..:::_____About:_____::.. Even PCs with good enough hardware occasionally like to freeze/hang for a few seconds. Usually what first comes to mind is the lack of processing power (CPU, GPU) or RAM (resource hogging programs, viruses,..) and lastly, the hard drive. The hard drive is just as important component of the PC as is the rest, not much special attention is given to it usually. There should be no hangs or freeze's If both the application and the OS are located on a working SSD. ..::____Few things worth of noting:____::.. - RPM, disk's spin speed - Cluster size, more overhead? - Disk alignment, important after resizing/changing the cluster size with a tool - Individual response time, measured in ms What you will need: - Process Monitor, http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/bb896645.aspx - Excel 2010 (1 milion row limit) - Notepad ++, http://notepad-plus-plus.org/ - csv to txt script CustomName.bat Code: powershell -Command "Get-Content Logfile.CSV | Set-Content Logfile.txt.xls -encoding Ascii" pause - Powershell, should already be included in Win 7 (Win XP only) http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=7217 ..::_____Find out what is causing the freezes and hangs:_____::.. My example: Before: PlanetSide2_x64.exe C:\Windows\System32\d3d9.dll 3.0665521 After: Process Name Path Duration PlanetSide2_x64.exe I:\PlanetSide 2 PSG\Resources\Assets\Assets_232.pack 0.2696322 PlanetSide2_x64.exe I:\PlanetSide 2 PSG\Resources\Assets\Assets_232.pack 0.2442086 PlanetSide2_x64.exe I:\PlanetSide 2 PSG\Resources\Assets\Assets_232.pack 0.2356970 PlanetSide2_x64.exe I:\PlanetSide 2 PSG\Resources\Assets\Assets_174.pack 0.2282363 PlanetSide2_x64.exe C:\d3d9.dll 0.0665521 d3d9.dll was moved and linked by using the Hard link via cmd in hopes of doing something : P 1.0000000sec = 1000ms = 1sec 0.1010000sec = 101ms = 0.1sec 0.0110000sec = 11ms = 0.01sec 0.0010000sec = 1ms = 0.001sec Remember how you want to be bellow 100ms in ingame ping, or that above 60fps per second you cant really tell a difference? 60fps = 1000ms = 1 frame every 16.6ms 1000ms / 60fps = 16.6ms 1000ms / 30fps = 33.3ms 1000ms / 15fps = 66.6ms 1000ms / 5fps = 200ms Anything above 33.3ms delay you might start to notice hitching if your really good. In my example 200ms file reads only happen a few times out of the million reads (as shown in the video guide) and are probably stored in memory after. Those values reflect the Win7 Resource Monitor's Disk Response time (ms). Also works in Win XP. With an SSD you usually get 5ms (0.0050000ms) response time on average from what I remember? My SSD does not want to work, not even the exchanged ones. ..::________What to do?________::.. - Get a SSD or a better HDD,.. - Disable hdd intensive applications and services - Defrag - RAID setup - Split the load across multiple HDDs (create more drive letters, junction links) - Change cluster size - Make sure that the drive is aligned properly Low budget, load split up across multiple HDDs, example: C:\ and I:\ drives are 64KB clusters. User profile location is changed via registry, ProgramFiles have been moved and linked via Junction link. ..::_______Cluster size and alignment:_______::.. http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/41399-32-hard-disk-cluster-size http://www.minitool.com, can do drive aligments and cluster sizes. You will need another windows installed since you cant change the C:\ drive while active. Use google for more information on how to, ask a friend. I take no responsibility if you break your own PC. Monitor your response and then do share your top worst response results!
