TheForumTroll 10 Posted March 3, 2011 (edited) Hello :) I'm thinking about creating a small tool for myself and maybe later release it if it is worth it (and it works as intended). The thing is that as many others I have lots of unused RAM and I'm currently using some of it for a RAM disk to speed up loading. So I was thinking I might code a small utility to create a RAM drive, copy some files into it and create symbolic links to them in the ArmA folder(s). But first I would like to know how much RAM the typical ArmA2 gamer has in his/hers computer. So if you wouldn't mind please answer the poll :) Thank you in advance! UPDATE: Thank you for the answers. I'll post again if it works out as intended after some testing. If in the meantime you want to test ArmA with a RAMDISK I'll leave some links here for you to follow :) RAMDISK creation software I can recommend: ImDisk (it's free) Symbolic links @ Wikipedia An old guide to do it the manual way someone linked to (I haven't tested it) can be found here. Edited March 5, 2011 by TheForumTroll Updated Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
avibird 1 154 Posted March 3, 2011 Hello :)I'm thinking about creating a small tool for myself and maybe later release it if it is worth it (and it works as intended). The thing is that as many others I have lots of unused RAM and I'm currently using some of it for a RAM disk to speed up loading. So I was thinking I might code a small utility to create a RAM drive, copy some files into it and create symbolic links to them in the ArmA folder(s). But first I would like to know how much RAM the typical ArmA2 gamer has in his/hers computer. So if you wouldn't mind please answer the poll :) Thank you in advance! Everyone will tell you a different amount. The facts are you only need 4GB of ram to run ARMA2 and OS. What kind of MOBO do you have. If you have 6 slots that uses 2 sets of three then 6GB (3 x 2GBS) but if your MOBO has only 4 slots then go with 4-8GBS. I would get 8gbs. RAM is cheap now so you can get more it can't hurt your system lol. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PuFu 4599 Posted March 3, 2011 12GB in the current PC (see spoiler in the sig), and 16 in the one i'll build in a few (dual channel on the 1155 socket unfortunately) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheForumTroll 10 Posted March 3, 2011 Everyone will tell you a different amount.The facts are you only need 4GB of ram to run ARMA2 and OS. I think you might need to read my post again :D Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
NeMeSiS 11 Posted March 3, 2011 4GB, too lazy/cheap to buy more and i dont have the need for a ramdrive. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
-=Grunt=- 10 Posted March 3, 2011 4 GB on XP 32-bit so.. 3.3 GB. More than enough to run ArmA 2 and OS the same time. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
celery 8 Posted March 3, 2011 4 GB physical, 3 GB actual due to 32-bit OS. Answered 3. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zipper5 74 Posted March 3, 2011 2GB DDR2 at 800MHz at the moment. :( But I'm planning to get my hands on some sexeh 4GB DDR3 at 1066MHz pretty soon! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dale0404 5 Posted March 3, 2011 2GB DDR2 at 800MHz at the moment. :(But I'm planning to get my hands on some sexeh 4GB DDR3 at 1066MHz pretty soon! Hopefully you'll see a big difference! Slightly off topic but how does the game run with 2GB of RAM? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
kotov12345 10 Posted March 3, 2011 depends on your chipset - if you use dual channel you need have 4gb doesnt matter if you have 32bit or 64. triple channel 3gb is enough(I use it now.) Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zipper5 74 Posted March 3, 2011 Hopefully you'll see a big difference! Slightly off topic but how does the game run with 2GB of RAM? Texture loading at times can be excruciatingly slow, as can switching back to the Arma 2 window after alt-tabbing. But I've learned to deal with it and, yes, I hope I do notice a big difference: I'm also doing a full upgrade of my PC along with new RAM. :p Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheForumTroll 10 Posted March 3, 2011 (edited) Yeah, ArmA doesn't need a lot of RAM and without a 64 bit version it wouldn't really work out for most players anyway. That's why I'm using a ram drive and the loading times are extremely fast. Especially when turning around and looking at something that hasn't been preloaded. Makes the game feel a lot smoother. I started out benchmarking to try to tweak here and there but found out that the only bottleneck that I can fix myself (besides my CPU that I will upgrade next month) are the hard drives. EDIT: I also overclocked my PC to see what subsystems (GFX,FSB,RAM mhz/timings, etc.) that made a difference and found that my graphic card is more than enough and an extra ghz on my CPU didn't really do much at all. So faster harddrives and more cores seem to be the only way to go unless it is done by BI themselves on the code somehow. Edited March 3, 2011 by TheForumTroll Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MissionCreep 12 Posted March 3, 2011 12GB in the current PC (see spoiler in the sig), and 16 in the one i'll build in a few (dual channel on the 1155 socket unfortunately) Hey PuFu ... what does 12 Gb man memory get you in Arma2? You need a 64-bit OS to access the full 12 Gb address space, but my understanding is that Arma2/OA is optimized for 32-bit XP. Sounds to me like the video card rendering engine and its VRAM is more critical than adding main RAM above 4 Gb. Just wondering ... Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheForumTroll 10 Posted March 3, 2011 2GB DDR2 at 800MHz at the moment. :(But I'm planning to get my hands on some sexeh 4GB DDR3 at 1066MHz pretty soon! I don't know what CPU you've got, but if it's a core 2 duo, 1066mhz isn't really faster than 800mhz according to Xbitlabs here and here. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cjph 0 Posted March 4, 2011 Answered 8Gb - 3Gb for XP and 5Gb for a RAMDrive. Hope to re-build soon with a faster processor and may move to 16Gb for a 12Gb RAMDrive depending an what an SSD provides. I know the streaming is improved but still see a difference when using files from RAMDrive to HDD. Not much, but when you've got used to a RAMDrive it does notice. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Zipper5 74 Posted March 4, 2011 I don't know what CPU you've got, but if it's a core 2 duo, 1066mhz isn't really faster than 800mhz according to Xbitlabs here and here. I won't be getting my new RAM until I've upgraded my CPU, graphics card, motherboard and HDD along with it. Right now I'm looking at an i7 960, a GTX 580, and for the RAM I'm looking at Corsair. The motherboard I still have to find, along with the HDD though I'm certain I'll be getting a 1TB one. I'm also looking into SDDs for Arma 2 specifically. But yes, right now I have a Core 2 Duo E8400 @ 3.00GHz. Obviously not suitable for high frequency RAM, let alone DDR3. Anyway, sorry for the offtopic. :o Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AnimalMother92 10 Posted March 4, 2011 (edited) 8GBs, feels right for the time being. Edited March 5, 2011 by AnimalMother92 Added a sexy picture Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wolfbite 8 Posted March 4, 2011 How much RAM does the typical ArmA player have Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
andersson 285 Posted March 4, 2011 2GB DDR2 at 800MHz at the moment. :(But I'm planning to get my hands on some sexeh 4GB DDR3 at 1066MHz pretty soon! To continue on the OT a bit if you dont mind? 4 Gb DDR3 doesnt make sense. DDR3 works best in tripple channel so you want 3 sticks. So 3 Gb or 6Gb should be better :) edit. Unless you mean 3 x 4 Gb = 12 Gb total? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Leon86 13 Posted March 4, 2011 DDR3 works best in tripple channel so you want 3 sticks. So 3 Gb or 6Gb should be better :) Only X58 motherboard have triplechannel. For am3, s1156 and s1155 dualchannel (so 4 or 8GB) is best. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
froggyluv 2131 Posted March 4, 2011 Had 8, 2 sticks went bad and now have 4 -havent noticed a single difference. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
PuFu 4599 Posted March 4, 2011 Hey PuFu ... what does 12 Gb man memory get you in Arma2? You need a 64-bit OS to access the full 12 Gb address space, but my understanding is that Arma2/OA is optimized for 32-bit XP. Sounds to me like the video card rendering engine and its VRAM is more critical than adding main RAM above 4 Gb. Just wondering ... the optimized for 32 bit is really bullshit. my PC runs arma really smoothly, i have no issues with slow loading times or similar. Due to running a lot of software that are pushing the 12GB (i might actually add another 12GB when upgrading the other PC i've got), i am not using any ram disks or alike. It is fair to say i have never seen arma even try to go above the 3GB, no matter what i threw at it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Derbysieger 11 Posted March 4, 2011 6GB DDR3 But that's not because of Arma2. I didn't built my rig with Arma2 in mind. I built it because I needed a fast system to work with. When editing photos I often use 4GB+ depending on what I'm working on. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TheForumTroll 10 Posted March 4, 2011 ... my PC runs arma really smoothly, i have no issues with slow loading times or similar. ... Your rig is fast but even with a fast rig the hard drives are a lot slower than a RAM drive so loading should still be significantly faster. Might not be worth it though. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Smurf 12 Posted March 4, 2011 4Gb installed, using XP 32 bits ¬¬ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
