Slow down CPU to simulate slower computers in browser testing

performance testing virtualization
Bernard Chen picture Bernard Chen · Jan 12, 2011 · Viewed 16.5k times · Source

I'm trying to see how our web pages behave on an average customer's computer. We have not yet pinned down this configuration, but it's likely to be slower than what our developers and testers will have.

I've seen answers to similar questions that suggest throttling bandwidth and using a VM where the memory has been limited, but do I also need to slow down the CPU? I am under the impression that the CPU will run fairly close to full speed, even in a VM. Are there virtual machine platforms that allow you to limit the CPU cycles? I saw one suggestion to run something like Folding @ Home, but I would welcome other suggestions to throttle the CPU speed.

I've seen this question: How to Slow down the browser, and others that talk about limiting bandwidth.

Edit: I suppose I need to be concerned about how many cores/processors are available to the VM as well. Do most VM platforms give you the option of limiting this?

Answer

CatalinBerta picture CatalinBerta · Feb 5, 2015

This is a fast solution, but not very accurate when it comes to end-user specs, but it helps a lot to test things on slower systems:

Go to Power Options -> Create a power plan -> Change advanced power settings and set CPU Maximum Rate to 5% or how much you need.

This usually helps test browser apps on slower configs.

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