P3D v3 VAS usage

[Tom A320 4915]

With the new release of Prepar3D v3 Lockheed Martin continued improving their simulator. 

While the first Prepare3D release was more or less just FSX with a new GUI, the second release, Prepar3D v2, was already much more. Along other parts LM worked hard on the graphics. They added DX11, volumetric fog, cloud shadows and other nice eye candy.

With the third release, Prepar3D v3, LM worked on another big topic, the internal memory management.

We all know about out "of memory errors" (OOMs), the need of planning what scenery you activate in your library prior to a flight and giving the scenery complexity settings also a good thought. 

 

A few words about the memory itself: 

There are limitations for 32bit Windows applications! By default they can only address 2GB of so called virtual address space (VAS), regardless how much physical memory available. With a special trick, the so called "4-gigabyte tuning (4GT)" or "LARGEADDRESSAWARE ", it is possible for an application to get access to 3GB (with some drawback in file caching mechanism and such stuff). 

The 3GB are true if an application runs under a 32bit Windows host system. When running on a 64bit Windows host system the application gets 4GB. This is double the amount of the default, but still nothing if you have something like 16GB or 32GB in your machine.

BTW: MS has added this trick with SP2 to their FSX and we all know it as the HIGHMEMFIX within the FSX.CFG file.

The voices became louder and louder in the last years for a 64bit flight simulator. That would eliminate the 2GB/3GB/4GB VAS limit! But changing an application like FSX/P3D from 32bit to 64bit which a huge zoo of add-ons around it is not an easy task, not to say impossible without losing compatibility for a number of add-ons.

 

Shortly after the release of v3 the first reports showed up stating that LM did miracles in terms of memory management. One would not need to deactivate all the add-on scenery (airports, night environments,
a.s.o.) within the scenery library.

That made me really curious, and after having finished setting up my P3D v3 system I decided for my own test series. The following is the description of that series and it's results.

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As I am going to compare different scenery setups the hardware specs of my machine are not that relevant. Maybe the 16GB RAM in the Win 8.1 64bit machine might be of interest to show that P3D is not limited by any other parallel running application. If you want to know all specs in detail take a look into my user profile.

My add-ons:

• 60 European airports
• 6 AS Night Environments (DE, DK, SE, NO, FI, GB) - Base + Layer0 + Layer3
• Orbx FTX Global
• Orbx FTX openLC EU
• Orbx FTX Global Vector
• Active Sky Next
• REX4 Texture Direct
• REX4 Soft Clouds
• Airbus A320 (1.31)

You have to admit: with any previous version of FSX/P3D it would have been impossible to have all of this active in the scenery library and performing a successful flight from A to B.

I decided for a 2 1/2 hours flight from AS Rome (LIRF) to FlyTampy Copenhagen (EKCH), doing a little bit of zigzag to directly overfly as much of my available add-on airports as possible.

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LIRF07 DCT GIKIN UZ806 GAVRA DCT BIKTU UZ909 LUTOR UL12 BZO UM736 MANAL Z106 OLETU DCT ROKIL T107 GESLU DCT KOVAN UL608 RIDSU UZ738 MISGO DCT TOBIV T884 OSN UM170 HAM UP605 MEGAR DCT GESKA T57 CDA EKCH12

I performed 3 flights with different setups and checked the used VAS at each airport:

1. all above listed add-ons active, night flight, to make sure NE DE and DK will be loaded completely.
2. all above listed add-ons active, day time, to load all day textures
3. only the directly overflown airports plus all Orbx/REX4/ASN stuff active, day time

With the first two tests I wanted to see if the rumours are really true.

With the third test I wanted to see what impact it have on the system, if I do some scenery planning as in the past, with not just everything active.

See the results for yourself!

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And bringing the numbers into the relevant perspective...

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To give some proof of these values the following are the VAS numbers on a time scale taken at the moment I overflew an airport (and took the measure). The current value is shown as "Private Bytes" in the 
left box as also at the most right position in the diagram.

Overflying LIPE

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Overflying EDDM

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Overflying EDDL

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Overflying EDDH

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On final of EKCH12

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Conclusion

I am deeply impressed! It is possible to have everything active! Doing the scenery planing prior to flight lowers the VAS usage a little bit, but having them active actually doesn't matter at all.

With having everything active I saw a few spikes in the VAS usage (200-300MB) which where released after a few seconds again. The spikes where 2-3 minutes before reaching an airport.

The VAS numbers will of course be higher if you use an AI traffic tool, but there still is a huge margin of free memory.

In my opinion P3D v3 is the biggest thing LM have released so far, and to be honest: I don't see the need for a 64bit sim anymore!!! At least not for the next few years to come.

