4_Speed v1.0: Hard drive Data Transfer
Rate Test utility. Gives you a real time
look in a graphics screen format of your
drive's DTR. Save results to logs and PCX
files. Show results from multiple drive
tests. High resolution timer for accurate
averages. Works on both Primary and
Secondary Port Addresses thru DOS.
Req: 286+CPU,VGA. Dustbowl Designs, Inc.
(Date 8/20/93) -AV

Released August 20th, 1993

4_Speed v1.0 Dos Data Transfer Rate Test
and Graph Utility
Dustbowl Designs, Inc.
"Dedicated to enhancing the 150 MB
world's personal computers."
(405) 741-4705 Voice
(405) 741-2721 BBS Drive C:

Copyright 1993 by Dustbowl Designs, Inc. All rights reserved.
12600 S.E. 38th Street, Choctaw, Oklahoma USA 73020-6107

Go! Drive Passes Comment Scatter Log Analyze View Help Quit

You are free to copy this software and distribute it to other users as
long as the archive file is distributed in its entirety with this text
file included in the archive.


Introduction


We've decided to release to the public a handy in-house Data Transfer
Rate Test utility as freeware. In order to test our own development
changes we found that the selection of benchmarking software available
for hard disk drives to be rich in variety.... almost too rich.
According to most of the magazine comparison benchmarking tests,
sophisticated models are developed that take a long time to run and
are almost to complex for most of us to understand when they are even
explained. What we wanted was a test that was quick, accurate, read
only, graphic based with print and screen save capability and - most
important - gave us a SINGLE number result. This is what 4_Speed does.
We hope you like it.

What's particularly useful about this Data Transfer Rate Test is that
you may talk to drives that are attached to either the Primary or
Secondary Port Addresses. This ability dovetails nicely with our
3_Drives, 4_Drives and DiskQwik shareware utilities.

Plans for 4_Speed include: a full path option when saving PCX files
and Logs; a mode change option between the current Int25 to Int13 and
direct Port Address; a "multiple sector block transfer mode"
evaluation for IDE drives to determine optimum sector per interrupt
(see our DiskQwik utility if this sounds interesting); and a little
utility to change the PCX file background to white to make printing
files easier..


Menu Options

Go! Drive Passes Comment Scatter Log Analyze View Help Quit

Go! - Starts the test. Default is C: unless it is changed.

Drive - This will display a selection of the available drive
letters in your system. Select as many as you like.
Watch out testing the transfer rate of the floppies
since it can take several minutes time.

Passes - The number of times (from 1 to 9) to test each block
size. This value remains in effect until it is changed
again. The default start up value is 5 passes.

Comment - This selection allows the placement of a 50 character
comment to be associated with the drive being tested. Be
sure to use this because after a while its hard to tell
between tests.

Scatter - You have to look closely at the screen to see the Scatter
usually. A single pixel is lit up that shows the
results from each of the passes.

Log - This is optional and will ask for the name of the file
you want and saves the test data in simple ASCII text
to that file.

Analyze - Using data you might have saved to one of the log files,
you can graph the results of tests together. This is
very useful when you need to reboot the computer between
tests.

View - One of the options at the end of a test run is to save
the graphics screen to a PCX file. This View selection
allows you to look at them. Lots of programs have the
ability to display and print PCX files (Windows
Paintbrush for example).

Help - Not a lot of info here, mainly the Command line options
are described. Also, the formula for calculating the
Average transfer rate on the test is shown.

Quit - Exit to DOS. Pressing the Escape key does the same thing.


Command Line Switches


(... no command line = Manual interactive mode)

4_Speed /[drive letter][Passes]:[Comment (NO spaces!)]

example: 4_Speed /c9:MD-123_with_cache /e3:no_cache

= C: drive to test, with 9 calibration passes, and the
comment "MD-123_with_cache" AND E: drive, with 3
calibration passes and the comment "no_cache"

other:
+ a plus sign on the command line separated by spaces will
cause 4_Speed to run in a non-stop mode and exit to DOS
after running which is handy for batch file exercisers.

Y a Y letter on the command line separated by spaces will
automatically save the test results to a default ASCII log
named 4_speed.log.


Outline


The method that 4_Speed uses is very simple and straight forward.
Using Interrupt 25 (absolute logical sector read within DOS prepared
volumes), we read in a block of sectors which increases in size, until
it reaches DOS's block request limit of 127 sectors (1 segment). Every
start of the block read begins at logical sector 0 (which is the
location of that volume's DOS Volume Boot Record). Each increment is
tested as many times as set in the Passes variable.

The test looks like this:
1 -
2 --
3 ---
4 ----
5 ----- and so on to 127.

