CPU Usage

[RandysWay]

I have a P4 3.0C @ 3.3 w/ HT on, When I run applications such as Prime95 & Folding@Home, (Both is set to use 100% CPU), I open the performance monitor in the task manager and watch it for a few minutes. I notice even though these applications suppose to use 100% CPU, the CPU usage never passes 50%. I suspect its from the Hyper threading. The CPU graph stays drawing in the middle but very occasionally jumps up to about 90%.

Any ideas? Is this normal, and is it actually using 100% CPU despite what the task manager says?

Thanks,
Randy

 

[TheMostWantedPolishTwin]

try running 2 instances of folding client at the same time...

 

[RandysWay]

There we go, thanks. Anyway to get it to use 100% without two instances?

 

[wayne]

why dont you turn off ht and try it like that, if possible

 

[PS-RagE]

If just you want to see it burn at 100% (checking high temps?) try Sandra's "Burn-In" tests

 

[jpmkm]

Originally posted by wayne
why dont you turn off ht and try it like that, if possible

Yeah, and he should disable half the cylinders in his car's engine, too. Windows sees hyperthreading as essentially two processors. Programs like prime95 and folding@home just aren't written to use multiple threads so on a hyperthreading processor or a dual processor system the program will only start a single thread, which will can only run on a single processor. That is why you have to run two instances of the program. One starts a thread on one processor(or part of the processor in the case of hyperthreading) and the other starts a thread on the other processor. If you use a multithreaded aware program(like the distributed.net client) then it will use 100% of your processor. At least that is how I interpret it from what I've read. I don't use hyperthreaded processors and I don't use windows.