Thank you Lockheed Martin for this fantastic new version!

 

I hope you find this little test series and my summary useful.

 

EDIT: See post #9 for another test.

PS: I really love the P3D graphics  

(Vorpommersche Boddenlandschaft)

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[Ripcord 166]

 

Tom

Thanks for posting.  Actually I was looking for something like this.  Facts and findings, light on the opinions.

So I clicked your signature, trying to find your specs.  Where are they?  Would you post them for us slow kids?

EDIT:  Sorry Tom, found it.  Hope you don't mind if i post it....

Tom's system:

• Intel Core i5, 3.1GHz, 4 Cores
• Samsung SSD evo 840 500GB (150GB for OS, 350GB for Sim)
• 16GB RAM
• Gigabyte Nvidia GTX 960, 4GB
• Saitek Pro Flight X-55 Rhino
• Windows 8.1
• Prepar3D 2.5

Cheers

 

 

 

 

[Tom A320 4915]

Hi Mark,

I just had to search them myself  With the new forum version they where moved into "About Me" on the profile page.

[Ripcord 166]

 

Thanks Tom, now I don't feel so dumb.

Open for questions?

Wondering if you got other airports installed besides those 60, eg., non European ones. 

I can understand the sim loading the airport you fly over but my understanding is that, until V3 at least, it was loading EVERYTHING even if it is on the other side of the globe.

 

 

[Tom A320 4915]

Yes, of course I am open for questions

And no, at the moment I am fully concentrated on Europe with my add-ons and flights. 

And yes again, that's what FSX/P3D/P3Dv2 did until now. And that was the reason for such gold worthy tools like the SimStarter.

[azkid 2]

Tom, thanks for the great information. Believe me I'm hardly anything close to being an expert on this OOM situation. All I can report is I've had no OOMs either in Europe or North America.

Ripcord...........FYI as well!

In Europe an North America, I'm using the PMDG 777 and 737NGX. I have Orbx Global Base, Global Vector, Open LCEurope, Orbx England, Orbx Open LC Alaska /Canada, Orbx Pacific NW, Pacific Fjords; Flightbeam KPHX, KIAD, KSFOHD, KDEN; FsDream Team KJFK, KORD, KLAS, KDFW, KLAX, CYVR, LSZH, GSX; Aerosoft London Heathrow Xtended, LIRF, (BonaireX, IbizaX installed but no flights yet); REX 4/Soft Clouds; ASN, FS2Crew NGX Reboot, 777 Button Control, RAAS Professional.

I've made a 777 Dubai-KJFK no OOMs and several 777 and 737NGX flights of varying lengths; no OOMs.

My system is EVO 1TB SSD; i7 4820k OC'd to 4.5; EVGA GTX 760; ASUS x79 Sabretooth; 32 GB RAM; Windows 7 Home Premium.

Info just as a reference material for comparisons.

And anxiously awaiting P3D v3 Aerosoft A300 series Airbusses.

 

 

 

[Sinesio 21]

Thanks Tom! I really appreciated your test!

Voyager

From iPad

[Aerosoft Team [Inactive Account] 51558]

Seriously cool Tom. 

[Tom A320 4915]

Today I did another and I think final test to run out of VAS.

Spoiler alert! I didn't managed to do so.

I planned again a zigzag flight, but this time 9+ hours, from Dublin to Svalbard. PFPX told me that the A320 might not make it that far, so I pumped fuel into anything that could go as a tank and started. Again I overflew lots of add-on airports I have installed and captured the VAS usage when overflying each of them. All add-ons were active (like test #2).

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When I reached Norway I figured that I would most definitely not make it till Svalbard and decided to end the flight in Tromso. From the final screenshot below you can see, that that was a good decision  

Here are the numbers:

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Conclusion:

Again, I wasn't able to bring P3Dv3 to anything close of an OOM. So, after 8 1/2 hours in the air today I am convinced that I will never ever be able to push my P3Dv3 into an OOM.

 

When getting closer to Tromso the weather went quite bad...

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And if you have a close look here you will see, why it was a good decision to end the flight in Tromso

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(Final amount of fuel at the gate was 640 kg, from initially 19.150 kg)

[Rafal Haczek 1612]

An excellent report, Tom! I would like to thank you so much for doing it and sharing it with all of us here.

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Especially with those still undecided about Prepar3D v3. Being still an FSXer myself, I must say your results are so convincing, I am almost sold.

I have already started saving for the P3D and PMDG licences.

Keep up the great work, Tom!

[Tom A320 4915]

Thanks for the flowers, Rafal

With Dublin and Heathrow right at the beginning I really tried to kick P3Dv3 into the off, and compared to my previous tests the VAS really went up right from the start. But it stayed more or less stable afterwards. 

