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I've been testing wifi adapter settings for a couple of weeks, game feels better, although it's hard to prove.
Packet Coalescing
"Packet Coalescing" can also be called "Interrupt Moderation" so substitute where appropriate.
Instructions to disable wifi "Packet Coalescing" on Windows 10
1. Open Control Panel > Network and Sharing Centre
2. Click "Change adapter settings" (on the left)
3. Right click on your wifi adapter > Properties
4. Click the button "Configure"
5. Click the tab "Advanced"
6. Set "Packet Coalescing" to "Disabled"
WTF does this setting do?
Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfil.../?id=727946014
MTU Size
Instructions to set the correct MTU size (Do it for both ipv4 and ipv6)
https://homenetworkgeek.com/mtu-size/
WTF does this setting do?
Packet Coalescing
"Packet Coalescing" can also be called "Interrupt Moderation" so substitute where appropriate.
Instructions to disable wifi "Packet Coalescing" on Windows 10
1. Open Control Panel > Network and Sharing Centre
2. Click "Change adapter settings" (on the left)
3. Right click on your wifi adapter > Properties
4. Click the button "Configure"
5. Click the tab "Advanced"
6. Set "Packet Coalescing" to "Disabled"
WTF does this setting do?
Source: https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfil.../?id=727946014
Interrupt Moderation
RECOMMENDATION:
Turn off if you can afford to; your mileage may vary.
REASON(S) TO TURN OFF:
Acts like a packet buffer for sending interrupts. “Allows the network driver to wait for enough packets of information to be generated before sending them, lowering the necessary number of times the driver has to send an interrupt message, which in turn lowers the CPU latency. However this has a negative effect in situations where it is necessary for data to be sent immediately. Disabling Interrupt Moderation will slightly increase CPU time; however the trade off is better registry in games” (SOURCE: [PSA] REDDIT).
“Disable the Interrupt Moderation setting for network card drivers that require the lowest possible latency” (SOURCE: TechNet). Even Microsoft agrees.
REASON(S) TO LEAVE ON:
Depending on the program and the hardware, you may not have the CPU runtime to spare, as turning Interrupt Moderation off “can use more CPU time and it represents a trade-off” (SOURCE: TechNet). It’s possible that without this setting on, you will lose performance by increasing the already taxed CPU-load.
Other theoretical reasons are that it improves latency at the CPU and the gains on that level exceeds the loss of latency in the network... or the NIC can handle the offloads/buffers enough to justify the CPU latency gains.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
This is usually the biggest culprit of the primaries. This is due to the idea of ‘one packet, one interrupt’ which helps mitigates non-recoverable packet losses common to problematic online gaming. The principle is that one packet comes in, it gets a response from your system, the CPU turns it around back to the network card and it goes back out, for each packet. When they build up, the interrupts leaving your system pile up and delay your response. It’s hard to see how this couldn’t make any online gameplay that relied on time-critical elements problematic.
RECOMMENDATION:
Turn off if you can afford to; your mileage may vary.
REASON(S) TO TURN OFF:
Acts like a packet buffer for sending interrupts. “Allows the network driver to wait for enough packets of information to be generated before sending them, lowering the necessary number of times the driver has to send an interrupt message, which in turn lowers the CPU latency. However this has a negative effect in situations where it is necessary for data to be sent immediately. Disabling Interrupt Moderation will slightly increase CPU time; however the trade off is better registry in games” (SOURCE: [PSA] REDDIT).
“Disable the Interrupt Moderation setting for network card drivers that require the lowest possible latency” (SOURCE: TechNet). Even Microsoft agrees.
REASON(S) TO LEAVE ON:
Depending on the program and the hardware, you may not have the CPU runtime to spare, as turning Interrupt Moderation off “can use more CPU time and it represents a trade-off” (SOURCE: TechNet). It’s possible that without this setting on, you will lose performance by increasing the already taxed CPU-load.
Other theoretical reasons are that it improves latency at the CPU and the gains on that level exceeds the loss of latency in the network... or the NIC can handle the offloads/buffers enough to justify the CPU latency gains.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
This is usually the biggest culprit of the primaries. This is due to the idea of ‘one packet, one interrupt’ which helps mitigates non-recoverable packet losses common to problematic online gaming. The principle is that one packet comes in, it gets a response from your system, the CPU turns it around back to the network card and it goes back out, for each packet. When they build up, the interrupts leaving your system pile up and delay your response. It’s hard to see how this couldn’t make any online gameplay that relied on time-critical elements problematic.
MTU Size
Instructions to set the correct MTU size (Do it for both ipv4 and ipv6)
https://homenetworkgeek.com/mtu-size/
WTF does this setting do?
MTU size is the maximum packet size that can be transmitted over your network. Finding the best MTU size and changing it is worth doing should you experience a decrease in speed, lag or even complete disconnections on your network.
If your line has a Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) limit of 1492 bytes per packet and Windows is trying to send 1500 bytes per packet, your line will constantly snip 8 bytes off the Windows-borne packet, causing fragmentation. Fortunately, while divining the correct value is its own work, the process of changing the MTU value is relatively simple and painless. You just have to be willing to use command-line!
If your line has a Maximum Transmission Unit (MTU) limit of 1492 bytes per packet and Windows is trying to send 1500 bytes per packet, your line will constantly snip 8 bytes off the Windows-borne packet, causing fragmentation. Fortunately, while divining the correct value is its own work, the process of changing the MTU value is relatively simple and painless. You just have to be willing to use command-line!
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