FirstClass

[elpeel]

As I couldn't find any comment on virtualize a FirstClass-server, I thought it would be proper to write this little warning: For some reason, FirstClass, even when run as a Windows Service, uses all the CPU power it gets, which is quite remarkable that the FirstClass community still accepts! So, you will have a virtual server in your nice vmware environment that is running on 100% CPU all the time, even if it is used by approximatelly zero (0) users, and then of course is stealing these CPU cycles, at the premises you set up, from other well behaving machines. You can of course give the virtual server where FirstClass is installed lower chares of CPU and lower priority, but only down to a certain level where the FirstClass server will begin to get slow when it is actually used.

So the problem is not in vmware, but in how FirstClass works in some kind of early-'80's style (if even then), idling in some kind of poorly made loop I guess, causing the 100% CPU load indifferently if actually performing some work or not.

If someone knows or has any suggestions how to solve or at least workaround the problem - or if I'm just plain wrong - please let me hear!

[Fedde]

We virtualized one of our FirstClass-servers a couple of weeks ago and

our server also uses all the CPU power it can get.

Even if it's a bad behaviour by the FirstClass software we expected that

and we're not really bothered.

The improvement in redundancy for the FirstClass-server is more important

for us than the fact that we're "losing" one CPU completely.

And the FirstClass-server itselfs works very good as a virtualized server, we've

had no problems at all and we don't expect any problems.

/Fedde

[mreferre]

I can't believe it really works like that. With all these concerns about power consumption and Intel/AMD working hard to shut down cores not being utilized etc etc to save on power/cooling (along with techniques such as Distributed Power Manager from VMware) ....... these guys are funny...... it's like stopping at each traffic light in downtown and keep the engine always close to 9000 rpm's ....... 😄 😄 LOL ........

I bet programmers at this ISV do not care much about the global warming ...

Massimo.

[Dave_Mishchenko]

This utility will allow you to cap the CPU usage by a process or service - .

[elpeel]

Yes, a little bit like regulating the speed with the clutch while keeping the pedal to the metal - but hey - you make a lot of noise and smoke and you'll for sure get a lot of attention! (And probably one or two comments regarding your intellectual capacity LOL

[elpeel]

Thank you for the suggestion, but in this case I can't see that ThreadMaster would be of any help. I have not used the application, I assume it works just fine, particularly on Terminal Services servers as the homepage suggests. But because in our case, FirstClass is the only "main application" running, so there are nothing to even distribute CPU power between. It would maybe be of help, if we were running some more services at the same server, in that case to prevent FirstClass to slow down the other services to much though.

[elpeel]

Yes, I believe that's much the attitude one must have and be prepared to accept to "loose" one CPU. I was just a bit surprised that something that's running as a service is deliberately delivered in this way. A long time ago, if someone doesn't know about that, you had to log on, start the "service" and then you had to stay logged on, seems like the FC guys just wrapped the same .exe into something to be able to run it as a Windows service, and... eh.. not very much more The only possible monitoring of the CPU of the server is to check that it is running at 100%:)

If one consider the numbers that are mentioned in talk about the advantages of virtualization, it use to be that a normal physical server is utilized for about 10-15%. Given that, to virtualize one FirstClass server equals, in terms of CPU needed, to add about six or more machines. To make it less expensive, you have to really limit and/or prioritize available CPU cycles for that virtual machine to something appropriate, and with that of course at the same time limit the maximum load FirstClass can handle and/or accept that FirstClass will be lower prioritezed than other servers within the same pool.

I don't like either. And my experience is that generally, users does not like their messaging apps slow - not at all actually