Slow Servers Should Be Fixed Within Weeks

E-mail is supposed to be immediate, but lately Harvard servers seem to be slower than the postal service.

A solution is in the works.

Within several weeks, the staff of Harvard Arts and Sciences Computer Services (HASCS) should have installed new equipment to handle the increased load on the server.

"We believe we know the problem," said Franklin M. Steen, director of Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) computer services. "And we believe we know the answer."

According to Steen, the problem is the result of two bottlenecks in the current system set-up. The first results from slow communication between the network and the storage system, and the second is due to uneven distribution of workload.

Rick Osterberg '96, database applications specialist of FAS computer services, confirms that the problem has recently intensified.

"We are aware of the slowdowns that users have been noticing over the past several weeks," Osterberg wrote in an e-mail message. " The fundamental technical issue is that we don't have enough capacity in the storage system."

HASCS is constantly expanding, increasing the speed and size of its services.

However, lately there has been a general increase in the use of e-mail, according to Steen--and the pattern of student use can be especially burdensome.

The HASCS staff has been getting a lot of complaints, according to Eddie Huang '03, a user assistant at the Science Center help desk.

But the reasons for the server's sluggishness relate back to students.

Steen cited four reasons for the slowdown.

First, in the last year, not only has the volume of e-mail increased by 30 percent, but the average memory size of e-mail has doubled as people send more graphics, documents and music files over the Internet.

Another reason for the slowdown is large e-mail inboxes. Every time a person logs into the Pine mail program, his or her inbox is accessed. Bigger inboxes take longer to open and thus put more stress on the server.

When students leave their telnet windows open even when they are not using e-mail, the program automatically refreshes every five minutes. Leaving the window open is thus the same as checking e-mail every five minutes, which burdens the server.

Finally, those people who use programs like Eudora or Outlook often leave their mail on the server even after reading it. They often have inboxes with thousands of messages, again slowing access.

Access time especially suffers between 5 and 6:30 p.m., when faculty leave for the day and students check e-mail before dinner, Steen said. The second peak occurs around 11 p.m. and the gradually falls off at about 2 a.m. Server use increases again beginning in the morning.

Steen noted that if students kept smaller inboxes, the speed would be improved.

However, he was quick to add that HASCS "want[s] the system to accommodate users" and that it will adjust to allow large inboxes, if that is what students prefer.

Adjustment is a key component of HASCS's strategy for dealing with the stress on the server.

Facing a similar problem last year, HASCS increased the amount of space available to each student from 9 megabytes to the current 50, which has allowed students to save more on the server.

HASCS has thus been keeping tabs on the constant need for space. This year, though, "the growth curve was faster than we anticipated," Osterberg said.

Currently, HASCS is looking to some temporary solutions, including evening out the load on different servers and sometimes moving users' storage overnight to minimize disruption.

And now that HASCS has pinpointed the source of the system weakness, it can work on a more permanent solution. After a time-consuming analysis, HASCS calculated what equipment is needed and placed the order. The equipment is complex, and will take up to several weeks to arrive.

HASCS has prepared for the equipment so when it arrives, it can make the change immediately--and solve the speed problem.

"We're talking about a major upgrade," Steen said.

Of course, there are no guarantees. "You only know if it works when you see it," Steen said.

--Daniel D. Springer contributed to the reporting of this article.

According to Steen, the problem is the result of two bottlenecks in the current system set-up. The first results from slow communication between the network and the storage system, and the second is due to uneven distribution of workload.

Rick Osterberg '96, database applications specialist of FAS computer services, confirms that the problem has recently intensified.

"We are aware of the slowdowns that users have been noticing over the past several weeks," Osterberg wrote in an e-mail message. " The fundamental technical issue is that we don't have enough capacity in the storage system."

HASCS is constantly expanding, increasing the speed and size of its services.

However, lately there has been a general increase in the use of e-mail, according to Steen--and the pattern of student use can be especially burdensome.

The HASCS staff has been getting a lot of complaints, according to Eddie Huang '03, a user assistant at the Science Center help desk.

But the reasons for the server's sluggishness relate back to students.

Steen cited four reasons for the slowdown.

