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Message 2604 - Posted: 25 Sep 2008 | 14:48:51 UTC

Hi Everybody,

Seem to have this Boinc GPU client installed, got work.....1 problem though:

This PC is:

Q9450 @3.58
Asus P5E-VM HDMI
OCZ 1066 2x2GB
8800GS OCed
WC Cpu, NB, Gpu
Vista x64 SP1

I run WCG (World Community Grid). Normally its working 4 WUs (1 on each core) while the GPU is running F@H.

Now that I have the GPUGRID running--WCG is only running 3 WUs, the 4th is "waiting to run" and "System Idle Process" In task manager is 25%. So, now I have 1 core sitting idle...for some reason. The GPU client is running according to Boinc and using zero cpu according to task manager.

"Protected Service Mode" was turned off during installation.

I've checked my preferences in Boinc and set them via my GPUGRID account.

Not sure where the problem is, but in order to keep running GPUGRID--I need the Cpu to continue running the 4 WUs on all 4 cores.

Any help would be appreciated!

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Message 2605 - Posted: 25 Sep 2008 | 14:51:04 UTC - in response to Message 2604.

Not possible at the moment because of a limitation of the BOINC client. Will be fixed in a BOINC update due imminently.

MJH

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Message 2607 - Posted: 25 Sep 2008 | 15:56:47 UTC

Thank You. I will definitely keep on the look out for it!

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Message 2622 - Posted: 25 Sep 2008 | 22:52:53 UTC

Or do the ncpus+1 hack.. without any kind of warrenty ;)

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Message 2623 - Posted: 25 Sep 2008 | 23:48:26 UTC - in response to Message 2622.

Or do the ncpus+1 hack.. without any kind of warrenty ;)

MrS



I found the cc_config.xml file earlier. Nothing that I tried worked, so I gave up. Someone needs to spell it out for us dummies......;)

I'm running Vista 64 SP1

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Message 2626 - Posted: 26 Sep 2008 | 2:41:50 UTC
Last modified: 26 Sep 2008 | 2:43:18 UTC

In the data folder for BOINC, you need to create the file cc_config.xml. It normally is not there. After you stop boinc, create the file and put in it:

<cc_config>
<log_flags>
<sched_op_debug>1</sched_op_debug>
</log_flags>
<options>
<ncpus>5</ncpus>
</options>
</cc_config>


This will make BOINC run 5 tasks (or however meny you tell it to) at once. Should a project go into high priority mode, it will still run 5 tasks (ie: 5 WCG tasks). The op debug part will also add more messages to your message tab that are suppressed normally.

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Message 2628 - Posted: 26 Sep 2008 | 3:07:24 UTC - in response to Message 2626.

In the data folder for BOINC, you need to create the file cc_config.xml. It normally is not there. After you stop boinc, create the file and put in it:

<cc_config>
<log_flags>
<sched_op_debug>1</sched_op_debug>
</log_flags>
<options>
<ncpus>5</ncpus>
</options>
</cc_config>


This will make BOINC run 5 tasks (or however meny you tell it to) at once. Should a project go into high priority mode, it will still run 5 tasks (ie: 5 WCG tasks). The op debug part will also add more messages to your message tab that are suppressed normally.


Hehehehehhe......It Works! Hehehehhehe. Good deal! I wasn't sure what you meant by "data folder", so it took me a minute or 12 to figure it out. For others that are in Vista:

I just copied and pasted the above into notepad and then saved it with a file name: cc_config.xml
Then I put it in C:\ProgramData\BOINC
Shut down Boinc and restarted it.

5 Tasks running! Sweeeeeet!

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Message 2633 - Posted: 26 Sep 2008 | 7:11:54 UTC

Ok, slept for a few hrs......Problems. The 1st GPU WU finally completed. I had changed the settling to allow more work, so it DLed a few more WUs.

After the 1st WU completed, it changed to running 1 GPU WU, 1 WCG WU and 75% System Idle Process.

I restarted Boinc and tried several different things....nothing worked.

Help?

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Message 2661 - Posted: 29 Sep 2008 | 14:23:58 UTC
Last modified: 29 Sep 2008 | 14:28:28 UTC

Seems that I managed to get it going after my last post. It does require some babysitting, but its running. I haven't sorted out the specifics yet, but I've been very busy the last few days and have really only had time to check it, get it going correctly again...and then move on with the rest of life.

