First review of resource usage on Window on Arm

Author: jasonrandrews

content/learning-paths/laptops-and-desktops/win-resource-ps1/_index.md

@@ -11,12 +11,12 @@ who_is_this_for: This is an introductory topic for developers who want to measur
 
 learning_objectives: 
     - Run video encode and decode tasks by using FFmpeg
-    - Benchmark video encode task
-    - Sample CPU / memory / power usage of video decode task
+    - Benchmark the video encode task
+    - Sample CPU, memory, and power usage for the video decode task
 
 prerequisites:
     - A Windows on Arm computer such as the Lenovo Thinkpad X13s running Windows 11
-    - Any code editor. [Visual Studio Code for Arm64](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/?dv=win32arm64user) is suitable.
+    - A code editor such as [Visual Studio Code for Windows on Arm](https://code.visualstudio.com/docs/?dv=win32arm64user) 
 
 author: Ruifeng Wang
 

content/learning-paths/laptops-and-desktops/win-resource-ps1/how-to-1.md

@@ -1,43 +1,65 @@
 ---
-title: Application and data set
+title: Set up FFmpeg and encode a test video
 weight: 2
 
 ### FIXED, DO NOT MODIFY
 layout: learningpathall
 ---
 
 ## Overview
-System resource usage provides an approach to understand the performance of an application as a black box. This Learning Path demonstrates how to sample system resource usage by using a script.
+System resource usage provides an approach to understand the performance of an application as a black box. This Learning Path demonstrates how to sample system resource usage using a script.
 
-The application used is FFmpeg. It is a tool set that performs video encode and decode tasks. We will run the same tests with both x86_64 binary (through emulation) and Arm64 native binary.
+The example application you will use is FFmpeg, a tool set that performs video encode and decode tasks. You will run the same tests with both the x86_64 binary (using Windows instruction emulation) and the Arm64 native binary on a Windows on Arm computer.
 
 ## Application
-Binary builds are available. You don't need to build them from source. Download executable files for Windows:
+Binary builds of FFmpeg are available, so you don't need to build them from source. 
 
-1. Download [x86_64 package](https://github.com/BtbN/FFmpeg-Builds/releases/download/autobuild-2025-07-31-14-15/ffmpeg-n7.1.1-56-gc2184b65d2-win64-gpl-7.1.zip).
-2. Download [Arm64 native package](https://github.com/BtbN/FFmpeg-Builds/releases/download/autobuild-2025-07-31-14-15/ffmpeg-n7.1.1-56-gc2184b65d2-winarm64-gpl-7.1.zip).
+To get started: 
 
-Unzip the downloaded packages. You can find the binaries in **bin** folder. Note paths to **ffmpeg.exe** and **ffplay.exe**. They are used in later steps.
+1. Download the [FFmpeg x86_64 package](https://github.com/BtbN/FFmpeg-Builds/releases/download/autobuild-2025-07-31-14-15/ffmpeg-n7.1.1-56-gc2184b65d2-win64-gpl-7.1.zip).
+
+2. Download the [FFmpeg Arm64 native package](https://github.com/BtbN/FFmpeg-Builds/releases/download/autobuild-2025-07-31-14-15/ffmpeg-n7.1.1-56-gc2184b65d2-winarm64-gpl-7.1.zip).
+
+3. Unzip the downloaded packages. 
+
+You can find the binaries in the `bin` folder. 
+
+{{% notice Note %}}
+Make note of the paths to both versions of `ffmpeg.exe` and `ffplay.exe`, so you can run each one and compare the results. 
+{{% /notice %}}
 
 ## Video source
-Download test video [RaceNight](https://ultravideo.fi/video/RaceNight_3840x2160_50fps_420_8bit_YUV_RAW.7z) from a public dataset. Unzip the package and note path to the uncompressed yuv file.
+Download the test video [RaceNight](https://ultravideo.fi/video/RaceNight_3840x2160_50fps_420_8bit_YUV_RAW.7z) from a public dataset. 
+
+Unzip the package and note the path to the uncompressed `.yuv` file.
 
