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From: thad@cup.portal.com (Thad Thad Floryan)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga,comp.sys.amiga.tech
Subject: Hard Disk Performance tests, comments invited
Message-ID: <10150@cup.portal.com>
Date: 18 Oct 88 12:48:49 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
Lines: 185

Following are some most-interesting disk performance results.

Comments are invited.  I can relay messages to/from the original poster.

The following was posted verbatim to BBS-JC on 18-Oct-1988 in response to
my original statement of disbelief at the claim posted to BBS-JC by a marketing
person from C-Ltd last week of "500K per second."  I'm still incredulous, since
these figures indicate performance surpassing Sun 3/50, Sun 4/260, Compaq, etc.
which use SMD and ESDI interfaces.  Well, life is full of surprises!  :-)

For those who may not be aware, Ronin Research and Development are the
designers and manufacturers of the Hurricane family of 68020 and 68030 cards
for the Amiga computers.


Thad Floryan  [ thad@cup.portal.com (OR) ..!sun!portal!cup.portal.com!thad ]


``               Comparison Shopping with Diskperfa....

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Posted:   BBS-JC
TO:       Thad Floryan and anyone else interested
Subject:  Hard disk Performance
From:     Brick Eksten  ( Ronin Research and Development )

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

   
   	The object of the comparisons are to show that "True DMA" controllers 
     are not always the best.  In fact, the fastest times were obtained using
     boards that use no DMA,  instead using polled I/O to read/write data.
     These were early tests and are not the fastest times obtained.
     These tests show the difference between the non DMA boards and DMA boards,
     and how DMA boards are affected by the addition of memory that cannot
     be accessed by the DMA process ( 32 bit memory).  DMA boards cannot 
     access any 32bit memory, so they must write/read to/from chip ram,
     or 16bit ram,  were it can then be copied by the operating system into
     32bit ram.  This is only a sample document.  The complete tests will
     be posted when I have the time to make them legible.  

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Quantum Pro40 SCSI ( 40meg ), CPU=68020, 16bit memory, FFS , C-LTD controller

C-LTD is a "Non DMA controller"  ( Polled I/O )

File create/delete:	create 15 files/sec, delete 27 files/sec
Directory scan:		113 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		115 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 70849 byte/sec, wr 62415 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 174762 byte/sec, wr 100824 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 218453 byte/sec, wr 154202 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 262144 byte/sec, wr 187245 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Quantum Pro40 SCSI ( 40meg ), CPU=68000, 16bit memory, FFS , GVP controller
w/buffers =32  

GVP uses Pseudo DMA ( DMA into onboard static ram,  polled I/O to bus)
* ( see below )

File create/delete:	create 13 files/sec, delete 28 files/sec
Directory scan:		94 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		121 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 84562 byte/sec, wr 59578 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 201649 byte/sec, wr 100824 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 291271 byte/sec, wr 124830 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 374491 byte/sec, wr 145635 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Quantum Pro40 SCSI ( 40meg ), CPU=68030, 32bit memory, FFS , C-LTD controller
32bit memory and remap of ROMS before installing and mounting drives
"noblockread" Flag set in C-LTD software

File create/delete:	create 18 files/sec, delete 35 files/sec
Directory scan:		227 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		156 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 97090 byte/sec, wr 84562 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 187245 byte/sec, wr 145635 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 238312 byte/sec, wr 174762 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 327680 byte/sec, wr 238312 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Quantum Pro40 SCSI ( 40meg ), CPU=68030, 32bit memory, FFS , C-LTD controller
32bit memory and remap of ROMS before installing and mounting drives
"blockread" Flag set in C-LTD software, 0 buffers in C-LTD software,
buffers = 10 in mountlist

File create/delete:	create 15 files/sec, delete 45 files/sec
Directory scan:		238 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		162 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 97090 byte/sec, wr 29127 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 291271 byte/sec, wr 145635 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 291271 byte/sec, wr 174762 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 524288 byte/sec, wr 238312 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Quantum Pro40 SCSI ( 40meg ), CPU=68030, 32bit memory, FFS , C-LTD controller
32bit memory and remap of ROMS before installing and mounting drives
"blockread" Flag set in C-LTD software,buffers=5 in C-LTD software,
buffers = 10 in mountlist

File create/delete:	create 16 files/sec, delete 45 files/sec
Directory scan:		238 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		151 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 97090 byte/sec, wr 28807 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 291271 byte/sec, wr 145635 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 291271 byte/sec, wr 174762 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 524288 byte/sec, wr 238312 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Miniscribe 3053 5.25" 40meg, CPU=68030, 32bit memory, FFS , Commodore 2090

Commodore A2090 is a DMA controller (ST-506)

File create/delete:	create 14 files/sec, delete 45 files/sec
Directory scan:		139 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		131 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 70849 byte/sec, wr 34044 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 81920 byte/sec, wr 34492 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 81920 byte/sec, wr 34044 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 84562 byte/sec, wr 34492 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Miniscribe 3053 5.25" 40meg, CPU=68030, 16bit memory, FFS , Commodore 2090

Commodore A2090 is a DMA controller (ST-506)

File create/delete:	create 16 files/sec, delete 41 files/sec
Directory scan:		113 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		112 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 84562 byte/sec, wr 28187 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 131072 byte/sec, wr 109226 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 174762 byte/sec, wr 137970 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 238312 byte/sec, wr 154202 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

CDC 5.25" 40meg, CPU=68020, 16bit memory, FFS , Commodore 2090

File create/delete:	create 15 files/sec, delete 47 files/sec
Directory scan:		119 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		94 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 60963 byte/sec, wr 28187 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 124830 byte/sec, wr 109226 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 163840 byte/sec, wr 137970 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 201649 byte/sec, wr 154202 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/

Seagate ST251-1 5.25" 40meg, CPU=68020, 16bit memory, FFS , Commodore 2090

File create/delete:	create 14 files/sec, delete 52 files/sec
Directory scan:		100 entries/sec
Seek/read test:		118 seek/reads per second
r/w speed:		buf 512 bytes, rd 84562 byte/sec, wr 28187 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 4096 bytes, rd 124830 byte/sec, wr 113975 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 8192 bytes, rd 174762 byte/sec, wr 137970 byte/sec
r/w speed:		buf 32768 bytes, rd 201649 byte/sec, wr 145635 byte/sec

/---------------------------------------------------------------------------/
 	All performance tests using 68020,68030,and 32bit memory, were done
    using the Ronin Research and Development "Hurricane" accelerator boards.

*       GVP tests are very incomplete,  latest tests show 500+Kbytes/sec, 
    with very little difference between read and write times.

	As a side note,   A program that uses "Amiga" specific function
    calls ( as opposed to using "C" function calls ) was able to achieve
    800+kbytes/sec using the C-LTD or GVP controllers,  both controllers
    were very similar in performance.   The C-LTD controller did much better
    when reading/writing small files ( 10-30k ),  the GVP controller did 
    its best reading/writing large files ( 300k-1meg ).  Both controllers
    were very close in midrange file size performance, but peak performance
    was reached when reading/writing files that take advantage of each boards'
    type of hardware engineering.
''