>>>>> "Ariel" == Ariel Faigon <ariel@oz.engr.sgi.com> writes:
Ariel> [I'm forwarding a message that bounced. Just thought some
Ariel> people may be interested. To add to what Eric wrote,
Ariel> another thing that I find strange is that they are
Ariel> comparing NT 3.5 rather than the latest NT 4.x to Linux. I
Ariel> also believe some of the results are missing crucial
Ariel> details, like how the two very different web servers were
Ariel> configured (e.g. standalone vs from inetd, ssi turned on
Ariel> etc.) who paid for the report, full disclosures... --
Ariel> Ariel]
>From http://www.mindcraft.com/whitepapers/nts4rhlinux.html
[About 3/4th way down the report]
Mindcraft, Inc. conducted the performance tests described in this
report between March 10 and March 13, 1999. Microsoft Corporation
sponsored the testing reported herein.
[Lookee who paid for it! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^]
Mindcraft certifies that the results reported accurately represent the
file-server performance of Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0 and Red Hat
Linux 5.2 upgraded to the Linux 2.2.2 kernel with Samba 2.0.1 running
on a Dell PowerEdge 6300/400 as measured by NetBench 5.01. Also, we
certify that the Web-server performance reported for Windows NT Server
4.0 with IIS 4 and for Red Hat Linux 5.2 upgraded to the Linux 2.2.2
kernel with Apache 1.3.4 accurately represent the WebBench 2.0
measurements we made on a Dell PowerEdge 6300/400.
Our test results should be reproducible by others using the same test
lab configuration, the same Dell computer, and the software
configurations and modifications documented in this report.
[End snippet]
Ariel> April 14, 1999 : :Hi All, : :As most of you know, when some
Ariel> important news hits the :wires we will inform you
Ariel> immediately. This morning I :found something in my in-box
Ariel> that will definitely throw :some more gasoline on the
Ariel> raging 'NT vs Linux' fire. : :I quickly read through the
Ariel> report and could not find :anything wrong with it at first
Ariel> observation. The numbers :seem to be correct, as they are
Ariel> using an industry standard :benchmark that I have used
Ariel> myself as well, the ZD bench. : :Oh, before I forget,
Ariel> Novell actually wrote a rebuttal :against that last report
Ariel> that SMS is better than ZEN. :Interesting reading, and
Ariel> this gives the Novell POV:
Ariel> :http://www.novell.com/products/nds/zenworks/ms2.html :
Ariel> :But here comes today's bomb in the NT vs Linux battle.
Ariel> :One wonders who pays for these tests but I will ask the
Ariel> :CEO of MindCraft and report on that in the next coming
Ariel> :newsletter. Here goes! : : :LOS GATOS, Calif., April
Ariel> 13. Today, Mindcraft released the results :of a study
Ariel> comparing the performance of Red Hat Linux 5.2 (updated :to
Ariel> the Linux 2.2.2 kernel) and Microsoft Windows NT Server 4.0
Ariel> :operating systems. According to the report, Windows NT
Ariel> Server :provides over three and a half times the
Ariel> performance of Linux as a :Web server. Furthermore, the
Ariel> report shows that when testing Windows :NT Server and Linux
Ariel> as file servers, Windows NT Server provides over :two and a
Ariel> half times the performance of Linux. The full report,
Ariel> :including all of the details needed to reproduce the
Ariel> tests, is on :Mindcraft's Web site at: :
Ariel> :http://www.mindcraft.com/whitepapers/nts4rhlinux.html. :
Ariel> :Using benchmarks from Ziff-Davis Benchmark Operation
Ariel> (ZDBOp), the :report compares the peak performance levels
Ariel> of both Windows NT :Server and Linux configured both as a
Ariel> file server and a Web server. : :All tests were performed
Ariel> on a standard Dell PowerEdge 6300/400 server :with four
