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Re: st: Stata/SE vs. Stata/MP


From   [email protected] (Alan Riley)
To   [email protected]
Subject   Re: st: Stata/SE vs. Stata/MP
Date   Tue, 11 Apr 2006 15:03:03 -0500

Friedrich Huebler ([email protected]) asked about the difference
in performance for Stata/MP on a dual processor computer vs. a dual
core computer:
> Suppose I have a computer with an Intel dual-core processor. How much
> faster is Stata/MP on such a computer compared to Stata/SE? StataCorp
> states on its website and in the Stata/MP Performance Report
> (http://stata.com/statamp/report.pdf) that Stata/MP runs 1.4 times
> faster on two processors. Does this imply that the speed of Stata/SE
> on a dual-core system is the same as on a single-processor system?

A core is the computation engine of a CPU/processor, which is the main
processing chip in a computer.  Until recently, CPUs had only a
single computation engine, or core.  Now, however, CPUs are available
with more than one computation engine (core) on a single chip.  Each
of these cores are as capable as a single processor (given equivalent
chip architecture and clock speed).

For the purposes of Stata/MP and Stata/SE, you can think of a computer
with a single dual core processor in the same way as a computer with
dual single core processors.  Stata/SE will use only one core at a time,
whether that core is one of two or more cores on a single processor,
or the single core of a non-multicore processor.  Stata/MP can use
both cores, or both processors, on such computers.

Holding everything else equal (memory, processor clock speed, bus
speed, hard drive speed), Stata/MP on a dual processor computer
will perform the same as Stata/MP on a dual core computer.

Likewise, Stata/SE will perform the same on a dual processor
computer (using only one processor since Stata/SE is a single-threaded
application) as on a computer with a single dual core processor (using
only one core of the processor).


Alan
([email protected])
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