Decompression (AGAIN!)

Omega X

Omega X

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Join Date: Jun 2005

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Boston Guild[BG]

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29 Mar 2006 at 02:19 - 41
Quote:
Originally Posted by EternalTempest
Since support for my firewall was dropped (Norton bought out Sysgate and I know what they will say, by Norton Firewall).

If this didn't work, I was about to re-install windows from scratch just to test (I have my pc "imaged" so I can restore it to the exact same state if I wanted to).
Well while I don't have my drive imaged yet, I can still go through a reformat/reinstall when necessary.

AND I also know about Norton buying Sygate. I was really mad at that one. But the hardest has been trying to find another one with as much simplicity and small footprint as Sygate had.

BTW, I also tried redownloading the Dat and it seems to be working a bit faster for now. BUT as I said before. I did it once the last time and it happened again. SO its only a matter of time.

Replicant

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Jan 2006

R/Me

29 Mar 2006 at 03:52 - 42
simply glanced through the responses here, and didn't see a solution posted.

here's my solution, I was taking an hour and 45 minutes to decompress the Marketplace during the factions preview.. with like 600 files left.. i exited out of guild wars, ran it in a window with Task Manager running (start -> run -> taskmgr) after zoning into the marketplace i changed the Priority of gw.exe from low to high. and finished the last 600 files in about 2 minutes.

did the same thing to all the PvP areas and other cities. kinda annoying, but i'm planing on doing a system format sometime soon anyways.

Omega X

Omega X

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29 Mar 2006 at 18:48 - 43
Quote:
Originally Posted by Replicant
simply glanced through the responses here, and didn't see a solution posted.

here's my solution, I was taking an hour and 45 minutes to decompress the Marketplace during the factions preview.. with like 600 files left.. i exited out of guild wars, ran it in a window with Task Manager running (start -> run -> taskmgr) after zoning into the marketplace i changed the Priority of gw.exe from low to high. and finished the last 600 files in about 2 minutes.

did the same thing to all the PvP areas and other cities. kinda annoying, but i'm planing on doing a system format sometime soon anyways.
There was a workaround posted earlier in the thread. That glance must have been mighty quick.

Malice Black

Site Legend

Join Date: Oct 2005

29 Mar 2006 at 19:20 - 44
Quote:
Originally Posted by Replicant
simply glanced through the responses here, and didn't see a solution posted.

here's my solution, I was taking an hour and 45 minutes to decompress the Marketplace during the factions preview.. with like 600 files left.. i exited out of guild wars, ran it in a window with Task Manager running (start -> run -> taskmgr) after zoning into the marketplace i changed the Priority of gw.exe from low to high. and finished the last 600 files in about 2 minutes.

did the same thing to all the PvP areas and other cities. kinda annoying, but i'm planing on doing a system format sometime soon anyways.
wow u must have a slow ass connection took me 3-5mins to d/l and decromprees everything from factions preview

Tarun

Tarun

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Join Date: Jan 2006

The TARDIS

http://www.lunarsoft.net/ http://forums.lunarsoft.net/

29 Mar 2006 at 19:54 - 45
Quote:
Originally Posted by Malice Black
wow u must have a slow ass connection took me 3-5mins to d/l and decromprees everything from factions preview
He has cable.

Omega X

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30 Mar 2006 at 01:34 - 46
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tarun
He has cable.
That he does. Downloading 500+MBs 3-5 mins is no small feat.

Replicant

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Jan 2006

R/Me

30 Mar 2006 at 12:01 - 47
@Omega X, the response of "He has cable" was directed at Malice who was replying to me..... lol.
I saw the "workaround" of changing the size of the window, but that will not change the speed of decompression, since it's still doing the same exact thing but in a smaller window. no matter if the size of the window is the size of a postage stamp or the size of the desktop. it may ease up off the video card, but thats probably the only thing.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Malice Black
wow u must have a slow ass connection took me 3-5mins to d/l and decromprees everything from factions preview
Noun 1. Decompression - restoring compressed information to its normal form for use or display
Source: http://www.thefreedictionary.com/decompression

uhm... I don't see Internet Speed mentioned in that anywhere....... We downloaded the content for Factions a couple weeks ago if you remember back, so the data is already on your computer.. and yes I know the diffrence between Decompressing and Downloading. The problem is not in downloading speeds, as seen in the below picture. My Cable speed is more then capable of downloading.

as Tarun has said, I have Cable, so the problem is not in Download Speed.

