Well, since plagiary is the sincerest form of flattery, I have taken the liberty of plagiarizing a post from the DUmp by EvolveOrConvolve in the Lounge that Alfredo was kind enough to post on their latest folding thread. (Of course, under Senator Joe Biden's rules, I have changed just enough of the text to make it apply to FReepers instead of DUmmies) Be warned that I haven't tested all of the instructions yet!
Installation tutorial for Window's users
These instructions pertain to using the graphical client for Windows.
1) Download the client software. Here's a link to the download site:
http://folding.stanford.edu/download.html - on the download page under the section "Please download one of the clients listed below", find the proper link (either the WinXP/2000 or Win98/ME downloads)
- click the download button and save the file to the local computer (so that it can reinstalled if needed)
2) Browse to the file that was just downloaded, and open it up to start the installation process.
3) On the 'User Information' step of the install process, enter the username which will identify you on the F@H list. The username can be pretty much anything, and can even be your FReeper name. On the download page (link above) there is a username check utility that allows you to check to see if a username is available.
4) Follow the instructions to complete the installation.
5) At the end of the installation process, make sure that the 'Run the Installed Application' box is checked.
6) The Folding@Home Control Panel is the first Window to pop up after installation (unless the View Readme box was also checked). On the Control Panel:
- make sure that your username is correct
- enter in 36120 for the team number
- on the Advanced tab, there are several options that a user might want to check:
a) Check the Pause work... box when installed on a laptop so that it stops processing when the laptop is on battery power.
b) Set the CPU usage Percent value to a lower value so that less strain is put on the CPU. (I leave it at 100%)
7) The F@H client should be set automatically to run at startup. To check if it is, click Start->Programs->Startup and look for the Folding@Home entry.
8) Some considerations:
- F@H uses OpenGL, which only allows one application to use it at any given time. That means that any games or applications that also use OpenGL will not work when F@H is running. To stop the F@H process, find the F@H icon in the system tray (next to the clock on the taskbar). The icon looks like a red cogwheel (I guess). Right click the icon to open the context menu. The context menu will allow you to open the Control Panel, pause F@H processing, or close the F@H process completely. To run another application that uses OpenGL, you have to select Quit. (Note: pausing F@H does NOT allow you to run another OpenGL app). If you quit F@H, make sure that you start the process back up when you're done with your gaming. To do so, click Start->Programs->Folding@Home->Folding@Home 5.xx.
- Because the F@H client is CPU intensive, make sure that your computer is clean and well ventilated. All intake holes should be clear of dust, and open to the air (not pressed up against a wall or desk). Give your CPU a rest at least once a day by pausing the F@H client for about 15 minutes. This allows any excess heat to be dispersed.
- After installation, the F@H client is pretty much independent. It will download and work on Work Units (WUs) by itself. You can check the progress (and see a pretty image) by double clicking on the F@H icon in the system tray. To view your overall progress, the FReeper team list is here:
http://vspx27.stanford.edu/cgi-bin/main.py?qtype=teampage&teamnum=36120 - I've noticed that sometimes the F@H icon doesn't appear in the system tray. This only has happened to me on a Windows XP Professional machine after it restarts. To get the F@H icon back, you have to stop the processes manually. To do this:
a) Right click on the taskbar and select Task Manager.
b) On the Task Manager screen, select the Processes tab.
c) There are two processes that need to end. One is the FahCore_78.exe process, the other is the winFAH.exe process. I believe that you have to stop the winFAH process first.
d) WARNING: stopping other processes can adversely affect your machine, and might require you to restart your computer. Only end the F@H processes. If you do end other processes, and your computer starts acting funny, don't say you weren't warned!
- Other useful links:
The Freeper extremeoverclocking.com page:
http://folding.extremeoverclocking.com/team_summary.php?s=&t=36120 The DU extremeoverclocking.com page:
http://folding.extremeoverclocking.com/team_summary.php?s=&t=48157 F@H extremeoverclocking.com home page:
http://folding.extremeoverclocking.com The F@H FAQ:
http://folding.stanford.edu/faq.html Configuration FAQ:
http://folding.stanford.edu/FAQ-settings.html A Folding@Home Wiki FAQ:
http://fahwiki.net/index.php?title=FAQ
I figure stealing this post was an even exchange, since Klutz gave away all our secrets, (
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1569337/posts?q=1&&page=201#204) once they found out about how we have gamed the system and are stealing their WU's :....8^)