Home > Workload Solutions > SQL Server > Best Practices > AMD-Based SQL Server Best Practices on Dell PowerEdge R740 and PowerMax 2000 > CPU Best Practices > PowerEdge: System Profile set to Performance
The System Profile in BIOS enables the administrator to easily change a group of settings that define how the server is configured. In this best practice we will explore changing the System Profile setting to optimize the server for database performance.
Category | Performance |
Product | PowerEdge |
Type of best practice | Performance Optimization |
Day and value | Day 3, Fine Tuning |
Overview
The System Profile setting will pre-set BOIS options according to the selected profile. By default, the System Profile is set to Performance per Watt. The Performance per Watt profile enables BIOS to balance Performance per Watt while still meeting performance demands of the server. While Performance per Watt is an ideal configuration for many workloads, databases will benefit from a profile that emphasizes greater performance.
The Performance System Profile setting sets CPU Power Management to maximum Performance and allows the BIOS to program the processor for maximum performance. The following table contrasts the default profile of Performance per Watt and the performance profile.
Profile Settings | Performance Per Watt Optimized (DAPC) | Performance |
CPU Power Management | System DBPM (DAPC) | Maximum Performance |
Memory Frequency | Maximum Performance | Maximum Performance |
Turbo Boost | Enabled | Enabled |
C1E | Enabled | Disabled |
C States | Enabled | Disabled |
Write Data CRC | Disabled | Disabled |
Memory Patrol Scrub | Standard | Standard |
Memory Refresh Rate | 1x | 1x |
Uncore Frequency | Dynamic | Maximum |
Energy Efficient Policy | Balanced Performance | Performance |
Number of Turbo Boost Enabled Cores for Processor x | All | All |
Monitor/Mwait | Enabled | Enabled |
CPU Interconnect Bus Link Power Management | Enabled | Disabled |
PCI ASPM L1 Link Power Management | Enabled | Disabled |
Recommendation
Changing the System Profile to Performance slightly improved performance in these metrics:
The setting below remained the same:
Changing the System Profile setting to Performance slightly improved performance for the HammerDB metrics of NOPM and TPM. Additionally, the SQL Server metric of Batch requests per Second also showed a minor performance improvement. The System Profile system was not expected to improve storage related metrics or overall server CPU utilization as most of the changes can be categorized fine tuning for CPU, memory, and power.
We recommend changing the System Profile from Performance per Watt to Performance for database servers. The updated BIOS settings fine tune the server configuration providing value over time.
Implementation Steps
Use the following steps to view/update the system profile.
Additional Resources
Dell Support has BIOS settings for the AMD based servers like the PowerEdge R7525