Setting Up Dp 4.6 Options

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Hi Everybody who knows more than me, and that is EVERYBODY.

Here is my set up,

Hardware:- Mac G4 DP 1.42Ghz FW800, 2 Gb Ram, dual HD 120 Gb, MOTO 2408MkII (423?), Spirit digital 328 mixer + loads of various outboard efx.

Software:- DP 4.6 ( Just had licence transferred so can now install) OS X 10.4.9

I will have this machine for music only, no other apps to be installed.

Question is:- What can I strip the OS down to so as to free up CPU from tiresome not needed rubbish?

I am assuming that I can leave out printers, languages (except English), but can I get rid of Mail, Safari, Dashboard, screensavers and other such things and if so, How?

Also is there any thing else I can take out that is not needed to free up the CPU and memory?

Thank you in advance

[lepetitmartien]

Sure, not installing the printers or langage will save quite some estate (more than a GB)

To trash apps will only give you troubles when some updates/security patches from Apple will come in later. What you really need to cut down are services running in the background. A short list of things to do:

- in system preferences:
-- set cpu energy saving to max performances
-- NO networking (i.e. no set up and nothing plugged in the ethernet connectors too)
-- reduce colors on the monitor to thousands
-- reduce the dock as much as possible, hide it, the magnification Off, disable any animation
-- do not activate the firewall (you don't need it while unetworked)
-- save if your using searches all the time, you can tell Spotlight to sleep.
-- do not activate classic
-- tell the hours not to be set thru the network (it can't)

- with OnyX
-- disable Dashboard

- Have journalling On on the system drive, not the audio drive(s)
- Use a small first partition (3GB is way enough) on one of the drives for the swap, you can easilly tell OS X where to put the virtual memory with the excellent Xupport (there's a fully usable demo). Do not use a drive that will host samples or audio files.

I may be forgetting something… but there's already tings to do…

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Sure, not installing the printers or langage will save quite some estate (more than a GB)

To trash apps will only give you troubles when some updates/security patches from Apple will come in later. What you really need to cut down are services running in the background. A short list of things to do:

- in system preferences:
-- set cpu energy saving to max performances
-- NO networking (i.e. no set up and nothing plugged in the ethernet connectors too)
-- reduce colors on the monitor to thousands
-- reduce the dock as much as possible, hide it, the magnification Off, disable any animation
-- do not activate the firewall (you don't need it while unetworked)
-- save if your using searches all the time, you can tell Spotlight to sleep.
-- do not activate classic
-- tell the hours not to be set thru the network (it can't)

- with OnyX
-- disable Dashboard

- Have journalling On on the system drive, not the audio drive(s)
- Use a small first partition (3GB is way enough) on one of the drives for the swap, you can easilly tell OS X where to put the virtual memory with the excellent Xupport (there's a fully usable demo). Do not use a drive that will host samples or audio files.

I may be forgetting something… but there's already tings to do…

Hi and thank you for your time,
may I have a small bit more of it for something I do not understand.

"- Use a small first partition (3GB is way enough) on one of the drives for the swap, "

This part I am not sure what you mean ( remember, I am a tape and blade man), can this partition be on the main drive with DP4, system etc, leaveing the secondary drive for the music files. Also as a further aside to this question, can ( I have somewhere here a new Adaptec scsi card 29160N) I utilise SCSI as I have a Rorke Data bay with 2 x 18Gb drives installed for extra storage, access of files , samples etc.
Thanks
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Hi and thank you for your time,
may I have a small bit more of it for something I do not understand.

"- Use a small first partition (3GB is way enough) on one of the drives for the swap, "

What is the partition for and what is the "swap"?
This part I am not sure what you mean ( remember, I am a tape and blade man), can this partition be on the main drive with DP4, system etc, leaving the secondary drive for the music files. Also as a further aside to this question, can ( I have somewhere here a new Adaptec scsi card 29160N) I utilise SCSI as I have a Rorke Data bay with 2 x 18Gb drives installed for extra storage, access of files , samples etc.
Thanks
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[lepetitmartien]

OS X uses virtual memory to be RAM efficient, the file used by the system is called a swap file, that's all the mystery.

The size of the max swap file is proportional to your installed RAM. I don't remember the exact formula (it's on the net somewhere but right now all the google return I got were contradictory…). ONE thing is sure though, it must be bigger than your installed RAM. For example, I have 2.5 GB of RAM and a 3 GB partition for the swap files, now it's ok for me as it swells rarely over 1 GB, and even more rarely up to 2 GB? But it depends on the apps you use, and how many you launch etc.

What is a partition? When you have a large drive (meaning, all current drives now…) you can divide it into smaller parts: partitions. It's simply done into the Apple disk utility (you can access to it with the install DVD, it under the utilities menu). There, you select the physical volume (the hard drive itself) and create as many partitions as needed (or keep only one, you decide), resize them (do not do all that if there's data on the drive!!!!), name them.

If you plan a separated partition for the swap file, it must be the first one created (top of the utility), for its size, ar least 3-5 GB sometimes more (I gave you my experience, it can be different). then it depends on how many drives you have. In your case, there's 2 drives, one will host 2 partitions (swap and system/apps/etc) and the second all the audio files.

As you have a SCSI chain, you can use it for back up while working and samples. Note that the SCSI, under RAID 0 may be faster than the IDE drive so it could be better used this way. Now, you can instal up to 4 drives in your G4, so you can think about adding to the system as cash allows 2 other drives and hav back ups, an internal RAID… it's up to you.

Nothing is set in stone. The separate swap partition is not mandatory but it keeps things clean and convenient, you can reformat easily the swap partition if you want (the partition, not the drive!) or even if there's a third drive inside move it there. Also, the swap will not interfere into the system partition usage as nothing save the swap files will be on this partition. The more you separate the different drive uses amongst different drives, the more you add little bits going faster. Now the best improvement will anyway to have the audio and samples on their respective drives.

To sum up:
- think about what will goes where (swap, system/apps, samples, audio)
- separate drive uses as much as possible
- use the fastest for 1/audio 2/ samples 3/swap
- think beforehand of your back up strategy while working and for archiving. Especially if you use a RAID 0 somewhere.

[Kwasi]

Hey Lepetitmartien,
You just answered three or four questions I didn't even know I had. Legend!

[lepetitmartien]

Fortunately I know I don't know everything and sometimes I'm even plainly wrong (and very happy to know about it). Glad to have been of use

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Thanks Lepetitmartien, I think I have got it, if not I will ask ,rather than gnash teeth and rend garments.
Thank you
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