Omega X

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30 Mar 2006 at 20:11 - 48
Quote:
Originally Posted by Replicant
@Omega X, the response of "He has cable" was directed at Malice who was replying to me..... lol.
I saw the "workaround" of changing the size of the window, but that will not change the speed of decompression, since it's still doing the same exact thing but in a smaller window. no matter if the size of the window is the size of a postage stamp or the size of the desktop. it may ease up off the video card, but thats probably the only thing.
Wrong.

When reducing the window size, it reduces the amount of CPU GW uses. Therefore it gives the Decompression action more headroom to operate. Which results in faster decompression of the files.

I've done it. Another tried it and confirmed that it works.

Please read next time instead of just scanning.

LadyTheif

LadyTheif

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Join Date: Jul 2005

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30 Mar 2006 at 20:22 - 49
It's fast and almost almost never lag with mine. it took a little time to download the updates. It wasn't too bad. Cable helps and my pc is under a year old.

blackpawn

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Mar 2006

NERF

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30 Mar 2006 at 20:40 - 50
omega did you see the guild wars update last night? did it impact your load times at all?

Replicant

Lion's Arch Merchant

Join Date: Jan 2006

R/Me

30 Mar 2006 at 21:58 - 51
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega X
Wrong.

When reducing the window size, it reduces the amount of CPU GW uses. Therefore it gives the Decompression action more headroom to operate. Which results in faster decompression of the files.

I've done it. Another tried it and confirmed that it works.

Please read next time instead of just scanning.
alright, you are correct to a certain degree, The game doesn't have to tell the video card to draw as in detail or as much, then while its in full screen.. you may slim off a couple minutes at most my changing the size. try it yourself, check how much CPU Usage gw.exe takes in average over a couple minutes in the smallest possible size.. compare that to gw.exe at desktop size, i had pretty much the same usage on average over 2 minutes.

next time you go into an area where you hav eto decompress, change the priority from Low to Normal.. i've gone from 130+ files to complete in about 20 seconds by doing my method.

Omega X

Omega X

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31 Mar 2006 at 20:06 - 52
Quote:
Originally Posted by blackpawn
omega did you see the guild wars update last night? did it impact your load times at all?
My load times are never impacted. ITs always decompression sequences when the game is at full speed. Because the game runs full speed during the load screens, the CPU is always maxed out and leaves no room for extra processes. No other game does this, not even WoW.

And Anet won't fix it since tech support keeps dodging having to report the issue to the dev team. All I get is copy and paste responses.

blackpawn

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Mar 2006

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31 Mar 2006 at 20:53 - 53
but have you tried since the update? it looks like it's now limiting the rendering speed while decompressing.

Omega X

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31 Mar 2006 at 22:56 - 54
Quote:
Originally Posted by blackpawn
but have you tried since the update? it looks like it's now limiting the rendering speed while decompressing.
Now that you point it out, it seems likely. Decompression has seemed to increase a little in speed, but the game still isn't letting enough of the CPU go to make a real difference.

I would call it marginal, and I think that they fixed something DX9 or sound related. I don't think that it was intentional.

Omega X

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02 Apr 2006 at 19:25 - 55
So Tech support decided to blow me off instead of reporting my problem like they were supposed to.

Does anyone have Gaile Grey's email address?

I refuse to give up.

