Sudden Performance Drop: SWToR
Hey, On 1 October 2015 I resubbed to Star Wars The Old Republic. I played up to and including Tuesday 6 October 2015 with more than adequate frame rate (fps); the game ran really smooth. I logged ...
Forum Discussion
Try the following, this may be an issue with the caching file called DiskCacheArena. Delete this file located in C:\Program Files (x86)\Electronic Arts\BioWare\Star Wars-The Old Republic\swtor.
This file has a max size of 1 GB, and sometimes is unable to flush the earliest recorded data.
Wasn't the 7th the day after they did the performance update ? Check if the AA setting didn't shoot to extra high, and get rid of Bloom and Shadows in the graphics settings.
You have a fan temperature soft to measure the CPU and GPU die temperatures ? The graphics update does stress CPU and GPU more, as shown in the Coil Whine post. And symptomes also reminds me of stuff running hot tbh.
Also, instead of updating the drivers, try completely uninstalling them with DisplayDriverUninstaller, and reinstalling them from scratch, especially since the NVidia shares the GFX functions with the Intel HD 4600 included in your CPU. Sometimes the Intel driver screws up, and the NVidia looses the lead to the Intel Integrated *, causing a huge frame drop.
Could it be possible that you have not disabled the onboard GPU built into your CPU via your Bios? and that is what is actually running your swtor?
Your GT 240 isn't anything 'flash' but I would still expect a reasonable game play on medium with shadows off.
Being Windows 7, I would check to ensure that Windows Aero is off; as this is the Translucent visual effect for your Windows Task Bar at the bottom of your desktop, this will give you a night and day feel to your game play.
Turning off 'Overlay's' will be helpful also if you use any with your VOIP programs such as Mumble/TeamSpeak.
Deleted DiskCacheArena and I got to about 10 minutes before it got as low as 5 fps.
This is quests on Nar Shadaa - graphics were set to default.
I did set the graphics to the lowest possible with no change; even AA and bloom and Shadows were off and the problem persists.
I have checked CPU and CPU temperatures and the highest recorded was 50 degrees Celsius which, as far as I know, is within acceptable levels.
I will attempt the clean install of display drivers tomorrow although I'm reliably lead to believe that a conflict between the Nvidia and the HD 4600 but at this point I'll try pretty much anything if it can get the game working like it should.
All of your suggestions are plausible, although why would they suddenly start causing issues with only one game (as SWToR is the only game so affected) after 5-6 days of playing?
It was literally a case of the game running perfectly when I shut the PC off on Tuesday night, and then it ran terribly the next day for no apparent reason.
I still had Chrome and Skype open while playing from the 1st to the 6th. Even had Windows Aero on.
I'll try turning that off to see how it goes though I can't imagine why it would suddenly make a difference xDI appreciate the input regardless and will follow up on your advice.
Yeah, 50 degrees is largely acceptable for both CPU and GPU. Beyond 90 is worrysome and may cause downclocking.
I have an odd feeling your game is somehow running on the HD 4600, which gives 5-10 fps on medium settings. Heck, it's even a slideshow on Low settings.
I'm not sure I know how to disable the on-board via the BIOS; as a rule I stay out of there because I generally stuff something up regardless of what I do. So I'll just clean off the drivers I currently have for the Nvidia and do a fresh install.
