NT Server Configuration (AREV Specific)
At 29 JUL 1998 11:02:24AM Schelli Erickson wrote:
We are going to be getting a new file server to run AREV on. I need information regarding the best possible server configuration with the following:
We currently run AREV 2.1 on NT Server 4.0 with the upgraded 1.5 NT service installed using TCP/IP and Windows 95 workstations. We have up to 35 concurrent users and have experienced unacceptable slowness.
1. Is there a recomendation available as to whether the best partition type is FAT or NTFS?
2. Is there a difference betweeen TCP/IP, IPX, and NetBEUI?
3. How much RAM is appropriate for optimal performance?
4. Can anybody provide a comprehensive list of server settings that will provide the best possible results?
At 29 JUL 1998 05:11PM Scott Kearney wrote:
Schelli,
Q: Is there a recomendation available as to whether the best partition type is FAT or NTFS?
A: The NT Service reads files via calls to the NT operating system. Generally, the NT Filing System (NTFS) has security and performance gains over FAT, and if compatibility with other platforms (DOS & Windows, etc..) isn't an issue, is usually the FS of choice. However, FAT does not by any means impose any performance penalty. The main problem with FAT filing systems is their tendency to fragment easily, and the wastage of disk space if your drive is formatted to use an innappropriate sector size.
Q: Is there a difference betweeen TCP/IP, IPX, and NetBEUI?
A: The performance difference between TCP/IP and NetBEUI is minimal. They both tend to outperform IPX/SPX, however. Further, it has been noted at our location, that the Novell Client32 IPX/SPX is incompatible with Named Pipes, which the NT Service relies upon for communication. The NT Service will become slower with each protocol added to the protocol stack (i.e. every active protocol), so we recommend trimming down any unnecessary protocols (this saves a little bit of memory, too).
Q: How much RAM is appropriate for optimal performance?
A: This depends on a lot of factors, such as how large your memory-based disk-cache is, how large your records are, how fast your processor is, how many other applications are running on the server, number of installed services, etc.. There's really no "optimal" number. Generally, the more memory, the better. I don't think there really is any "threshold" value that determines horrible performance below it, and terrific performance about it. It's a pretty mild slope of gains. Of course, if you're trying to use NT as a server with anything less than 32 megs of RAM, it will probably be too slow, even with only 1 or 2 users.
Q: Can anybody provide a comprehensive list of server settings that will provide the best possible results?
A: There aren't really any general optimization settings in a shipping copy of the NT Service. Make certain you are using the SERVERONLY=TRUE setting in the REVPARAM file, and that the SYSTEM user is granted FULL privileges, and has been allowed to replace permissions on both the directories and files of the share. Make sure to have as few protocols as possible. Other than this, any optimization tips would probably fall under the category of "general system optimization" tips, which would not necessarily be dependent on our software.
Obviously, I can't be certain exactly what sort of speed problems you have, but I have spoken with a handful of people reporting completely god-awful speed problems, with bootups into both OI and Arev taking several minutes. We're looked into that here (both on the Techsupport and Development side) and the problem appears to be some sort of clog on the NT side of things (i.e. it happens after the Service sends off the Data to the OS, where it routes it to the client).
This latter problem is a pain to address and requires a lot of rebooting, but is usually workable. If you'd like this procedure, let me know and I can email it to you.
-Scott Revelation
At 01 SEP 1998 06:23PM Roy seeger wrote:
We are currently converting to an NT Network running NT Server 4.0 Win 95 WS and Microsoft Terminal server w/ 4 Winterms running via a 56K line at a remote site.
we had great performance using Netbuei only w/ the NT Service installed. I have found that it is best to delete all other protocalls if possible. But, we know need to run TCP/IP for our terminal server and the winterms. Ever since we installed the TCP/IP protocall (last weekend) it has slowed us down. Any info you find out and would like to share please send along to rseeger@americanescrow.com