Human1

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Oct 2005

Salt Lake City

03 Apr 2006 at 03:04 - 56
I've the same problem with the decompression. Going into windowed mode works for me. Usually by the time the game goes from fullscreen to a window the decompressoin's done. Something's just buggy with GW and fullscreen.
I asked techsupport and they just say to delete GW.dat, which of course means you have to redownload and decompress everything. Not real helpful.

Short story: reducing to windowed mode works for me!

mechjman

Pre-Searing Cadet

Join Date: Apr 2006

W/Mo

15 Apr 2006 at 04:13 - 57
Hi,

I have had the same problem, where decompression is extremely slow, doing close to 1 file per 2-4 seconds, and when you have 200 files to do, it adds up. I once left my computer to do 7000 files, which took 6 hours and only did 4000 of it which is a load of crap. I read on another forum who had the same issue, and he said to fix the issue was to disable the sound drivers, and it should bring it back to normal. I followed the advice and it works. But that kinda defeats the purpose of buying my Audigy 2 ZS. Seems like Omega X has the same card as I. Try modifying your shortcut to guildwars to have -nosound. This will stop the soundcard from working, as I have figured it to be a directSound problem. Anet are being rude and throwing everything at me, putting the blame on my computer, when the actual fact that I formatted it twice because of this issue. This issue only started to happen after a patch sometime last month.

lord_shar

lord_shar

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Jul 2005

near SF, CA

15 Apr 2006 at 06:29 - 58
Give these a try:

1- Boot up your PC in safe mode by hitting F8 at WinXP logo screen
2- Choose XP safe mode
3- When system comes up, go to start->run and type in %temp% <Enter>
4- Go to tools->Folder options->View Tab, and uncheck "hide protected operating system files (recommended)". Also click "Show hidden files and folders"
5- Select and delete all files in %temp%
6- Go to Start->run, type "Prefetch" <Enter>
7- Also erase this folder's contents
8- Empty your recycling bin
9- Reboot in normal mode

If the above doesn't work, you can also try creating a new administrator account on your XP system, then try running GW.exe from that new login.

Please tell us what happens.

Omega X

Omega X

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15 Apr 2006 at 20:26 - 59
That is a LOT of hoops to jump for nothing. Prefetch and the temp folder are not critical and can easily be dumped by the Disk Cleanup utility that comes with windows.

Creating a new profile can solve some things but it won't solve decompression in GW.

There are three steps to "try" and get pass it.

1. Before Zoning into a new area, put the game into Windowed Mode and reduce the size by half or more. This lets up off of the CPU so that the Load screen can perform Decompression.

2. Turn off as many processes as you can before playing since it will free up a little head room for GW to saturate. It won't be as fast as #1 but it will speed things up a bit.

3. Complain like hell to Anet so that they can fix the load screen to NOT saturate the CPU when performing those functions. This will mostlikely fix the problem. But at the current state, Anet is not getting the issue from Tech Support. They will not see it as a real issue. You will have to bypass them and talk to someone that talks to programmers like Gaile or others that work directly for Anet and not NC Soft. You can also try submitting it as a bug in game via the /bug emote.

lord_shar

lord_shar

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Join Date: Jul 2005

near SF, CA

15 Apr 2006 at 20:41 - 60
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega X
That is a LOT of hoops to jump for nothing. Prefetch and the temp folder are not critical and can easily be dumped by the Disk Cleanup utility that comes with windows.
Takes a few minutes tops, and I've encountered a few wierd failed software installations that could not be corrected via disk clean-up since some of the files in question are being actively accessed by the XP OS. Manually cleaning the two directories is also a lot faster than XP's disk clean up.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega X
Creating a new profile can solve some things but it won't solve decompression in GW.

...<SNIP>...
I had the compression error hit my PC once. Recreating the profile fixed it. Just sharing my own experiences... you don't have to believe any of it.

