Which you can't do, AFAIK.vbruzual wrote:CBJ, he's probably looking to disable the usage of >2gb for applications in x64
Performance bug in 2.0
Moderators: timon37, Moderators for English X Forum
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It wouldn't surprise me if the same problem existed in Vista x64 or XP x64. I really didn't have enough time to test it on this OS.The Great Stonk wrote:may have to shoot you down there... im experiencing this exact same (game destroying) problem, only im on vista 64, with 8gigs of RAM and an 8800gtxzooze wrote: (this problem doesn't seam to occur on a 64bit machine).
with graphics pumped it runs buttery when first loaded, but as soon as i jump to another sector im below 1fps and have to task manager my way out...
turning down the graphics to lower settings allows me to jump a few times before i end up with the same problem...
Zoozer
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BCDEdit is a VISTA app! For XP you need to edit the boot.ini file at the root of your boot HDD, usually C:lucapulbere wrote:Sorry, my bad, i'm using windows xp x32, not 64.
I can't seem to find any way to introduce that "bcdedit" command, in xp32, so what can i do?
- To do this:
- Open My Computer, and open C:
You may have to click the option that shows hidden files and folders. - Look for boot.ini. Make a copy of it!
- Right-click on boot.ini and choose Open.
XP will ask which application you want to use, choose notepad. - Look for the line starting "multi". Move the cursor to the end of the line and type " /3GB" (without quotes!) Remember to add the space before the "/"
- Save boot.ini
- Reboot.
My new fave game (while waiting for Rebirth) - Kerbal Space Program
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Hey guys, I just bought X3:TC a few days ago, and I've been lurking this thread for a little while. I can't really add much valuable info to the topic, but I can at least corroborate the OP's experiences.
I began experiencing this exact problem about an hour into playing; randomly upon entering a system, loading a save, or undocking from a station, my game would crawl to less than 1 FPS. I would be forced to terminate the process from the task manager. This became very frequent, and I would estimate it would occur after about 15-20 minutes of playing. As mentioned by the OP, I edited the game's .exe so as to prevent it from addressing more than 2 gb of RAM, and the problem completely disappeared. I've now played for almost 10 hours without any sign of this bug.
I'm running Vista 64 with 4 gigs of ram and a 8800 GTX. I could post a dxdiag if needed, but I don't think it would reveal anything surprising. Anyway, there's my 2 cents.
Awesome game, by the way. Loving it so far.
I began experiencing this exact problem about an hour into playing; randomly upon entering a system, loading a save, or undocking from a station, my game would crawl to less than 1 FPS. I would be forced to terminate the process from the task manager. This became very frequent, and I would estimate it would occur after about 15-20 minutes of playing. As mentioned by the OP, I edited the game's .exe so as to prevent it from addressing more than 2 gb of RAM, and the problem completely disappeared. I've now played for almost 10 hours without any sign of this bug.
I'm running Vista 64 with 4 gigs of ram and a 8800 GTX. I could post a dxdiag if needed, but I don't think it would reveal anything surprising. Anyway, there's my 2 cents.
Awesome game, by the way. Loving it so far.
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I have had this problem in vanilla 1.4 and 2.0a a few times (very randomly) but each and every time was when I was exiting a jumpgate or transorbital accelerator, several times I just let my computer go and after my ship got past the end of the light runway (or if I managed to direct it to one side, the edge of the gate) the problem went away and gamespeed returned to normal like nothing was wrong. It also doesn't seem to matter what ship type you are in either as it has happened to me with M3/M6/TL/M7/M2 so far. I haven't had this problem anywhere else but the gates though so I am not sure what is going on.
