Re: Limited performance on multi core server - Mailing list pgsql-performance

From Matthew Lunnon
Subject Re: Limited performance on multi core server
Date
Msg-id 475FC22A.2070505@rwa-net.co.uk
Whole thread Raw
In response to Re: Limited performance on multi core server  ("Claus Guttesen" <kometen@gmail.com>)
Responses Re: Limited performance on multi core server  ("Claus Guttesen" <kometen@gmail.com>)
List pgsql-performance
Thanks for the information Claus,  Why would reducing the effective cache size help the processor usage?  It seems that there is plenty of resources on the box although I can see that 10MB of sort space could mount up if we had 500 connections but at the moment we do not have anything like that number.

Thanks
Matthew.

Claus Guttesen wrote:
I have a 4 * dual core 64bit AMD OPTERON server with 16G of RAM, running
postgres 7.4.3.  This has been recompiled on the server for 64 stored
procedure parameters, (I assume this makes postgres 64 bit but are not
sure).  When the server gets under load from database connections
executing reads, lets say 20 - 40 concurrent reads, the CPU's seem to
limit at about 30-35% usage with no iowait reported. If I run a simple
select at this time it takes 5 seconds, the same query runs in 300
millis when the server is not under load so it seems that the database
is not performing well even though there is plenty of spare CPU.  There
does not appear to be large amounts of disk IO and my database is about
5.5G so this should fit comfortably in RAM.

changes to postgresql.sql:

max_connections = 500
shared_buffers = 96000
sort_mem = 10240
effective_cache_size = 1000000

Does anyone have any ideas what my bottle neck might be and what I can
do about it?   
You might want to lower shared_buffers to a lower value. Mine is set
at 32768. Is your db performing complex sort? Remember that this value
is per connection. Maby 1024. effective_cache_size should also be
lowered to something like 32768. As far as I understand shared_buffers
and effective_cache_size have to be altered "in reverse", ie. when
lowering one the other can be raised.

HTH.
 

-- 
Matthew Lunnon
Technical Consultant
RWA Ltd.
mlunnon@rwa-net.co.ukTel: +44 (0)29 2081 5056www.rwa-net.co.uk
--

pgsql-performance by date:

Previous
From: Matthew Lunnon
Date:
Subject: Re: Limited performance on multi core server
Next
From: "Claus Guttesen"
Date:
Subject: Re: Limited performance on multi core server