
Power Supply	Seasonic 760W SS-760XP
Mouse	Razer Deathadder 2013
Keyboard	Corsair Vengeance K95
Software	Windows 10 Pro
Benchmark Scores	4 trillion points in GmailMark, over 144 FPS 2K Facebook Scrolling (Extreme Quality preset)