On Wed, 2006-03-01 at 19:18, Chris Mason (Lists) wrote:
Sudev Barar wrote:
No load average is not just CPU but reflects all parameters. For pure CPU usage system monitor or similar tool will give better understanding. Also the processes (or dameons) running will really determine the expected load average. But as some else said for genera usage 2~3 times x number of processors is a thumb rule guide. --
I don't think so. I believe, but could be wrong, that load average is the number of processes waiting to execute. Nothing else. However, I reserve the right to be wrong.
It is supposed to be the number of runnable processes (i.e. not waiting on i/o completion) so 1 per processor is busy, higher means something is waiting for CPU. Most programs other than graphics and number-crunching tend to wait more for i/o than CPU, so a load average of 2-3 (x processors) may not reflect noticeable delays.