UCI and general engine setups in v0.75

[Uwe Badermann]

Hello forum members,

I recently have updated to 0.75 on my RPi3 and in general it is all working!

I tried to set the number of cores used to 4 in general and also tried to 

check the hash table size, but I didn't find the relevant *.uci respectively *.ini files?!

Now, it is okay for me to check for each engine I use, which options they offer and

which are their names.

But I need to know where and in which format I need to enter them.

Taking stockfish as an example:

a-stockf.uci reads like this

[Level@00]

skill level = 0

[Level@01]

skill level = 1

[Level@02]

skill level = 2

[Level@03]

skill level = 3

Stockfish options are:

pi@raspberrypi:/opt/picochess/engines/armv7l $ ./a-stockf

Stockfish 7 by T. Romstad, M. Costalba, J. Kiiski, G. Linscott

uci

id name Stockfish 7

id author T. Romstad, M. Costalba, J. Kiiski, G. Linscott

option name Write Debug Log type check default false

option name Contempt type spin default 0 min -100 max 100

option name Threads type spin default 1 min 1 max 128

option name Hash type spin default 16 min 1 max 2048

option name Clear Hash type button

option name Ponder type check default false

option name MultiPV type spin default 1 min 1 max 500

option name Skill Level type spin default 20 min 0 max 20

option name Move Overhead type spin default 30 min 0 max 5000

option name Minimum Thinking Time type spin default 20 min 0 max 5000

option name Slow Mover type spin default 84 min 10 max 1000

option name nodestime type spin default 0 min 0 max 10000

option name UCI_Chess960 type check default false

option name SyzygyPath type string default <empty>

option name SyzygyProbeDepth type spin default 1 min 1 max 100

option name Syzygy50MoveRule type check default true

option name SyzygyProbeLimit type spin default 6 min 0 max 6

uciok

==> Have I got to update a-stockf.uci like this?

Threads = 4

Hash = 128

...

[Level@00]

skill level = 0

…

With brackets or without?

Is it the same format (not options) for each machine?

Rodent i.e. likes ";"

I am confused :-(

Thanks for any helpful advice

Uwe

[Jürgen Précour]

Hi Uwe,

you can post ANY of the uci parameters inside your level section.
In case of Hash-Size thats abit boring cause need to do this everywhere :-)
For such stuff (=> valid for ALL machines and ALL settings), y can put this inside engines.uci.
First picochess will read this engines.uci file in (if exists), and override the values with yr <engine_name>.uci like "a-stockf.uci".

Hope that helps,
Jürgen

[Al]

Uwe,

We will have to wait for Jürgen for confirmation, but what I understand is that /opt/picochess/picochess.uci was removed in favour of /opt/picochess/engines/armv7l/engines.uci

I created engines.uci based on the old picochess.uci so mine looks like this:

## uci-option stores options that will be passed to the engine
## This are possible examples - it depends on your search-engine
[uci-option]
Hash = 128
Threads = 4

But as I said, Jürgen can confirm or correct this.

Al.

[Al]

Cheers Jürgen,

I was typing my reply when you posted

Al.

[Uwe Badermann]

Hello Jürgen,

hello Al,

You're great!

I take my hat off to you!

It all works and TOP is telling me stockfish running @400%, all cores used.

Now, there is another issue: I can't win on level 6 anymore ;-)

Have a beautiful evening,

Cheers

Uwe

[Al]

Uwe,

That's a new command for me, Thanks.

It confirms my findings whilst configuring UCI Engines for Engine tournaments in SCID vs PC:

Stockfish, Texel, Arasan & Cinnamon use all 4 cores

Rodent, Zurichess, Floyd & Claudia can only use 1 core.

Cheers

Al.

[Uwe Badermann]

My pleasure Al.

@Everybody,

who might be too lazy to look engine's uci options up, I have listed these for all Arm7 engines in 0.75 below.

