S L O W really slow vm

[Dragonz]

So im new to vm ive downloaded it and installed windows xp sp3 on it.Im hosting on a windows 7 x64 and it really lags.

I have no idea why my pc specs should be allright

Inter dual code 2.6ghz

Nvidea 8600gts

4gb ram

I allocated 1 cpu and 512md ram do my windows partition and it lags badly ive tried giving it 2 cpus and getting it more ram put it lags like hell and cant run a game.

When i look at my cpu usage in task manager i see it going from 0% to 27% to 100% and it keeps on changing/

How could i fix all this i want to run vmware badly

[golddiggie]

Didn't see that in the first file, had to open the second one he linked to...

Something that I would address as soon as possible is:

18.Apr 10 13:18:01.792: vmx| Measured CPU as 2508219 kHz, but OS says 2500000 kHz; using 2508219

19.Apr 10 13:18:01.792: vmx| Msg_Hint: msg.hostWin32.cpuSpeedMismatch (sent)

20.Apr 10 13:18:01.792: vmx| VMware Workstation has measured your CPU speed to be 2508 MHz, but Windows reports that it is 2500 MHz. This may mean that your computer has a power-saving feature that varies the processor speed. As a result, the clock in your virtual machine may run too fast or too slow.

21.Apr 10 13:18:01.792: vmx|

22.Apr 10 13:18:01.792: vmx| For a workaround, please refer to the VMware knowledge base article at:

23.Apr 10 13:18:01.792: vmx| http://vmware.com/info?id=97----

---

It's not something major, or even a factor in what's going on (most likely) but something that should be addressed as soon as time allows.

8GB is ok for a boot disk, but if you plan to run any software on the VM, you'll either need a larger C drive, or to put everything onto a secondary (D, or E) drive. I typically use at least a 20GB C drive except when the OS wants larger by default (such as the server 2008 products). It's far too easy to fill up 8GB these days. I was using a VM for iTunes, since I was running XP x64 on the host (no support for connecting up the iPod to sync on the host), which I gave 80GB to. I was under 50% utilized on the virtual drive, but I wanted to ensure there was enough room to handle anything I would use it for. If you have a decent size internal drive (or drives) then it doesn't hurt to give the VM a bit more space. Don't go overboard though, just plan out what you'll use the VM for and adjust the disk size to make during creation.

VMware VCP4

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[Dragonz]

I think i posted an old xp os of my vmware

heres the good one http://pastebin.com/zRJBVEVW

[continuum]

this VM uses 2300 Mb of virtual RAM and a 32 Gb virtual harddisk.

Maybe we should wait until you made up your mind about which VM we are talking here 😉




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VMX-parameters- Workstation FAQ -[ MOA-liveCD|http://sanbarrow.com/moa241.html] - VM-Sickbay

[golddiggie]

Looks like you gave it 32GB for the C drive, correct?

I still don't like XP SP3, especially when people have performance issues (computer ones)... I've seen many systems run better with SP2 than SP3. Even though Microsoft claimed SP3 was just a bundling of all the security updates from SP2 forward, there are other things they included. Unless you have software that specifies needing SP3 as a hard requirement, I would stick with SP2... I have the install ISO of XP SP2 that I use whenever creating VM's, or even setting up older physical systems. I even use it when setting up images for corporate systems.

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[golddiggie]

LMAO!!!! :smileylaugh:

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[Dragonz]

the 32gig hard disk and ram is freshly added

[Dragonz]

my pc isnt the problem ive seen people giving less ram to there xp sp3 and running it without a problem

[continuum]

did you try to use the vmx-entry

mainmem.useNamedFile = "false"

yet ?

usually that should improve performance significantly




___________________________________

VMX-parameters- Workstation FAQ -[ MOA-liveCD|http://sanbarrow.com/moa241.html] - VM-Sickbay

[Dragonz]

im not too sure where to place that.

[continuum]

power down the VM - then open the vmx-file and add the line at the end of it




___________________________________

VMX-parameters- Workstation FAQ -[ MOA-liveCD|http://sanbarrow.com/moa241.html] - VM-Sickbay

[golddiggie]

If I had a dollar for every time I've heard that, only to have the statement proven wrong (on at least some level) I wouldn't need to work another day in my life...

You have an Intel E5200 (http://ark.intel.com/Product.aspx?id=37212&processor=E5200&spec-codes=SLAY7) processor inside that computer, which is 2.5GHz, not 2.6... With only 2MB of L2 cache, it's no high performing chip.

