How long should I run SQLIO to get stable test result?

Setting the Number of Seconds to Run option, "sqlio -s", to get stable test result really depends on your environment. There are many factors that may impact the stability:

• Background jobs running on the operating system, like system backups, virus scanning, software auto-updates, etc.
• I/O cache mechanism in the operating system.
• Activities of the storage system, if you are testing a network storage service, or SAN (Storage Area Network) system.

If you are not able to control the stability of the environment, you can increase the Number of Seconds to Run option to be long enough to average out the instability of the environment.

1. Run the test for 10 seconds, repeat for 3 times, and record the primary test measurements:

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s10
IOs/sec:   128.10
Avg_Latency(ms): 7

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s10 
IOs/sec:   140.98
Avg_Latency(ms): 6

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s10 
IOs/sec:   149.10
Avg_Latency(ms): 6

2. Run the test for 60 seconds and repeat for 3 times:

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s60
IOs/sec:   145.34
Avg_Latency(ms): 6

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s60
IOs/sec:   119.90
Avg_Latency(ms): 7

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s60
IOs/sec:   144.50
Avg_Latency(ms): 6

3. Run the test for 300 seconds and repeat for 3 times:

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s300
IOs/sec:   153.26
Avg_Latency(ms): 5

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s300
IOs/sec:   147.86
Avg_Latency(ms): 6

C:\fyicenter\SQLIO>sqlio -LS -b16 -s300
IOs/sec:   146.17
Avg_Latency(ms): 6

As you can see, we need to run the test for 300 seconds (5 minutes) to get a stable result.

⇒ "sqlio -kR -b64" - Reading 64-KB Block Test

⇐ Tuning SQLIO for Your Environment

⇑ Tuning SQLIO for Your Environment

⇑⇑ SQLIO Disk I/O Benchmark Test Tutorials