SPEC CPU®2026 Quick Start

Latest: www.spec.org/cpu2026/Docs/

This document provides a quick start for the SPEC CPU®2026 Benchmark Suite, a product of the SPEC® non-profit corporation (about SPEC).

Do you want to start here?

All users should read the rules before using results in public.

Decide which benchmark(s) to start with:   SPEC CPU 2026 Benchmark Suite includes 52 benchmarks arranged in 4 suites. You can run one or more individual benchmarks, such as 706.stockfish_r, or you can run entire suites, using one of the Short Tags below.

Short
Tag		 Suite Contents Metrics How many copies?
What do Higher Scores Mean?
intspeed SPECspeed®2026 Integer 13 integer benchmarks SPECspeed2026_int_base
SPECspeed2026_int_peak		 SPECspeed suites always run one copy of each benchmark.
Higher scores indicate that less time is needed.
fpspeed SPECspeed®2026 Floating Point 13 floating point benchmarks SPECspeed2026_fp_base
SPECspeed2026_fp_peak
intrate SPECrate®2026 Integer 14 integer benchmarks SPECrate2026_int_base
SPECrate2026_int_peak		 SPECrate suites run multiple concurrent copies of each benchmark.
The tester selects how many.
Higher scores indicate more throughput (work per unit of time).
fprate SPECrate®2026 Floating Point 12 floating point benchmarks SPECrate2026_fp_base
SPECrate2026_fp_peak
The "Short Tag" is the canonical abbreviation for use with runcpu, where context is defined by the tools. In a published document, context may not be clear.
To avoid ambiguity in published documents, the Suite Name or the Metrics should be spelled as shown above.

Verify requirements:   (Brief summary; see detail in System Requirements)
  - 2 GB of main memory to run SPECrate (per copy); 64 GB for SPECspeed.
  - 250 GB disk space is recommended; a minimal installation needs 10 GB.
  - C, C++, and Fortran compilers (or a set of pre-compiled binaries from another SPEC CPU 2026 user).
A variety of chips and operating systems are supported.

Install it:   Mount (Unix, Windows) the ISO image, then use install.sh or install.bat. Install guides: Unix, Windows

Find a Config File: To use runcpu, you need a config file - a file that defines how to build, run, and report on the SPEC CPU benchmarks in a particular environment, including any needed PORTABILITY flags for your compilers.

  1. There are examples on your installed copy of the SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suite. Look for an Example that matches your compiler, operating system, and hardware, in directory:

    $SPEC/config/Example*        (Unix) or
%SPEC%\config\Example*       (Windows)
  2. Or, look for results for a system similar to yours at www.spec.org/cpu2026/results -- click the 'config' link.
  3. Or, if you are using binaries supplied by another user of the SPEC CPU 2026 benchmark suites, that person should also supply the config file.
  4. Or, write your own.

Name it:   Copy your selection to a new file in the config directory. Do not use blanks in the name. Hint: make the name something useful to *you*. 

%SPEC%\config\Charans_first_test.cfg
$SPEC/config/JeffWantsYetAnotherTest.Compiler.v11.beta4.cfg

Edit the label:    Look for a line similar to: 

%define label something

or

label = something

The label is an arbitrary tag added to your binaries and directories, which comes in handy when you need to hunt them down. As with the config file name, make it something meaningful to *you*. No blanks are allowed.

Other Edits:

  1. Look for any locations marked EDIT and make changes as needed.
  2. Look for paths and adjust if needed (example: your compiler is in /opt/bin but the config file uses /usr/bin).

  3. Look for any commands in the config file, and verify that they will not cause surprises.

    Warning: SPEC CPU config files can execute arbitrary shell commands.
    Read a config file before using it.
    Don't be root. Don't run as Administrator. Turn privileges off.

Open a terminal window (Linux and other Unix-like systems) or cmd window (Microsoft Windows) if you have not already done so.

Set paths: Use a path command from the table below. On Unix systems, determine whether you are using a C-compatible-shell (such as csh, tcsh) or a Bourne-compatible shell (such as sh, bash, ksh, zsh).

System shell Example Instructions
Microsoft
Windows		 cmd.exe 
C:\> f:
F:\> cd frederique\cpu2026
F:\frederique\cpu2026\> shrc
 Edit the file shrc.bat before using it, as explained in the Windows Install Guide. If you have done so, cd to your top directory and use:
shrc.bat
Unix C-shell
compatible		 
% cd /home/zarko/cpu2026
% source cshrc
 cd to the directory where you installed SPEC CPU 2026 and say:
source cshrc
Bourne
compatible		 
$ cd /home/zarko/cpu2026
$ source shrc

cd to the directory where you installed SPEC CPU 2026 and try:
source shrc
If your shell is sufficiently old that it responds source: not found then try:

 . ./shrc     <--that's dot-space-dot-slash-shrc

Check disk space: Verify your free disk space (Recommendations). On Unix, use df and on Windows notice the last line on any dir command.

Ready to run: You're ready to give it a try. Enter runcpu --config=name followed by a list of benchmarks or suites (see table above). Examples: 

runcpu --config=eniac.cfg    --action=build 706.stockfish_r
runcpu --config=colossus.cfg --threads=16   820.cloverleaf_s
runcpu --config=z3.cfg       --copies=64    fprate

The first example compiles the benchmark named 706.stockfish_r. The second runs the SPECspeed benchmark 820.cloverleaf_s using 16 OpenMP threads. The third runs 64 copies of all the SPECrate 2026 Floating Point benchmarks. The Install Guide chapter on "Testing Your Installation" has suggestions that start small and build up (Unix, Windows).

Example Install: This example presumes that your name is Allen, your compiler is GCC, your operating system is Linux, and your hardware is x86.

$ sudo mount -o ro,exec,loop cpu2026.iso /mnt
$ cd /mnt
$ ./install.sh                                       # Specify destination - for example, /home/allen/cpu2026
$ cd /home/allen/cpu2026/
$ source shrc
$ cd config
$ cp Example-gcc-linux-x86.cfg allen-try1.cfg        # Pick one matching *your* system!
$ vi allen-try1.cfg                                  # Customize paths and other items marked EDIT in the example
$ runcpu --config=allen-try1 SPECspeed2026_int_base

SPEC CPU®2026 Quick Start: Copyright © 2017-2026 Standard Performance Evaluation Corporation (SPEC®)