System+P3D almost using all my RAM

[ryanbatc 12,813]

I've hardly ever seen this....  I had google chrome browser open with about 6 tabs but other than that, just my Pilot Edge client and P3D 2.4...

 

My perf went to crap and P3D was very stuttery, FPS variance ranged from 20-40%, FPS were around 8-22.  Subsequently after the choppiness the thing OOMed on me lol.

 

Is more RAM something I should consider (I've got 2x4GB)?

 

I know a new rig would help (throwing money at the problem always does right?!) but a new rig is out of the question.  I'm still planning a GTX 970, but maybe RAM would be more helpful??

 

What do the experts think?  Is the system paging creating the stutters?  (EDIT: yes I know RAM has nothing to do with OOM's, I was only making a point that I ALSO got an OOM after this experience)

 

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

You are right on the cusp of problems with 8 GB physical RAM. Between the OS, P3D and any add-ons that are separate EXE files, you are probably forcing Windows to make use of the page file, which is vastly slower than physical RAM, even if you put the page file on an SSD. Also, keep in mind whatever video card you decide on, get 3 or 4 GB of VRAM on it or you may force the app to use the much slower system RAM  in place of  some needed VRAM.

 

As to your comment about OOMs and physical RAM, hypothetically, one would think that whether an app uses almost 4 GB of physical RAM or a combination of almost 4GB of physical and paged memory is irrelevant. But you'd be wrong. The partial use of a paging file is somewhat more inefficient than using  physical RAM alone. The best use of a paging file is to allow the OS to store libraries and other processes there for later use, rather than reloading them every time that they are eventually needed.

 

If an app like P3d is accessing a paging file, then the results probably won't be pretty.

[ryanbatc 12,813]

Alright so what are my options?  I've got a P67A-UD4-B3 GB board with 2x4GB ram.  Should I get 2x8GB or is it ok to use two more stick of 2x4GB and fill my slots?

 

Or I could just get this....  its a slight downgrade from my 1866mhz but meh...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233299&cm_re=ddr%2b1600mhz-_-20-233-299-_-Product

 

What do you mean by force the app to use system RAM over vram?  How would adding a faster GPU with more vram force the program to use system RAM?  I thought that was only an issue for those old onboard video/integrated boards...

[Appliance 51]

Ryan like you I've 'only' 8Gb of Ram, 2400 in fact.  i7-4770K with GTX 970 is 4Gb (now we learn only 3.5 in practice.)

 

Usually I run with Track IR, FSGRW, Navigraph Charts, Vr Insight Radio Stack, Topcat, EzDok, MCE, FSRaasv2, FSTramp, FS Real Time all open/operational and never had a problem.  I've even reduced my page file to 1Mb to ensure my physical Ram is being used to the max.  P3D is on an SSHD drive not even an SSD.

 

BUT ... I never run any sim without firstly rebooting to clean the crap out of the system. And before rebooting I run CCleaner to get rid of any extraneous temp files etc.

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

@ryan,

 

Make sure that your mobo supports 8 GB memory sticks before you go that route. If you have open slots, you can always get a kit of 2x4 GB memory that is identical to your existing RAM.

 

DDR3 memory is pretty cheap these days.

[ryanbatc 12,813]

So that was my question... Can I have four sticks like 2x4GB times two? Any slowdowns using that combo?

[Pease_W 6]

Rather than chasing a RAM fix, you could take a look at those 70 running processes and determining which are not necessary to be active. On my Win7 64 system I have around 43 processes going and could, if I wanted and needed to, remove about 5 without affecting FSX/P3D. To have 70 going is a little too much, IMHO.

[jabloomf1230 2,445]

True, many of those Windows services provide no benefit to the average user.

 

I agree, do the "housekeeping" first and if that doesn't work, buy more RAM.

 

4 GB ram has slightly faster timings (you know, that 9-9-9 etc. SPD rating) than 8 GB for comparable brand/model RAM, but what's more important are:

 

1. Does your mobo support 8 GB sticks?

2. Can you still find identical 4 GB RAM kits to match your existing memory?

4. Are you OCing and do you want higher rated RAM (1333 vs 1600 vs 2133 etc.)?

5. Will you want to add more RAM in the future? You know those 64 bit P3d rumors...

[Jazzfan 57]

    Have you considered running with less browser tabs open? Excessive flash content is a drain on any system. Which is why many, myself included, use a flash blocker.

 

 Jazz

[ryanbatc 12,813]

Rather than chasing a RAM fix, you could take a look at those 70 running processes and determining which are not necessary to be active. On my Win7 64 system I have around 43 processes going and could, if I wanted and needed to, remove about 5 without affecting FSX/P3D. To have 70 going is a little too much, IMHO.

I'd love to have a pure sim machine but it gets used by my wife from time to time as well as my other non sim games installed. It's pretty clean of any weird programs.

 

But I'll take your advice maybe there's something I can remove. Is there a program you recommend to take a look at what's running?

Have you considered running with less browser tabs open? Excessive flash content is a drain on any system. Which is why many, myself included, use a flash blocker.

 

Jazz

Opened tabs were all flightsim related, Skyvector, NACO dtpp charts, NOAA, PilotEdge map, and a few more

 

1. Does your mobo support 8 GB sticks?

2. Can you still find identical 4 GB RAM kits to match your existing memory?

4. Are you OCing and do you want higher rated RAM (1333 vs 1600 vs 2133 etc.)?

5. Will you want to add more RAM in the future? You know those 64 bit P3d rumors...

Not sure

Yes

Slight OC I was running 1866mhz pairs

More ram will be beneficial in XP10

[JimmiG 244]

P3D is a 32-bit application so it can only use 4GB max. That still leaves 4GB for your OS and other applications, which is plenty. Also, since you aren't actually exhausting the available RAM, adding more RAM would have no effect at all in this case. A 32-bit application only cares about its 4GB of VAS. Since it's virtualized (hence the 'V'), it doesn't matter whether it's actually physical RAM, a paging file on disk or punch cards (though with the latter, we'd probably measure frame rates in FPM, Frames Per Millenia, and each frame would consume a sizable rainforest's worth of paper)

 

It's usually best to close the web browser or at least keep as few tabs open as possible. Some web pages and plug-ins can actually use up quite a bit of the CPU, reducing a quad-core CPU to effectively a tri- or even dual-core. The sim will also have to compete with the web browser for resources like the L3 cache, and Windows constantly re-shuffling threads due to the shifting CPU load of Chrome can impact your FPS. This is more likely what cause your FPS variance.

 

If you're building a new system, going with 16GB is a good idea. X-Plane is already a 64-bit application, and with the increased draw distance and higher-resolution scenery coming out, 8GB of RAM might not be enough. FSX and P3D are stuck in the 32-bit era for now, but once P3D moves to 64-bit and addons start taking advantage of the extra VAS, upgrading to 16GB will be useful.

[ryanbatc 12,813]

I'll be keeping the browser open though, as I fly online and look at charts and skyvector for my sectional charts, these are on my second monitor.

 

I know all that about FSX and P3D, but P3D seems to use all 4GB, whereas FSX doesnt. I think with the other stuff running, P3D pushes me right to the limit.

[Jazzfan 57]

   If this is being caused by your cpu being bottle-necked and using the paging file, adding more ram will help. Another option to consider is purchasing a cheap tablet for your web pages.

Just a thought.

 

  Craig.

[ryanbatc 12,813]

Yeah I've thought about a tablet....  maybe when my second monitor dies