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hello
what i beleive is that with /3gb and or the flag on the executable the extra memory used is not RAM or its RAM shared by display reserved area (or the ram of the video card ?). when i was using this parameter i meet lots of problems with video card, like AA not working at all or only several seconds, and vsynch hard to force.
i have not tried the userva=xxxx parameter that seems to be for this purpose, readdressing the memory usage between user application and ram...
anyway i have removed the executable flag, also disabled the bios remap pci memory feature and seems i have far less stuttering / small freezes problems
what i beleive is that with /3gb and or the flag on the executable the extra memory used is not RAM or its RAM shared by display reserved area (or the ram of the video card ?). when i was using this parameter i meet lots of problems with video card, like AA not working at all or only several seconds, and vsynch hard to force.
i have not tried the userva=xxxx parameter that seems to be for this purpose, readdressing the memory usage between user application and ram...
anyway i have removed the executable flag, also disabled the bios remap pci memory feature and seems i have far less stuttering / small freezes problems
New Config : Intel 8400 & 4Ghz , 4GB DRR2 on Asus P5Q Pro, ATI 4850 and Win XP 32 bits SP3.
Old config AMD 64 3400 1Mo, MSI k8n neo plat, 7800 GS+ Bliss, 2 GB RAM 3200
Old config AMD 64 3400 1Mo, MSI k8n neo plat, 7800 GS+ Bliss, 2 GB RAM 3200
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Definitely something going on with my steam 2.0 installation. Problems 1, 2, and 3 did not happen on 1.4.
1) I'm getting the same symptoms as reported here, namely, occasionally an irrecoverable slowdown to 1 fps when entering a new sector. The only option is to kill the task and reload a save. And it does seem to be happening more often so it may be invading savegames.
2) I'm occasionally getting universe map icons as black squares.
3) x3tc.exe chews more & more memory (up to 3.450gb) and them it CTD's. (This didn't happen with my self-modified >2gb flag x3tc.exe - max it used was 2.7gb and above all it was stable). No garbage collection until zero physical memory available? As a c++/c# dev I find even the remote possibility of that shocking.
4) My OS is fully updated. Only difference between before/after steam 2.0 is a security updates, so therefore zero relevence.
5) BTW this happens on Vanilla 2.0.... ie. no scripts. (In desperation to get a few xtra fps I've also tried various mods/scripts to improve performance... none of them help because my system is coasting while I get 10 fps).
So, specifically, what's up with the steam 2.0 update? Is this what we get for there being no open beta testing for steam installs?
My system:
OS: Vista 64 sp1
GPU: ATI 4870x2
CPU: Athlon X2 6000+ (2 x 3.1 ghz)
RAM: 4gb ddr2 800
PSU: Coolermaster 1000w
HDD: 1 seagate sata-2 250gb & 1 seagate sata-2 320gb
The problems I had before steam 2.0 remain...
6) Performance on an ati 4870x2 is pathetic, consistently below 25fps no matter what settings I use... OSD (ATI Tray Tool) shows gpus are hardly utilised (< 30%), even on maxed settings. I'm currently using catalyst 9.1, but have tried 8.12, 9.2, 9.3, 9.4 and no peformance difference. (I'm sticking with 9.1 because of the 2nd gpu clock bug, and Warhead loading bug in later catalyst versions). But I tried them all.
7) My CPUs are moderately utilised (< 60% says Everest) so the CPUs are not a bottleneck... I tried setting affinity to one cpu only, no difference. My machine is coasting while x3tc gives me 10 fps.
8.) I have swapfiles, but there is no relatonship betrween HDD churning and low fps when using x3tc on my system.
9) I'm using the latest sound drivers (8.17.22 dated 2008/12) for my c-media pci card (chip 8738) and have latency set to 32 in bios. (Tried 64, 128, 264, no difference to fps in x3tc).
10) I do not have codec packs installed or nero installed, so no ffdshow/nero issues. None of the various 'fixes' posted improve performance in an iota in X3TC. (BTW, I've tried a full Vista sp1 reinstall and on a system with nothing else loaded but the essential drivers I get the same abysmal x3tc performance).
I've been a customer since x2 and I feel really let down by egosoft's x3tc. Pretty and good functionality, but unplayable on a very good machine.
.
1) I'm getting the same symptoms as reported here, namely, occasionally an irrecoverable slowdown to 1 fps when entering a new sector. The only option is to kill the task and reload a save. And it does seem to be happening more often so it may be invading savegames.
