Im using an Advantech fanless box PC. specs are at the bottom of this page:
http://ruggedpcreview.com/3_components_advantech_ark1503.html
the navigation and page loading time is really slow on this PC. does anyone know why this might be happening? the client runs fine on a standard dell desktop PC and I would have thought this Advantech PC would work great but its taking as long as 10 sec to load a fairly simple screen. Any advice would be appreciated.
Thank you.
Hardware may be an issue - all your image processing, for example, is done on the client. Have you tested the project on any other machines? On any other under-powered machines?
Another possibility is a slow network connection. How does it run on other clients using the same connection?
I have the client running on this advantech and a desktop side by side on the same Ethernet switch. the desktop is similar in spec to the advantech and the desktop is quick but the advantech is really slow. Ive had no issue running my program on a number of different PC’s just this fanless advantech for some reason is really slow loading the pages.
When you say “loading”, do you mean the initial project load time? First-time startup time?
Do you see any difference between the initial loading time and page switching time?
Any difference in the time it takes to open pages for the 1st time/ subsequent times?
It would also help if you could post the hardware details for both systems.
The Fanless is running an Atom CPU isn’t it? We have a couple w/ those processors and they are generally slower. I did replace the built in storage w/ a small SSD and that made a HUGE difference in ours.
I have had trouble with Advantech. I am not so sure their specs are on the up and up. I purchased an Advantech panel PC last year to run a panel edition of Ignition. It took 20 minutes to boot WinXP right out of the box. I called their tech support and got an RMA for it. When they sent the repaired unit back it only took five minutes to boot. If you take Advantech’s specs at face value their computers should boot up in less than a minute.
Yes it is an Atom cpu. although the initial load time is also slow I was referring to the amount of time it takes to open a new window or switch windows in the program. I think I’ll be sending this unit back. thanks for the input.
Same problem with Phoenix Fanless solid state PC, especially screens with graphics. Ended up replacing with a Dell desktop and Hope Industrial Touchscreen.
I suspect the problem may not be the Atom CPU but the chipset used. Or maybe they used slow ram.
Having to build a fanless system capable of withstanding a bit of hit, usually means you have to pick slower chips. Or pick $$ chips designed to handle more heat.
A CPU that has no source of cooling (fan) and only rely’s on a heat sink for cooling isn’t going to have a lot of horsepower to get the job done. I know that the Atom CPUs are pretty low in processing power to begin with, but to run with only a heat sink I am sure they have to throttle the processor quit a bit. I have seen i7 CPUs reach 90 degrees C in a matter of seconds with only a heatsink attached. I know that’s an apples to oranges comparison, but just an idea of how fast a CPU can generate heat. Like Robert said, the chipset and the ram could also be at fault. Also, if the CPU, chipset, and available memory are driving the graphics, this can also slow things down.
I contacted Advantech tech support and this was their reply:
[quote]might not have enough processing power to manage that program. While I agree it should have enough power, the software still needs to be properly optimized or you won’t see good performance. If you want this unit to work you will need to contact the software developer about optimizing their software for use on Intel Atom CPUs.
Depending on the rest of your specs and requirements you may want to consider our new unit, the ARK-2150L based on the latest Intel CPU core series technology. This unit would have magnitudes better CPU and graphics performance. Pair that with our latest generation SQF 820 Solid state drives and you would have performance that compares to a high level full desktop
[/quote]
Which Atom version is it?
Intel Atom D525 1.8GHz dual core - also has 4 gigs ram
Your mileage may vary, but we’re using these http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856101143 to run Ignition apps. I threw 2gb of ram and a 120gig SSD(Samsung 830 is what I had) in em.
Works great.
Once you have the client running what type of CPU and memory usage are you seeing in the task manager?
What version of Ignition are you using on the server and what version of Java are you running on the Advantech?
[quote=“Greg.Simpson”]Once you have the client running what type of CPU and memory usage are you seeing in the task manager?
What version of Ignition are you using on the server and what version of Java are you running on the Advantech?[/quote]
the cpu usage is low, around 5 - 10% while switching pages it jumps up to 40 - 50% for a split second. im running version 7.5.6. I tried Java 6 and 7 both had the same result.
Is it possible to optimize Iginition for atom processor PCs as Advantech recommends? This is a pretty big (& unexpected) hicup as advantech panel PC are standard equipment in the plant - we have a ton of them and its looking like if I want to use Ignition my only option is going to be to remove them and try and mount a touchscreen and put a compact desktop PC somewhere inside the panel.
[quote=“cja7928”][quote=“Greg.Simpson”]Once you have the client running what type of CPU and memory usage are you seeing in the task manager?
What version of Ignition are you using on the server and what version of Java are you running on the Advantech?[/quote]
the cpu usage is low, around 5 - 10% while switching pages it jumps up to 40 - 50% for a split second. im running version 7.5.6. I tried Java 6 and 7 both had the same result.
Is it possible to optimize Iginition for atom processor PCs as Advantech recommends? This is a pretty big (& unexpected) hicup as advantech panel PC are standard equipment in the plant - we have a ton of them and its looking like if I want to use Ignition my only option is going to be to remove them and try and mount a touchscreen and put a compact desktop PC somewhere inside the panel.[/quote]
“Optimizing” for atom processors is really something that Oracle would have to do for Java.
I think the window serialization/deserialization process is just a bit too CPU intensive for the atom CPUs. The complexity and size of your windows would affect this - maybe you can do some work to simplify and reduce the size of your windows?
I know you probably already did this, but did you grab the latest set of drivers? What Advantech ships with the unit is not likely to be the latest versions.
You may also want to take a look at the settings for video ram in the BIOS. Usually pretty skimpy default, if memory serves. configuring for a bit more may help.
Using a 64-bit OS will use all available memory, not just 3.5GB as with 32-bit systems. Every bit helps.
How much memory is actually being used by the system vs how much is allocated to the client?
On an experimental side, although it says it only supports 4GB RAM, there’s a good chance it will support 8. Not all SBCs are like that and you kinda have to hunt for compatible memory. It really boils down to whatever memory controller is in there. Good luck. 