Omega X

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15 Apr 2006 at 20:51 - 61
Quote:
Originally Posted by lord_shar


I had the compression error hit my PC once. Recreating the profile fixed it. Just sharing my own experiences... you don't have to believe any of it.
That's just great then. Especially when some have reported reformatting and reinstallations of windows and it still does nothing to help decompression.

lord_shar

lord_shar

Furnace Stoker

Join Date: Jul 2005

near SF, CA

15 Apr 2006 at 21:02 - 62
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega X
That's just great then. Especially when some have reported reformatting and reinstallations of windows and it still does nothing to help decompression.
I just went thru most of this thread again and found that you're the only one who reported his CPU type, and it's an AMD. I'm on an older Intel platform on an Asus SiS645 MB and NVidia 6800-Ultra AGP. I'm starting to wonder if what I encountered was the same error that's plaguing your PC now.

Can anyone else suffering the problem chime in on what MB/CPU/Vid-card you are running?

Omega X

Omega X

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15 Apr 2006 at 21:36 - 63
Quote:
Originally Posted by lord_shar
I just went thru most of this thread again and found that you're the only one who reported his CPU type, and it's an AMD. I'm on an older Intel platform on an Asus SiS645 MB and NVidia 6800-Ultra AGP. I'm starting to wonder if what I encountered was the same error that's plaguing your PC now.

Can anyone else suffering the problem chime in on what MB/CPU/Vid-card you are running?
I've troubleshooted my system to HELL on this issue, and GW is the only game with this unique situation. Trust me, this is a PROGRAM ISSUE. No amount of chiming in with specs on the issue will solve it.

The fact of the matter is, Guild Wars will SATURATE the cpu during the process. End of Story. The program DOES NOT need that much of the cpu when doing extra tasks. It leaves no clock time for the decompression.

IT was the same thing with the ATi thread and some graphic glitches, it wasn't limited to just ATi cards. NvIDIA cards also have the same problem. AND it came up around the time GW went DX9. IT IS A PROGRAM ISSUE.

lord_shar

lord_shar

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Join Date: Jul 2005

near SF, CA

15 Apr 2006 at 21:42 - 64
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega X
I've troubleshooted my system to HELL on this issue, and GW is the only game with this unique situation. Trust me, this is a PROGRAM ISSUE. No amount of chiming in with specs on the issue will solve it.

The fact of the matter is, Guild Wars will SATURATE the cpu during the process. End of Story. The program DOES NOT need that much of the cpu when doing extra tasks. It leaves no clock time for the decompression.

IT was the same thing with the ATi thread and some graphic glitches, it wasn't limited to just ATi cards. NvIDIA cards also have the same problem. AND it came up around the time GW went DX9. IT IS A PROGRAM ISSUE.
True, but my 2.5ghz P4 CPU gets pegged by GW.exe all the time, yet I don't currently have any huge decompression delays. It's the same application on two different PC's. If it is a program issue only, then why doesn't it affect every system?

My "guess" is that the problem could by hardware, driver, or even firmware related, but we can't summarily dismiss anything. You've already ruled out OS when you mentioned that the problem persisted between complete OS reloads. So, what variables are left?

Omega X

Omega X

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15 Apr 2006 at 21:50 - 65
Quote:
Originally Posted by lord_shar
My "guess" is that the problem could by hardware, driver, or even firmware related, but we can't summarily dismiss anything.
ITs not Driver or firmware related because I keep my system updated. ANd I'm not dismissing anything because I've been through this already a thousand times.

lord_shar

lord_shar

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Join Date: Jul 2005

near SF, CA

15 Apr 2006 at 21:59 - 66
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega X
ITs not Driver or firmware related because I keep my system updated. ANd I'm not dismissing anything because I've been through this already a thousand times.
Constant software updates do not dismiss driver nor firmware as potential sources of problems. If anything, constant updates can de-stabilize your PC if they don't go through a QA process with your present specific hardware. I work in a production environment, so I get so see first hand how unmitigated changes can really screw things up.

PS: I'm seriously trying to help... no need to direct anger my way, even if you've already gone through these steps. If you want me to shut up, I won't reply again.