Since we are reading the same data over again, you will need to remove
any drive caching software from memory, or else you end up really
testing the speed of the system RAM, unless you want to make test
comparisons between various caching programs.

Today's newer drives use very sophisticated RAM buffers of their own.
Some are simple Read Look Ahead, while others are Read/Write
multi-Segmented Adaptive. Some are small and others nearly a megabyte
in size on the drive! The graph will often reflect the kind of
caching algorithms used by the drive or controller manufacturer.

4_Speed does a pretty good job of testing RAM speeds if you set up a
virtual drive with RAMDISK.SYS. Keeping a log of test results on the
Ram Drive and experimenting with various system setup options can
yield some interesting results to analyze.

A word about our "Average"...

At the conclusion of a test, you will see a single number which is
placed in front of the comment. This value is an Average Data
Transfer Rate. Although there are several methods available to
calculate an average Data Transfer Rate, each with its own valid
arguments, we chose a Linear Regression method and use its "line of
best fit" to calculate a midway point. This assumes that any point on
the resulting line has equal weight. Clearly, there must be a
distribution of use that can be measured that would show a system's
actual pattern of use.


Legal Disclaimer

LICENSE AGREEMENT

3_Drives, 4_Drives, DiskQwik, 4_Drive Utilities, 4_Speed All versions.

Dustbowl Designs, Inc. provides the accompanying object code software
("Software") and nonexclusively licenses its use on the following
terms and conditions. The Software is copyrighted by Dustbowl Designs,
Inc. with all rights reserved. YOU ASSUME FULL RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE
SELECTION OF THE SOFTWARE TO ACHIEVE YOUR INTENDED PURPOSES, FOR THE
PROPER INSTALLATION AND USE. Dustbowl Designs, Inc. DOES NOT WARRANT
THAT THE SOFTWARE WILL MEET YOUR REQUIREMENTS, THAT THE SOFTWARE IS
FIT FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR THAT THE USE OF THE SOFTWARE WILL BE
ERROR FREE. Dustbowl Designs, Inc. EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ALL WARRANTIES,
WHETHER ORAL OR WRITTEN, EXPRESSED OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING WITHOUT
LIMITATION WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE. IN NO EVENT WILL Dustbowl Designs, Inc. BE LIABLE TO YOU,
YOUR CUSTOMERS OR OTHER USERS FOR ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL,
CONSEQUENTIAL, SPECIAL OR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR IN
CONNECTION WITH THE USE OR INABILITY TO USE THE SOFTWARE.

DiskQwik is a trademark of Dustbowl Designs, Inc. The DiskQwik
software and documentation are Copyright 1993 by Dustbowl Designs with
all rights reserved. The Registered of 3_Drives, 4_Drives, and
DiskQwik software programs ARE NOT shareware or freeware and
unauthorized redistribution is STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

End of License agreement.
*****************************************************************


Revision History


v1.0 08/93 - public release of Shareware 4_Speed v1.0.

Contents of the 4_Speed Distribution Set. 4SPD100.ZIP
(4SPD.ZIP on CompuServe (tm) go IBMHW forum Lib 1)

4_SPEED.EXE A VGA graphics based Data Transfer Rate Test utility.
(Compiled 8-20-93 1:00 am). Freeware.
4_SPEED.DOC Auxiliary documentation.
DBOWLDEM.EXE Simple demo that gives a look at registered
4_Drives v3.0 and 4_Park v1.1, and our new DiskQwik
programs.
VENDOR4.DOC Shareware vendor distribution policy

========================


4_Drives and 3_Drives
From the The Universal device driver that lets you add
makers of: an additional 16-bit interface to your system.
Add up to two more MFM, RLL, ESDI, or AT/IDE
Hard Disk Drives to a Secondary Port Address!
Fast Disk I/O options registered versions.

DiskQwik
A utility that maximizes the speed potential
of AT/IDE hard disk drives. Many newer IDE
drives often have an untapped feature called
"Multiple Sectors per Interrupt". By activating
this, you can increase the data transfer rate
of your hard drive by up to 50% ....
State of the Art!


Shareware versions of these programs are available at all better
BBS's! If you can't find a copy locally, feel free to call our BBS.

Dustbowl Designs, Inc. |
12600 S.E. 38th Street |
Choctaw, Oklahoma 73020-6107 |
U.S.A. | CIS: 71062,2542

phone:
(405) 741-4705 ordering, tech support, general information
(405) 741-2721 BBS (9600 HST/v.everything) Tech Support, Hard disk
drive shareware, drive specs, Online Shareware
Registration/Download for VISA or MasterCard orders!

-= EOF 4_SPEED.DOC =-