2.14 Lock Up

[AKRaider]

I have one computer working just fine (59fps avg) and no problems after patch 1.

My son's computer is having some difficulty.  It's not the newest machine, but it's robust by most standards.  DxDiag is included below.

We updated the computer without a problem.  He flew for an hour before patch 1 was delivered.  He applied the patch then the lockups started.

I did some troubleshooting (matched the windows resolution setting with that of the game) with no decent result.  I then elected to uninstall the game.  I found two entries for Aces High in the control panel and completely uninstalled both instances of the game.  I then rescanned the registry for AH entries.

I then downloaded 2.141 from the HTC alternate download site and reinstalled it.

The game is now locking up right after the aircraft rotates...or about 20 seconds into flight.  It's a hard lock up and the machine needs to be cold-started.

Dogg and I discussed the problem and thought it might be heat related.  I have directed a 12 inch fan into the front of the machine and the case temp is showing around 78 degrees.  I didn't have a decent way to measure the GPU temp, but it felt 'frosty'.

The video adapter is new but it is running Far Cry and Unreal Tournament with no difficulty or additional heat.  His Aces High FPS was 70 prior to the patch.  He is running a Hitachi 800 Pro 21 inch monitor.  The rest is in the dxdiag.

I know this is a stressful time, but would appreciate your thoughts.

Thanks,

AKRAIDER


System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 7/28/2009, 20:03:15
       Machine name: MARS
   Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3 (2600.xpsp_sp3_gdr.090206-1234)
           Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Shuttle Inc
       System Model: SN85V30
               BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
          Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3000+,  MMX,  3DNow, ~2.0GHz
             Memory: 2048MB RAM
          Page File: 647MB used, 2782MB available
        Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS
    DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
     DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.5512 32bit Unicode

------------
DxDiag Notes
------------
  DirectX Files Tab: No problems found.
      Display Tab 1: No problems found.
        Sound Tab 1: No problems found.
        Sound Tab 2: No problems found.
          Music Tab: No problems found.
          Input Tab: No problems found.
        Network Tab: No problems found.

--------------------
DirectX Debug Levels
--------------------
Direct3D:    0/4 (n/a)
DirectDraw:  0/4 (retail)
DirectInput: 0/5 (n/a)
DirectMusic: 0/5 (n/a)
DirectPlay:  0/9 (retail)
DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)
DirectShow:  0/6 (retail)

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
        Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS
     Manufacturer: NVIDIA
        Chip type: GeForce 7600 GS
         DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
       Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_02E1&SUBSYS_21C319F1&REV_A2
   Display Memory: 512.0 MB
     Current Mode: 1600 x 1200 (32 bit) (60Hz)
          Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor
  Monitor Max Res: 1600,1200

[gyrene81]

Not sure if you have tried this but:

Current Mode: 1600 x 1200 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Drop that down to 1280x1024 75Hz (if the monitor will handle it, otherwise highest it will handle), then go into the game, set the resolution to 1024x768 and max texture render to 512.

In game under options/graphic detail set the "object detail" to the far right..."ground detail" to the far right...and leave only the "detailed terrain" and "bump map terrain" checked...uncheck everything else..

[AKRaider]

Thanks for the response.  I followed your advice to the letter.  In-game frame rate jumped back up to 70's (of course).  That's the good news.

I went to a back base in the MA (no traffic)...I should mention that lockups also occur in offline mode.

I let the A/C sit on the runway for about 30 seconds while slowly walking the view hat through all 8 positions.  No problems.

I then started the take off roll with auto takeoff enabled.  We rotated, cycled the gear, and flew on for about another 20 seconds with no stick or control button inputs.  Then it locked up.

I will re-download the new version today.  The intent is to un-install Aces High, run a disk defrag, then reinstall a fresh copy.  I'll be sure to return to your recommendations for video and run another test.  I'll report back here.

Thanks again for taking the time.

Raider

[Pyro]

Raider, is he running custom sounds?  Take a look in his AH directory and see if he has a sounds folder.  If he does, just rename it to something else and see if that makes a difference.

[AKRaider]

Pyro,

Some of us have been using the AKSketchworks pack, but Moptop was not.  Since I am still getting the occasional 'Nightime Sky' lock up, I have gone back to standard sounds. I will check back here with results.