 ## Video encoding
-The downloaded video file is in yuv raw format. It means playback of the video file involves no decoding effort. You need to encode the raw video with some compressing algorithms to add computation pressure at playback.
+The downloaded video file is in YUV raw format, which means playback of the video file involves no decoding effort. You need to encode the raw video with compression algorithms to add computation pressure during playback.
+
+Use `ffmpeg.exe` to compress the YUV raw video with the x265 encoder and convert the file format to `.mp4`. 
+
+Open a terminal and run the following command:
 
-Use **ffmpeg.exe** to compress the yuv raw video with x265 algorithm and convert file format to mp4. Open a terminal and run command:
 ```console
 path\to\ffmpeg.exe -f rawvideo -pix_fmt yuv420p -s 3840x2160 -r 50 -i D:\path\to\RaceNight_YUV_RAW\RaceNight_3840x2160_50fps_8bit.yuv -vf scale=1920:1080 -c:v libx265 -preset medium -crf 20 D:\RaceNight_1080p.mp4 -benchmark -stats -report
 ```
 
 {{% notice Note %}}
-Modify the paths to `ffmpeg.exe` and yuv raw video file accordingly.
+Modify the paths to `ffmpeg.exe` and the YUV raw video file to match your locations.
 {{% /notice %}}
 
-The command transforms video size, compresses the video into a H.265 encoded mp4 file. `benchmark` option is turned on to show performance data at the same time. The generated file is at D:\RaceNight_1080p.mp4.
+The command transforms the video size and compresses the video into an MP4 file using H.265 encoding (via the x265 encoder). 
+
+The `benchmark` option is turned on to show performance data at the same time. 
+
+The generated file will be at D:\RaceNight_1080p.mp4.
+
+Run the command with both the x86_64 and the Arm64 versions of FFmpeg and compare the output.
 
 ### View results
-Shown below is example output from running x86_64 version ffmpeg.exe:
+
+The output below is from the x86_64 version of `ffmpeg.exe`:
+
 ```output
 x265 [info]: tools: rd=3 psy-rd=2.00 early-skip rskip mode=1 signhide tmvp
 x265 [info]: tools: b-intra strong-intra-smoothing lslices=6 deblock sao
@@ -61,7 +83,8 @@ x265 [info]: Weighted P-Frames: Y:0.0% UV:0.0%
 encoded 600 frames in 71.51s (8.39 fps), 9075.96 kb/s, Avg QP:27.27
 ```
 