As someone else posted in another thread: I basically suspend both my projects (WCG and GPUGRID), then Resume WCG to get those 4 WUs going on the CPU(--it will actually start 5 WUs), then I resume GPUGRID and it will start/restart a GPU WU. The 5th WCG WU will then change to "Waiting to Run" and sit idle.

The part that I have not had time to sort out is this: As WUs complete, the system will work it way down to 1 WU running and that's it. Not always though...sometimes I can tell that its been running properly for quite a while....sometimes not. At this point there doesn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to it that's obvious. I should have the opportunity over the next few days to really keep a close eye on everything, so I'm hoping I can sort out what the MO is and get an idea of what's going on.

I WAS not getting ANY computation errors before starting this GPU project. Now I'm getting 1 here and there. I know that there is a WU issue outside of GPUGRID, so I'm am going to have to try to determine whether or not they are related to that....or if its this Boinc version, GPUGrid, or what.

With some babysitting--its working. So, that's a good thing. Running 6.3.12.

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Message 2663 - Posted: 29 Sep 2008 | 17:18:24 UTC

Just use 6.3.10 and the not-starting-new-cpu-tasks issue should be gone. You can still use ncpus with that one.

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Message 2957 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 14:46:13 UTC

Ok I have tried this method as described in this thread creating an xml file and putting it in the BOINC directory and it doesn't work.Still running 3 cpus and 1 gpu. This is in Linux 64bit. The xml file looks ok but if I start the client in a terminal it is not picking up the xml file....any ideas?

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Message 2958 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 15:07:31 UTC - in response to Message 2661.

Running 6.3.12.

Your problem is 6.3.12, it does exactly what your describe. It has a flaw in it.

Upgrade to 6.3.14

For all: Do not run 6.3.11, 6.3.12 or 6.3.13 - All those have different flaws in the scheduler code. If you are running one of these, please upgrade.

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Message 2959 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 15:11:40 UTC - in response to Message 2958.

Running 6.3.12.

Your problem is 6.3.12, it does exactly what your describe. It has a flaw in it.

Upgrade to 6.3.14

For all: Do not run 6.3.11, 6.3.12 or 6.3.13 - All those have different flaws in the scheduler code. If you are running one of these, please upgrade.


No Keith I am running 6.3.10.....the only version I see available for 64bit Linux....is there another version out? I thought all the newer versions were for windows...please link me if there is another for Linux...Thanks-Jeff

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Message 2960 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 15:19:35 UTC
Last modified: 10 Oct 2008 | 15:20:51 UTC

You can get 6.3.14 here -> http://boinc.berkeley.edu/download_all.php. The cc_config.xml should also work with 6.3.10, but I think I have read that there was a problem with xml parsing, but am not really sure about that. At least it worked with 6.3.8 on my Linux64 hosts...

Where do you have BOINC installed and in which folder have you put your cc_config.xml to?
Are you sure it has the right name? It should at least contain -

<cc_config>
<options>
<ncpus>5</ncpus>
</options>
</cc_config>
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Message 2961 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 15:47:18 UTC - in response to Message 2960.

Boinc is installed in a folder(BOINC) on the desktop to which the xml file was placed. I installed it using the sh command in root and it placed all the files in that folder.It has the right name and the right files(I copied and pasted from what others said worked and re-reviewed it.)Going to try the new version you linked...thanks

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Message 2962 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 15:54:33 UTC - in response to Message 2961.

Boinc is installed in a folder(BOINC) on the desktop to which the xml file was placed. I installed it using the sh command in root and it placed all the files in that folder.It has the right name and the right files(I copied and pasted from what others said worked and re-reviewed it.)Going to try the new version you linked...thanks


All XML files go in the DATA directory, it should be in the same folder that contains client_state.xml.

It does not go in the folder that contains boinc or boincmanager.

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Message 2963 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 15:59:40 UTC - in response to Message 2959.

Running 6.3.12.

Your problem is 6.3.12, it does exactly what your describe. It has a flaw in it.

Upgrade to 6.3.14

For all: Do not run 6.3.11, 6.3.12 or 6.3.13 - All those have different flaws in the scheduler code. If you are running one of these, please upgrade.


No Keith I am running 6.3.10.....the only version I see available for 64bit Linux....is there another version out? I thought all the newer versions were for windows...please link me if there is another for Linux...Thanks-Jeff

My reply was to someone else's post in this thread, they said they were running 6.3.12.