2) I'm occasionally getting universe map icons as black squares.
3) x3tc.exe chews more & more memory (up to 3.450gb) and them it CTD's. (This didn't happen with my self-modified >2gb flag x3tc.exe - max it used was 2.7gb and above all it was stable). No garbage collection until zero physical memory available? As a c++/c# dev I find even the remote possibility of that shocking.
4) My OS is fully updated. Only difference between before/after steam 2.0 is a security updates, so therefore zero relevence.
5) BTW this happens on Vanilla 2.0.... ie. no scripts. (In desperation to get a few xtra fps I've also tried various mods/scripts to improve performance... none of them help because my system is coasting while I get 10 fps).
So, specifically, what's up with the steam 2.0 update? Is this what we get for there being no open beta testing for steam installs?
My system:
OS: Vista 64 sp1
GPU: ATI 4870x2
CPU: Athlon X2 6000+ (2 x 3.1 ghz)
RAM: 4gb ddr2 800
PSU: Coolermaster 1000w
HDD: 1 seagate sata-2 250gb & 1 seagate sata-2 320gb
The problems I had before steam 2.0 remain...
6) Performance on an ati 4870x2 is pathetic, consistently below 25fps no matter what settings I use... OSD (ATI Tray Tool) shows gpus are hardly utilised (< 30%), even on maxed settings. I'm currently using catalyst 9.1, but have tried 8.12, 9.2, 9.3, 9.4 and no peformance difference. (I'm sticking with 9.1 because of the 2nd gpu clock bug, and Warhead loading bug in later catalyst versions). But I tried them all.
7) My CPUs are moderately utilised (< 60% says Everest) so the CPUs are not a bottleneck... I tried setting affinity to one cpu only, no difference. My machine is coasting while x3tc gives me 10 fps.
8.) I have swapfiles, but there is no relatonship betrween HDD churning and low fps when using x3tc on my system.
9) I'm using the latest sound drivers (8.17.22 dated 2008/12) for my c-media pci card (chip 8738) and have latency set to 32 in bios. (Tried 64, 128, 264, no difference to fps in x3tc).
10) I do not have codec packs installed or nero installed, so no ffdshow/nero issues. None of the various 'fixes' posted improve performance in an iota in X3TC. (BTW, I've tried a full Vista sp1 reinstall and on a system with nothing else loaded but the essential drivers I get the same abysmal x3tc performance).
I've been a customer since x2 and I feel really let down by egosoft's x3tc. Pretty and good functionality, but unplayable on a very good machine.
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I have the same issues as Cisor. The black squares thing typically means that the UI is going to barf sooner rather than later (things like sector maps not responding - I still hear the 'ding' and can save/load but it doesn't show up on the screen)
Vista x64 Ultimate
Quad-core 2.66 GHz Q9450 @ 3.2 GHz
eVGA GTX 260/216 Superclocked (current NVIDIA beta drivers)
8 gigs DDR-1066 RAM
Onboard/realtek sound
Vista x64 Ultimate
Quad-core 2.66 GHz Q9450 @ 3.2 GHz
eVGA GTX 260/216 Superclocked (current NVIDIA beta drivers)
8 gigs DDR-1066 RAM
Onboard/realtek sound
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You can see from my earlier posts above that I have been trying to work through this problem, however it has now effectively broken my game. I agree with Cisor that it is getting more frequent with use and has indeed infected savegames as there are now sectors that I cannot enter from recent saves without the frame-stop no matter how many times I reboot. He should note that my game is 2.0a updated English DVD version and not from Steam.
Following on the faulty driver theory, I disabled my Creative X-Fi soundcard and its ALchemy and drivers and just used the onboard Realtek HD Audio. No change apart from worse sound.
I don't want to disable the >2Gb switch as it was that which saved me from unacceptable pauses in heavy-use sectors unrelated to this issue. I therefore think I am going to reinstall TC to 1.4, enable >2Gb, and see if that works with my savegames. I haven't started the Aldrin stuff yet so no real loss. I will watch for a 2.1 or other patch solution to this problem when I may try updating again.
