I would mention hdparm, but I have no idea what that might do to a laptop... I'm not at all knowledgable about the differences between laptop and desktop HDDs.
]]>and CPU throttle is not the problem. I have made scripts myself that control the speed. I have button for what speed I want on my panel, and the CPU monitor is running in my gnome panel at all times and lets me see the current freq.
totally off topic, can I see your throttling setup? there's no real good info anywhere and I'd like to do a good writeup on it, so I'm going to look at as much info as I can
]]>rather, say for example Xorg, needs A B and C to run. When you first install, they're pretty close to each other and dont take long to open, however over time as they get updated and changed, A B and C get moved all over the disk, causing it to take longer to get to them.
This is a problem that no filesystem can really fix unless it's linked into the package manager.
Yup. that's the idea. if you want to "fix" this fragmentation, you can always pacman -S gnome and just say "yes" - it'll remove and reinstall the files.
]]>hdparm -d /dev/hda
/dev/hda:
using_dma = 1 (on)
and CPU throttle is not the problem. I have made scripts myself that control the speed. I have button for what speed I want on my panel, and the CPU monitor is running in my gnome panel at all times and lets me see the current freq.
I do not know about the scheduler. But your command gave me this:
cat /sys/block/hda/queue/scheduler
noop [anticipatory] deadline cfq
I have no idea of what it means - maybe you do :-)
I'll be trying out fluxbox and xfce4 today. I'll also be looking at the defrag question.
]]>not by the true sense where a single file's contents are scattered all over the drive, ext3 and other linux filesystems do not suffer that.
rather, say for example Xorg, needs A B and C to run. When you first install, they're pretty close to each other and dont take long to open, however over time as they get updated and changed, A B and C get moved all over the disk, causing it to take longer to get to them.
This is a problem that no filesystem can really fix unless it's linked into the package manager.
iphitus
]]>I think the speed have gone out of my system.
Opening following programs takes:
gedit - 7 seconds
Abiword - 5 seconds
Evolution - 9 seconds
I am using the same programs. I have two partitions, one for day-to-day usage and another for testing new programs/developments. My day-to-day is slower than the other. I always wondered about it until Penguin came up with the idea of defrag pacman's /var/lib/pacman files. Other programs may not be upgraded and change of files as often as pacman, but within one year the frag certainly become different and most likely slowing down the performance.
]]>hdparm -d /dev/hda
To check the processor speed:
cat /proc/cpuinfo
To see the scheduler used:
cat /sys/block/hda/queue/scheduler
Maybe the problem is just the throttlling?
]]>I have 512MB ram - is it already to little?
]]>another WM? - try fluxbox
and yeah applets and things like that will maul your system resources... best bet is to find one applet which does everything you need, or possibly try adesklets (though the memory usage is probably similar)
how much ram do you have? maybe upgrading that will help?
]]>I have had a look at the system monitor in gnome. Panels, nautilus, applets (clock, netstats, battery) are using a lot of memory. Under gnome-session it says ssh-agent - I am not using ssh?!
#**********************************************************************
# Module section -- this section is used to specify
# which dynamically loadable modules to load.
# **********************************************************************
#
Section "Module"
# This loads the DBE extension module.
Load "dbe" # Double buffer extension
# This loads the miscellaneous extensions module, and disables
# initialisation of the XFree86-DGA extension within that module.
SubSection "extmod"
Option "omit xfree86-dga" # don't initialise the DGA extension
EndSubSection
# This loads the font modules
Load "type1"
# Load "speedo"
Load "freetype"
# Load "xtt"
# This loads the GLX module
Load "glx"
# This loads the DRI module
Load "dri"
Load "record"
Load "extmod"
Load "xtrap"
EndSection
Section "DRI"
Mode 0666
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Files section. This allows default font and rgb paths to be set
# **********************************************************************
Section "Files"
# The location of the RGB database. Note, this is the name of the
# file minus the extension (like ".txt" or ".db"). There is normally
# no need to change the default.
RgbPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/rgb"
# Multiple FontPath entries are allowed (which are concatenated together),
# as well as specifying multiple comma-separated entries in one FontPath
# command (or a combination of both methods)
#
#
FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/misc/"
FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/TTF/"
FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/Type1/"
FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/CID/"
FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/75dpi/"
FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/100dpi/"
FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/local/"
# FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/Speedo/"
# FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/TrueType/"
# FontPath "/usr/X11R6/lib/X11/fonts/freefont/"
# The module search path. The default path is shown here.
# ModulePath "/usr/X11R6/lib/modules"
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Server flags section.
