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Forum: Hardware Chat Room
Thread: CPU not running at 100% as it should |
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Thread Status: Active Total posts in this thread: 18
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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Hi all. I have been running WCG for almost a decade and can install/configure it blindfolded. :)
----------------------------------------I bought 10 Lenovo identical M710 Small Form Factor desktops (Windows 10 Home) last December, installed only BOINC/WCG, set it to run 100% on my 2 projects, and watched them crunch away. A few days ago I noticed that machine #6 is returning about 25% LESS results than the other 9 machines. I figured it might be a fluke and let it go for a few more days. Today, the stats are the same and I checked the history of this machine's results and sure enough, every day since it was powered up, it's returning 25% less results. I double checked all the settings and WCG is configured and running identically. I checked Task Manager and I noticed the CPU is only at 78% for the WCG stuff...the other processes are nothing above 0.1% and again, it's an identical load to the other 9 machines. All other 9 machines (as well as my countless other Windows boxes) are at 99% or 100% in Task Manager. I then recalled that box #6 was the one that when I configured Windows 10, it was THE ONLY machine that prompted me to update Windows 10 (very odd) AND I somehow clicked the Yes button and it took 4+ hours to update (I was quite unhappy). The update was on December 15 so it should not be the same update(s) that MS is trying to push out the past few days about the CPU vulnerabilities AND some rumors that these patches (either from MS or Intel) are causing significant CPU performance loss. So my 2 answers are either Windows is killing the performance or the CPU is somehow defective. Task Manager shows all the cores running. I even tried running WCG as "Run As Administrator". My 9 good machines are running Win10 Home Version 1703 OS Build 15063.729. My machine #6 is running Win10 Home Version 1709 OS Build 16299.192 which is very recent (not Dec 15)...it seems all my efforts to turn of the auto-update (even though MS says it is off) have failed. Looking at the machine's WCG results and seeing that they are 25% lower since the time the machine was born with older/previous MS updates let's me know that it is not this particular latest MS update that is the issue. I could revert the machine back with the Recovery Partition and reinstall Windows and WCG, and if that works we know it's a software issue. But I'd really love to know if others have seen this. I've Googled for a while on this topic and cannot find anything. I would doubt that MS is purposely doing this. I doubt there is a setting in the BIOS that is throttling my CPU (but even then I would expect Windows Task Manager to still report the CPU is working at 100%). If you need more info, please let me know. Thanks!  [Edit 3 times, last edit by ericinboston at Jan 9, 2018 8:45:12 PM] |
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QuantumEthos
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jul 2, 2011 Post Count: 336 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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on mine a security service started taking 15%+ of cpu no idea why (cryptgen or something)
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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on mine a security service started taking 15%+ of cpu no idea why (cryptgen or something) But my issue is that Task Manager is not showing anything eating any other CPU resources. I'm missing 25% and I have 2-3 processes using 0.1% while the other processes are using 0.0%. I've watched Task Manager for several minutes...either MS is purposely hiding what is eating the other 25% or there is a CPU defect or MS has no idea that for the past few Windows updates, their updates are killing CPU performance. I kind of doubt their updates are killing performance because it would have popped up on Google due to it affecting millions of other Win10 users/corporations that want high performance. As of today, the only articles I see are from April 2017 or older and do not really match my use case. |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Have you checked that Processor Power Management settings are set at 100% in Advanced Power Options (via Control Panel - Power Options - Plan Settings)? Or CPU core temperatures?
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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Have you checked that Processor Power Management settings are set at 100% in Advanced Power Options (via Control Panel - Power Options - Plan Settings)? Or CPU core temperatures? Yes. They are correct. I should have stated that I have double checked and confirmed that all 10 computers are set up EXACTLY the same...other than this 1 that is running a slightly updated version of Windows10 Home. Some of these settings are: -WCG prefs are set to run CPU and GPU at 100% -WCG itself is set to "Run Always" for CPU and GPU (the GPU cards aren't used on these machines) so this Run Always is essentially overwriting the prefs anyway -The machine is never sleeping or anything like that -All 10 machines' Power Settings are set properly and identically 1)I powered the box off for 30 minutes to see if there was any kind of cooling problem and when WCG started up it stayed at 100% in Task Manager for a few seconds, then went down to 75% total CPU utilization...this is the same as how it would work after a reboot (that it would ping 100% for a second, then quickly drop to 75%). 2)I checked the BIOS and I do not see anything about throttling a CPU. I also do not see a self-test so I cannot test the CPU. I have gone through comparing this bad machine's BIOS to a good machine and I don't see any differences. I don't see any Lenovo garbageware on this machine...such as some hidden TSR that is watching for CPU heat or CPU over utilization. But I did notice that the Intel Management Engine 11.6.0.1047 is installed on the good and bad machine...however the good machines' Windows Control Panel states that it is 13.6MB large while the bad machine states it is 87.5MB large! Whoa! How can that be?! How can an exact version be X size on 1 machine yet be 6X on another?! That makes no sense. I will probably back this up and then revert the machine tomorrow via the Recovery Partition unless others have feedback. Thanks. [Edit 1 times, last edit by ericinboston at Jan 10, 2018 12:04:26 AM] |
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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Actually, I just ran the Intel Processor Diagnostic Tool and it states there is something failing with the thermal power solution (glue I guess).