On Moptop's machine today:

Corrected an AGP setting (from 2x to 4-8X) in CMOS - I negleted this when I installed the new card 2 weeks ago.
Uninstalled Aces High 2.14
Cleaned the registry (600 + errors)
Defragged both his drives
Re-downloaded fresh copies of the game and the texture pack
Reinstalled the game and the texture pack.

Just finished an offline test.  It didn't work.  The game is hard locking about 20 seconds after takeoff with no keypresses or stick inputs.
I am at a loss.


 

[gyrene81]

When the lockups occur can you alt+tab the game and do a ctrl+alt+del to bring up your task manager? If you're seeing 100% cpu usage or memory usage that is out in left field...

[Scratchman]

I have one computer working just fine (59fps avg) and no problems after patch 1.

My son's computer is having some difficulty.  It's not the newest machine, but it's robust by most standards.  DxDiag is included below.

We updated the computer without a problem.  He flew for an hour before patch 1 was delivered.  He applied the patch then the lockups started.

I did some troubleshooting (matched the windows resolution setting with that of the game) with no decent result.  I then elected to uninstall the game.  I found two entries for Aces High in the control panel and completely uninstalled both instances of the game.  I then rescanned the registry for AH entries.

I then downloaded 2.141 from the HTC alternate download site and reinstalled it.

The game is now locking up right after the aircraft rotates...or about 20 seconds into flight.  It's a hard lock up and the machine needs to be cold-started.

Dogg and I discussed the problem and thought it might be heat related.  I have directed a 12 inch fan into the front of the machine and the case temp is showing around 78 degrees.  I didn't have a decent way to measure the GPU temp, but it felt 'frosty'.

The video adapter is new but it is running Far Cry and Unreal Tournament with no difficulty or additional heat.  His Aces High FPS was 70 prior to the patch.  He is running a Hitachi 800 Pro 21 inch monitor.  The rest is in the dxdiag.

I know this is a stressful time, but would appreciate your thoughts.

Thanks,

AKRAIDER


System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 7/28/2009, 20:03:15
       Machine name: MARS
   Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 3 (2600.xpsp_sp3_gdr.090206-1234)
           Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: Shuttle Inc
       System Model: SN85V30
               BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
          Processor: AMD Athlon(tm) 64 Processor 3000+,  MMX,  3DNow, ~2.0GHz
             Memory: 2048MB RAM
          Page File: 647MB used, 2782MB available
        Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS
    DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
     DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.5512 32bit Unicode

------------
DxDiag Notes
------------
  DirectX Files Tab: No problems found.
      Display Tab 1: No problems found.
        Sound Tab 1: No problems found.
        Sound Tab 2: No problems found.
          Music Tab: No problems found.
          Input Tab: No problems found.
        Network Tab: No problems found.

--------------------
DirectX Debug Levels
--------------------
Direct3D:    0/4 (n/a)
DirectDraw:  0/4 (retail)
DirectInput: 0/5 (n/a)
DirectMusic: 0/5 (n/a)
DirectPlay:  0/9 (retail)
DirectSound: 0/5 (retail)
DirectShow:  0/6 (retail)

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
        Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GS
     Manufacturer: NVIDIA
        Chip type: GeForce 7600 GS
         DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
       Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_02E1&SUBSYS_21C319F1&REV_A2
   Display Memory: 512.0 MB
     Current Mode: 1600 x 1200 (32 bit) (60Hz)
          Monitor: Plug and Play Monitor
  Monitor Max Res: 1600,1200

Theres a lot of great suggestions in the forums about these problems, so I won't add any here except cleaning out all your fans including the video card with canned air is a start if you feel the temperatures are high. If you want to know how hot your computer is download this free utility called Speed fan.
www.almico.com/speedfan.php

[AKRaider]

Yeah.  The lockups are 'hard' i.e. can't get to task manager.

My machine is now locking up after 20 minutes or so flight.  Get the 'night time sky' and it's locked.  I can get to task manager however.

Thanks for the tip on the 'thermometer'.  I'll see if I can't get some temperature data.

Thanks guys.

