nvidia and high cpu load

Simon Bridge · 05-22-2006, 07:17 PM

I find the cpu runs hot and under high load even for normally trivial video tasks like opening a window (100%) and dragging a window (40% or more).

The top utility reports that xorg is taking most of this.

I am running Ubuntu Dapper (2nd beta but updated since) with geforce 6600 from ASUS. Details below.

I note that everything goes - windows are drawn in a "jerkey" manner, but promptly.

glxgears runs slowly - but refuses to show frame rate. (Normally they spin so fast the teeth are just a blur.)

glxinfo shows nothing obviously untoward (like "mesa" showing up for rendering).

This could be a dapper thing - it worked fine (apart from the cpu temperature) in breezy, and after the first install of dapper (which was via editing the sources.list and apt). Since then there have been other issues with the install (like an upgrade uninstalling gdm!) so I'm guessing the performance loss came after an upgrade.

The cpu is intel celeron 2.22GHz
The card is (from lspci -v)

Code:

0000:01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: nVidia Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600/GeForce 6600 GT] (rev a2) (prog-if 00 [VGA])
        Subsystem: ASUSTeK Computer Inc.: Unknown device 81b1
        Flags: bus master, 66MHz, medium devsel, latency 248, IRQ 201
        Memory at e4000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
        Memory at d0000000 (32-bit, prefetchable) [size=256M]
        Memory at e5000000 (32-bit, non-prefetchable) [size=16M]
        Expansion ROM at e6000000 [disabled] [size=128K]
        Capabilities: [60] Power Management version 2
        Capabilities: [44] AGP version 3.0

The only things that spring out at me there are that "66MHz" under "flags" and the Expansion ROM being disabled.

uname -a gives:
Linux indigo-prime 2.6.15-20-686 #1 SMP PREEMPT Tue Apr 4 18:37:00 UTC 2006 i686 GNU/Linux

xorg.conf entries for video:

Code:

Section "Module"
        Load    "GLcore"
        Load    "i2c"
        Load    "bitmap"
        Load    "ddc"
        Load    "dri"
        Load    "extmod"
        Load    "freetype"
        Load    "glx"
        Load    "int10"
        Load    "type1"
        Load    "vbe"
EndSection
[snip]

Section "Device"
        Identifier      "NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 GT]"
        Driver          "nvidia"
        BusID           "PCI:1:0:0"
        Option          "NoLogo"
##      Option          "NvAGP" "0"
EndSection
[snip]

Section "Screen"
        Identifier      "Default Screen"
        Device          "NVIDIA Corporation NV43 [GeForce 6600 GT]"
        Monitor         "Generic Monitor"
        DefaultDepth    24
[snip]
        SubSection "Display"
                Depth           24
                Modes           "1024x768" "800x600" "640x480"
        EndSubSection
EndSection
[snip]

Section "DRI"
        Mode    0666
EndSection

qv. a similar issue recently... http://www.linuxquestions.org/questi...59#post2257559

macemoneta · 05-22-2006, 11:05 PM

The

Load "dri"

Should be commented out. Change it to:

#Load "dri"

Simon Bridge · 05-23-2006, 01:50 AM

Commenting out the load "dri" line in xorg.conf makes no difference. (And I did restart X - once by ctrl-alt-BS -> startx, and again by logout to rl3 -> sudo reboot... the logout-rl3 was supposed to be logout->restart from the logout menue, but that didn't happen.)

I have noticed that applications > system tools > nvidia settings > xserver settings have "sync to Dell 1501FP" yet xorg lists the monitor as "generic".

Now, the dell 1501FP is just what I've found runs my flatscreen (definately a dell, but no idea which dell and no indication on the monitor at all and no manual). In fedora/gnome I had a dialog in which I could configure my monitor from a list of manufacturers. I cannot find that in dapper - which would be the preferred way to set this.

I'm wondering if this could make a difference. I'll check.

This is the xorg.conf entry for the monitor:

Code:

Section "Monitor"
	Identifier	"Generic Monitor"
	Option		"DPMS"
	HorizSync	28-51
	VertRefresh	43-60
EndSection

... this should run the monitor OK. The device (see previous) is set to "generic monitor" so I don't understand what the "sync to" entry means.

BTW: it shouldn't matter, but this monitor is connected via the DVI socket, though it does have a VGA type. This hasn't caused any obvious problems before.

(I'd like to avoid reinstalling dapper or breezy - my last backup was 6 full CDs, and I lost one as the silver coating disintegrated before my horrified eyes. Not keen to repeat this. Need to look at a more intellegent backup practise.)

edgjerp · 05-23-2006, 02:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Simon Bridge

(I'd like to avoid reinstalling dapper or breezy - my last backup was 6 full CDs, and I lost one as the silver coating disintegrated before my horrified eyes. Not keen to repeat this. Need to look at a more intellegent backup practise.)

you do have /home on a separate partition? if so, just tell the setup program to use that partition as home without changing anything.

about backups: burn dvds if you can, several copies. uses "slightly" fewer discs. or get an external hd for backups that is normally stored physically away from your computer. will protect your data even in a fire.

