App runs slow on 98 connected to 2K server

[ccd]

Hi,

I'm not a network guy, so I'm pretty out of my depth here. We have a client/server app that we've made which runs fine at the office, but crawls at one of our beta sites.

We connect to the app by placing the executable on the server, and placing shortcuts to it on the client desktops. The app accesses an Interbase database on the server.

At the office, we have NT4 and 2000 machines connecting to a 2000 server over a 100 Mb network. It takes about 10 seconds to start/load the app, and 2 seconds to open files within the app.

At our beta site, they have Win98 machines connecting to a Win 2000 server. When they run the app from the shortcut, it takes over 2 minutes to start/load, and over 1.5 minutes to open files within it. They tried hooking a 98 box directly to the server, and it took twice as long.

Next, they hooked a 2000 client in using the cable that connects one of the 98 boxes to the network (ie unplugged a 98 client and plugged in the 2000). This machine runs at the same speeds we see in the office, 10 seconds to load and 2 seconds per file.

They only use TCP/IP for the network, so that doesn't appear to be a problem, but who knows. How would I check/test this?

We are at a loss of what the problem can be, and are unable to reproduce it in the office. But it certainly appears to be a case of 98 and 2000 not getting along. Where should we look to solve this? We'd love to tell clients to only use 2000, but this isn't feasible.

Thanks
Spencer

 

[french01]

I'm betting you have got a single stand alone application there. Stuck it up on the server and are attempting to sell it to the customer as a client\server model solution.

Sorry, but as a similar victim "customer", I've been badly burnt with one like this. It just won't work well in a Win98 client environment. Been there done that, and spent a fortune on client side upgrades and still have a sub-standard product.

You have 2 choices.

1. Call it the customer's fault and make them upgrade everything, PC's, network, bandwidth, the lot.

or

2. Seriously consider re-evaluating and re-modelling the application to a true 2 tier, server/client model. ie, a good backend that does all the crunching on the server, and a nice thin frontend installed on the clients that has all the pre-defined queries to ask the server.

 

[ccd]

Ya know, I agree with you entirely. However, I don't own the company, I'm just a lowly new grad, who couldn't possibly know what I'm talking about when I say the server should do all the work and return data via stored procedures.

I've been making a serious push to try to get them to build the thing in a proper tiered model, but no luck so far. I doubt it will ever happen.

However, that still doesn't answer why our beta site has slow downs on 98 machines but not 2000 machines. Turns out they tried a 95 machine, and it was twice as fast as the 98 box! (3.5 minutes versus 1.5 minutes) Is there an explanation for this, and why we can't recreate the slowdown in our office?

 

[Zorlod]

are you both running the same edition of windows98?

 

[ccd]

You know, we never even thought of checking. We've got first edition, and our site is going to check. And now we're going to install second edition and test it. Maybe that's what it is.

Thanks for the idea

 

[french01]

While you are checking out the Beta site machines...

I'd also check that you lab installs are replicating real work environments. Load up the machine with all the standard software that a real client would be expected to operate under, (Office, Mail, antivirus) along with all the extra stuff the end user may have added, (Napster, Screen shots, and that silly dancing cow), then replicate the beta site operating environment with CPU, Ram and free disk space (or lack of it).

You could also check if the beta site is running any other products that use an Interbase DB, (for version conflicts)

I don't hold out much hove of finding a magic solution. I've been forced to upgrade all my client machines to PIII/933's with 128MbRAM, run NT based OS's (now Win2000, punch up the LAN to a 100Mb segment for those end users, and upgrade the 64K WAN to 1Mb.

Will the appliction run acceptably locally on the beta clients? I know it introduces complications with version control, but you may have to settle with local installs of the application but pointing to a central database repository on the server. (at least you cut out the Application load time.)

Our developer was able to make some improvements by modifying the application behaviour. Originally the App was calling for a complete copy of the database table set befor it would calculate what needed to be posted for each screen refresh. At least now it only calls the table the user is modifying (And now I'm getting out of my depth, because a code cutter I an't.

Good Luck
-Hugh

 

[dthomas731]

We have the same type of issue. We were running our app on a 98 peer-to-peer network. All clients were running and the speed was satisfactory. We purchased and installed 2k Server and replaced 3 workstations with new ones running XP Pro and replaced our 10mb hub with a 10/100 switch.

The situation we have now is that the XP Pro workstations run the app from the 2k Server with awesome speed and performance. ALL of our 98 workstations are painstakingly slow now. It takes over 3 minutes just to open the application. The same workstations took less than 5 seconds when the app was running from a 98 box at 10mb ???

We are currently talking with our software vendor trying to locate the source of the issue.

If anyone comes up with anything, please post it here and I'll do the same if we get anywhere with our vendor.