Hardware and performance

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Saludos. Iñaki.

I'm still using my old klunker of a 800Mhz PIII with 256MB of ram also, but with Apache running Moodle 1.6.2 under EdUbuntu. You may be correct with a base install without an accelerator, but eAccelerator busts a move; I have no problems with 30 - 50 concurrent users using the mired of chat, assignment and quiz modules simultaneously. What version of Moodle are you using and what OS, these are equally important factors?

I don't think your going to get the same performance with the later versions of Moodle or when running other services on a server. I am however working (slow work in progress) a new machine that is memory and processor rich in comparison using either Moodle 1.6.3 or 1.8.? (I use the question mark as by the time I get off my lazy butt it'll be version 2.0.1 - the machine is up and working, but I've drug my feet in migrating the files). In moving to 4 Gig of ram and an AMD dual core 64 bit processor running either Moodle 1.6.3 (Moodle 1.6.3 and Apache are built into the 7.10 EdUbuntu install) or 1.8.2 under Apache, 64 bit 7.10 Edubuntu and eAccelerator it flys to say the least. I've got less than $500 in hardware with the new machine. I do intend to keep the old klunker around as a back up and for the "memories". Might make a good paper weight some day too ... or I might donate it to another teacher who's in need and limited on funds like myself.

Ralph.

Last April, we switched our Moodle 1.7 installation from XAMPP 1.5.5 under Windows 2003 Server (on an HP DL140) to lighttpd under Fedora Core 6 (on an HP DL320) and realized a ten-fold increase speed even though the new server is technically inferior. Under the original XAMPP (Apache) server, the system would basically hang when ten users tried to log in concurrently, the new lighttpd server is more than able to handle that load and more. We are very happy with the change.