Ariel> 400-MHz Xeon CPUs, 1GB RAM (960MB for Linux -- this is the
Ariel> :default maximum amount of RAM that Linux supports). To
Ariel> simulate a :client load, Mindcraft used 144 physical client
Ariel> test systems; half :were running Windows 95 and the other
Ariel> half were running Windows 98. : :Both Linux and Windows NT
Ariel> Server were tuned to perform optimally under :each of the
Ariel> two workloads. "We started the tests using standard Red
Ariel> Hat :Linux 5.2 but had to update it because it does not
Ariel> support hardware RAID :controllers and SMP at the same
Ariel> time," said Mindcraft's president, Bruce :Weiner. "Linux
Ariel> definitely takes more time and resources to tune and to
Ariel> :configure than Windows NT Server. You have to search the
Ariel> Net to find the :latest kernel and driver versions to get
Ariel> the highest performance and most :reliable modules. Then
Ariel> when you're done, Linux fails to deliver the same :level of
Ariel> performance as Windows NT Server on enterprise-class
Ariel> servers." : :Mindcraft's report shows that using ZDBOp's
Ariel> WebBench 2.0 Web server :benchmark, Windows NT Server and
Ariel> Internet Information Server (IIS) 4.0 :reach a peak of
Ariel> 3,771 requests/second and 22.4 Megabits/second(Mbps) of
Ariel> :throughput. The report goes on to show that Linux and the
Ariel> Apache 1.3.4 :Web server reach a peak of 1,000
Ariel> request/second and 5.9 Mbps of :throughput. The WebBench
Ariel> 2.0 tests also revealed that there are problems :with
Ariel> Linux/Apache at high client loads. "The Linux/Apache Web
Ariel> server :performance collapsed with a WebBench load above
Ariel> 160 client test threads, :while Windows NT Server/IIS
Ariel> continued to increase performance up through :288 client
Ariel> test threads without reaching their peak performance," adds
Ariel> :Mindcraft's Bruce Weiner. : :To simulate a file server
Ariel> workload, Mindcraft used ZDBOp's NetBench :5.01 benchmark.
Ariel> The testing revealed that Windows NT Server performance
Ariel> :peaked at 286.7 Mbps with 112 clients, while Linux running
Ariel> Samba 2.0.1 :peaked at 114.6 Mbps with only 48 clients.
Ariel> "The integration of the SMB :file sharing protocol with the
Ariel> multi-processor kernel is a key performance :win for
Ariel> Windows NT Server," said Weiner. "Customers benefit every
Ariel> day from :the superior scalability of Windows NT Server,
Ariel> which delivers vital file :and web services at two to three
Ariel> times the performance of Linux as shown :in these
Ariel> benchmarks," said Edmund Muth, Group Product Manager,
Ariel> Microsoft :Corporation. "Empirical data like this helps
Ariel> customers and planners make :informed decisions, and
Ariel> showcases the industrial strength technology and :mature
Ariel> engineering of the Windows NT Server operating system." :
Ariel> :About Mindcraft : :Mindcraft is a service-oriented,
Ariel> independent test lab. The company was :founded in 1985 to
Ariel> provide high quality services and products to vendors :and
Ariel> end users who want to test software, system, and network
Ariel> products. :Mindcraft is committed to work to promote
Ariel> standards in our industry. :Mindcraft is the only test lab
Ariel> to be a member of the Standard Performance :Evaluation
Ariel> Corporation (SPEC).
Ariel> :-------------------------------------- : :That's all for
Ariel> this NewsFlash! : :Warm regards, : :Stu : : :[eak@sgi.com]
Ariel> This is a posting from the :nt-list, To unsubscribe, send a
Ariel> blank email :to
Ariel> leave-nt-list-265937F@lyris.sunbelt-software.com :For
Ariel> killer servers at unbelievable prices check out:
Ariel> :http://www.dell.com/outlet/sunbelt.htm : :
Ariel> -- Peace, Ariel
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