Help improving performance

[bryandoyle]

I have 2 HD Primes using Xfinity cable cards and an Apple Mini M1 dedicated as the server. I am now starting to experience slow downs, long times to start new play back of recorded shows. It occurs when recording more than a couple of programs at once and trying to watch a recording (client is newest Apple TV). It is worse when detecting commercials and regenerating, etc.

I have restarted the server, Mac min, etc.

I am using latest stable release.

Any ideas on how to optimize settings, etc.?

This is a more recent issues and I did not have these slowness issues in the past.

[racameron]

Where are you storing the recordings? This sounds like a disk IO/bandwidth issue.

[bryandoyle]

I have a western digital 5G drive connected via usb-c port on the Mac mini.

[bryandoyle]

Processing a recording and regenerating index are both running now with 3 recordings….running slow to start watching a new show.

[bryandoyle]

My drive is hdd. Perhaps I need external SSD drive?

[tmm1]

Check the Activity Monitor on your Mac and look under CPU, RAM, and DISK to see what's being used the most.

You don't need an SSD for good performance. Something else is going on.

What file system is your drive formatted with

[hancox]

Removing the DVR directory from spotlight search helped my Mac tremendously when i saw similar. Spotlight was constantly wasting IO.

[bryandoyle]

I turned spotlight off.

My disk format is Mac OS extended journaled

Comskip is using 127% of CPU

Detecting commercials runs a long time I have 3 threads for com detection.

[hancox]

Looks like something is wrong there. How long has that scan been running?

I have my M1 at the 7 core max, and it takes 15 mins to do a 2 hour hallmark movie, for example, on a 4TB USB (exFAT):

2022/01/14 19:01:01.019063 [DVR] Running commercial detection on file 3387 (Movies/Candles on Bay Street (2006) 2022-01-14-1659.mpg)
2022/01/14 19:15:23.260155 [DVR] Commercial detection for Candles on Bay Street (2006) 2022-01-14-1659.mpg finished with 20 markers in 14m22.290622833s.

[bryandoyle]

@hancox

Removing the DVR directory from spotlight search helped my Mac tremendously when i saw similar. Spotlight was constantly wasting IO.

Thanks for the help here…..exactly how did you remove DVR directory from spotlight? I want to make sure I did this correctly.

[hancox]

In system preferences --> spotlight, you need to tap on privacy, and select where your DVR dir is.

I suggested to the devs that this setting might be a suggestion for all, but never got a response.

[bryandoyle]

Made this spotlight change also. Maybe I am maxing out the DVR with 5 concurrent recordings (as a test). And doing commercial detect. But with this going on the playback of other recordings and skip ahead is VERY slow.

My disk is formatted Mac OS extended (journaled). Is this correct?

It does seem to be on I/o issue. I am Mac mini M1 with 8 cores.

Any other ideas?

[bryandoyle]

[hancox]

I'd start by turning off your import scan. It's optional and can't be helping.

Ah - i just noticed now that your drive is only 5GB - is it USB2, and not USB3? That would explain it being very slow.

[bryandoyle]

Thanks for all the help. My drive is usb 3.0. See below for specs. Where do I turn off import scan? I am looking in settings and cannot find it.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/wd-easystore-5tb-external-usb-3-0-portable-hard-drive-black/6406512.p?skuId=6406512

[hancox]

in " Local Content" there should be some directories set up there. Maybe you have a circular reference?

[bryandoyle]

I have some other content on the same drive as my DVR....is this what you mean by circular reference? I do have another usb drive that I can use for local content.....sounds like I should move it do this other drive?

[hancox]

I would keep your scan directories as narrow as possible. By “circular “ I mean something being scanned for import and being written to by the DVR.

For now, honestly, I would disable the local importing to troubleshoot.

[chDVRuser]

@bryandoyle

Comskip is using 127% of CPU

Detecting commercials runs a long time I have 3 threads for com detection.

Are you sure you have comskip set to use only 3 threads?
Reason I ask is your performance monitor shows it taking 8 threads.
What does it look like on the DVR web UI for # of threads?

I found if you use the comskip API to set it, it may not appear on the web UI.
I think the web UI only displays 1 to (#cores -1). On my quad core NAS it shows 1, 2 and 3.
With my quad core NAS setting it to 4 via the comskip API doesn't display in the web UI.

You can check a recent comskip log file to see what setting it used.

[bryandoyle]

I am having a buffer issue. Any ideas.....I don't see anything in activity monitor.