First, in the last year, not only has the volume of e-mail increased by 30 percent, but the average memory size of e-mail has doubled as people send more graphics, documents and music files over the Internet.

Another reason for the slowdown is large e-mail inboxes. Every time a person logs into the Pine mail program, his or her inbox is accessed. Bigger inboxes take longer to open and thus put more stress on the server.

When students leave their telnet windows open even when they are not using e-mail, the program automatically refreshes every five minutes. Leaving the window open is thus the same as checking e-mail every five minutes, which burdens the server.

Finally, those people who use programs like Eudora or Outlook often leave their mail on the server even after reading it. They often have inboxes with thousands of messages, again slowing access.

Access time especially suffers between 5 and 6:30 p.m., when faculty leave for the day and students check e-mail before dinner, Steen said. The second peak occurs around 11 p.m. and the gradually falls off at about 2 a.m. Server use increases again beginning in the morning.

Steen noted that if students kept smaller inboxes, the speed would be improved.

However, he was quick to add that HASCS "want[s] the system to accommodate users" and that it will adjust to allow large inboxes, if that is what students prefer.

Adjustment is a key component of HASCS's strategy for dealing with the stress on the server.

Facing a similar problem last year, HASCS increased the amount of space available to each student from 9 megabytes to the current 50, which has allowed students to save more on the server.

HASCS has thus been keeping tabs on the constant need for space. This year, though, "the growth curve was faster than we anticipated," Osterberg said.

Currently, HASCS is looking to some temporary solutions, including evening out the load on different servers and sometimes moving users' storage overnight to minimize disruption.

And now that HASCS has pinpointed the source of the system weakness, it can work on a more permanent solution. After a time-consuming analysis, HASCS calculated what equipment is needed and placed the order. The equipment is complex, and will take up to several weeks to arrive.

HASCS has prepared for the equipment so when it arrives, it can make the change immediately--and solve the speed problem.

"We're talking about a major upgrade," Steen said.

Of course, there are no guarantees. "You only know if it works when you see it," Steen said.

--Daniel D. Springer contributed to the reporting of this article.

But the reasons for the server's sluggishness relate back to students.

Steen cited four reasons for the slowdown.

First, in the last year, not only has the volume of e-mail increased by 30 percent, but the average memory size of e-mail has doubled as people send more graphics, documents and music files over the Internet.

Another reason for the slowdown is large e-mail inboxes. Every time a person logs into the Pine mail program, his or her inbox is accessed. Bigger inboxes take longer to open and thus put more stress on the server.

When students leave their telnet windows open even when they are not using e-mail, the program automatically refreshes every five minutes. Leaving the window open is thus the same as checking e-mail every five minutes, which burdens the server.

Finally, those people who use programs like Eudora or Outlook often leave their mail on the server even after reading it. They often have inboxes with thousands of messages, again slowing access.

Access time especially suffers between 5 and 6:30 p.m., when faculty leave for the day and students check e-mail before dinner, Steen said. The second peak occurs around 11 p.m. and the gradually falls off at about 2 a.m. Server use increases again beginning in the morning.

Steen noted that if students kept smaller inboxes, the speed would be improved.

However, he was quick to add that HASCS "want[s] the system to accommodate users" and that it will adjust to allow large inboxes, if that is what students prefer.

Adjustment is a key component of HASCS's strategy for dealing with the stress on the server.

Facing a similar problem last year, HASCS increased the amount of space available to each student from 9 megabytes to the current 50, which has allowed students to save more on the server.

HASCS has thus been keeping tabs on the constant need for space. This year, though, "the growth curve was faster than we anticipated," Osterberg said.

Currently, HASCS is looking to some temporary solutions, including evening out the load on different servers and sometimes moving users' storage overnight to minimize disruption.

And now that HASCS has pinpointed the source of the system weakness, it can work on a more permanent solution. After a time-consuming analysis, HASCS calculated what equipment is needed and placed the order. The equipment is complex, and will take up to several weeks to arrive.

HASCS has prepared for the equipment so when it arrives, it can make the change immediately--and solve the speed problem.

"We're talking about a major upgrade," Steen said.

Of course, there are no guarantees. "You only know if it works when you see it," Steen said.

--Daniel D. Springer contributed to the reporting of this article.