[AKRaider]

Holy Cow.

Steady state GPU Temp 59 C  and Core1 is 58C.

With the game running...

GPU temp went up to 70C and peaked at 79C when flying on the deck or around a lot of tracers.  Core peaked around 75C.

Case temperature peaked at 30C.

That was MY computer.

Moptop's GPU was steady at 50C and rose to 54C just before it locked up.

These temps seem pretty high, but I don't know what the benchmarks are.

:::Looks at computer as potential fire hazard:::

[Pyro]

What happens if you just go in the game and sit in the tower?  Will it lock or is it only during flight?

[AKRaider]

My GPU and Core temps rose about 5 degrees over a 10 minute time span, then stabilized while sitting in the tower.

Moptop did the same test and his temps stayed the same over the same period.  He then tried to take off but got the lock up about 3 seconds after the landing gear cycled up.  His machine locks hard.  Moptop's situation is a mystery to me.  It was working fine...blah blah blah and it still works flawlessly running the FPS's he plays blah blah blah.

My machine will work for 20-30 minutes flight time then lock up 'soft'.  My 'world' goes to starry sky with moon and the frame rate registers zero.  It will stay in that state until I Alt-Tab or Ctrl-Alt-Del out to task manager.

I first observed this in the beta and reported it but you guys were avalanche'd during that time. 

I have not been back through my CH Stick program but I will do that to insure I'm not sending things to the game that I didn't intend.  I can't think of what else to try.

I appreciate how busy you are now.  Thanks for your help.

[Scratchman]

Holy Cow.

Steady state GPU Temp 59 C  and Core1 is 58C.

With the game running...

GPU temp went up to 70C and peaked at 79C when flying on the deck or around a lot of tracers.  Core peaked around 75C.

Case temperature peaked at 30C.

That was MY computer.

Moptop's GPU was steady at 50C and rose to 54C just before it locked up.

These temps seem pretty high, but I don't know what the benchmarks are.

:::Looks at computer as potential fire hazard:::

That's pretty hot, especially yours.

[AKRaider]

Update. My Computer.

I loaded and programmed AlacrityPC today.  This is helpful no matter what.

There is a relationship between my lock ups and vox.  I lasted about 45 minutes today after adjusting the sound acceleration slider to 3/4.

I couldn't think of anything else to clean/tune, so I went into the game and started turning some of the graphics off.  Frame rate went back up to 59.

I was not talking or listening to vox during my test but I flew for an hour and 10 minutes with no lockup.

Update. Moptop's computer.

We turned off everything under that advanced tab for graphics and he flew about 1/2 hour (a whole sortie) with no problem.  We turned the Detailed terrain back on and he only got about 5 minutes.  This is progress of sorts.

Turning off the new stuff is not our first choice, but everything necessary for air combat is present.  Hello scalable.  He will spend this afternoon making incremental changes and recording the result.

Thanks for monitoring this thread.

[Scratchman]

Update. My Computer.

I loaded and programmed AlacrityPC today.  This is helpful no matter what.

There is a relationship between my lock ups and vox.  I lasted about 45 minutes today after adjusting the sound acceleration slider to 3/4.

I couldn't think of anything else to clean/tune, so I went into the game and started turning some of the graphics off.  Frame rate went back up to 59.

I was not talking or listening to vox during my test but I flew for an hour and 10 minutes with no lockup.

Update. Moptop's computer.

We turned off everything under that advanced tab for graphics and he flew about 1/2 hour (a whole sortie) with no problem.  We turned the Detailed terrain back on and he only got about 5 minutes.  This is progress of sorts.

Turning off the new stuff is not our first choice, but everything necessary for air combat is present.  Hello scalable.  He will spend this afternoon making incremental changes and recording the result.

Thanks for monitoring this thread.

Glad to see your getting somewhere. Alacrity is a good program to use. I use Game Booster instead, since I have all the other utilites AlacrityPC offers already in other programs. Wish you two both of luck, hope to see you both soon. 

[Vudak]

I'm having a similar problem...  Do you think increasing fan speed would help, or? ...

(My dxdiag doesn't fit in the forums)

<--- Completely computer illiterate, btw.