I think I need help with my Mac

C
C
Joined: 9 Feb 05
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Topic 187558

I'm running a PowerBook G4 (1 GHz, 1 GB RAM) and have been successful with CPDN and SETI. Started E@H a couple days ago - first couple of tries described here: http://einsteinathome.org/node/187366 (about 11 items down). Still using the BOINC boinc_4.19_ppcG4test and E@H einstein_4.77_powerpc-apple-darwin. I have it set to switch between clients every two hours. The current E@H running started last night at 2155 and is still running this morning at 1045 with no switches to CPDN or SETI during the night.

Do I have a stuck WU? Should I abort it? I'm running this in Terminal mode, so I don't have any GUI or status other than what shows in Terminal, which is nothing... Activity Monitor shows E@H is doing something, but can't tell what.

C

Shaktai
Shaktai
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I think I need help with my Mac

> I'm running a PowerBook G4 (1 GHz, 1 GB RAM) and have been successful with
> CPDN and SETI. Started E@H a couple days ago - first couple of tries
> described here: http://einsteinathome.org/node/187366 (about 11
> items down). Still using the BOINC boinc_4.19_ppcG4test and E@H
> einstein_4.77_powerpc-apple-darwin. I have it set to switch between clients
> every two hours. The current E@H running started last night at 2155 and is
> still running this morning at 1045 with no switches to CPDN or SETI during the
> night.
>
> Do I have a stuck WU? Should I abort it? I'm running this in Terminal mode,
> so I don't have any GUI or status other than what shows in Terminal, which is
> nothing... Activity Monitor shows E@H is doing something, but can't tell
> what.
>
> C

Have you tried quitting and restarting to see if it will switch. Also, you state that you are running boinc_4.19_ppcG4test. That was a Team MacNN beta testing compile, but don't know if it was an early one or a late one you have. Try going to http://members.dslextreme.com/~readerforum/forum_team/boinc.html and downloading the latest optimized BOINC compile (without test on the end). That is the latest optimized compile that has been stable.

I just looked at your work units and show that work unit 32999 (result ID 1100632) did return at 16:21 UTC today (shortly after your post) Was that the problem work unit? It shows....

[core_client_version]4.19[/core_client_version]
[stderr_txt]
No heartbeat from core client for 30.006097 sec - exiting
detected finished Fstat file - skipping Fstat run 1
Resuming computation at 3900/127620/127620
APP DEBUG: Application caught signal 2
detected finished Fstat file - skipping Fstat run 1
Resuming computation at 17041/438743/438743

[/stderr_txt]

Looks like something strange was happening so it will have to leave it to the project team to sort that out.

C
C
Joined: 9 Feb 05
Posts: 94
Credit: 189446
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Thanks, Shaktai - I went back

Thanks, Shaktai - I went back to Terminal and interrupted E@H after 12+ hours of running without letting SETI and CPDN share (that was the signal 2 you mention). When I restarted, E@H downloaded the 4.78 version and a new work unit and began running. After two hours, it paused and let SETI take over.

I decided to interrupt again and downloaded and installed the the latest optimized G4 client from Team MacNN web site. Started it up, and SETI resumed, as I expected. I'll let them cycle through the time slots for SETI and CPDN and see what happens this time. I expect it to take roughly 5 hours until I can see if E@H will pause on its own after 2 hours (around 2/13/05 0030 UTC).

New subject: do you use/can you recommend any of the add-on software for the Mac at here?

Seti-Cruncher
Seti-Cruncher
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Anybody with a Mac needs

Anybody with a Mac needs help!

Sorry, couldn't resist that. Don't be too put off by my sense of humour. ;)

Be lucky,

Neil

Shaktai
Shaktai
Joined: 8 Nov 04
Posts: 183
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> New subject: do you

Message 2866 in response to message 2864


> New subject: do you use/can you recommend any of the add-on software for the
> Mac at here?

Not really too familiar with any of it. However I have seen something new at http://www.greenkeepersoftware.com that looks pretty interesting. Someone posted about it in the SETI forums.

Shaktai
Shaktai
Joined: 8 Nov 04
Posts: 183
Credit: 426451
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> Anybody with a Mac needs

Message 2867 in response to message 2865

> Anybody with a Mac needs help!
>
> Sorry, couldn't resist that. Don't be too put off by my sense of humour. ;)

Careful now, I was going to respond that anyone using Windows is beyond help, but then I see you are a Linux user running Athlon's. That's almost as good as being a Mac user, so I'll cut you some slack. [grin]

MickFoley
MickFoley
Joined: 11 Nov 04
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> Try going to

Message 2868 in response to message 2863


> Try going to http://members.dslextreme.com/~readerforum/forum_team/boinc.html
> and downloading the latest optimized BOINC compile (without test on the end).
> That is the latest optimized compile that has been stable.

