[Info/Guide] Your Network, Your gaming, and You

[Abenoki]

So, Decided Im going to share information Ive been looking up and applying to my own network with the rest of my warframe bothers and sisters. Hopefully this helps you with your gaming experience not just in warframe but in other games.  Im not claiming to be an expert, just sharing positive experience and info Ive gathered and used.

 

 

Router:

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So you got yourself router obviously (or maybe perhaps you dont?) in order to have wireless and any number of connected devices in your home. One thing Ive heard questions on regarding routers is regarding QoS settings aka Quality of Service. Now Ive seen some make the claim that you get better performance by disabling QoS but this isnt entirely true (maybe higher consistent speedtest throughput), and mind you we're talking on the router.

 

QoS is supposed to give a more consistent and pleasant internet experience for all users on the network, it prioritizes certain traffic over others. Another thing its supposed to help eliminate or reduce and is something many may not know of is "Buffer Bloat" http://www.bufferbloat.net/projects/bloat/wiki/Introduction

 

I personally use OpenWRT firmware on my router with SQM Scripts installed and set to use 90% of my up/down stream speed. This has reduced my buffer bloat SUBSTANTIALLY, with it consistently staying bellow 10ms of increased latency. 

 

You can test your buffer bloat here http://speedtest.dslreports.com/

 

Now if your router is supported by OpenWRT (https://wiki.openwrt.org/toh/start)i highly recommend you install it and the SQM Scripts, if not then you can also try enabling and tweaking with your routers QoS settings. These will be different for each but you can do a before and after test to check your buffer bloat with/without QoS.

 

Another thing to do is if you are on Wireless try to stick to N mode only (unless you have devices that wont use N or you have a faster type than N), and using proper password settings. I use WPA2 Personal, and if you do like me make sure to not use a mixed WPA/WPA2 as this can decrease your wireless thoughput somewhat. Another thing is that youll hear its better to use the 40mhz setting, this is only sort of true in areas that arent congested with other networks. If you have alot of other wifi networks around continue to use 20mhz. In regards to channel I generally keep it to auto and let the router find a clear channel for me, but you may feel free to pick your own if you wish.

 

Doing these things in your router should help with latency and lag spikes 

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Ethernet /Wifi/ NIC on your computer:

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Next is your ethernet/wifi or NIC (Network Interface controller)

Now most of this is going to apply to Intel based NICs but you should be able to figure it out for other vendors

 

I like to keep CPU cycles as free as possible so I make sure to enable all offloads for UDP and TCPchecksums,etc.

This may add a little latency but not enough that Ive noticed

 

Also Disable Inter-Frame Spacing and increase your RSS Queues as well as disable power efficiency options.

 

The settings for maximum throughput as per intel (http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/support/network-and-i-o/ethernet-products/000005811.html)

Reduce Interrupt Moderation Rate to Low, Minimal, or Off

Enable Jumbo Frames to the largest size supported across the network (if all devices support it)

Disable Flow Control

Increase the Transmit/Recieve  buffer size

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Software Tweaks:

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I dont do too much on the software side, but one that many probably already use but ill just recommend it again is Leatrix Latency Fix

http://www.wowinterface.com/downloads/info13581-LeatrixLatencyFix.html

but another thing you may tweak if you like is your Network Throttling Index. More info and Tweaks here

http://www.speedguide.net/articles/gaming-tweaks-5812

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Well Thats it guys, hopefully this helps to improve your network performance and in general just helps improve your experience

Edited March 29, 2016 by Echoa