ATI VPU Recovery Error - updated 12 Apr 2006

If you are experiencing a VPU recovery error* and are not running the Catalyst 5.2 driver, please attempt the steps listed below. A VPU recovery error is where the video card may flash the video black for a moment, freezing gameplay, then either crash directly to desktop or present a window stating that the video was reset and that the graphics adapter may not work properly until the computer is restarted.

1. Install the Catalyst 6.4 driver from ATI.com or Guru3d.com. Please keep in mind that the Microsoft .NET Framework version 1.1 or better should be installed before installing this driver. Version 2.0 of the .NET framework may be found here. Depending on the level of disarray the operating system may be in, you might need to use the Catalyst Uninstall utility before installing these drivers, which may be obtained from ATI.com or Guru3d.com. Alternatively, Driver Cleaner PE may also be used, but there are no guarantees made by ATI or SOE of proper operation after use.

2. Rename, move, or delete the eq2_recent.ini file from the C:\Program Files\Sony\EverQuest II folder. This file will be re-created by the game with default settings upon the next successful launch.

3. While in the C:\Program Files\Sony\EverQuest II folder, also delete any folders that have "cache" in the name, such as: Cache, Logincache, Logincache-us, etc. These folders will be re-generated after a successful launch of the game application.

4. Log into the game and do not set any personalized settings, such as video resolution, UI windows, etc. This way, we can create a controlled study and can more effectively determine where something is breaking, if at all.

5. Try to reproduce the VPU recovery error.

There are reports that the Catalyst 6.4 drivers have eliminated most or all cases where a VPU recovery error occurs in the game (as well as other applications). This is soon to be (if it isn't already) the recommended driver to use for ATI video devices. Keep in mind that there may be some situations where this driver might reduce stability in the game when compared to the Catalyst 5.2 driver. If you are certain that this is the case, then please provide the information below and then revert back to the older driver, which may be found at ATI.com or at Guru3d.com (with CCC). (non CCC version here)


If/when you experience a VPU recovery error, please post the following:

1. Operating system

2. System memory size

3. Video card make and model

4. Driver version reported by DXDIAG on the Display tab. Should look like 6.14.0010.XXXX. Please provide the date listed there, as well.

5. Zone where VPU recovery happened. Please refrain from using words like "everywhere" and be as specific as possible.

6. What were you doing when it happened? Try to be as descriptive as you can be.
Message Edited by TSR-JasonC on 04-12-2006 02:11 PM

it seems i am not recieving any vpu errors now. is this the solution? run the game with crap graphic settings?
my system
P4 3E Ghz on a Asus P4P800-SE
1.5gb ddr ram
ATI 9600 pro 256mb
SB Live 24bit External sound
ati driver version 6.14.0010.6587
OS WinXp Pro sp2
EDIT:
i started maxing out the different settings that i normally do for the system i have. not maxing everything just everything that works with my sytem. i was stealthed in the first mob room in splitpaw, when i set the shadow quality to high and was fine till i unstealthed. then my character shadows would show up for me. i moved 1 step and the vpu recovery send report box popped up. it seems as though it recovered succesfully because after i clicked send report, i was still able to play eq2 without have to restart the game or my computer. will test further but so far it looks like the vpu is working as intended, at least for me. other people may not be so lucky. as well i left agp 8x and fast writes on.
EDIT:
i have tried this with shadow quality on high, average and minimal. still same vpu crash. it seems the second time the vpu crashed it was unable to recover to allow me to continue playing the game. could the problem with the vpu be with shadows all together? i will test it out again with my shadows off and everthing else the way i like it. i never used show off screen shadows or any of the specular settings.
EDIT:
game runs perfect with shadows turned off completely. all the other settings are where i like them. kind of suck playing with no shadows but at least i can play now. hopefully this gets resolved soon
Message Edited by skitzdout on 01-18-200603:20 PM
Message Edited by skitzdout on 01-18-200603:34 PM
Message Edited by skitzdout on 01-18-200604:01 PM

i'm having a problem with this also, except my screen doesn't go black, it will flash a bunch of different colors on the screen, (kind of like those fuzzy channels you saw on TV late at night when you were a kid), freeze for about 5-10 seconds then flash back, usually nothing happens I can continue playing, but the water looks weird, kind of like oiley water. I try to download these catalyst 6.1 drivers, but since I have a laptop, and my laptop isn't under the brands that ATI supports (even though I have ATI graphics) I can't get the drivers, so i'm kind of in a pickle, and until then i'm kind of screwed on playing EQII...hopefully this issue can be resolved.

i have gotten 3 vpu errors with shadows off just within the last half hour, around 10pm est. the vpu recovery seems to be doing a good job of keeping the game going but if the vpu is working then what is crashing the vid card?

Works fine on my 9800 standard with fast writes enabled. I set my rez to balanced and turned off shadows been like 4 hours no problems! Going to wait and play a little more then I am going to put the shadows back on to see if it starts again. Hopefully this fixed it for me cause it plays so much better with the 6.1 drivers than the 5.2 ones do.

