The campaign is stable

22GCT_Gross · Post by **22GCT_Gross** » Tue Feb 28, 2012 8:44 am

Just to say that the campaign cycle and its playability seem stable.
We ave solved some minor errors on analisis (tanks to 4Shades) and tuned the DSC management (automatic launch, database backup, eventlog, tracks, and missions storing).

We're also going to update the graphic card on the server, since I noticed that the server FPS in the first part of the mission are too low.

=VARP=Gec · Post by **=VARP=Gec** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 3:13 am

u should run the game in windowed mode and minimize it after starting the mission. that way server does not have to draw the game.

II/JG77Hawk_5 · Post by **II/JG77Hawk_5** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 6:53 am

On my server with a 3000+ static objects mission and a known frame rate killer of a mission I found that server card resolution did not make much difference to frame rates. I may be completely wrong but I "think" that this is because the video card primarily only has to be concerned about drawing the empty field and cockpit around the host seat plane but CPU activity in the mission still has a huge impact on the frame rates.

I used the NVidea control panel to force OFF the vertical sync. This allows game to show full frame rates and not locked to screen refresh rate.
Another thing which I found had a noticible improvement was to use the mouse to make the host seat pilot look up at the sky so that only the centre bar was visible. I got a good jump up in frame rates doing that too
Going back to windowed 640x480x16 from 1280x1024x32 and higher made no difference to frame rate that I could see.

But if you can put in a hot video card to the server it sure isn't going to hurt is it?

22GCT_Gross · Post by **22GCT_Gross** » Wed Feb 29, 2012 1:24 pm

The server is just set in that way: windowed, 640x480 at minimum, view automatically pointed to the sky to reduce the fps.
The provider ensured me there will be no cooling problems for the new card.
In the first part of the mission the server works at 10 Fps.

=VARP=Gec · Post by **=VARP=Gec** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 1:36 am

minimize the window after start and make sure that DrawIfNotFocused is set to 0.

That way server is not going to draw the game so no fps problem.

this helpes a lot on my server.

22GCT_Gross · Post by **22GCT_Gross** » Thu Mar 01, 2012 5:59 am

Clever, I will check it out

LLv34_Untamo · Post by **LLv34_Untamo** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 2:11 am

S!

At last nights mission, there was no lag at mission start, but as everyone can see, at 13:10 mission time something weird happened which caused a lot of people to drop. Prior and after that we had something that can only be translated as packet loss. Good ping, but still planes jumping around.

-LLv34_Untamo

6S.Maraz · Post by **6S.Maraz** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 3:31 am

LLv34_Untamo wrote:S!

At last nights mission, there was no lag at mission start, but as everyone can see, at 13:10 mission time something weird happened which caused a lot of people to drop. Prior and after that we had something that can only be translated as packet loss. Good ping, but still planes jumping around.

-LLv34_Untamo

Which executable did these people have? How did the crash happen (game freeze, crash to desktop, loss of connection....???)

Thanks
Maraz

Classic EAF19 · Post by **Classic EAF19** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 4:53 am

I think this problem was perhaps server side, all of the effected pilots have been stable throughout the campaign but clearly an even occurred probably on the server that made a lot of people get disconnected at the same time. These pilots and their gunners, should have their stats corrected and a/c returned to base.

It was a most unpleasant feeling when my pilot disconnected from the server and left me helpless in the B24

102nd-YU-Mornar · Post by **102nd-YU-Mornar** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 5:37 am

Yes, last night was pretty weird. It was game freeze at exact same moment for everyone. Since now, 6 pilots reported that they had game freeze:

From 102nd:
- Mornar
- Vuk (gunner)
- Bogida
- Gile
(Further 3 or 4 pilots also had freeze, but they got back in the game)

from VARP:
- Vjeran
- Thor

I don`t know how many pilots from other Allied squadrons had this problem last night.

I`ve never had any problem like this in this campaign (maybe sometimes little stuttering but nothing this big), and for my part I had 512MB.exe activated.
I agree that it would be nice if admins decide to bring those planes back to our bases, and correct our stats, cose this wasn`t an isolated event.

Cheers!

22GCT_Gross · Post by **22GCT_Gross** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 9:50 am

We experienced similar troubles during the J42_Midway/Crimea (see the forums below).
By the internal DSC log I found the disconnected people stopped to send their data to the server. During Midway it seemed related to a naval task force turning. During Crimea to a concentration of players/objects fighting in the same area.

I will restore the crashes, but I need the time...

The graphic card has been just updated. Hope it helps.

EAF51_Nepe · Post by **EAF51_Nepe** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 10:07 am

Prior and after that we had something that can only be translated as packet loss. Good ping, but still planes jumping around.

Strange. More or less at the same time I was in a different server, and I experienced the exact same problem, and its not something that I have seen often in my many years flying IL2...

22GCT_Gross · Post by **22GCT_Gross** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 10:26 am

=VARP=Gec wrote:minimize the window after start and make sure that DrawIfNotFocused is set to 0.

That way server is not going to draw the game so no fps problem.

this helpes a lot on my server.

I cannot do that as the DedicatedServerController needs to act over the screen to select the menu (loading, selecting plane, fly, stop the mission etc.)

6S.Maraz · Post by **6S.Maraz** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 10:41 am

22GCT_Gross wrote:We experienced similar troubles during the J42_Midway/Crimea (see the forums below).
By the internal DSC log I found the disconnected people stopped to send their data to the server. During Midway it seemed related to a naval task force turning. During Crimea to a concentration of players/objects fighting in the same area.

I will restore the crashes, but I need the time...

The graphic card has been just updated. Hope it helps.

It could have been a memory issue.
We experienced this problem in Midway-J42, at that time we had smaller exes.

Maybe with larger exes this problem happens later in the mission, at that time the Garbage Collector has a lot of memory to "clean", this might fail on some PCs due to their configuration.

Did also other players experience a freeze at the same time, I mean also those who did not crash?

Also we would need confirmation of which exes pilots were using.

Thanks
Maraz

Tanker · Post by **Tanker** » Fri Mar 02, 2012 10:58 am

102nd-YU-Mornar wrote:Yes, last night was pretty weird. It was game freeze at exact same moment for everyone. Since now, 6 pilots reported that they had game freeze:

From 102nd:
- Mornar
- Vuk (gunner)
- Bogida
- Gile
(Further 3 or 4 pilots also had freeze, but they got back in the game)

from VARP:
- Vjeran
- Thor

I don`t know how many pilots from other Allied squadrons had this problem last night.

I`ve never had any problem like this in this campaign (maybe sometimes little stuttering but nothing this big), and for my part I had 512MB.exe activated.
I agree that it would be nice if admins decide to bring those planes back to our bases, and correct our stats, cose this wasn`t an isolated event.

Cheers!

242 Tanker and 242 Cat had a freeze and disco at about one hour and five minutes into mission. Both of us had it almost simultaneously. I'm not really sure how to tell which exe I was using. I think it was the 512.