Simon Bridge · 05-23-2006, 02:12 AM

Quote:

you do have /home on a separate partition?

no.

Code:

simon@indigo-prime:~$ sudo fdisk -l
Password:

Disk /dev/hda: 4321 MB, 4321787904 bytes
255 heads, 63 sectors/track, 525 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 16065 * 512 = 8225280 bytes

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hda1               1         122      979933+  83  Linux
/dev/hda2             400         525     1012095   82  Linux swap / Solaris
/dev/hda3             123         399     2225002+  83  Linux

Partition table entries are not in disk order

Disk /dev/hdb: 80.0 GB, 80026361856 bytes
16 heads, 63 sectors/track, 155061 cylinders
Units = cylinders of 1008 * 512 = 516096 bytes

   Device Boot      Start         End      Blocks   Id  System
/dev/hdb1   *           1      155061    78150712+  83  Linux

hda1 = boot /boot
hda2 = swap
hda3 = spare space formatted ext3 for the heck of it.
hdb1 = root /

Quote:

about backups

Thanks... I actually have a great deal of information about backup methods. It's just implimenting it.

Next I upgrade my HW, I'll probably convert the current HDD's to external - USB. Until then, I backup mission critical files to CD regularily and the entire set when I upgrade to a new release. The disk that disintegrated contained critical files - however, it meant that I had a recent backup of them to fall-back on, so nothing that cost me money got lost. Murphey strikes - 5 disks of photos and music, any of which could have gone awol without fuss, was safe. (Interestingly - my old DOS4 floppies are still holding their data... they were written c. 1985. I have a 70's cassette tape of "starfighter" for trs80, which I am told still plays. There is just no telling.)

For the sake of more info - here are the top ten off the top utility:

Code:

  PID USER      PR  NI  VIRT  RES  SHR S %CPU %MEM    TIME+  COMMAND

[block1: gdesklets running]
 5536 simon     16   0 34156  21m 9.9m R 41.3  2.8   0:48.49 python
 4516 root      16   0 35636  23m 7996 R 37.2  3.1   0:24.24 Xorg
 5526 simon     15   0 20176 9.9m 7464 S  4.7  1.3   0:03.12 wnck-applet
 5483 simon     15   0 55196  16m  11m S  3.2  2.2   0:04.60 nautilus
 5479 simon     15   0 13512 7760 6120 S  2.2  1.0   0:02.15 metacity
 5601 simon     15   0 31916  12m 8528 S  2.2  1.7   0:02.95 gnome-terminal
 5469 simon     15   0 34308  12m 9348 S  0.6  1.7   0:01.52 gnome-settings-
 5564 simon     15   0 14608 2772 1848 S  0.6  0.4   0:00.35 gnome-screensav
    1 root      16   0  1564  528  460 S  0.0  0.1   0:01.19 init
    2 root      RT   0     0    0    0 S  0.0  0.0   0:00.00 migration/0

[BLOCK2: only the terminal window open anywhere]
 4516 root      21   0 34900  22m 7292 R 77.8  3.0   0:38.42 Xorg
 5526 simon     16   0 20176 9.9m 7464 S  6.6  1.3   0:04.34 wnck-applet
 5601 simon     15   0 33044  13m 8936 S  4.7  1.7   0:05.89 gnome-terminal
 5479 simon     15   0 13512 7820 6164 S  4.0  1.0   0:03.64 metacity
 5483 simon     15   0 55196  16m  11m S  4.0  2.2   0:05.35 nautilus
 5564 simon     15   0 14608 2776 1848 S  1.0  0.4   0:00.56 gnome-screensav
 5469 simon     15   0 34308  12m 9348 S  0.7  1.7   0:01.76 gnome-settings-
 4244 haldaemo  17   0  2008  864  760 S  0.3  0.1   0:00.05 hald-addon-stor
 5737 simon     16   0  2200 1104  856 R  0.3  0.1   0:00.05 top
    1 root      16   0  1564  528  460 S  0.0  0.1   0:01.19 init

The first block is when I was monitoring performance with gdesklets - hence the python entry. The second block is after stopping gdesklets. Nothing else was active on any workspace (there are 6).

Those figures came from dragging the terminal window around the screen - the load was particularily high when the terminal window overlapped another one or an icon or a desklet - which seems reasonable, that's when the most work needs to be done. (And the terminal background is "transparent".)

It looks like cpu load is still shared between apps. i.e. xorg gets a bigger share when python ain't running. But the share is HUGE.

It may be that this is not a X issue at all ...

Now: I first noticed this after loading gdesklets - for the CPU monitor. In the same session I had discovered I needed to install gdm too (for some reason the last upgrade removed this but not gnome... so I would logout to rl3...)

Simon Bridge · 06-06-2006, 03:25 AM

SOLVED: sort of - this effect seems to have been an artifact of the "upgrade" process. Installing from a CD fixed the cpu load.

New issue:
dapper rc + nvidia driver + ogg/theora will freeze the x session solid.

It dosn't matter what the video format actually is, nor does it matter which player is used. Everything works fine with the nv driver (except 3D of course). The only difference is in the xorg.conf file (and that, the driver = "nvidia" line).

dapper installed from dapper-desktop CD, completely clean.