Omega X

Omega X

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15 Apr 2006 at 22:26 - 67
Quote:
Originally Posted by lord_shar
PS: I'm seriously trying to help... no need to direct anger my way, even if you've already gone through these steps. If you want me to shut up, I won't reply again.
I'm not directing any anger. ITs just, this is the exact same song and dance that NC Soft Tech Support did. AND it didn't solve anything.

lord_shar

lord_shar

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Join Date: Jul 2005

near SF, CA

15 Apr 2006 at 22:50 - 68
Quote:
Originally Posted by Omega X
I'm not directing any anger. ITs just, this is the exact same song and dance that NC Soft Tech Support did. AND it didn't solve anything.
When my company division runs into system problems that defy explanation, the first thing we do is find a reference point that precedes the problem's initial detection. Once that reference point is found, we backtrack through change records to determine what change/alteration caused the system breakdown.

Since most people don't have the luxury of maintaining change records at home, your next best bet is to locate someone on these forums with a similar set up to yours that doesn't have the problem present. From there, you can compare system specs and variable, bios version, etc... and take note of the similarities and differences. I know this isn't easy, but if you've already tried everything short of replacing your PC, then there are only a few options left.

EternalTempest

EternalTempest

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19 Apr 2006 at 05:41 - 69
Here is another work around that may work better until the problem is resolved (koneko found this one) use -image switch off of the gw.exe. It will do a forced decompression of all the files in the gw.dat at the connection screen (not in game). Please note this will slam your cpu/memory but once it's done .

If you keep running this command after every major update won't have to worry about forgetting to minimize the window before warping.

Omega X

Omega X

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19 Apr 2006 at 18:44 - 70
O.O


OMG!

My savior!

Thanks ET(and Koneko). That is a PERFECT workaround.

Trinitron6_03

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Apr 2006

W/

29 Apr 2006 at 03:27 - 71
cool, could you tell us how to do the image thing, also

now this may be a lil different, but.

i have no anti virus running, my paging file is fine, i have 2 gigs of ram, i have an AMD 3200+, now. the game runs excellent. and here is the prob.

if i run winamp(listen to music while playing GW), it takes FOREVER to decompress. as soon as i shut off GW, and go into a NEW AREA, its almost instant for decompressing, ..something with winamp, and GW are wrong. i contacted the support, and they told me.

dont run winamp while playing GW.

simple as that

what great support they have eh?.. how about you guys any probs running winamp with it. and its 5.21 is what i have for winamp.

Trinitron6_03

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Apr 2006

W/

29 Apr 2006 at 04:10 - 72
ok, i was looking at the switches for this, and i did the -image one, and it worked wonders, i can run winamp and have no prob


now.. thats just a temp solution.

i wanted to know what you all thought about this winamp prob.

EternalTempest

EternalTempest

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29 Apr 2006 at 14:43 - 73
My issue causing this was my firewall software, not it blocking anything but the fact it was running...

This sound like the situation where GW and Winamp work by themselves but as both are running ><. When it comes to this best you can do is bug Winamp tech support (and they will most likely say bug GW support). If were lucky one of them will get it fixed on there end. This is common in the software industry sad to say.

Winamp has a compatibility issue before with another software (not GW)

Omega X

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29 Apr 2006 at 21:10 - 74
Forget Tech Support and their cookie cutter replys. I hate that entire department.

Anyway, from my experience, Winamp only has a problem with Guild Wars only after something else messes with DirectX. Like for example, When Runnign GW and Winamp and something like the screensaver kicks in, the sound will mix through GW's channels, giving it a echo effect.

NOW as for Winamp messing with GW during Decompression, it depends on what skin you were using at the time. Winamp only uses excess CPU clocks if you are using different kinds of skins. From what I saw is, If you use Winamp Classic skins, then the CPU spikes 5% but if using certain types of Modern Skinns, the CPU remains 0% and the memory usage goes up about 7MBs. Since GW is only using about 2-400MB on a 1GB system, its only a drop in the bucket.