So everybody can look them up quite easily to "pimp the engines" :-))

Have fun,

Cheers

Uwe

===UCI OPTIONS ENGINES IN 0.75  /opt/picochess/engines/armv7l ====

id name Texel 1.06 32-bit

id author Peter Osterlund

option name UCI_EngineAbout type string default Texel 1.06 32-bit by Peter Osterlund, see http://web.comhem.se/petero2home/javachess/index.html#texel

option name Hash type spin default 16 min 1 max 524288

option name OwnBook type check default false

option name BookFile type string default 

option name Ponder type check default true

option name UCI_AnalyseMode type check default false

option name UCI_Opponent type string default 

option name Strength type spin default 1000 min 0 max 1000

option name Threads type spin default 1 min 1 max 512

option name MultiPV type spin default 1 min 1 max 256

option name UseNullMove type check default true

option name GaviotaTbPath type string default 

option name GaviotaTbCache type spin default 1 min 1 max 2047

option name SyzygyPath type string default 

option name MinProbeDepth type spin default 1 min 0 max 100

option name Clear Hash type button

option name BufferTime type spin default 1000 min 1 max 10000

uciok

id name Stockfish 7

id author T. Romstad, M. Costalba, J. Kiiski, G. Linscott

option name Write Debug Log type check default false

option name Contempt type spin default 0 min -100 max 100

option name Threads type spin default 1 min 1 max 128

option name Hash type spin default 16 min 1 max 2048

option name Clear Hash type button

option name Ponder type check default false

option name MultiPV type spin default 1 min 1 max 500

option name Skill Level type spin default 20 min 0 max 20

option name Move Overhead type spin default 30 min 0 max 5000

option name Minimum Thinking Time type spin default 20 min 0 max 5000

option name Slow Mover type spin default 84 min 10 max 1000

option name nodestime type spin default 0 min 0 max 10000

option name UCI_Chess960 type check default false

option name SyzygyPath type string default <empty>

option name SyzygyProbeDepth type spin default 1 min 1 max 100

option name Syzygy50MoveRule type check default true

option name SyzygyProbeLimit type spin default 6 min 0 max 6

uciok

id name Arasan 18.3

id author Jon Dart

option name Hash type spin default 32 min 4 max 2000

option name Ponder type check default true

option name MultiPV type spin default 1 min 1 max 10

option name OwnBook type check default true

option name Book selectivity type spin default 50 min 0 max 100

option name Threads type spin default 1 min 1 max 64

option name UCI_LimitStrength type check default false

option name UCI_Elo type spin default 2600 min 1000 max 2600

uciok

id name Rodent II 0.9.52

id author Pawel Koziol (based on Sungorus 1.4 by Pablo Vazquez)

option name Hash type spin default 16 min 1 max 4096

option name Clear Hash type button

option name PawnValue type spin default 100 min 0 max 1200

option name KnightValue type spin default 325 min 0 max 1200

option name BishopValue type spin default 335 min 0 max 1200

option name RookValue type spin default 500 min 0 max 1200

option name QueenValue type spin default 1000 min 0 max 1200

option name KeepPawn type spin default 0 min -200 max 200

option name KeepKnight type spin default 0 min -200 max 200

option name KeepBishop type spin default 0 min -200 max 200

option name KeepRook type spin default 0 min -200 max 200

option name KeepQueen type spin default 0 min -200 max 200

option name Material type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name PiecePlacement type spin default 80 min 0 max 500

option name KnightLikesClosed type spin default 6 min 0 max 10

option name RookLikesOpen type spin default 3 min 0 max 10

option name OwnAttack type spin default 110 min 0 max 500

option name OppAttack type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name OwnMobility type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name OppMobility type spin default 110 min 0 max 500

option name KingTropism type spin default 20 min 0 max 500

option name PiecePressure type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name PassedPawns type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name PawnStructure type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name Lines type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name Outposts type spin default 100 min 0 max 500

