Dell Precision Optimizer (DPO) contains a powerful engine that allows you to dynamically configure your system settings to optimize the performance. It also keeps you informed of any available software updates and applies them when configured to do so. Furthermore, it contains a tracking subsystem that can gather extensive data about your system and help identify potential problems.
The Dell Precision Optimizer improves system reliability with automated system updates from one convenient location, provides certified graphics drivers and value-add plug-ins for storage and GPU, and provides system utilization reports to be certain you have the necessary resources. The Dell Precision Optimizer is an automated tool included on every Precision Workstation at no additional cost. It is a rebranding of Dell Precision Performance Optimizer (DPPO).
Dell Precision Optimizer consists of the following components:
The Dell Precision Optimizer comes preinstalled or can be downloaded from the Dell Drivers Site under Application Category. The Optimizer is available in English, French, German, Japanese, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, and Korean.
To start the Dell Precision Optimizer, follow the instructions below:
Windows Start Menu
On the Windows taskbar, click Start.
Select All Programs > Dell > Dell Precision Optimizer.
Desktop Area
Double-click the Dell Precision Optimizer icon to launch.
Dell Precision Optimizer automatically tunes your Workstation, enhancing productivity.
Language = English: Duration = 01:55 min.
Figure 01: Dell Precision Optimizer Home Screen
1 | Brings up this Help Document | 2 | Minimizes the application |
3 | Closes the application | 4 | Brings up a drop-down menu with two options: About and a Feedback Form |
5 | Links to Resource Utilization | 6 | Links to System Updates |
7 | Links to Profiles |
The Dell Precision Optimizer home screen shows how the following resources (highlighted in red) are being used:
Figure 02: Dell Precision Optimizer Resource Utilization
The needle of the speedometer shows the current utilization of memory, CPU, and storage. This data is refreshed every 2 seconds. If Dell System Tracking had ever been enabled on this system, you may also see a green portion in the speedometer arc. The green portion (if present) represents the previous utilization average read from the last Dell Smart Tracking report.
Current Graphics utilization is displayed by the needle on the horizontal bar.
The left side of the home page (highlighted in red) displays the currently active and inactive profiles for select applications. A Profile is a collection of system settings that are grouped together to optimize the Dell Precision workstation’s performance for your application. You can activate or deactivate a profile. Multiple profiles may be active simultaneously. Even after you exit the Dell Precision Optimizer user interface, the selected profiles remain active.
Figure 03: Dell Precision Optimizer Profiles
Dell Precision Optimizer has several application-specific profiles to help improve the user experience. These profiles are disabled by default. You may have to enable the profile for your given application (if available in Dell Precision Optimizer) to see its benefits.
New application profiles are made available through the Optimizer system updates, which are available in the System Maintenance module or "Check For Profiles."
Figure 04: Dell Precision Optimizer System Updates
The bottom left side of the home page (highlighted in red) displays the number of software updates available for your system. Dell System Updates are specific to Dell Precision Optimizer and your system's hardware and software configuration. Windows Updates are available within your operating system. The updates are grouped into three categories.
Dell Precision Optimizer offers application performance profiles that automatically adjust system settings to maximize application performance. You do not require admin rights to use profiles. Just select the application profile and the Optimizer "listens" for you to begin using the application. It will then make the appropriate settings adjustments for you.
Improve system reliability with the Optimizer’s simplified system maintenance capabilities. Download updates for BIOS, firmware, drivers, application profiles, and Dell applications to ensure your system has the latest updates. Each update is classified by criticality, allowing you to select only the updates you want.
Deploy Dell Precision Optimizer on multiple machines with headless client, enable application profiles on behalf of end users, deliver new profiles, and gather analytics from a single user or a group of users in to SCCM and create performance, reliability, and usage reports to assess, plan, and address resource needs.
The Optimizer contains a rich user home screen with utilization data on your CPU, memory, storage, and graphics in real-time and over a defined tracking period.
Get enhanced intelligence on CPU and Graphics displaying real-time analytics, graphs, with an overapplication performance widget. Track utilization across all logical processors and all GPUs found on your system.
The Analysis feature allows you to monitor utilization of your Dell Precision. Understand where bottlenecks occur and what system resources are overutilized with a Workload Analysis report.
Print and send these graphs to the IT department or support organization for knowledge of your system performance.
Proactively address resource bottlenecks by getting smart notifications when CPU, memory, and storage utilization reach predefined threshold levels.
Download and install an ISV certified graphics driver from the Optimizer to run the ISV application in the environment it was certified for.
Download and install the Intel® CAS-W plug-in to accelerate storage performance and Radeon Pro-Render graphics plug-ins from the Optimizer to render images with a high degree of visual realism.
Get Performance insights and configuration recommendations from Dell Performance Engineering based on your application usage.
To avoid such a situation, you must not activate conflicting policies simultaneously. Such policies are meant to be enabled one at a time to optimize the system for ISV applications running in different modes. If you get a policy conflict message, please disable one of the profiles.
You may also see this failure because of a conflict with some other application that updates your system, like the Dell Client System Update software. If this happens, please retry the operation after closing other applications and associated update scheduler.
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