-Example output from running Arm64 native ffmpeg.exe:
+The output below is from the Arm64 native compiled `ffmpeg.exe`:
+
 ```output
 x265 [info]: tools: rd=3 psy-rd=2.00 early-skip rskip mode=1 signhide tmvp
 x265 [info]: tools: b-intra strong-intra-smoothing lslices=6 deblock sao
@@ -83,4 +106,8 @@ x265 [info]: frame B:    451, Avg QP:28.40  kb/s: 5878.38
 x265 [info]: Weighted P-Frames: Y:0.0% UV:0.0%
 
 encoded 600 frames in 26.20s (22.90 fps), 9110.78 kb/s, Avg QP:27.23
-```
+```
+
+The last line of each output shows the run time and the frames per second for each build of FFmpeg. 
+
+Continue to learn how to track resource usage and compare each version.

content/learning-paths/laptops-and-desktops/win-resource-ps1/how-to-2.md

@@ -1,15 +1,17 @@
 ---
-title: Tracking system resource
+title: Track system resources
 weight: 3
 
 ### FIXED, DO NOT MODIFY
 layout: learningpathall
 ---
 
-## Sampling video decoding resource usage
-A PowerShell script does all the work. It launches the video decoding task, samples CPU and memory usage, and outputs sampled data to a file with format.
+## Sample video decoding resource usage
+
+To monitor resource usage during video decoding, use the following PowerShell script. This script starts the decoding process, periodically records CPU and memory statistics, and saves the results to a CSV file for analysis.
+
+Open your code editor, copy the content below, and save it as `sample_decoding.ps1`.
 
-Open your code editor, copy content below and save it as `sample_decoding.ps1`.
 ```PowerShell { line_numbers = true }
 param (
     [string]$exePath = "path\to\ffplay.exe",
@@ -104,45 +106,49 @@ while (-not $process.HasExited) {
 }
 ```
 
-{{% notice Note %}}
-Modify the path to `ffplay.exe` on line 2 accordingly.
-{{% /notice %}}
+Before you run the script, modify the path to `ffplay.exe` on line 2 to match your installation location.
 
 Run the script:
+
 ```console
 Set-ExecutionPolicy -Scope Process RemoteSigned
 .\sample_decoding.ps1
 ```
-A video starts playing. It ends in 3 minutes. And then you can find the sample results file **usage_log.csv** in current directory.
+
+A video starts playing and completes in 3 minutes. When finished, you can find the results file `usage_log.csv` in the current directory.
 
 {{% notice Note %}}
-Script execution can be blocked due to policy configuration. The `Set-ExecutionPolicy` line allows local script to run during this session.
+Script execution may be blocked due to security policy configuration. The `Set-ExecutionPolicy` command allows local scripts to run during this session.
 {{% /notice %}}
 
-### Script explained
-The `param` section defines variables including binary path, video playback arguments, sampling interval and result file path.
+### Script explanation
+
+The `param` section defines variables including the binary path, video playback arguments, sampling interval, and result file path. You can modify these values as needed.
+
+Lines 15-26 check and modify the binary file attributes. The binaries in use are downloaded from the web and may be blocked from running due to lack of digital signature. These lines unlock the binaries.
 
-Line 15 - Line 26 check and modify binary file attribute. The binaries in use are downloaded from the web. They can be blocked to run due to lack of signature. These lines unlock the binaries.
+Line 41 retrieves all child processes of the main process. The statistical data includes resources used by all processes spawned by the main process.
 
-Line 41 gets all the child processes of the main process. The statistic data include resources used by all the processes spawned by the main process.
+The `while` section collects CPU and memory usage periodically until the application exits. The CPU usage represents accumulated time that the process runs on the CPU. The memory usage shows the size of memory occupation with or without shared spaces accounted for.
 
-The `while` setction collects processes' CPU and memory usage periodically until the application exits. The CPU usage is accumulated time length that the process runs on CPU. And the memory usage is size of memory occupation with or without shared spaces accounted.
+### View results
+
+The output below shows the results from running the x86_64 version of `ffplay.exe`:
 
-### View result
-Shown below is example sample result from running x86_64 version ffplay.exe:
 ```output
 Timestamp,CPU Sum (s),Memory Sum (MB),Memory Private Sum (MB),CPU0 (s),Memory0 (MB),Memory Private0 (MB),CPU1 (s),Memory1 (MB),Memory Private1 (MB)
 2025-08-18T10:40:12.3480939+08:00,3.6875,378.65,342.16,3.671875,366.3515625,340.33984375,0.015625,12.296875,1.82421875
 ......
 2025-08-18T10:43:09.7262439+08:00,396.375,391.71,355.00,396.359375,379.453125,353.2421875,0.015625,12.2578125,1.7578125
