com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

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com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by gaoesa »

com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

These are settigns that can be used to improve the performance of your ET game. The ET will work with the default settings, but it also means that it uses your harddrive more when loading and unloading the things it needs. Also, the default settings for these are ancient and were designed for early computers with low RAM. The maps are now bigger and require more, also the sound quality has changed to 22 kHz by default. It can be usefull to tweak these settings for better performance.

I'll go through what these are one by one.

com_hunkmegs
============
This is the total amount of RAM that the ET reserves for the game. This include all the other *megs settings.
The default value for this is 56. This default is ancient and it was selected so that even computers with very low RAM can run the game. The maximum value, as far as I know, is 192. The ET will not use more then 192 megs even if you set it to higher value. Another rule for the amount is that it should not be any higher then 2/3 of your system RAM. Most computers however have at least or more then 256 MB. So this should probably be set to 192 very safely.

com_zonemegs
============
This is the memory that is reserved for the loading of map textures etc. The default setting for this is 24 MB. But this is very old setting too and it could be set to 32,48 or even 64. However, remember that this memory is subtracted from the com_hunkmegs, just like soundmegs are. So test some settings and use the one that seems to work the best for you.

com_soundmegs
=============
This si the memory that is reserved for loading sounds. The default value for this is 24 MB, but now days the sounds are played with 22 kHz by default, so it's probably better to set this around 48 MB. Again, this memory is also taken from the com_hunkmegs.

If we take 64 for zonemegs, 48 for soundmegs, it leaves us 80 MB for hunk for free. Well, the default hunk was 56 and from it after taking the 48 MB for zone and sound left 8 MB for free. So you have quite a lot to move around with these settings.

These values can't be set in configs though. It would mean that they would be latched and then you would have to do /vid_restart to make them active. You can do that of course, but I set them in the command line for practical reasons. More precisely, I start my ET from a desktop icon. In the icon there is a setting called a target and in that target string i have added the following: +set com_hunkmegs 192 +set com_zonemegs 64 +set com_soundmegs 48 .
It looks like this in hole:
"C:\Program Files\Wolfenstein - Enemy Territory\ET.exe" +set com_hunkmegs 192 +set com_zonemegs 64 +set com_soundmegs 48
You can add other settings in it too. If you do it this way, the settings will work in all mods. Just remember to not use configs that try to set these values. They would get latched of course, but if you would do /disconnect and then load another mod, the latched values would become effective.

In other systems you would set the values with different methods, but they should still be set the same way as command line arguments.

I hope I was being explanatory with this. I know that many people know the hunkmegs setting, but I hope that now people understand the settings more thoroughly and can adjust them to even better values for performance.

Last note, I'm not sure about the limitation of the 192 and theres no harm setting it higher as far as I have read about it, but it will most probably not do any good either.
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Re: com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by gaoesa »

One more point I forgot to mention. You should have the amount of memory you allocate free in your RAM. Otherwise, the operating system can start swapping the memory. Swapping means that something that doesn't fit into the RAM, is written to the hard drive in a way that only OS can access it. This is called a virtual memory in windows and a swap in *nix systems. Swapping may or may not be faster then if the engine would unload stuff from the memory it has reserved and then load new stuff to it from the hard drive.
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Re: com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by A_Tosa_Inu »

The maximum value = 512
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Re: com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by gaoesa »

The maximum value = 512
You need to give me the reference on this one.

This was my source that I based the writing. Though I at first time found it from some archive instead of the original place at splashdamage.

http://www.splashdamage.com/forums/show ... php?t=6327

Billdoe's reply.
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Re: com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by A_Tosa_Inu »

I can't recal who sayed this to me, but:
If i set this to 512 i am faster in the server than with lower settings.
And they told me once: if you set it higher the other Meg settings have more room.

Also, when i set it higher than 512, it gives a somesort errorcode, not realy a code and a number but a thing that say, latched.
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Re: com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by [AmA]Iku-Turso »

A_Tosa_Inu wrote:I can't recal who sayed this to me, but:
If i set this to 512 i am faster in the server than with lower settings.
And they told me once: if you set it higher the other Meg settings have more room.

Also, when i set it higher than 512, it gives a somesort errorcode, not realy a code and a number but a thing that say, latched.
I think that 512 is correct highest value for that cvar.

I don't either know where I that is announced clearly. But I have downloaded few .cfg files from some of the best ET players. For example olBaa.cfg has that value 512. And so does many others have.

Right now I'm using olBaa's config file, only mouse sensitivity for me is higher. And I noticed that game runs a bit smoother and I have gained some improvement to my gameplay. Not only because that 512 value, but other settings too.

I have to say, that people should try that 512 value and see if that does anything.

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Re: com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by gaoesa »

I think that 512 is correct highest value for that cvar.
Please respond to help topics only if you can say something you can argument. Saying you have seen the value in someones cfg you downloaded somewhere is not an argument.
I have to say, that people should try that 512 value and see if that does anything.
That was already obvious.

I didn't find absolute maximum to the value from the engine source. The post at the splashdamage forums suggests that the engine doesn't use more then 192 which is not contradicting.

No more hearsay posts into topics that are supposed to be helpfull.
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Re: com_hunkmegs, com_zonemegs and com_soundmegs

Post by [AmA]Iku-Turso »

gaoesa wrote:
I think that 512 is correct highest value for that cvar.
Please respond to help topics only if you can say something you can argument. Saying you have seen the value in someones cfg you downloaded somewhere is not an argument.
I have to say, that people should try that 512 value and see if that does anything.
That was already obvious.

I didn't find absolute maximum to the value from the engine source. The post at the splashdamage forums suggests that the engine doesn't use more then 192 which is not contradicting.

No more hearsay posts into topics that are supposed to be helpfull.
Ok, sorry!

After reading 2 hours of forums and guides, i did not found anything prove for that value to be Max 512:
http://etconfig.net/cvars/com_hunkmegs/

It seems to be depending on everybody's computer settings. So if you have for example 4Mb of RAM then you can use higher value, but that's not necessary. Like that link says:
Usually 256 or 512 is fairly enough, even for the most complex enemy territory map graphics.
I rest my case...

ps. I'm still sorry gaoesa
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