GPA 3.0: System Analyser very slow on pause

[Ash_McConnell]

Hi Folks,

I am pretty new to GPA, I am trying to use the platform view of the system analyser. I haven't added instrumentation to my game yet, but I wanted to get GPA up and running first.

I can connect to my process correctly and see the various graphs properly (FPS / CPU utilization / etc). When I press pause on the application I see a blank "Capture status" box and nothing happens until about 5-10 mins.

Any ideas about how to speed this up a little?

Thanks for your help

All the best,

Ash

PS. The forum editor lost all my formatting, weird.

Here is my environment: -

Environment:

(Intel GPA System Inspector)

Windows 7, 64-bit DEP enabled

Num Processors: 4

Memory: 3070MB

Driver 0:

Device: ATI Radeon HD 5700 Series

Provider: ATI Technologies Inc.

Date: 3-24-2010

Version: 8.712.3.0

VendorId: 1002

ProductId: 68b8

Stepping: 0

No support for GPA Instrumentation

Driver 1:

Device: NVIDIA GeForce 6200 TurboCache

Provider: NVIDIA

Date: 3-15-2010

Version: 8.17.11.9713

VendorId: 10de

ProductId: 161

Stepping: a1

No support for GPA Instrumentation

GPA install directory: G:\\Program Files\\Intel\\GPA v3.0\\

GPA version: 3.0.108906

Environment:(Intel GPA System Inspector)Windows 7, 64-bit DEP enabledNum Processors: 4Memory: 3070MBDriver 0: Device: ATI Radeon HD 5700 Series Provider: ATI Technologies Inc. Date: 3-24-2010 Version: 8.712.3.0 VendorId: 1002 ProductId: 68b8 Stepping: 0 No support for GPA InstrumentationDriver 1: Device: NVIDIA GeForce 6200 TurboCache Provider: NVIDIA Date: 3-15-2010 Version: 8.17.11.9713 VendorId: 10de ProductId: 161 Stepping: a1 No support for GPA InstrumentationGPA install directory: G:\\Program Files\\Intel\\GPA v3.0\\GPA version: 3.0.108906

[Neal_Pierman · Accepted solution]

Hello,

First of all, if you are not currently using Intel GPA Platform View, I would recommend that you disable trace collection -- first, use the "Configure Platform View" button, and then unselect the "Enable Tracing" option:


This should result in significantly faster operation for "pause".

If you were wanting to collect trace data and eventually use Intel GPA Platform View, the first thing I would recommend is to download the latest build of Intel GPA 3.0, build 111099 -- goto the Intel GPA Home Page for download info. [This latest build includes a number of updates for the Intel GPA Platform View feature.]

Regards,

Neal

[Ash_McConnell]

Hi Neal,

Thanks for the reply, I didn't realise there were new builds of 3.0. I am trying to use platform view, so i'll give the new one a try. My build was 108906, so possibly a bit out of date.

I will give it a go in the morning and let you know how I get on

Thanks again,

Ash

[Ash_McConnell]

Hi Neal,

Yep, that made a lot of difference. It's still a bit hit and miss as to whether it will work or not. I need to restart the monitor and the System Analyser each time I want to profile. I guess it's still in beta.

I don't seem to be getting any trace out. I added a few different"TAL_SCOPED_TASK_NAMED("myFunctionName");" calls. I expected them to appear in the TAL Watchdog or one of the threads, but I don't see anything. Any idea what I could be doing wrong. I will reread the docs.

*edit* Sorry, I had missed the fact that it had a linking error, I was testing a previously linked version.

Thanks for your help,

All the best,

Ash

[Neal_Pierman]

Hello Ash,

I'm just checking up to see whether you've been able to make any additional progress in using Platform View -- please let us know what you think of the tool.

Regards,

Neal

[Ash_McConnell]

Hi Neal,

Yep, It is a very useful tool for visualising what happens during a frame, something that other profilers can't do. I have definitely found some some bottlenecks that have directly come from using GPA.

It is still a little unstable, but it will be a fantastic tool. As an independent game developer with little to no budget, the price is fantastic!

I haven't been using it lately as I've got performance to an acceptable level at the minute, but I'm sure i'll be using it intensively again as my project nears release. I haven't even started using the GPU analyser part yet.

Thanks for your help!

Ash