# **********************************************************************
Section "ServerFlags"
# Uncomment this to cause a core dump at the spot where a signal is
# received. This may leave the console in an unusable state, but may
# provide a better stack trace in the core dump to aid in debugging
# Option "NoTrapSignals"
# Uncomment this to disable the <Crtl><Alt><Fn> VT switch sequence
# (where n is 1 through 12). This allows clients to receive these key
# events.
# Option "DontVTSwitch"
# Uncomment this to disable the <Crtl><Alt><BS> server abort sequence
# This allows clients to receive this key event.
# Option "DontZap"
# Uncomment this to disable the <Crtl><Alt><KP_+>/<KP_-> mode switching
# sequences. This allows clients to receive these key events.
# Option "Dont Zoom"
# Uncomment this to disable tuning with the xvidtune client. With
# it the client can still run and fetch card and monitor attributes,
# but it will not be allowed to change them. If it tries it will
# receive a protocol error.
# Option "DisableVidModeExtension"
# Uncomment this to enable the use of a non-local xvidtune client.
# Option "AllowNonLocalXvidtune"
# Uncomment this to disable dynamically modifying the input device
# (mouse and keyboard) settings.
# Option "DisableModInDev"
# Uncomment this to enable the use of a non-local client to
# change the keyboard or mouse settings (currently only xset).
# Option "AllowNonLocalModInDev"
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Input devices
# **********************************************************************
# **********************************************************************
# Core keyboard's InputDevice section
# **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
Identifier "Keyboard1"
Driver "kbd"
# For most OSs the protocol can be omitted (it defaults to "Standard").
# When using XQUEUE (only for SVR3 and SVR4, but not Solaris),
# uncomment the following line.
# Option "Protocol" "Xqueue"
Option "AutoRepeat" "500 30"
# Specify which keyboard LEDs can be user-controlled (eg, with xset(1))
# Option "Xleds" "1 2 3"
# Option "LeftAlt" "Meta"
# Option "RightAlt" "ModeShift"
# To customise the XKB settings to suit your keyboard, modify the
# lines below (which are the defaults). For example, for a non-U.S.
# keyboard, you will probably want to use:
# Option "XkbModel" "pc102"
# If you have a US Microsoft Natural keyboard, you can use:
# Option "XkbModel" "microsoft"
#
# Then to change the language, change the Layout setting.
# For example, a german layout can be obtained with:
# Option "XkbLayout" "de"
# or:
# Option "XkbLayout" "de"
# Option "XkbVariant" "nodeadkeys"
#
# If you'd like to switch the positions of your capslock and
# control keys, use:
# Option "XkbOptions" "ctrl:swapcaps"
# These are the default XKB settings for Xorg
# Option "XkbRules" "xorg"
# Option "XkbModel" "pc101"
# Option "XkbLayout" "us"
# Option "XkbVariant" ""
# Option "XkbOptions" ""
# Option "XkbDisable"
Option "XkbRules" "xorg"
Option "XkbModel" "pc105"
Option "XkbLayout" "dk"
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Core Pointer's InputDevice section
# **********************************************************************
Section "InputDevice"
# Identifier and driver
Identifier "Mouse1"
Driver "mouse"
Option "Protocol" "ExplorerPS/2"
Option "Device" "/dev/input/mice"
Option "ZAxisMapping" "4 5"
# Mouse-speed setting for PS/2 mouse.
# Option "Resolution" "256"
# When using XQUEUE, comment out the above two lines, and uncomment
# the following line.
# Option "Protocol" "Xqueue"
# Baudrate and SampleRate are only for some Logitech mice. In
# almost every case these lines should be omitted.
# Option "BaudRate" "9600"
# Option "SampleRate" "150"
# Emulate3Buttons is an option for 2-button Microsoft mice
# Emulate3Timeout is the timeout in milliseconds (default is 50ms)
# Option "Emulate3Buttons"
# Option "Emulate3Timeout" "50"
# ChordMiddle is an option for some 3-button Logitech mice
# Option "ChordMiddle"
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Other input device sections
# this is optional and is required only if you
# are using extended input devices. This is for example only. Refer
# to the xorg.conf man page for a description of the options.
# **********************************************************************
#
# Section "InputDevice"
# Identifier "Mouse2"
# Driver "mouse"
# Option "Protocol" "MouseMan"
# Option "Device" "/dev/mouse2"
# EndSection
#
# Section "InputDevice"
# Identifier "spaceball"
# Driver "magellan"
# Option "Device" "/dev/cua0"
# EndSection
#
# Section "InputDevice"
# Identifier "spaceball2"
# Driver "spaceorb"
# Option "Device" "/dev/cua0"
# EndSection
#
# Section "InputDevice"
# Identifier "touchscreen0"
# Driver "microtouch"
# Option "Device" "/dev/ttyS0"
# Option "MinX" "1412"
# Option "MaxX" "15184"
# Option "MinY" "15372"
# Option "MaxY" "1230"
# Option "ScreenNumber" "0"
# Option "ReportingMode" "Scaled"
# Option "ButtonNumber" "1"
# Option "SendCoreEvents"
# EndSection
#
# Section "InputDevice"
# Identifier "touchscreen1"
# Driver "elo2300"
# Option "Device" "/dev/ttyS0"
# Option "MinX" "231"
# Option "MaxX" "3868"
# Option "MinY" "3858"
# Option "MaxY" "272"
# Option "ScreenNumber" "0"
# Option "ReportingMode" "Scaled"
# Option "ButtonThreshold" "17"
# Option "ButtonNumber" "1"
# Option "SendCoreEvents"
# EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Monitor section
# **********************************************************************
# Any number of monitor sections may be present
Section "Monitor"
Identifier "acertft"
