Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!clyde.concordia.ca!uunet!bnrgate!bcars223!fortinp
From: fortinp@bcars223.bnr.ca (Pierre Fortin)
Newsgroups: comp.os.minix
Subject: Re: ST MINIX 1.1 Performance bug
Summary: Yes, but...
Message-ID: <1084@bnrgate.bnr.ca>
Date: 24 Mar 90 05:10:32 GMT
References: <1081@bnrgate.bnr.ca> <6780003@hpfcdc.HP.COM>
Sender: news@bnrgate.bnr.ca
Lines: 40

In article <6780003@hpfcdc.HP.COM>, mckee@hpfcdc.HP.COM (Bret McKee) writes:
[from my original posting]
> >Using the "ps" hot-key (Alt/Ctrl/F1), I noticed that usually one or two of 
> >these processes were using inordinate amounts of CPU time.  During the 
> >01-73 posting uudecodes, I found that all will eventually go to completion.
> >Once one of these processes is in this state (it may be the ONLY process
> >still running), it does I/O at the rate of about 1 per 8-10 seconds.  Also,
> >the CPU times which are usually in the low three-digit numbers climb to
> >16000+!!! units in the "sys" column.
> 
> On the PC 1.1, there is a problem with the CPU accounting.  It does not
> handle lots of things correctly.  Also, the single threaded filesystem and
> device drivers will really kill you running those uudecodes...

Maybe on the PC 1.1, but my problem is on ST 1.1 which is equivalent to 
PC 1.3.  I could understand if all these processes were still running, but 
all those which were unaffected go to completion, then I'm left with one or 
two processes (I've had the same problem with other than uudecode) which
seem to be in a sort of time warp (with the meter running).  
 
Everything else seems to be fine, just the process(es) which are in this 
state are affected.  Why, I can even fire up another process which, if it is
not affected, will zip right through doing its I/O at top speed while the 
affected one(s) is still chewing up CPU time and doing extremely long waits
between its I/Os.  It's kind of strange to see something like a small uudecode
taking minutes while a much longer one starts and finishes in seconds.
> 
> Bret
> 
> ---
> Bret Mckee
> 
 
Pierre Fortin
fortinp@bnr.ca

>  
> Of course, these are just my opinions...

...and of course, these are just my observations...  :^)