Intel 2 Duo E8600 3.33 MHz ASUS P5QL Pro Intel P43 Mobo 700W PSU
ATI 4870 512 Mb GPU X-Fi Extreme Gamer soundcard (latest ALchemy)
8 Gb DDR2 750Gb HD(32 Mb Buffer) Mesh CoolerMaster case
Vista x64 SP1 (+all updated drivers/BIOS)
Following on the faulty driver theory, I disabled my Creative X-Fi soundcard and its ALchemy and drivers and just used the onboard Realtek HD Audio. No change apart from worse sound.
I don't want to disable the >2Gb switch as it was that which saved me from unacceptable pauses in heavy-use sectors unrelated to this issue. I therefore think I am going to reinstall TC to 1.4, enable >2Gb, and see if that works with my savegames. I haven't started the Aldrin stuff yet so no real loss. I will watch for a 2.1 or other patch solution to this problem when I may try updating again.
Intel 2 Duo E8600 3.33 MHz ASUS P5QL Pro Intel P43 Mobo 700W PSU
ATI 4870 512 Mb GPU X-Fi Extreme Gamer soundcard (latest ALchemy)
8 Gb DDR2 750Gb HD(32 Mb Buffer) Mesh CoolerMaster case
Vista x64 SP1 (+all updated drivers/BIOS)
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Don't do it, it won't help at all. I did that before the release of 2.0 and got exactly the same problem. At that moment I thought this was because the exe was not optimized or something to work with more than 2gb.Alan Phipps wrote:I don't want to disable the >2Gb switch as it was that which saved me from unacceptable pauses in heavy-use sectors unrelated to this issue. I therefore think I am going to reinstall TC to 1.4, enable >2Gb, and see if that works with my savegames. I haven't started the Aldrin stuff yet so no real loss. I will watch for a 2.1 or other patch solution to this problem when I may try updating again.
You will have to disable the switch in 2.0 if you want to play before the release of 2.1
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So if this is a potential driver issue whats the prognosis? Do Egosoft report the fault to Nvidia and Ati and work on a solution or are you exploring things your end first?CBJ wrote:No eureka moment here, but that's useful feedback, thanks. In general I'd say it tends to suggest a possible driver issue if it persists over a log off/on but not a reboot, but that's by no means definitive.
IMHO you need to adjust the recommended CPU spec's up a fair ways.
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Since it's currently only a suspicion, there's not much point reporting it to anyone else yet.BigBANGtheory wrote:So if this is a potential driver issue whats the prognosis? Do Egosoft report the fault to Nvidia and Ati and work on a solution or are you exploring things your end first?
Unfortunately, I suspect the publisher would have something to say about that.IMHO you need to adjust the recommended CPU spec's up a fair ways.

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ive posted my dxdiag and got some help
but ive just attempted the aldrin missions and once again slideshow
its so bad that the AI ships just sit dead in space gettin blown up
sometimes they come back 2 life fly a little and shoot a couple of turrets
everytime the xenon fire them PBE's my game goes nuts!
im not using MARS or any intenisve scripts like that
my sound sounds terrible, goes loud them quiet and sounds hollow
but ive just attempted the aldrin missions and once again slideshow
its so bad that the AI ships just sit dead in space gettin blown up
sometimes they come back 2 life fly a little and shoot a couple of turrets
everytime the xenon fire them PBE's my game goes nuts!
im not using MARS or any intenisve scripts like that
my sound sounds terrible, goes loud them quiet and sounds hollow
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K... There are multiple posts reporting the same issue, but I think this is the one that my observations match better.
I have found the same behaviour multiple times and I have "fixed it" using different tricks:
Strange Behaviour:
At some point the system halts down to 1-2 FPS, the GUI do not come up and the Sound is cut
Remarks:
- The more your game has been up the more likely you are to suffer this on "dense" sectors. Absolutely subjective I know... But this is the ONLY reasson to have to restart the game so far on 2.0.
- ALT-TAB reacts VERY fast and when you check the Process Details they look normal... Historic CPU load normal, Memory used normal (1.2 - 1.7 Gb).