 ```
 
-Example result from running Arm64 native ffplay.exe:
+The output below shows the results from running the Arm64 version of `ffplay.exe`:
+
 ```output
 Timestamp,CPU Sum (s),Memory Sum (MB),Memory Private Sum (MB),CPU0 (s),Memory0 (MB),Memory Private0 (MB),CPU1 (s),Memory1 (MB),Memory Private1 (MB)
 2025-08-18T10:36:04.3654823+08:00,3.296875,340.51,328.17,3.28125,328.18359375,326.359375,0.015625,12.32421875,1.8125
 ......
 2025-08-18T10:39:01.7856168+08:00,329.109375,352.53,339.96,329.09375,340.23046875,338.20703125,0.015625,12.30078125,1.75390625
 ```
 
-The sample result file is in **csv** format. You can open it with spreadsheet applications like Microsoft Excel for a better view and plot lines for data analysis.
+The sample result file uses CSV (comma-separated values) format. You can open it with spreadsheet applications like Microsoft Excel for better visualization and create charts for data analysis.

content/learning-paths/laptops-and-desktops/win-resource-ps1/how-to-3.md

@@ -1,17 +1,19 @@
 ---
-title: Measuring power usage
+title: Measure power usage
 weight: 4
 
 ### FIXED, DO NOT MODIFY
 layout: learningpathall
 ---
 
 ## Sampling battery status
-Querying battery status provides a way to measure power usage without an external power meter. It is also handy in that data collection and logging can be automatic.
 
-A PowerShell script does all the work. It launches the video decoding task, samples battery status, and outputs sampled data to a file with format.
+Querying battery status provides a way to measure power usage without an external power meter. Battery monitoring is also convenient because data collection and logging can be automated.
+
+A PowerShell script launches the video decoding task, samples battery status, and outputs the collected data to a CSV formatted file.
+
+Open your code editor, copy the content below, and save it as `sample_power.ps1`:
 
-Open your code editor, copy content below and save it as `sample_power.ps1`.
 ```PowerShell { line_numbers = true }
 param (
     [string]$exePath = "path\to\ffplay.exe",
@@ -63,33 +65,38 @@ while (-not $process.HasExited) {
 }
 ```
 
-{{% notice Note %}}
-Modify the path to `ffplay.exe` on line 2 accordingly.
-{{% /notice %}}
+Before you run the script, modify the path to `ffplay.exe` on line 2 to match your installation location.
+
+The battery data is system-based and process-agnostic. Fully charge the battery, close any unnecessary applications, unplug the power cord, and run the script:
 
-The battery data is system based and process agnostic. Full charge the battery. Close any unnecessary applications. Unplug the power cord. And run the script:
 ```console
 .\sample_power.ps1
 ```
-A video starts playing. It ends in 30 minutes. And then you can find the sample results file **watts.csv** in current directory. The test runs for a longer time so you can observe a distinct battery remaining capacity drop.
 
-The script collects battery remaining capacity and discharge rate periodically. You can track the battery remaining capacity to have an understanding of the power consumption.
+A video starts playing and completes in 30 minutes. When finished, you can find the results file `watts.csv` in the current directory. The test runs for a longer duration so you can observe a distinct drop in battery remaining capacity.
+
+The script collects remaining battery capacity and discharge rate periodically. You can track the battery remaining capacity to understand the power consumption patterns.
+
+### View results
+
+The output below shows the results from running the x86_64 version of `ffplay.exe`:
 
-### View result
-Shown below is example sample result from running x86_64 version ffplay.exe:
 ```output
 Timestamp,RemainingCapacity(mWh),DischargeRate(mW)
 2025-08-15T14:42:50.5231628+08:00,48438,4347
 ......
 2025-08-15T15:12:38.2028188+08:00,43823,8862
 ```
 
-Example result from running Arm64 native ffplay.exe:
+The output below shows the results from running the Arm64 version of `ffplay.exe`:
+
 ```output
 Timestamp,RemainingCapacity(mWh),DischargeRate(mW)
 2025-08-15T15:53:05.8430758+08:00,48438,3255
 ......
 2025-08-15T16:22:55.3163530+08:00,44472,7319
 ```
 
-The sample result file is in **csv** format. You can open it with spreadsheet applications like Microsoft Excel for a better view and plot lines for data analysis.
+The sample results file is in CSV format. You can open it with spreadsheet applications like Microsoft Excel for better visualization and to plot data analysis charts.
+
+Battery monitoring provides an effective way to measure power consumption differences between x86_64 and native Arm64 applications. By comparing discharge rates, you can quantify the power efficiency advantages that Arm processors typically demonstrate for video decoding workloads.