It took me a few weeks to get rid of FSX after installing P3Dv2 the first time. Now it just took me a few days to get rid of P3Dv2 after installing P3Dv3

[Jonathan_f 2]

Tom

These results are interesting. I too have been very impressed with the VAS management of v3, however I have managed to get P3Dv3 to get an OOM, flying from AS EGLL to FT OMDB. At first I thought it was the addition of vector but I see you have that, so I would be interested in seeing your P3Dv3 settings for comparison, if you don't mind posting them.

Jonathan

[Tom A320 4915]

Hi Jonathan,

sure. But I haven't sort of "optimized" them as my focus was on VAS first. Over the next few days I will also do some FPS test series...

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[Ripcord 166]

 

OK now I see you are not running any AI traffic.  That would certainly change your results.

[sydney1962 35]

hallo Tom.

See, that you worked with airbus V1.31 so the new one , we are not able to fly at this moment, is there also improvement to see in vas use with version 1.30F ?

and what I see , you have many no V3 airports installed, are they old installed as FSX airports via EMT.

 

[Tom A320 4915]

Hi Sydney,

yes, I am already on 1.31. As you can see from this topic it is mainly about P3Dv3 compatibility and a few bug fixes. So no improvement on performance and VAS usage here.

The current developer build of the EMT is still not compatible with my P3Dv3 setup (Windows and P3Dv3 on different volumes). So I installed all none-v3 sceneries manually into the sim. That's actually not that difficult as it looks like. There is a quite good instruction on that available from FlyTampa:

http://www.flytampa.org/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=7737

The next few days I will install the still missing AS Split and AS Zürich. I kept them for the end, because they are using the AirportController. I am also still waiting for a new Budapest installer from LHsimulations as they also install some still incompatible additional component which is required for the scenery to load.

Oh, and I waited for the Orbx installers. I didn't dared to try to install their stuff manually  

[Guest]

Hi Tom, any chance we get 1.31, today? I want to prepare a clesn installation.

Best.

Miquel.

 

 

[Tom A320 4915]

Hi Miquel,

I honestly can't tell. We need a new installer to be made first, which also needs testing. If this all finishes today or only by tomorrow I don't know. Best to wait and see and let Mathijs officially comment on this in the Buses 1.31 topic.

[Guest]

Thanks, Tom.

Miquel.

[Tom A320 4915]

1 hour ago, Ripcord said:

OK now I see you are not running any AI traffic.  That would certainly change your results.

Yes of course, but only in a way that the VAS usage would be over all higher. The fact that it does not increase over the time (sum up, like FSX and previous P3D versions) still remains true. And that's actually the huge advantage of the new version. At least in my opinion.

[Aerosoft Team [Inactive Account] 51558]

51 minutes ago, miquel said:

Hi Tom, any chance we get 1.31, today? I want to prepare a clesn installation.

Best.

Miquel.

I hope so but if not today it will be tomorrow. We'll do the A320/321 first, A 318/A319 second and Bundle last. 

[Ripcord 166]

2 hours ago, Tom A320 said:

Yes of course, but only in a way that the VAS usage would be over all higher. The fact that it does not increase over the time (sum up, like FSX and previous P3D versions) still remains true. And that's actually the huge advantage of the new version. At least in my opinion.

 

An excellent point Tom.  It will be somewhat higher at the start and remain that way throughout, eg., no cumulative effect like currently. 

Plus even if it adds 400-500 MB to the VAS (which would be quite a lot IMHO) then that is still not enough to cause an OOM per your results.

 

[Guest]

Thanks, Mathijs.

Miquel.

[sydney1962 35]

Hallo Tom.

Maybe I have some news for you, have today installed emt version 926, and found out it worked fine with windows and P3d V3.0 on different partitions  have windows on C:  and P3D V3.0 on E:

have also find out that when you install flytampa, aerosoft as FSX install via EMT , it even looks sometimes better then official installs V2  versions of  scenery in 2.5.

will install split & zurich also as FSX , and see if there are issues with Ap Controller.

Because I have my doubts if we will ever see a lot of aerosoft older scenery will reach P3D V3.0 status, it is pity that we get no clue from aerosoft which sceneries will definity not be ported to P3D v3.0

so if I will ever use old sceneries like  Stockholm or madrid etc  we need to do the inofficial no support way.

[Tom A320 4915]

Well, AS had made several clear statements about old sceneries and Prepar3d. I don't see the need to get them "refreshed" with every new P3D release. 

And the EMT is actually doing a good job for everyone how don't want to get too much into the details. 

I am sure once Paavo will officially state his EMT is fully v3 compatible I will update it as well. 

But enough of that in this topic. Here its about v3 VAS improvements