how do I setup 4 core folding properly?

S

slayer9019

[H]ard|Gawd
Joined
Apr 2, 2010
Messages
1,599
I have just built a dedicated (well mostly dedicated) folding box and would like to setup a dedicated client 1 per core. Is there a way to do that?
 
I hope I'm understanding you correctly. If you want all cores to be processing the work, then all you really need is to use the -smp flag in the client shortcut and that should be fine.
 
Run the -smp flag for a few days with passkey so you get your 10 A3 units turned in then add the -bigadv flag after that.
 
i think the OP has a 4 core box(no HT), plus his i7 860 folding....giving you 12 cores

so set the -bigadv on the 860, and the other 4 core box(probably an amd?) with just -smp
 
Slayer9019, can you clarify what hardware you are running for the best advice on client setup?

TIA
 
Sorry for not following up....

folding rig

Amd Phenom II x4 B55 3.6ghz (need to find more cooling!!! WC maybe?)
2gb OCZ gold (going to be @ 8gig this week)
HD4200 graphics

Intel i7 860 @ 2.8 ghz
4gb Patriot Viper
9800GTX+


i fold on the amd all day 24/7/365 but not on the i7 because of cooling issues...2 towers + 1 server running at MAX load all day is way too much for my craptastic window AC

http://fah-web.stanford.edu/cgi-bin/main.py?qtype=userpage&username=slayer9019&teamnum=33
 
If you aren't planning on doing anything but fold on the AMD rig then I wouldn't waste the money to upgrade the RAM. 2gb is plenty to fold in windows.
 
DooKey said:
If you aren't planning on doing anything but fold on the AMD rig then I wouldn't waste the money to upgrade the RAM. 2gb is plenty to fold in windows.
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well I also might keep a vm or 2 on it it as backup to my vm server


also....what is a good "speed" for lack of a better word. me and a guy at my work both fold and we were both wondering
 
that processor unlocked should do some where between 3.6 and 3.8ghz.. if you can get above 3.8ghz unlocked then thats awesome but its rare.. as long as your only overclocking with the multiplier the 8 gigs should be fine.. wont have a huge effect on folding though but will help with the VM running in the background.. if you are overclocking using the HT(FSB) make sure you up your NB voltage.. some where between 1.17v and 1.20v.. stock should be 1.15v..


the i7 860 will need to be overclocked to around 3.6ghz to run -bigadv WU's if you decide to go that route.. but like dookey said run the standard A3 with your passkey until you complete 10 WU's then switch the 860 to -bigadv if you want to do those..
 
slayer9019 said:
also....what is a good "speed" for lack of a better word. me and a guy at my work both fold and we were both wondering
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A good speed is as high as you can get it. Folding performance scales very well with frequency so you will see performance improvements from any clock speed increases.
 
Zero82z said:
A good speed is as high as you can get it. Folding performance scales very well with frequency so you will see performance improvements from any clock speed increases.
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I was refering to points/day, wu/day. I want to know how much I am contributing.


sirmonkey1985 said:
that processor unlocked should do some where between 3.6 and 3.8ghz.. if you can get above 3.8ghz unlocked then thats awesome but its rare.. as long as your only overclocking with the multiplier the 8 gigs should be fine.. wont have a huge effect on folding though but will help with the VM running in the background.. if you are overclocking using the HT(FSB) make sure you up your NB voltage.. some where between 1.17v and 1.20v.. stock should be 1.15v..


the i7 860 will need to be overclocked to around 3.6ghz to run -bigadv WU's if you decide to go that route.. but like dookey said run the standard A3 with your passkey until you complete 10 WU's then switch the 860 to -bigadv if you want to do those..
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Do you think with a water cooled setup I could push it a bit further? Im willing to drop my next paycheck on a system if it can be done.
 
slayer9019 said:
I was refering to points/day, wu/day. I want to know how much I am contributing.
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Well, the same thing pretty much goes. Whatever you can produce is good. With an overclocked AMD quad like yours, I'd say you should expect about 6-7k PPD.
slayer9019 said:
Do you think with a water cooled setup I could push it a bit further? Im willing to drop my next paycheck on a system if it can be done.
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It's not worth it.
 
slayer9019 said:
Do you think with a water cooled setup I could push it a bit further? Im willing to drop my next paycheck on a system if it can be done.
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Buy it for other reasons and if it can be transferable to a future system, but not for folding. Use the money where it will get you superior production you will actually notice. In your case, upgrading the i7 to something faster would be much preferable to a WC setup for your AMD. Save your money for when you can afford an i7 970 and sell your 860, if you really want to see a boost..
 
APOLLO said:
Buy it for other reasons and if it can be transferable to a future system, but not for folding. Use the money where it will get you superior production you will actually notice. In your case, upgrading the i7 to something faster would be much preferable to a WC setup for your AMD. Save your money for when you can afford an i7 970 and sell your 860, if you really want to see a boost..
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well the i7 is my main rig. It handles all my real work. I can't really dedicate it for folding all the time because I actually need the resources. The AMD was a budget build (sub $190 for entire system). I am looking at the 970 for a new system but JUST finished building both my new systems (i7 and AMD) not more than a month ago. The AMD is a box I can just do whatever to. I was thinking of looking into a AMD Phenom II x6 tho!:D
 
slayer9019 said:
well the i7 is my main rig. It handles all my real work. I can't really dedicate it for folding all the time because I actually need the resources. The AMD was a budget build (sub $190 for entire system). I am looking at the 970 for a new system but JUST finished building both my new systems (i7 and AMD) not more than a month ago. The AMD is a box I can just do whatever to. I was thinking of looking into a AMD Phenom II x6 tho!:D
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Now that's an idea! Better money spent than WC, from what people posted about the X6. :cool:
 
