Xwin performance of 5.1B-4 vs. 4.0F

[Bengt Nilsson_2]

Hi!

I have noticed that for two comparable machines (PWS500au), same "software content" except that one runs 4.0F and the other 5.1B-4, there is a dramatic difference in the remote Xwin performance.
To open a window showing some graphics, the 5.1B-4 takes 6 seconds to show up, while the same takes 1 second on the 4.0F system.
The two machines are sitting next to each other, connected to the same switch, and the display machine (a DS10 running 4.0F) also connected to the same switch.

Anyone have some experience of this?

BN

[Rick Retterer]

BN,

If you are displaying the graphics remotely, there could be a difference in how the network controllers are configured?

Is one only using 10mb -vs- 100mb on the other?

Just a thought.

Rick

[Hein van den Heuvel]

I like the suggestion to look at the network.

try to time some FTP of NFS transfers and see whether the difference exists just for the display tasks, or also for other transfers.

ping -f (flood) might be interesting.

Coudl be a duplex failure, or TCP/IPC sysconfigtab setting difference.
For example tcpnodelack.

Check with

sysconfig -q tcp ( ipc, inet, vfs, ...)

Good luck,
Hein.

[Bengt Nilsson_2]

Thanks for the suggestion, but no, they are both at 100MBit.
Actually, a similar difference can be seen locally also, but not as pronounced. One application is showing me a table with numbers and text, and it starts as a larger array of cells and then adapting to the current context. Locally, this process is hardly noticed on the 4.0F machine, but is clearly seen on the 5.1B-4 system. Remotely, the difference is dramatic, of course.
I have another 5.1B-4 system running on a DS10, here my 'testapp' window shows up after 3 seconds, still slower than the 1 second I have from the 4.0F system. All are connected to the same switch.

BN

[Bengt Nilsson_2]

I have a feeling the reason is a much more intense communication between the application/X-call layer and the X server.
If I connect to the v4.0F and 5.1B-4 systems from home, where I have a 2MBit ADSL connection the difference becomes just ridiculous. When connecting to the 4.0F system there is some normal latency time before the windows comes up, while on the 5.1B-4 I can go and make myself a cup of coffee and come back before something happens. Instant coffee, but anyway.

[Pieter 't Hart]

suggestion: take a look at name-resolution
what names and namespaces are involved and how are nameservers or hosts file configured.

[Bengt Nilsson_2]

You mean DNS stuff? Not likely, everything else works, I see no such errors in the logs.

[Bengt Nilsson_2]

As a response to the suggestion on the network speed settings, here it is:

# hwmgr -get attr -cat network -a name -a media_speed -a full_duplex
20:
name = tu0
media_speed = 100
full_duplex = 1
48:
name = tu1
media_speed = 100
full_duplex = 0
#

tu0 is external network, tu1 is used for internal subsystem communication.

BN

[Bengt Nilsson_2]

Oops, forgot o mention that the 5.1B-4 PWS500au machine is controlling some lab hardware using VXI boxes, thereof the tu1 network interface and subsystems communication.

BN

[Pieter 't Hart]

can you specify the network config (ifconfig -a) from all systems involved?

could be the answer from the v5.1b machine is primarely returned on the wrong tu and only in second instance sent to the right interface.