At Stefan mentions the downlaods are now on the BOINC Berkeley download page, there are now version of 6.3.14 for Windows 32 and 64bit, Linux 32 and 64bit, and now MAC OS/X. But the project has no MAC applciation yet.

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Message 2964 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 16:05:12 UTC - in response to Message 2962.
Last modified: 10 Oct 2008 | 16:09:33 UTC

All XML files go in the DATA directory, it should be in the same folder that contains client_state.xml.

It does not go in the folder that contains boinc or boincmanager.


There's no data directory in the Linux versions of BOINC! ;)
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Message 2965 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 16:08:43 UTC - in response to Message 2961.
Last modified: 10 Oct 2008 | 16:10:24 UTC

Boinc is installed in a folder(BOINC) on the desktop to which the xml file was placed. I installed it using the sh command in root and it placed all the files in that folder.It has the right name and the right files(I copied and pasted from what others said worked and re-reviewed it.)Going to try the new version you linked...thanks


Sounds, ok...
I normally install BOINC to a folder in the user's home directory, but it should also work in a folder on the desktop. Just to be sure - you haven't installed BOINC as root?
Please let us know if it works with 6.3.14.
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Message 2966 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 16:19:58 UTC - in response to Message 2965.

Just need to reboot now but I am waiting until my 1st task completes as it has run almost 18 hrs wall clock and 1 hr cpu time....will let you know after rebbot.

I had originally had BOINC as root when it was d/l by the synaptic package manager in Ubuntu but of course to do anything I had to change permissions everywhere so no it is installed as my username,not root, and not Boinc.

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Message 2967 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 16:30:19 UTC

I prefer installing BOINC via package management and then updating it to the most recent verion by hand. That way you have a dedicated BOINC user, working start, stop and restart scripts and its way more structured then the normal BOINC setup :-D
configuration files, including cc_config.xml reside in /etc/boinc-client
start/stop scripts in /etc/init.d
the BOINC binaries in /usr/bin
and finally all the changing project data, log files and other stuff in /var/lib/boinc-client

It can still be controlled by your normal user, it can still access the hardware when you add boinc to the video group etc... ;-)

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Message 2968 - Posted: 10 Oct 2008 | 16:45:10 UTC

OK I found a bug with cc_config.

At least in the Windows XP x86 version of 6.3.14

If you change cc_config.xml

then in manager under advanced/read config file

It reads the file but the settings do not go into effect.

To make them kick in also do

advanced/read local prefs.

I've reported this minor bug.

Other option would be to shut done boinc and restart.

Here is a test
I had set <ncpus>3</ncpus> (I only have 2)
Manually run Benchmarks, this reports 3 CPUs
take out ncpus from config file
advanced/read config file
nothing appears to happen
Manually run benchmarks, It reports 3 CPUs
Without changing anything else
advnaced/read local prefs
Benchmarks automaticlly run reporting CPUs changed from 3 to 2

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Message 2969 - Posted: 11 Oct 2008 | 0:29:49 UTC

BOINC 6.3.14 for Linux64 turned out to be very buggy...

The alternate blue/white fields on the messages and tasks lines were flashing like a kaleidescope.The start-up messages on preferences,projects attached to,etc kept loading over and over again,then finally the client told me I had no co-processor capable of running PS3grid and would not download new work.I also could not get cc_config.xml to work either.

I switched back to 6.10.13 and everything went back to normal.

If anyone has created a core client that amends the ncpus lines to 4+1 and could provide a download link it would be MUCH APPRECIATED.

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Message 2970 - Posted: 11 Oct 2008 | 0:39:25 UTC

Sounds like the Devs might want to hear about this, as not many people seem to have tried that version yet.

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Message 2971 - Posted: 11 Oct 2008 | 1:35:45 UTC

I'm running 6.3.14 on Ubuntu 8.10 (the upcoming Intrepid release) with the current app, and I'm not having any problem with it ;-) Just to throw a good word in for 6.3.14 under Linux...
I have no problems while using the manager, even the new properties button works as expected :-D

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Message 2974 - Posted: 11 Oct 2008 | 7:16:42 UTC

Umm... I switched yesterday to Fedora 10 Beta and BOINC 6.3.14 and it works great. I haven't seen any of the bugs Jeff described.
I also tried the cc_config.xml with ncpus+1 and it is working here.
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