- ALT-F4 kills the process IMMEDIATLY. No "resource claiming" slowdown is detected on Vista afterwards.
- The following occurrences comes from SAVEGAMES that started at 1.3 Version, STEAM game. But ONLY AFTER 2.0 patch has been applied.
- I have observed the following "Occurrences" WITH and WITHOUT custom scripts activated.
"Occurrences" ordered in "increased" degree of severity:
- Seta 1000% on Nebulae Sectors. Freeze happens when a big object (Station or Asteroid) appears visible. This have only happened to me 3 times. Fix: Kill process and reload. You can traverse the sector without problems on a "fresh" client.
- Entering a Sector. Fix: Kill process and reload savegame. You can enter the sector without problems. It happened so many times that I don't remeber all of the Sectors... But usually happens on Gates were you have a close Big Station and then a dense sector behind on your current Line of Sight.
- Entering a Sector (Doesn't matter the method). Fix: Reducing Antialising from x4 -> x2 and activating AQC. Only been forced to do this once... When I got a repeated freeze, even after reloading the game while entering Legend's Home sector.
The whole issue, specially the very good responsiveness of Vista on a kill (or ALT-TAB) makes me think it must be somekind of deadlock of the Graphical Engine itself introduced on 2.0... But OFC, this is just a guess.
System:
OS: Vista 64 Ultimate SP1
CPU: Intel E8400
GPU: Nvidia 9800GX2 (SLI Enabled) ( Driver 182.08 )
RAM: 4Gb DDR3
(No Overclock used anywhere... "Safe" factory defaults)
EDIT 1: ATM I'm checking some memory performance meassurements because I detected on one of the last "freezes" a sudden I/O increase. But need to be sure I use the right tool to distinguish X3:TC exe effects.
I have found the same behaviour multiple times and I have "fixed it" using different tricks:
Strange Behaviour:
At some point the system halts down to 1-2 FPS, the GUI do not come up and the Sound is cut
Remarks:
- The more your game has been up the more likely you are to suffer this on "dense" sectors. Absolutely subjective I know... But this is the ONLY reasson to have to restart the game so far on 2.0.
- ALT-TAB reacts VERY fast and when you check the Process Details they look normal... Historic CPU load normal, Memory used normal (1.2 - 1.7 Gb).
- ALT-F4 kills the process IMMEDIATLY. No "resource claiming" slowdown is detected on Vista afterwards.
- The following occurrences comes from SAVEGAMES that started at 1.3 Version, STEAM game. But ONLY AFTER 2.0 patch has been applied.
- I have observed the following "Occurrences" WITH and WITHOUT custom scripts activated.
"Occurrences" ordered in "increased" degree of severity:
- Seta 1000% on Nebulae Sectors. Freeze happens when a big object (Station or Asteroid) appears visible. This have only happened to me 3 times. Fix: Kill process and reload. You can traverse the sector without problems on a "fresh" client.
- Entering a Sector. Fix: Kill process and reload savegame. You can enter the sector without problems. It happened so many times that I don't remeber all of the Sectors... But usually happens on Gates were you have a close Big Station and then a dense sector behind on your current Line of Sight.
- Entering a Sector (Doesn't matter the method). Fix: Reducing Antialising from x4 -> x2 and activating AQC. Only been forced to do this once... When I got a repeated freeze, even after reloading the game while entering Legend's Home sector.
The whole issue, specially the very good responsiveness of Vista on a kill (or ALT-TAB) makes me think it must be somekind of deadlock of the Graphical Engine itself introduced on 2.0... But OFC, this is just a guess.
System:
OS: Vista 64 Ultimate SP1
CPU: Intel E8400
GPU: Nvidia 9800GX2 (SLI Enabled) ( Driver 182.08 )
RAM: 4Gb DDR3
(No Overclock used anywhere... "Safe" factory defaults)
EDIT 1: ATM I'm checking some memory performance meassurements because I detected on one of the last "freezes" a sudden I/O increase. But need to be sure I use the right tool to distinguish X3:TC exe effects.