Performance Testing of EPICS User Interfaces - an Attempt to Compare the Performance of MEDM, EDM, CSS-BOY, and EPICS

The upgrading of the display manager or graphical user interface at EPICS sites reliant on older display technologies, typically MEDM or EDM, requires attention to both functionality and performance. For many sites, performance is not an issue; all display managers will update a small number of process variables at rates exceeding the human ability to discern changes. For certain applications typically found at larger sites, however, the ability to respond to update rates at subHertz frequencies for thousands of process variables is a requirement. This paper describes a series of tests performed on both older display managers—MEDM and EDM—as well as the newer CSS-Boy, epicsQT, and CaQtDM. Modestly performing modern hardware is used.