----------------------------------------I'll call Lenovo tomorrow and hopefully they will just quickly and easily swap this whole box out. |
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Synapp.IO
Cruncher United States Joined: Sep 16, 2017 Post Count: 18 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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FYI, if you dedicate these machines exclusively to crunching, you should run GNU/Linux on them. Installing something like Ubuntu is just as easy (I would argue easier) than Windows - it won't go into a 4 hour update process that's for sure - and WCG WU's are generally better optimized for GNU/Linux, plus it has a lower overhead than Windows (and also doesn't install an AV by default - see Windows Defender - that can interfere with BOINC/WCG).
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KLiK
Master Cruncher Croatia Joined: Nov 13, 2006 Post Count: 3108 Status: Offline Project Badges: 
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Hi all. I have been running WCG for almost a decade and can install/configure it blindfolded. :) I bought 10 Lenovo identical M710 Small Form Factor desktops (Windows 10 Home) last December, installed only BOINC/WCG, set it to run 100% on my 2 projects, and watched them crunch away. A few days ago I noticed that machine #6 is returning about 25% LESS results than the other 9 machines. I figured it might be a fluke and let it go for a few more days. Today, the stats are the same and I checked the history of this machine's results and sure enough, every day since it was powered up, it's returning 25% less results. I double checked all the settings and WCG is configured and running identically. I checked Task Manager and I noticed the CPU is only at 78% for the WCG stuff...the other processes are nothing above 0.1% and again, it's an identical load to the other 9 machines. All other 9 machines (as well as my countless other Windows boxes) are at 99% or 100% in Task Manager. I then recalled that box #6 was the one that when I configured Windows 10, it was THE ONLY machine that prompted me to update Windows 10 (very odd) AND I somehow clicked the Yes button and it took 4+ hours to update (I was quite unhappy). The update was on December 15 so it should not be the same update(s) that MS is trying to push out the past few days about the CPU vulnerabilities AND some rumors that these patches (either from MS or Intel) are causing significant CPU performance loss. So my 2 answers are either Windows is killing the performance or the CPU is somehow defective. Task Manager shows all the cores running. I even tried running WCG as "Run As Administrator". My 9 good machines are running Win10 Home Version 1703 OS Build 15063.729. My machine #6 is running Win10 Home Version 1709 OS Build 16299.192 which is very recent (not Dec 15)...it seems all my efforts to turn of the auto-update (even though MS says it is off) have failed. Looking at the machine's WCG results and seeing that they are 25% lower since the time the machine was born with older/previous MS updates let's me know that it is not this particular latest MS update that is the issue. I could revert the machine back with the Recovery Partition and reinstall Windows and WCG, and if that works we know it's a software issue. But I'd really love to know if others have seen this. I've Googled for a while on this topic and cannot find anything. I would doubt that MS is purposely doing this. I doubt there is a setting in the BIOS that is throttling my CPU (but even then I would expect Windows Task Manager to still report the CPU is working at 100%). If you need more info, please let me know. Thanks! The 16299.192 is the new Win10 with fixed kernel. Is it really that bad with 25% less power? Check more info here: https://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/forums/wcg/viewthread_thread,40554 |
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Former Member
Cruncher Joined: May 22, 2018 Post Count: 0 Status: Offline |
Actually, I just ran the Intel Processor Diagnostic Tool and it states there is something failing with the thermal power solution (glue I guess). I'll call Lenovo tomorrow and hopefully they will just quickly and easily swap this whole box out. I was going to suggest possibly a failing fan bearing, or reapply thermal grease, but looks like you beat me to it. Hopefully it is just a bad fan and the update didn't kill 25% of wcg future resources. I don't know if any of my machines have seen the update, but will keep an eye on the output of the devices for the near future. |
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ericinboston
Senior Cruncher Joined: Jan 12, 2010 Post Count: 258 Status: Offline Project Badges:
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The 16299.192 is the new Win10 with fixed kernel. Is it really that bad with 25% less power? Check more info here: https://www.worldcommunitygrid.org/forums/wcg/viewthread_thread,40554 As I mentioned, it seems to be a defective CPU. However, I in general am not a fan of the update-everything-every-second belief. Does the Intel ME vulnerability affect every machine? Sure. But that's also *IF* it is attempted to be exploited. In my particular case, these 10 machines are 100% dedicated to WCG and that's it. Not a single piece of personal information on them. Nothing. Zip. I just installed Windows and then WCG. In order for this ME vulnerability to be exploited, as I understand it, people have to visit websites designed to hack ME...or install software to hack ME. Then once hacked, *IF* there is any personal info in memory, it could be stolen. There are a lot of steps to actually be exploited. Will I patch my personal pc that I use for bazillions of personal shopping, banks, spreadsheets, emails, etc? Yes. Will I continue to avoid websites that offer free icons, free wallpaper, free dating services, and free coupons as to avoid nasty javascript and who knows whatever other computer evils? You betcha. This ME exploit has been around for at least 10 years and I thought I read somewhere 20 years. We've gone a substantial amount of time without an exploit (or mass exploit) so I'm really not concerned that suddenly now, hundreds of millions of users are going to have their identity stolen, their SSNs posted on websites, their cats held for ransom, etc. as the media is playing it out to be the end of the world. :) But the 10-25% slowdown RUMORS that are being posted on the web, if found to be true, are terrible and could result in mass lawsuits and/or hardware replacements. [Edit 1 times, last edit by ericinboston at Jan 10, 2018 1:19:43 PM] |
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