option name NpsLimit type spin default 0 min 0 max 5000000

option name EvalBlur type spin default 0 min 0 max 5000000

option name Contempt type spin default 0 min -250 max 250

option name SlowMover type spin default 100 min 10 max 500

option name Selectivity type spin default 175 min 0 max 200

option name OwnBook type check default true

option name GuideBookFile type string default guide.bin

option name MainBookFile type string default rodent.bin

option name BookFilter type spin default 20 min 0 max 5000000

uciok

id name zurichess graubuenden

id author Alexandru Moșoi

option name Hash type spin default 64 min 1 max 65536

option name MultiPV type spin default 1 min 1 max 16

option name Ponder type check default true

option name Skill Level type spin default 0 min 0 max 10

option name UCI_AnalyseMode type check default false

uciok

id name Floyd x7da0e241

id author Marcel van Kervinck

option name Hash type spin default 128 min 0 max 1024

option name Clear Hash type button

option name Ponder type check default true

uciok

id name Cinnamon 2.0-20160502

id author Giuseppe Cannella

option name Hash type spin default 64 min 1 max 1000

option name Clear Hash type button

option name Nullmove type check default true

option name Book File type string default cinnamon.bin

option name OwnBook type check default false

option name Ponder type check default false

option name Threads type spin default 1 min 1 max 64

option name TB Endgame type combo default none var Gaviota var none

option name GaviotaTbPath type string default gtb/gtb4

option name GaviotaTbCache type spin default 32 min 1 max 1024

option name GaviotaTbScheme type combo default cp4 var none var cp1 var cp2 var cp3 var cp4

option name TB Pieces installed type combo default 3 var none var 3 var 4 var 5

option name TB probing depth type spin default 0 min 0 max 5

option name TB Restart type button

option name PerftThreads type spin default 1 min 1 max 64

option name PerftHashSize type spin default 0 min 0 max 100000

option name PerftDumpFile type string

uciok

id name Claudia v. 0.5.1

id author Antonio Garro

option name Hash type spin default 32 min 32 max 2048

uciok

[Al]

Uwe,

Did you upgrade to RPi 3, I'm interested in what you think about it?

Al.

[Uwe Badermann]

Hello Al,

I already have the RPi3 and so from the beginning of my PicoChess engagement - well, I actually have two and one is running einstein@home for BOINC for test reasons (I like number crunching :-) ).

Well, I did the upgrade to 0.75 with the image and have tweaked the ini and uci files as you and Juergen have advised.

It is all working!

Perfect.

I also was able to perform a git pull in the /opt/picochess a bit later. Even after tweaking also the dgtdisplay.py file for setting my own time mode on wQh3, for which Juergen

gave very helpful advice.

The only thing in connection with "mysterious" UCI settings is the hash table size.

But I think I will issue a new thread especially for this purpose. I think it deserves it.

Now, I'm not sure if the code changes concerning the draw indications Juergen has done, is available by the a.m. git pull.

I have to check.

Since I intend to play a tournament mode game this afternoon against PicoChess, my next posts will likely follow in the late afternoon.

[Al]

Hi Uwe,

I'd imagine it's like the threads & will use the maximu it can. So if you set it to the maximum of all engines (I'm out so can't see previous posts on another device) say 4096 or whatever, each Engine would use its own maximum up to that value i.e 256 if it's a particulate Engines max

Cheers,

Al

[Jürgen Precour]

Hi Uwe,

despite changing the source code (which i prob. said some weeks ago), y can NOW give a time inside the picochess.ini.
You can say "13 26" and that means 13mins start time with 26sec fischer inc (to make it clear - weired time, ha)
The bad stuff about it: Its not displayed at the clock (@time menu!), and you cant change it (otherwise this setting is overriden).
But y can also start it by command line.. which solves the override problem.

The good thing is: doesnt need to change source code, and updates (esp. the automatically ones) will work!

Jürgen

[Uwe Badermann]

Hello Juergen,

True, and I saw this feature and that's quite ingenious.

But since I like WYSIWYG a lot, I additionally change dgtdisplay.py :-)

Kindest regards

Uwe

Am Samstag, 8. Oktober 2016 14:07:06 UTC+2 schrieb Jürgen Precour:

Hi Uwe,

[Uwe Badermann]

Hello Al,

well I think it is a bit more complicated.

Just two considerations:

The RPi3 has 1GB RAM.

Some of it is used by the system, some by PicoChess and Python and so on.

=> So I saw that roughly 750MB were "free" with PicoChess idle.

Secondly the time reading the hash from RAM and judging its content has to be balanced 

with the machine's crunshing.

=> So there might be an optimum?

I really like to encapsulate this discussion in a separate thread in this forum.

Give me some time to prepare…

Kindest regards

Uwe

[Al]

Hi Uwe,

Yes that makes sense, I was going to add 'subject to free space' ...

I'll await your new thread and others answers ....

Cheers,

Al.