Windows 11 Throttling Host?

[louisjjames]

CURRENTLY USING:
VirtualBox 7.0.14.161095
VirtualBox Extension Pack 7.0.14
Guest OS Windows 2019 Standard
Guest Memory 32 GB / 6 CPU's
Guest Video Memory 128 MB and NOT enabled 3D Acceleration
Guest OS Device Guard Virtualization Based Security Disabled

Host OS Windows 11 Pro
Host OS Memory 64 GB / i9 Processor (24 cores)
Host OS Hyper-V Disabled (All unchecked)
Host OS Virtual Machine Platform Disabled (All unchecked)
Host OS Hypervisor Platform Disabled (Unchecked)
Host OS Device Guard Virtualization Based Security Disabled

Question: Is it possible that Windows 11 Pro, throttles the HOST and causes Guest OS to run slowly?

If I reboot the HOST OS (W11), load up programs (Outlook, browsers, etc) and launch VirtualBox and then the Guest VM, the Guest VM will load within 45 seconds. Super Fast. Mighty Quick. Very nice. I will work in the VM and then shut it down. If I restart the VM, again it boots up within 45 seconds.

HOWEVER, if I let the HOST OS sit for a period of time - say 60 minutes or so, and I go off, and the screensaver has come on, launching the same Guest VM will take 3 - 4 minutes to launch.

I will have to reboot the HOST OS before I can get back to quick start ups.

That seems to tell me that it's the HOST OS. But I'm not sure what could be causing the slow-down. Obviously the workaround is to reboot the HOST OS. But it would seem there must be some other setting?

Thank you for helping out.

Louis

[BillG]

I would change the screensaver and sleep settings of the host to "Never" and see what happens.

[louisjjames]

Thanks Bill. Already did that however.

Louis

[multiOS]

A zipped copy of the VBox.log after normal shutdown of the VM (after the slow down issue has been experienced) will probably highlight any problems. So far suggestions seem to have been made on a 'best guess' with no evidence available of what's actually happened during a VM run.

As a side question: How much "heavy lifting" does the VM actually perform on a regular basis? i.e. How much of the processing power allocated to the VM is regularly used? Over-allocation of resources (e.g. more CPUs allocated than are actually needed for a normal workload) will actually slow down VM performance. IME and from the experience of many others, best results are usually achieved by starting with 2 CPUs for a 64-bit VM and scaling up, gradually if necessary, e.g. when running software/processes which are designed to make use of multiple CPUs.

[louisjjames]

MultiOS:

A zipped copy of the VBox.log after normal shutdown of the VM (after the slow down issue has been experienced) will probably highlight any problems.

I've attached a copy of the vBox.log (Zipped) I looked through the LOG but must admit ignorance to seeing anything.

How much "heavy lifting" does the VM actually perform on a regular basis?

Actually the VM is more of a test bed then production. It does not do a lot of heavy lifting. You note about resources and you hit on something I wondered. Trying to be "cute" I raised the CPU's from 2 to 8 thinking that would help. It seemed to have the opposite effect. I've since changed it back to 2.

Thank you for your kind suggestions. I look forward to your thoughts.

Louis

VBox.zip

(48.75 KiB) Downloaded 6 times

[EmmaDonovan]

Any update?

[multiOS]

It seems that no-one has seen any major issues in the Log provided, but it does show:

00:00:08.220333 NumCPUs <integer> = 0x0000000000000008 (8)

00:00:08.220334 RamSize <integer> = 0x0000000800000000 (34 359 738 368, 32.0 GiB)

These are mathematically fine given the Host's capabilities but, if there is an apparent lag/slow down in performance then, for Test purposes I would try reducing the both allocations substantially, as a VM only needs the resources it needs to do what is required and any over-allocation will introduce the possibility of unnecessary resource management overheads. It would also useful to run a Task Manager in both the Host and Guest to monitor what resources are used by which apps/system processes.

If a VM is only intended to be used for standard 'office' activities such as word processing, spreadsheets, database management, web browsing etc., then I've never experienced the need to allocate more than 2 CPUs and 4GB RAM to achieve satisfactory performance in a Windows 11 VM, even when running multiple apps. Activities such as compiling code, manipulating images/video files etc. would, of course, demand more resources, but it is usually best to start 'low' and steadily scale up allocations only if necessary.

It would also be possible to increase VRAM allocation from 128MB to 256MB for a Windows VM; and it may also be worthwhile toggling the VM's 3D setting ON/OFF to see if there is any impact on performance.

[louisjjames]

Turns out it was/is a series of issues/workarounds that were needed. A bit strange:

No doubt, if you let the host machine sit for some time, 20, 30, 60 minutes and then true to run the guest, it will start slow the first time. But if you reboot, load up any programs you need run (outlook, browsers, excel, etc) or not, and then run the guest, it starts right up. Each and every time. Rebooting allows it to pop up within seconds.

That said, it has helped to:

1.- Disable all things Hyber-V including in the guest.
2.- Disable Virtualized Security
3.- Only use 2 CPU's
4.- Turn off 3d Acceleration
5.- Uninstalled/Reinstalled Guest Additions

In short, it works but I now typically reboot. You might want to see viewtopic.php?t=111296 for more info.

I think it's a Windows thing and specifically Windows 11 and the interaction with VirtualBox 7.x. I never remember this with 6.x

Hope this helps.

Louis