# HorizSync is in kHz unless units are specified.
# HorizSync may be a comma separated list of discrete values, or a
# comma separated list of ranges of values.
# NOTE: THE VALUES HERE ARE EXAMPLES ONLY. REFER TO YOUR MONITOR'S
# USER MANUAL FOR THE CORRECT NUMBERS.
HorizSync 28-96
# HorizSync 30-64 # multisync
# HorizSync 31.5, 35.2 # multiple fixed sync frequencies
# HorizSync 15-25, 30-50 # multiple ranges of sync frequencies
# VertRefresh is in Hz unless units are specified.
# VertRefresh may be a comma separated list of discrete values, or a
# comma separated list of ranges of values.
# NOTE: THE VALUES HERE ARE EXAMPLES ONLY. REFER TO YOUR MONITOR'S
# USER MANUAL FOR THE CORRECT NUMBERS.
VertRefresh 50-75
DisplaySize 305 230
Option "DPMS"
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Graphics device section
# **********************************************************************
# Any number of graphics device sections may be present
# Standard VGA Device:
Section "Device"
Identifier "Standard VGA"
VendorName "Unknown"
BoardName "Unknown"
# The chipset line is optional in most cases. It can be used to override
# the driver's chipset detection, and should not normally be specified.
# Chipset "generic"
# The Driver line must be present. When using run-time loadable driver
# modules, this line instructs the server to load the specified driver
# module. Even when not using loadable driver modules, this line
# indicates which driver should interpret the information in this section.
Driver "vga"
# The BusID line is used to specify which of possibly multiple devices
# this section is intended for. When this line isn't present, a device
# section can only match up with the primary video device. For PCI
# devices a line like the following could be used. This line should not
# normally be included unless there is more than one video device
# intalled.
# BusID "PCI:0:10:0"
# VideoRam 256
# Clocks 25.2 28.3
EndSection
# Device configured by xorgconfig:
Section "Device"
Option "DRI" "true" # []
Identifier "** Intel i810 (generic) [i810]"
Driver "i810"
VideoRam 131072
BoardName "82852/855GM Integrated Graphics Device"
Option "DPMS"
# Insert Clocks lines here if appropriate
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# Screen sections
# **********************************************************************
# Any number of screen sections may be present. Each describes
# the configuration of a single screen. A single specific screen section
# may be specified from the X server command line with the "-screen"
# option.
Section "Screen"
Identifier "Screen 1"
Device "** Intel i810 (generic) [i810]"
Monitor "acertft"
DefaultDepth 24
Subsection "Display"
Depth 8
Modes "640x480 1024x768"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection
Subsection "Display"
Depth 16
Modes "640x480 1024x768"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection
Subsection "Display"
Depth 24
Modes "640x480 1024x768"
ViewPort 0 0
EndSubsection
EndSection
# **********************************************************************
# ServerLayout sections.
# **********************************************************************
# Any number of ServerLayout sections may be present. Each describes
# the way multiple screens are organised. A specific ServerLayout
# section may be specified from the X server command line with the
# "-layout" option. In the absence of this, the first section is used.
# When now ServerLayout section is present, the first Screen section
# is used alone.
Section "ServerLayout"
# The Identifier line must be present
Identifier "Simple Layout"
# Each Screen line specifies a Screen section name, and optionally
# the relative position of other screens. The four names after
# primary screen name are the screens to the top, bottom, left and right
# of the primary screen. In this example, screen 2 is located to the
# right of screen 1.
Screen "Screen 1"
# Each InputDevice line specifies an InputDevice section name and
# optionally some options to specify the way the device is to be
# used. Those options include "CorePointer", "CoreKeyboard" and
# "SendCoreEvents".
InputDevice "Mouse1" "CorePointer"
InputDevice "Keyboard1" "CoreKeyboard"
EndSection
Section "DRI"
Mode 0666
EndSection
EDIT: Console apps are running perfectly - it is only graphical apps, that have problems.
Ah, well that makes a big difference - ignore all the crap about filesystems and things like that - this is solely a graphical issue then.
What video card are you using? Can you post your xorg.conf? Can you just *try* another WM to rule out gnome being an issue? If it is gnome only then we can work on pimping out your gnome setup...
]]>I am using ext3 - not reiserfs.
I know about the speedstep thing, took me hell of a time to get it working :-) The problem does not lie in me not knowing the current freq.
EDIT: Console apps are running perfectly - it is only graphical apps, that have problems.
]]>