RE: disk arms (was RE: Tips for user ASP)

["Charly Jones" <charly301@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

>From: Chris Bipes <chris.bipes@cross-check.com>
>
>I have a 720 with 16 4gig drive and 5 8.58gig drives.  At times the
>programmers scream because the disks are pegged and the cpu is only 70%.
>The 4gig drives and their SPD controller are to slow.  Analyzers say we are
>using the 4gig drive way over their designed capacity.
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Scott Mildenberger [mailto:Smildenber@Washcorp.com]
>
>Maybe our machine isn't new enough but we have a 730 with 12 17GB disks
>(50% used) and at times performance just drags (enough that users complain
>loudly) due to not having enough arms.
>

Chris + Scott --

How do you know that your disk arms are the problem?  What
tools do you use?  Which reports (or screens) do you look at?
Would you be willing to talk about how many disk arms are
attached to what disk controllers and whether you have
separate disk pools.  I would like to continue this
discussion if anyone is interested.

Actually the bus is sometimes important as well.  If you
have a fast tape drive on the same bus with disk drives, the
disk activity can reduce the maximum throughput of the tape
drive.  I can't help thinking that tape operations
would similarly affect disk activity.  So to get the full
picture, is anyone willing to post the following?

1)  How many system buses you have.
2)  How many disk controllers you have.
3)  The distribution of disk controllers on your buses.
3)  What other high speed devices share a bus with a disk controller.
4)  How many disk arms are attached to each disk controller.
5)  How many disk controllers + arms are in each disk ASP.
6)  Whether you think you have a disk arm problem.
7)  How you can tell you have a disk arm problem.

Thanks a bunch,

--  Charly

"Nothing would please me more than being able to hire ten programmers and
deluge the hobby market with good software."  -  Bill Gates in 1976

"We are still waiting..."  -  Alan Cox in 2002

"Linux is only free if your time is worthless."


Charly Jones
253 265-6244
Gig Harbor
Washington USA



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