Which flavor of Windows 7 x64 are you running? Without running anything else, how much resources are being used? CPU usage/load will constantly change while a system is running. It's never the same across mulitple cores, or even a single core/processor.

Since you have Windows 7, grab the Systems Monitor II gadget and use it to display the stats for your system as it runs. Set the refresh rate to at least .5 sec, .2 being better. Have it show all the cores in your system as well as RAM and Page FIle info.

What is the hard drive you're using? Many times, slow storage is a major factor in slow/poor VM performance. Of course, if your host system isn't up to the job, no amount of memory or storage is going to make it perform any better than it might already be performing.

Have you checked to see if there's a newer bios available for your system? You also didn't mention if this a major manufacturer, or a system built by someone. Believe it or not, those are contributing factors here. Correctly aligning the hardware is important too. Major manufacturers (like HP and Dell) do this day in and day out. Some kid down the street may not have any clue to what he's doing.

How about you at least TEST a fresh XP SP2 install (not an upgrade install, use a full fledged install, from scratch) and see how it performs... Blaming VMware WS for mistakes made on the host, or when building the VM won't help you any.

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[continuum · Accepted solution]

Here I use Workstation 7.1 on an ancient Pentium 4 with 2 Gb RAM - and it is ok.

But I had to tweak the VMware settings to get best results ...

I think if folks say they are satisfied with overall performance of their system we should just trust them and help them with tweaking the VMware setup

Ulli

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VMX-parameters- Workstation FAQ -[ MOA-liveCD|http://sanbarrow.com/moa241.html] - VM-Sickbay

[Dragonz]

Btw forgot to say the thing you told me to add in my vmx file is really wonderfull not vmware works flawless i dont have those 27% cpu to 100% its stable with nothing open it doesent go past 13% cpu

[golddiggie]

I'm sure, besides tweaking the settings, you're not trying to do anything really demanding of the virtual hardware. I'm also sure you know how to properly adjust the guest OS to make sure it runs as efficiently as possible. You probably also have the host OS running just what it needs to get the job done, nothing extra.

But, for someone to come out and think that just because the hardare CAN do something means it will perform to a high level, especially with the older hardware, is not going to happen.

At least making the adjustments, testing changes as posted, etc. all go a long way to making sure things are being set up correctly and the system is just doing the best it can do with what it has. It also means using the correct version of the VMware products to do the job. I'm also running the 7.1 beta release and don't have any issues with it (now that the USB device issue was resolved on my system). Things like removing the VM directory from all AV scans is also a huge item.

My system is about 2-1/2 years old now, so it's not exactly a spring chicken anymore. But, since I recently changed the processors inside it (from the E5160's to E5345's), and after their normal 'settle in' time, performance is much better across the board. VM's also perform better under the new chips, especially when the VM is configured correctly (running a single vCPU most of the time, only going higher if absolutely critical). The rest of the system is pretty much how I've been running it since it got home. Including using quad channel FB-DIMM memory.

I do realize that what I consider minimum requirements to do the job are probably far above what 90% of the users out there would consider 'minimum'... I tend to go with far more resources than I need to for the job, but it's always ensured that the items run smooth and fast. I also tend to do this when buying a new system, going for the fastest processor I can, while getting the lowest amount of RAM and storage at purchase time (it's so easy to install both these days). Unless either item is positioned in such a way that the manufacturer actually prevents you from change it, or you cannot get the higher items for less from another vendor. Or if they are including items for no extra charge (always accept free upgrades).

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[Dragonz]

If your sure i can get it working properly by myself ok thats what you think. i said i was vmware problem of the lag because ive nerver had lag on this pc ive already ran lots of demanding programs at the same time with a little lag. so to me the only answer was vmware and before i came and asked on the forums ive tryed serveral different things and googles lots to find it without any good answers so i came to the forums for help because i did not know how to make it work nicly.

I also said vmware was the cause because i also ran 3 virtual box windows xp sp3 at the same time without any lag so i concluded that vmware was the source of the lag and when i lagged on vmware my guest os was working really well withou any lag.

My computer is also home made ive tryed running vmware on a windows xp/vista/ubuntu 9.10 host and there was also some lag then i tried on windows 7 and it seemed to work a little better for some reason so i keeped it i also try diffrent guest oses.