I am running the G4 optimized version on my Mac mini and the benchmark data is

with the stock 4.19 client
668 double precision MIPS (Whetstone) per CPU
2079 integer MIPS (Dhrystone) per CPU

with the G4 client

966 double precision MIPS (Whetstone) per CPU
2261 integer MIPS (Dhrystone) per CPU

MickFoley

C
C
Joined: 9 Feb 05
Posts: 94
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Well, I thought I had it

Well, I thought I had it solved; I started using the new 4.78 with the latest optimized 4.19. CPDN paused nicely after two hours and allowed E@H to start. After another two hours, E@H paused to let SETI start. My terminal log looks like this:

1wv6_100110161 - PH 3 TS 055399 - 15/02/2054 03:30 - H:M:S=1305:51:30 AVG= 8.19 DLT= 2.72
2005-02-12 18:40:39 [climateprediction.net] Pausing result 1wv6_100110161_0 (left in memory)
2005-02-12 18:40:39 [Einstein@Home] Restarting result H1_0444.9__0445.4_0.1_T15_Test02_2 using einstein version 4.78
2005-02-12 20:40:39 [SETI@home] Resuming result 14mr04ab.14329.30289.648558.175_3 using setiathome version 4.30
2005-02-12 20:40:39 [Einstein@Home] Pausing result H1_0444.9__0445.4_0.1_T15_Test02_2 (left in memory)

I took a quick look with Activity Monitor and see this. It appears that E&H is still running, even though it said it paused.

Any ideas?
C

Marialessandra Papa
Marialessandra Papa
Joined: 15 Oct 04
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> Have you tried quitting and

Message 2870 in response to message 2863

> Have you tried quitting and restarting to see if it will switch. Also, you
> state that you are running boinc_4.19_ppcG4test. That was a Team MacNN beta
> testing compile, but don't know if it was an early one or a late one you have.
> Try going to http://members.dslextreme.com/~readerforum/forum_team/boinc.html
> and downloading the latest optimized BOINC compile (without test on the end).
> That is the latest optimized compile that has been stable.
>
> I just looked at your work units and show that work unit 32999 (result ID
> 1100632) did return at 16:21 UTC today (shortly after your post) Was that the
> problem work unit? It shows....
>
> [core_client_version]4.19[/core_client_version]
> [stderr_txt]
> No heartbeat from core client for 30.006097 sec - exiting
> detected finished Fstat file - skipping Fstat run 1
> Resuming computation at 3900/127620/127620
> APP DEBUG: Application caught signal 2
> detected finished Fstat file - skipping Fstat run 1
> Resuming computation at 17041/438743/438743
>
> [/stderr_txt]
>
> Looks like something strange was happening so it will have to leave it to the
> project team to sort that out.

Bruce Allen here (posting from my wife's E@h laptop/account!)
The messages above (from the application) are OK. The 'no heartbeat' message is a bug in the BOINC library that has resisted all of our efforts to track down and fix. However we have a workaround, so you can ignore that. The 'Resuming' message is a something that indicates a normal resumption from a checkpoint. The 'detected finished Fstat file' also indicates a reload from a mandatory checkpoint halfway through the running job. So all messages here look from the point of view of the einstein@home application as if all is as it should be.

Cheers,
Bruce

Shaktai
Shaktai
Joined: 8 Nov 04
Posts: 183
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> 2005-02-12 20:40:39

Message 2871 in response to message 2869


> 2005-02-12 20:40:39 [Einstein@Home] Pausing result
> H1_0444.9__0445.4_0.1_T15_Test02_2 (left in memory)
>
> I took a quick look with Activity Monitor and see this. It appears
> that E&H is still running, even though it said it paused.
>
> Any ideas?
> C

Note the words in Parenthesis (left in memory) You can turn this off in the preferences. The app may still show in Activity Monitor but it should not show any cpu usage. If you turn off the "keep in memory" in preferences, it should disappear from the activity monitor when paused.

Seti-Cruncher
Seti-Cruncher
Joined: 9 Feb 05
Posts: 70
Credit: 7114
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I'm seeing the same kind of

I'm seeing the same kind of behaviour in Gentoo Linux (2.6.10 kernel). The Boinc client is self-compiled from boinc_public-cvs-2005-02-11.tar.gz.

The Einstein app is supposed to be paused in favour of Seti and shows as such in BoincMgr "Status". However, the values of time and progress are still incrementing. Looking at "top" shows that Einstein is indeed still running, taking 50% cpu with Seti also taking 50%. Even suspending the Einstein project, although reported as suspended by BoincMgr, has failed to alter the situation.

Furthermore, when Seti (slot 0) started a new WU, instead of the elapsed time starting at zero, it took it's time from the Einstein app (slot 1). I have seen this behaviour previously on an SMP machine running Seti only. A new process in slot 0 takes it's time at start from slot 1.

It looks to me like Boinc gets terribly confused about these slots. :(

Be lucky,

Neil

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