if i was to build the ideal folding machine (no GPU folding) would a 12 core AMD be the best? (i like the idea that I could always turn it into ESXi server and sell it to my faternity brothers PBX/VoIP company he owns
 
slayer9019 said:
if i was to build the ideal folding machine (no GPU folding) would a 12 core AMD be the best? (i like the idea that I could always turn it into ESXi server and sell it to my faternity brothers PBX/VoIP company he owns
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I think the jury is still out on that one. You need the higher frequency processors to make very good PPD but they're also very expensive. I believe the SR-2 with dual quads will come out as a better platform in price/performance, especially since OCing is possible. If you're really focused to build a high-end AMD box for some other reason, then that's a different story.
 
APOLLO said:
I think the jury is still out on that one. You need the higher frequency processors to make very good PPD but they're also very expensive. I believe the SR-2 with dual quads will come out as a better platform in price/performance, especially since OCing is possible. If you're really focused to build a high-end AMD box for some other reason, then that's a different story.
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i am very split on the decision on to build a high end folding box or otherwise. what started as a budget build is turning into a box that will destroy my main rig.....:confused:
 
slayer9019 said:
i am very split on the decision on to build a high end folding box or otherwise. what started as a budget build is turning into a box that will destroy my main rig.....:confused:
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Understood, I think we all have been down that road at one point or another. I can't really advise you on your decision, it's based entirely on what you can afford at any given time. I am very interested in building a dual 12-core AMD system myself, especially attractive in that option is the future prospect of upgrading to Bulldozer when it becomes available according to current rumors. Architecture longevity has always been foremost on my mind.
 
APOLLO said:
Understood, I think we all have been down that road at one point or another. I can't really advise you on your decision, it's based entirely on what you can afford at any given time. I am very interested in building a dual 12-core AMD system myself, especially attractive in that option is the future prospect of upgrading to Bulldozer when it becomes available according to current rumors. Architecture longevity has always been foremost on my mind.
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dual 12 core.....(drool) I was looking into picking up used blade servers. I saw as cheap as 500-700 a blade (+ cost of chassis *cry*). I am looking at running under 20 amps for my current room/also reasonably low cooling requirements. (I have 1 tiny window AC ATM). Money is a bit tight right now because of student loans and the cost of possibly moving out of my currently EXTREMELY cheap living (frat house @ ~400 a month including utilities).

Budgeting for a dual 12 or even single 12 core is a bit of a crazy thought to me because I JUST finished building 2 quad cores but hey w.e. its for a good cause!




back on track I only am at 571 points today with all my computers running at max!?!?! I GPU client on my 9800GTX+, SMP. BIG on my i7 and SMP, BIG on my AMD 64??? What gives?
 
If you're running bigadv on the i7, then it will take a few days to complete. Also, you will not get any bonus points until you complete 10 SMP WUs, so you should just run standard SMP to get 10 WUs and then switch to bigadv. The AMD should also be running standard SMP. Installing HFM.NET is the easiest way to monitor the progress of all your F@H clients.

Assuming this is you, it looks like your GPU client may not be working? Make sure the team and username are correct.
 
APOLLO said:
Now that's an idea! Better money spent than WC, from what people posted about the X6. :cool:
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Very good idea - mine was £200 for a 1090t, its driving 3 gu clients and pumps out ~10k PPD a much better idea than a WC set up that won't get you as near as many points for the same amount of money
 
slayer9019 said:
i am very split on the decision on to build a high end folding box or otherwise. what started as a budget build is turning into a box that will destroy my main rig.....:confused:
Click to expand...

You aren't the first to make this decision - i'm in the process of building a dual CPU machine but even working full time its going to take a few months to put together and destroy my upgrade budget for a year as well as being way more powerful than my daily rig - just as my current folder is better than my daily rig. The trade off is very good power efficiency and something that will not need to be upgraded for a long time.
 
I just realized with both machines going....im only getting like 1000 points aday!?!?! WTF!


also my i7 is hitting around 84C when folding....is that ok for 24/7 use?
 
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Zero82z said:
1000PPD according to what? And have you completed 10 SMP units with your passkey to qualify for bonus points?

Yes, it's perfectly fine.
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Forgot to mention I am VERY new to folding. I did complete 10 SMP units as far as I know (client is running SMP and i did do 10 WU). I dont know how/what a passkey is. Any light to shed of that?
 
Go to this thread:

http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1511766

In it you will see a section on getting a passkey. Follow the directions. You'll also have to put the passkey into your -bigadv rig to get the bonus points, but you won't get any bonus points till you complete 10 A3 units with the passkey.
 
slayer9019 said:
Forgot to mention I am VERY new to folding.
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That's why I asked the questions ;). Follow step 2 in the guide that DooKey linked to get the passkey, and then go into the configuration for your SMP client and input the passkey.
 
Those 123 and 126 pointers are only classic uniprocessor WU's. Are you sure you have the smp client running with the -SMP switch??
 
Nathan_P said:
Those 123 and 126 pointers are only classic uniprocessor WU's. Are you sure you have the smp client running with the -SMP switch??
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i added -smp to the end of the icon name and erased my client.con file and started from scratch
 
slayer9019 said:
i added -smp to the end of the icon name and erased my client.con file and started from scratch
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You need to add all flags in the shortcut properties, in the 'target' section at the top following the quotations. Here's an example: "C:\F@H folder\F@H SMP\[email protected]" -smp
 
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