Forum Discussion
Browser and GPU process are much higher compared to Brave
Edge Insiders,
My name is Tim Scudder and I’m a member of the Edge performance team. I wanted to provide an update on this issue: we were able to repro the problem locally, we have a fix coded, validated and are now working to get this change into our next dev drop (estimated to be 76.0.166.0).
We apologize for the inconvenience, but truly appreciate everyone’s help in isolating the problem.
NOTE: We are also aware of a https://bugs.chromium.org/p/chromium/issues/detail?id=962784 that also has CPU/battery impact that originated upstream in Chromium's codebase. This issue has been fixed upstream and we are also working to make sure the fix is in our next dev drop (again, estimated to be 76.0.166.0)
Regards,
Tim Scudder
Keep in mind: It appears that there is a discrepancy between the number reported between Windows Task Manager and the browser's Task Manager. Windows Task Manager reports the CPU use where 100% would mean that all logical CPU cores are fully loaded. (i.e. In a system with 8 logical cores, 100% would mean that all 8 are under a full load whereas a single-core load would be 12.5%.) The browser task manager reports 100% for one core worth of full load, so an 8-core load would be 800%. Something to keep in mind when making comparisons.
Are you stating that Edge Chromium uses only ONE core of ANY CPU? Where did you get it from? Also, I don't need to look at any Task Manager - when my laptop fans are sounding like turbines all the time I know Edge is idling, now uninstalled. :)
My main concern is, Edge Preview devs have an approved roadmap, which directs them to concentrate on full set feature transfer, and moving from Chrome to MS services. Which means, performance optimization issues may be very last ones on their mind right now. So no such bugs might be fixed in forceable future, thus cutting off current enthusiastic but fast shrinking testers pull. There always be some hardcore folks, knowing little about tech, but asking to add this or that classic button or check box thinking Edge team "forget" it, so targeted "web noise level" will be maintained.
tomscharbach: "We've had a dozen threads requesting that Microsoft do what it can to reduce resource use in Edge Chromium by bundling processes ..."
sambul95: "You might be interested to read this thread: Why are there multiple Chrome instances running even though I only have one window open? Its improving stability, security, and responsiveness."
I initially posted about Chromium's resource-hogging proclivities because I misunderstood the nature of Marco's initial post, which was about excessive CPU usage at rest. If I had understood his initial post, I would have gone right to testing, in order to identify, isolate and document the bug we've reported in this thread.
I'm well aware of the reasons that Chromium uses multiple processes instead of bundling, and if you read the numerous earlier threads in which the topic is mentioned, comments will point you back to 2008 technical documents in which the pros and cons were hotly debated in the early days of Chromium development for the Linux platform.
It seems to me that is a topic you should take to another thread, if you want to do so.
I agree with your observation (stated in your post above this latest edit): "This topic is dedicated to a very important bug." I agree with that, and with your advice to in a more recent thread to "stay focused". Let's not get sidetracked.
Aaron44126 Thanks, Aaron. I was able to replicate your results on a Dell XPS 8920 (i7, 4 physical cores, 8 logical processors). The Edge Chromium Task Manager showed 139.6% CPU use, while at the same moment, Windows Task Manager was showing 20.5% CPU use. I think you've confirmed that the two measure/report CPU usage on differently, and your single/multi core explanation makes sense to me.
It well may be that one CPU core power in https://superuser.com/questions/162590/setting-permanent-process-cpu-core-affinities-in-windows or Chrome https://chromium.googlesource.com/chromium/src/+/master/docs/threading_and_tasks.md is enough per Chromium process to render most webpages. It looks like Browser Task Manager is designed to reflect that as you suggested earlier. :)
sambul95 I ran the SunSpider JavaScript benchmark and here you can see an Edge process using more than 100% CPU. (At one point it spiked to over 200% but I missed grabbing a screen shot for that.)
"run with admin privileges"
You can start a new topic about Edge Chromium Roadmap, sure many folks will contribute. This topic is dedicated to a very important bug. Edge Chromium Program Manager was working for Google Chrome Security team just months ago, so you can address your concerns to the right guy if they are justified. :)
"We've had a dozen threads requesting that Microsoft do what it can to reduce resource use in Edge Chromium by bundling processes"
You might be interested to read this thread: https://superuser.com/questions/461552/why-are-there-multiple-chrome-instances-running-even-though-i-only-have-one-wind Its improving https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/windows/desktop/ProcThread/about-processes-and-threads, https://www.chromium.org/Home/chromium-security/site-isolation, and https://blog.chromium.org/2008/09/multi-process-architecture.html. While I agree OS developer company is better positioned to cut on browser resource usage, if its various teams interact properly. For that to happen, a top level MS exec must be keenly interested in Edge success, given current minuscule market share and revenue from it. Now it looks more like a prestige project, though they put 200 heads on it. Keep pushing on the right buttons. :) Or https://www.ghacks.net/2015/02/08/save-memory-in-chrome-by-using-one-process-per-site/ on your own.
sambul95 "My main concern is, Edge Preview devs have an approved roadmap, which directs them to concentrate on full set feature transfer, and moving from Chrome to MS services. Which means, performance optimization issues may be very last ones on their mind right now."
Your comment suggests that you have access to the Edge team's official roadmap in some form. I understand that you may have to keep the details close to your chest, but could you comment about whether or not removing the Edge Chromium's ability to run with administrator privileges is on the roadmap?
I don't run Chrome on my computers, in part, because I have five or six concerns about Chrome's security. The ability to run with administrator privileges is high on that list of security deficiencies, because it isn't all that hard to bypass/escape a sandbox.
Following the same logic, can you give some alternative links for Chromium Task Manager? I'm merely asking for sources, not sure how it measures the load. :)
It's pretty common knowledge that the CPU usage percent in Windows Task Manager is normalized across the CPU's logical cores. A quick search would have told you. :)
For example:
https://www.quora.com/What-is-the-meaning-of-CPU-usage-in-a-windows-task-manager
https://superuser.com/questions/994191/what-does-cpu-column-means-on-process-tab-on-task-manager
I too stopped using Chromium Edge too due to performance problem. I switched back to Google Chrome and was surprised that my laptop got quiet again :-(. Very sad. I hope MS will fix this performance issue very soon.
I reported this issue via feedback and attached screenshot with task manager showing CPU and GPU consumption in idle state when only start page is open.
I'm sorry to repeat my basic question: where did you get this info from? :) Can you support it by any web links or screenshots?
sambul95 I stated nothing of the sort. I just stated that what the "CPU %" shown in Task Manager means is different between the two... task managers. To compare the two you have to multiply or divide by the number of logical cores in your system. If one process within Edge process uses more than one CPU core it will register higher than 100% in Edge task manager
