Question about the RAMDisk

[RogueBlade 0]

I've followed that big thread about ram disks vaguely but was wondering some stuff.

I want to use some of my RAM to make a virtual RAM disk so my textures and what not will load faster in arma2. But I see users say you want to have a lot of ram (unused ram) to put aside for the ram disk.

I have 6 gigs of ram. But since arma2 only can utilize 2 gigs, would I be safe putting aside 2 of my 6 gigs (one stick) to create a ram disk?

Thanks

edit: I plan to do it based on this guide http://www.speedguide.net/read_articles.php?id=131 but still have to find where in the ram disk thread how to direct arma 2 to my ram disk

[Alex72 1]

Why didnt you post in that thread? Bit better and less hassle from the moderators wich dont like duplicate threads as you might know.

And i think i saw them speak of exactlly what your asking.

[RogueBlade 0]

Well, I just read your post in that thread which turns out to be the exact same question and no one has answered it. So I don't see why my own thread would hurt, maybe I'm more likely to get a response. This board is lacking enough activity in the first place.

Did you trying ram disking the 2gb of your 6 like you were asking in that thread?

[MavericK96 0]

I was wondering about this as well. I'd rather not have to buy another 6 GB RAM if I don't have to... ;)

Also, can anyone comment on the frequency of crashes when using the RAMdisk as opposed to not?

[qwertz 10]

You can use 3-4GB of your 6 for the RAMdisk and leave 2GB for Win/Arma. I am using 9.5 out odf 12GB for RAMdisk.

[RogueBlade 0]

Isn't leaving only 2GB for win/arma a bad ideas as windows uses about 1.5 (so I've heard)

[qwertz 10]

Windows, dependent upon version, uses between 150 and 300 MB (see: http://blogs.zdnet.com/Bott/?p=672)

If (and only if) Windows finds more ressources than it currently needs, it puts it to good use by caching files, running background tasks etc.

You are on the very safe side if you leave a GB for Windows while gaming. With ArmA 2 rarely ever using >1GB RAM, you will never see Windows + ArmA requiring more than 2GB of RAM.

Edited April 10, 2010 by qwertz

[Tonci87 163]

I have 4GB RAM and Win7 x64, would I see some benefit in Arma when creating a ramdisk?

[Punisher5555 0]

I have 4GB RAM and Win7 x64, would I see some benefit in Arma when creating a ramdisk?

I don't think 4GB is enough. Isn't what you are supposed to "load" into the ramdisk 3.5GB? The author of the setup had 12-16GB RAM. I think 8GB would be the minimum. 2GB for windows, 2GB for ArmA2, 4GB for ramdisk.

[kklownboy 43]

the amount of RAM need for a RamDisk in Arma2 is really about how many islands you play on. The core Addons can add up, but you dont need all the core addons. By just using all the Cherno pbos with structures/buildings, trees/bushes ect, Cherno will load up smoothly. Because the real reason for a Ramdisk is to stop the lame popping textures ect. Which can give you stutter and lag. Using 9.5GB(win7,64,12GB) is great for having many Islands fully in RAM. And then adding the other stuff as space allows (wheeled/tracked,mods ect). So even 1.5GB RAMDisk will help.

As for crashes with a RAMDisck, it depends on the stabillity of your RAM, 12GB can be tricky to run in a OC... But i have also found failure with a to low of a Pagefile. All do to how win7 and Vista use Virtual memory.

[RogueBlade 0]

Awesome thanks, guys. Will try this with my new 5870! I'll probably come back with questions as I will likely run into issues etc

[MavericK96 0]

Awesome thanks, guys. Will try this with my new 5870! I'll probably come back with questions as I will likely run into issues etc

Hey, if you get it running with 6 GB, let us know what steps you took if you don't mind. I'd like to see a decent guide on running a RAMdisk with ArmA2 with less than putting the entire game folder on a RAMdisk. :D

[cjph 0]

Hi

I have a total of 8Gb of RAM (see spec below) and run 5GB of it as a RAMDisk under Win XP (using the Superspeed product, I think), leaving 3Gb for everything else. As the computer only runs Arma2 at any one time I disabled the pagefile leaving the 3Gb for the OS, game and other small programs.

I put the original pbos from the other thread (about 3.21Gb worth) onto the RAMdisk plus some other addons, and am still experimenting with the best setup as I have the main game on a small SSD and also another 4Gb I-RAM RAMdisk card, but even then the total addons add up once you add ACE and a few Islands or sound mods. It has allowed me to go from medium settings to high and VD of 2000 and get very smooth response times with minimal texture pops and delays. I now think the slow texture loading on some maps is down to my modest processor, both cores of which are 100% loaded at times and over 90% most of the time.

I hope this helps - I also saw improved texture loading times using a USB memory stick (and not a high performance one), so if you have a spare one handy it would be worth trying that.

[evilfury 0]

Do you mind to post screenshots of folder where you have pbos from Addons folder.

Edited April 12, 2010 by evilfury

[cjph 0]

Afraid I am not at the game machine for a while - from memory they are the original 3.21Gb of pbos from the original thread, plus some others I added (I think the wheeled and tracked ones). I'll post more when I get back.