HDD Refresh.bat Code: @ECHO OFF :loop cls @echo %time% > C:\KeepAliveHD.txt timeout /t 3 goto loop http://i.imgur.com/GoT5JFu.jpg http://i.imgur.com/kL2z3u5.jpg Process Name Path Duration cmd,exe C:\KeepAliveHD,txt 3,45805720 PlanetSide2_x64,exe C:\Users\S7rudL 3,35688550 avgnt,exe C:\Users\S7rudL\AppData\Local\Temp\avgnt,exe 3,07864060 cmdagent,exe C:\ 3,01655990 PlanetSide2_x64,exe C:\Users\S7rudL 2,99260760 avgnt,exe C:\Users\S7rudL\AppData\Local\Temp\avgnt,exe 2,95074240 cmdagent,exe C:\ 2,88770770 cmdagent,exe C:\ 2,86098370 svchost,exe C:\Windows\System32\gpsvc,dll 2,82955590 cmdagent,exe C:\ 2,69513120 svchost,exe C:\Windows\Prefetch\TIMEOUT,EXE-A3083386,pf 2,39382480 http://community.wd.com/t5/Desktop-...zes-system-seemingly-at-random-for/td-p/30510 http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/286332-32-green-wd10earx-freezes-computer https://bbs.archlinux.org/viewtopic.php?id=91291 I played for 3 hours now and had no 3 sec freezes from the game itself, cmd.exe and timeout.exe however did. If the batch would not be running then the game would have same 3 sec freezes as indicated in the charts. It not just the game, firefox also hangs occasionally for 3 sec trying to read a font. Might be something with the hdd power saving, spinning down, head parking,.. what not. Might be worth a try. (Mistake: you need to replace the full stop with a coma, otherwise the Duration numbers will get messed up. s\Assets_232.pack 0.2696322 -> 0,2696322 )
Nice thread but PS2 for me is still a dog to run. Machine specs: Sandisk Ultra SSD's I7 4770k under water @ 4.4ghz (max temps mid 50's) x2 GTX 780 AMPS in SLI (heavy factory OC, lower running mid to high 60's under full load, top running mid 70's) MSI g45 Z87 Gaming Mobo 1000w Corsair Fatality modular PSU 16gb Ripjaw x @ 2133mhz My machine runs three screens in Nvidia surround, and I can max ArmaIII, Crysis 3, ACBF and all others for hours on end with no issue but PS2 just HATES my machine. I've had smooth frame rates (capped at 60fps in Precision X) for ages, but always a CTD or black screen randomly from 1 to three hours play. Since going to the latest drivers and doing a clean install I now have unstable frame rates (crazy bouncing around from 50-60fps even when nothing is happening) and an annoying 'stutter' or 'jumping' of the scenery (it keeps skipping towards me every few seconds). This happens 100% of the time even in the middle of no where with nothing going on I'm really hoping someone can come up with a solution as I just don't want to play like it atm as I just keep staring at the really annoying skips / jumpiness of the scenery
This hitching is without a doubt a disk drive issue. It can happen even on SSDs. You need to be aware of a few factors other than read times and caching. The general health of your drive, how fragmented it is (which could be a huge problem after a major update if the drive has to seek in multiple sectors), and how much is used. I suggest that you defragment your drives, free up as much space as you possibly can, and ensure there are no bad sectors. Especially if you're using SSDs. Bad sectors can cause these sorts of issues. You should at least defragment the install directory after every major game update, bare minimum. As a side note: some of the machine specs listed in this thread are interesting. Even when using Crossfire or SLI, none of the machines in this thread need water cooling or 1000w PSUs. 700 to 800 watts are ideal for the builds I'm seeing. Anything more is grossly wasteful. I have 2x SLI GTX 780 Ti and an Intel Core i7 4790k and nothing gets hotter than 70 degrees. Ever. Even after ages of stress testing. Of course, I don't use the stock cooling on the CPU, I would neer suggest that, but this is within the optimal range of operating temperatures. You won't get a tangible benefit unless you can get it significantly lower. More important than the cooling method are airflow and the compound that is transfering the heat. Coollaboratory makes a liquid metal that is quite simply amazing.
Or perhaps just bad/sloppy coding in general. Planetside 2 is the only game I've been having these issues with, and it started happening after the previous patch, and even more so after the latest patch a few days ago.
Nice little article there OP, but to suggest to people that they 'need' to run out and get SSD's or set up RAID arrays to stop the (new) problem of persistent freezing SOE introduced with the valk update is well, ridiculous. This issue, is entirely client side, to suggest people 'need' entirely new hardware configurations(that many users are not even familiar with) just to get PS2 to run properly is a more than a little irresponsible. Nowhere in your post is it even acknowledged that the problem lies with the client-and not with peoples PCs. I have a velociraptor drive that is more than capable of reading and writing fast enough for *any* game-new or old, yet, PS2 continues to freeze. However, I do not think I will following your advice to completely overhaul my PC on the slight chance it may 'fix' the issue. One could spend 100's of dollars and many many hours implementing what you suggest and be in exactly the same spot they are in now. Yes, all things considered faster HD(generally) =better, thats a given, but that is not likely to affect any fix, and is far too much time and effort to expend over one issue in any case. And that only addresses(one) bug of many the valk update introduced-what about all the rest? Why anyone would go to such lengths to a fix a problem they don't have, is beyond me.
Yep. The OP is extremely professional but forgot to mention one thing to do in order to fix the problem: unsuscribe and stop buying SC until SOE guys fix the mess THEY made. Personally I don't want to buy a new HD because someone screwed (once again) a PS2 patch.
