System tuning?

[j3pflynn]

Is there any way to tune one's system to help run DIMES more effectively, or hardware setups that it likes better? I figure if I'm going to dedicate time to it, I'd like to do it as well as I can.

[TollhouseFrank]

well.... what is your hardware setup? This doesn't require a super-system to run....

the biggest thing is going to be your net-connection type. That will determine a lot about how to set-up the client.

Are you directly connected? On a LAN? Behind a Firewall?

All those things and even other stuff that i couldn't think of off the top of my head could affect what settings you would need to use to 'optmize' your production.

[j3pflynn]

Athlon XP @ 2.4GHz, DSL(1.5Mb down / 384Kb up), Linksys router, "ZoneAlarm w/ AV" firewall. Anything else you'd need to know? I don't see a lot of settings for any sort of configuration in the agent, but maybe I'm just not looking in the right places.

[TollhouseFrank]

open up the agent console, and up in the top left, click on the word "Agent". Next, click on "Properties".

In the window that pops up, find the 4 buttons on the left. Click on the one that looks like a sphere (Network). In there, you will find a couple of sliders.

For your connection.... i would set Delay Between Measurements to the minimum (15 seconds).

The next slider is a bit up to you. I have 1.6mb down and 128k up on my DSL. However, I have 3 machines running DIMES Here at home... SO I set 2 of them to 21k transfer rate, and one of them to 31k transfer rate.

That way, they take 2-3 seconds each to send out all the data they need to send, which isn't too bad.

With yours, I think i'd set a single machine upwards of 40-50k, 2 machines, 30-40k, etc.....

Next, choose default protocol. This currently has no impact on the points you'll earn. I have 2 machines as ICMP, 1 as UDP. I'd say go with ICMP as it is 'more popular'.

Next... make sure that your firewall ALLOWS netdimes traffic in both directions on the protocol you chose. If you chose UDP, make sure it allows netDIMES UDP access both ways. Etc. etc.

Also... another way to 'speed up' things is right before you go to minimize the agent to the tray (or just to keep it up as a window), to save CPU cycles (especially if you are doing another DC project such as anything BOINC based or Folding@Home), make sure to leave it on the 'messages' tab. Sure, it ain't pretty, but when you don't let it display the graphic floating pink chicken thingy and the octopus attached to it, then it CAN speed things up a bit. It'll save you 10-15% on your CPU cycles, and may speed you up a tad on netDIMES as well.

[j3pflynn]

Thanks, Frank. I had pretty much set things that way, just wanted to make sure I didn't miss anything.

Why did you enable the netdimes traffic both ways on the chose protocol? I thought I read elsewhere in the forum that it's recommended to only allow outgoing in your firewall.

[TollhouseFrank]

if you don't allow netdimes incoming traffic, then how can it get back any info from the targets it has pinged/tracerouted?

[j3pflynn]

Outgoing ICMP and outgoing ping(ICMP echo) are allowed in the firewall, but not incoming. I'm not sure why it works, but I do get responses. I was just following guidance listed elsewhere in the forum, here(first post):
http://www.netdimes.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=155
.

[Younghusband]

Hi all, Hi TollhouseFrank

Mind if I join in on the same subject. TollhouseFrank or anybody else, can you recommend what set up I should use please, I have:

AMD Athlon 64 Processor 3200+
6MB download
600Kb upload
MSI Router
ZoneAlarm Free Firewall

Thanks

[j3pflynn]

Younghusband,

I'd say about the same as was suggested for me above, except that you can probably go a little higher on the file transfer rate in the agent network properties, since you have a higher bandwidth connection than I do.

[TollhouseFrank]

what i do is divide my upload by 10.... then multiply that by 2.5 or 3.

That is the rate I set the upload in Netdimes to be. That way, it's not 'too little', and not 'too much'. It is using your resources to thier fullest.

[leh]

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