I've been testing the WHS I've built over the last 48 hours and I've encountered one major issue:
I've tested a couple of single core client PCs - Pentium 4 CPU 2.8GHz, 2 GB RAM, WinXP - Pentium M CPU 1.8GHz, 1 GB RAM, WinXP both with Gigabit NICs.
During the "sending data to the server" phase of backup, the CPU of the clients maxes out at 100% and stays there for the duration of the backup of that volume.
The culprit process on the client PCs is BackupEngine.exe which is consistently at 90%+ when shifting data to the server.
I've also backed up an AMD X2 4800 Energy Efficient dual core CPU client PC (Windows Media Center 2005,) and the CPU is never above 10% when "sending data to the server."
I read with interest on WHS's postpone backup window: "A backup can significantly impact on your computer's performance." (Does this mean 100% client CPU on a single core Pentium 4!?)
So to my question: is this high CPU usage on single core client PCs normal during backup? I find it odd that searching various WHS forums, I haven't found anyone else reporting this problem. (Perhaps everyone has moved on to dual core CPUs on their workstations?)
My workaround when first imaging my P4 box, which has 15 volumes of around 90GB each, is to just backup 1 volume to start with, let the client CPU rest, then carry out another backup with the next volume added. I'll repeat these backups till all 15 volumes are added and backed up. Then subsequent backups will all be incremental and shouldn't kill my client PC's CPU.
If anyone has a suggestion to throttle/solve the CPU usage by BackupEngine.exe on the single core client PCs, please, I'd be most grateful.
[Running WHS PP2, Sempron LE1250 CPU, 1GB memory. WHS itself runs fine during backup. Avast Anti Virus for WHS is installed on WHS; shutting down Avast on WHS and clients doesn't make a noticeable difference to client CPU during backup.]
Yes, it's normal to see high CPU usage on an older or single core computer. Don't worry about it. As long as your computer has adequate cooling, your CPU is going to be within design parameters as regards heat, so you won't be significantly affecting your CPU's longevity.I'm not on the WHS team, I just post a lot. :)
Marked as answer bythrenodeMonday, August 31, 2009 11:19 PM
Yes, it's normal to see high CPU usage on an older or single core computer. Don't worry about it. As long as your computer has adequate cooling, your CPU is going to be within design parameters as regards heat, so you won't be significantly affecting your CPU's longevity.I'm not on the WHS team, I just post a lot. :)
Marked as answer bythrenodeMonday, August 31, 2009 11:19 PM
When copying a single file of approximately 4GB in size across the network, the cpu goes from 5-10% to 50-55%.
Thank you for your answers on this. As I've got applications running overnight, I've rebuilt my main pc with a multi-core processor to get round the 100% cpu issue. Thanks for your time.
