A Solution to Consistent Lag Spikes (Wireless)

[kturisnav]

I've had my share of questions on this forum, so today I thought I'd give back to the community:

For those using Wireless Internet Adapters:  If you ever find yourself getting consistent lag spikes (like once a minute, and lag-length consistency), try stopping Windows Wireless Zero Configuration (stops scanning for connections):Windows XP Users (with a working wireless internet connection):

1. Click Start -> Run
2. In the Open field, type sc.exe stop wzcsvc and click OK.

If you run Vista, this equivalent service is called WLAN Auto-Config.  I do not run Vista, so I don't know the commands for it.

A few notes about this:

• The counter-command to start scanning for connections is sc.exe start wzcsvc
• Do not run sc.exe stop wzcsvc before you connect.  Stopping the scanner before any connection is established can prevent you from making any connection or finding wireless connections to use.
• This method can also be executed from Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Services

When I first encountered this problem, it took me almost 24 hours to find a solution for it on the internet.  In my case, WZC was scanning for wireless connections once every minute for about 5-6 seconds.  During those 5-6 seconds, all internet activity completely stopped until the scan was over, and then it caught up.  Supposedly it is possible to have your adapter provider control this activity solely, but I never bothered to try after I fixed my problem.

It doesn't seem to be discussed much in the forums here at all, so I hope this helps someone who is having this problem.

[TSR-DanielH]

Thanks for posting that information.  Disabling that service can help people having lag problems when trying to play the game.  Please keep in mind that disabling the service will prevent your computer from locating wireless devices like printers, though.

[Giliad]

Lately I have been getting a minute to 2 minute lag spikes consistenly every 15 min or so.  I have a wireless router but connected via ethernet cable.  Prior to last couple of days I never had this issue.  Checking my rates I was getting 4 to 0 FPS during spikes, but 22-30 normal.  Not sure what is causing this.  I just reset my modem and router so maybe that will do it.  Any other thoughts.

[TSR-DanielH]

Giliad@Befallen wrote:

Lately I have been getting a minute to 2 minute lag spikes consistenly every 15 min or so.  I have a wireless router but connected via ethernet cable.  Prior to last couple of days I never had this issue.  Checking my rates I was getting 4 to 0 FPS during spikes, but 22-30 normal.  Not sure what is causing this.  I just reset my modem and router so maybe that will do it.  Any other thoughts.

If you lower your graphics settings, does that have any effect on the problem?  I'm trying to determine whether it's network or video lag. 

Either way, it might be a good idea to perform a cleanboot to reduce the number of background applications that could be contributing to the problem.  To disable background programs:1. Select the START button.2. Select RUN, then type in "msconfig" (for Vista, type msconfig in the search bar at the bottom of the Start Menu)3. Press OK4. Select the STARTUP tab.5. In the list, uncheck all boxes EXCEPT for SCANREGISTRY and SYSTEM TRAY. If you use Windows XP, please note that SCANREGISTRY and SYSTEM TRAY will not be listed - just uncheck the entire list.6. Hit apply and then OK. Restart the computer and try the game again.If you are still experiencing the same issue, please reply back.

[Giliad]

startup with everything off still lags.  Cleaned all my RJ45 jacks.  reset modem and router.  still lagging

[TSR-DanielH]

Giliad@Befallen wrote:

startup with everything off still lags.  Cleaned all my RJ45 jacks.  reset modem and router.  still lagging

Did you try lowering your graphics settings in game?  Did it have any effect on the lag?

[Giliad]

on raid settings.  everything bare minimum.  happens when running 1 account and both accounts.  playing in windowed mode.  Still lagging.

[Giliad]

I have noticed that running not in windows mode decreases lag, or when I do lag the FPS doesn't drop as low.  Thoughts???

[TSR-DanielH]

What kind of graphics card are you using?  Please go into the graphics card option(in the control panel).  In that options window I would like you to change Anti-Aliasing, Anisotropic filter, and v-sync to 'application controlled'.  There are a few other settings that could be causing a problem but I'll need to know what graphics card you're running to know what's there.

[Giliad]

NVIDIA GeForce 8600GT, how do I change what you asked.  I have the NVIDIA control panel but not sure where to go in it

[TSR-DanielH]

Giliad@Befallen wrote:

NVIDIA GeForce 8600GT, how do I change what you asked.  I have the NVIDIA control panel but not sure where to go in it

The options should be in the 'manage 3d settings' section.  In that menu you should be able to set the things I listed to 'application controlled'.

[Giliad]

V-synch has 3 options- force on, force off and use 3d application setting

btw was still in selective startup so couldn't do anything with it prior, restarted and changed the first 2.

[TSR-DanielH]

Giliad@Befallen wrote:

V-synch has 3 options- force on, force off and use 3d application setting

btw was still in selective startup so couldn't do anything with it prior, restarted and changed the first 2.

You'll want to select 'use 3d application setting'

[Giliad]

did all that and tried the game.  still lagging.

[Giliad]

Any other thoughts on what it might be.  Still lagging like crazy.  should I have my application associated with both processors or just one?  Have 4g of ram.  Any new windows updates for xp that could be screwing it up?

today during a lag did a  ctrl-alt-del to bring up task manager and said cpu usage was around 20% with 2.0 g ram used.  After lag cpu usage jumped to 60% and game worked fine.  Is this a CPU issue or Interwebs provider issue?

[Giliad]

Update to lag issues.  Contacted my carrier and ding some diagnostics and found out that Level3 is carrying the signal and having packet loss.  So I guess I am shafted until level3 gets their system figured out.

[TSR-DanielH]

Giliad@Befallen wrote:

Update to lag issues.  Contacted my carrier and ding some diagnostics and found out that Level3 is carrying the signal and having packet loss.  So I guess I am shafted until level3 gets their system figured out.

I'm sorry to hear that and I hope they can get that issue resolved quickly.  Let us know if there's something we can do to help.