Haphasto
Try using one of the hacked drivers from here http://forums.bioware.com/viewtopic.html?topic=259499&forum=11 it allows you to install the latest desktop drivers for your laptop. I haven't tried it but I play on a Toshiba laptop with a nvidia 5200 go using the latest nvidia desktop drivers (much better as the driver for my laptop from toshiba has never been updated!) Anyways hope that helps but like I said I havent tried it on an ati mobile solution
Message Edited by ShogoD on 01-18-200607:36 PM
Message Edited by ShogoD on 01-18-200607:37 PM

I have been getting these errors only on one account. However I have not tried my play account using the 6.1 drivers.

I've used the Catalyst 5.2, Catalyst 5.7 and these latest drivers, and to some degree these VPU Recovery Errors have occurred with each driver version, although the latest v 6.1 was by far the most severe, causing crashes every couple of minutes.

1. Operating system - Windows XP - MCE
2. System memory size - 2.0 Gig RAM
3. Video card make and model - Radeon X600 - 256 MB

4. Driver version reported by DXDIAG on the Display tab. Should look like 6.14.0010.XXXX - V. 6.14.0010.6587 (English)

5. Zone where VPU recovery happened - Thundering Steppes - north, near water
6. What were you doing when it happened? Try to be as descriptive as you can be. I logged on to test new drivers and ran through Thundering Steppes. Got my first VPU Recovery Error on the beach in North Thundering Steppes (near centaurs). After the first error, I recovered and within one minute got another error. This continued five times, until I got a message that my computer must reboot. Also, after the first VPU Recovery Error the water was white, blue and pixelated. The white was in the center fanning out, with the blue on either side.

Operating System: WIN XP Pro, SP2
RAM: 1.5GB
Video Card: ATI Radeon 9800 Pro 128MB
Driver Version: 6.14.0010.6587
Zone: Um, lets see - Newbie Isle, Willow Wood, Antonica, Qeynos (North and South) and more!
What was I doing: Quests.. trying to level. Nothing really specific. Just happened all night ,every 15-20 minutes.
This is my first time playing in over six months, not helping my opinion of the game. Seriously.

VPU Error with 6.1 unfortunately.
Radeon 9600 PRO 128MB 1Gig Ram
Happened every 10 mins in Sinking Sands.
Back to 5.2 again.....this sucks!
Message Edited by Haggian on 01-19-200609:36 AM

Thanks for all of the info, folks. Please do keep it coming, especially from those who have upgraded to Catalyst 6.1.

I know that this has been a trial for a lot of people.

We're doing everything we can to both work with ATI on fixing this issue for good, and to attempt to find ways to mitigate its effects from the side of the game code if at all possible.


Take care,

- Scott

What I find most disheartening about this issue is that ATi does not list this as a known issue for their drivers.

When I use the latest drivers the game runs absolutely magnificent, until the VPU error. It quite literally doubles my framerates using newer drivers. To have to be continually limited and blocked from upgrading passed the 5.2 drivers is unacceptable in my opinion.

I agree with the frustration.. but thank you to all the people working to figure out the problems.. I had to do a rollback, which ended up not being that big a deal luckily..
Anyways.. keep up the Good detective work!!

ATI does recognize the issue and does have a knowledge base article on it:

Issues Resolved in Catalyst® Software Suite 6.1

The following section provides a summary of the issues that have been resolved in the latest version of Catalyst®. These include:

• Everquest II, The Fall, and World of Warcraft: A VPU Recover event or the operating system failing to respond no longer occur when playing the game. Further details on these resolved issues can be found in topic number 737-21437

Message Edited by TSR-JasonC on 01-19-200612:04 PM

Wait a moment.. That says it's resolved, yet the poster above said it was still happening for him with the 6.1's =\

That's the reason why we've got this thread and are actively requesting information to help track down any loose ends.

I assure you it has not been resolved.

Umm...wow...is this what's been happening to me lately? I thought it was just my vid card going bad.
Only problem is, I have an NVIDIA GeForce 6800 GT. Everything goes black, sound stalls (gets caught in a stutter), and I crash and have to restart the computer.
If this is my issue, then it isn't just with ATI cards.
I have had this happen about three times in the past week or two. If I remember, I will post my info when I get home.

Well that would explain it then. I thought this was the same old post. What I meant by not seeing it as a known issue was with the 5.12s, which really upset me because I loved the performance gain I had from those drivers.

I'm glad to see that the 6.1s do list it as corrected, although disheartened that some are still having the problem. When I get home, I'll be sure to try them out.

Sadly, Tuppen, that's a completely unrelated and separate issue. This issue tracking thread is only for people with ATI video cards.

Please post your information in a new thread, as per the instructions listed here, so that we may assist you better.

More feedback from customers using Catalyst 6.1 may be found here. Just roping that thread into this thread to clean things up a bit.