Chris1986

Chris1986

Banned

Join Date: Mar 2006

New Jersey

30 Apr 2006 at 05:42 - 75
What else are you running in the background. How much RAM do you have and what speed? (unless I overlooked that on the first page).

Running Guild Wars windowed and switching back and forth between processes (IE/Firefox, AIM, etc) takes up a TON of resources, as I've noticed. If you're NOT running windowed, check your task bar and close any unused processes.

I've noticed slowdowns with popups and flash ads running in the background, even when not in windowed mode

Other then that, I'm decompressing pretty fast on a 2500+ overclocked @ 3200+, and a 9800Pro, 1GB PC-3200 overclocked at some kind of weird timing, lol.

-Chris


EDIT: Also, excuse me if this is just a repeat post of someone elses. I didn't exactly read every page

Handicrap

Pre-Searing Cadet

Join Date: Jun 2005

BC, Canada

Vengeful Mercenaries

W/Mo

30 Apr 2006 at 07:59 - 76
I just have two shortcuts. One with the -image and one without. Just run the -image first to see if there was a new update before I play.

Me and my brother both have this problem. And it only happened sometime around the preview event for factions.

Trinitron6_03

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Apr 2006

W/

01 May 2006 at 22:04 - 77
i have 2 gigs of ram(corsair if you must know, 2 x 1gb )

i have winamp 5.21 with classic view

nothing but necessary services in background(yes im a computer tech myself, and i know what services need to be ran, heres a good link www.blackviper.com)

and i have contacted winamp, and GW support, both were no help(like usual)

i have found a workaround its the switch -image

i can run winamp, modern skin and classic skin, and run gw no problem.

thats my suggestion to fix the prob.

paul8811

Ascalonian Squire

Join Date: Jul 2005

03 May 2006 at 13:41 - 78
Hi...purchased & installed Factions yesterday & having this problem take about 20 minutes everytime I enter a new area. I do run Sygate firewalll so will try disabling that first when I get home as my spec is more then up for the job. Ws just wandering if anyone recieved any acknowledgement from Tech Support that there is a problem?

Opty [email protected], 1g OCZ LE, 7800GT, DFI Ultra-d.
ADSL 8000/1200

EternalTempest

EternalTempest

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Join Date: Jun 2005

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03 May 2006 at 16:14 - 79
Quote:
Originally Posted by paul8811
Hi...purchased & installed Factions yesterday & having this problem take about 20 minutes everytime I enter a new area. I do run Sygate firewalll so will try disabling that first when I get home as my spec is more then up for the job. Ws just wandering if anyone recieved any acknowledgement from Tech Support that there is a problem?

Opty [email protected], 1g OCZ LE, 7800GT, DFI Ultra-d.
ADSL 8000/1200
I had to kill Sygate from even loading at startup (not just disabling it) or try un-installing it.

What I'm going to try tonight in fact is right a batch file that does the image command 1st, then launch gw.

koneko

Site Contributor

Join Date: Sep 2005

38??16′ N 140??52′ E

Mo/Me

03 May 2006 at 18:23 - 80
Quote:
Originally Posted by EternalTempest
What I'm going to try tonight in fact is right a batch file that does the image command 1st, then launch gw.
Messy, written in 30 seconds (copy-paste into notepad, save as gw.bat):

Code:
:: batch file to force decompression of compressed data in gw.dat
@echo off
:: change the following line if game is installed in a different directory
cd \program files\guild wars
:: force decompression/download if compressed data still exist within gw.dat
gw.exe -image
:: start guild wars normally; needed since -image causes the program to exit
:: use your own value for heapsize if you use it
:: remove -perf and -heapsize xxxxxx if you don't use them
start /d "\program files\guild wars" gw.exe -perf -heapsize 512000
:: reason for using start /d above is so we can exit cmd.exe
:: kills batch file/cmd.exe
@exit
Do things work if you kill Sygate through taskmgr.exe (Task Manager)? If so...hm.

Oh, Winamp users: foobar2000. I'll install Winamp later just for kicks to see if the same problem happens over here, but I doubt it...