I just installed linux again, to mess around with (Vista 32 premium whatever is so stable for me, that I get bored.)

After a couple of failed installs (suse 11 DVD), where I did not know really what was wrong so I fully installed again, I finally got the thing running with hardware accelerated video drivers from nvidia (link to them from open suse site, "one click" install) I've reinstalled linux more times than I ever have a windows operating system, but that is neither here nor there.

I got the suse 11 dvd with some magazine, where they go in depth to all of the repository stuff and it seemed a lot easier (which it was, really.)

Then I get wine set up, with the suse 11 repository for that and such. So its all set up right and so forth, as near as I can tell.

So I copy over my entire WOW dir, make the suggested changes to config.wtf and such (various linux wow boards, etc.) then am in.

It runs, which I found surprising in itself, but I get around 3 -14 FPS (worst in shat, outdoor outland around 12). In vista 32 premium, with bells and whistles, I get around 21-80 FPS.

I'm running it with the Set gxApi "opengl" in the config file, then also trying wine wow.exe -opengl etc. The odd thing is:

Whether I enable D3d, or open GL for the linux, I get the same frame rate. It should be much better with open GL. I do all of the various checks to see that open GL is working, accelerated via nvidia. Yes, it is. Open GL screensavers and stuff work, as does the compfiz whatever the heck thing I can click in gnome to have spiffy 3d stuff when moving windows and such (though I disabled that appearance stuff again, before playing Wow.)

grep NVIDIA
server glx vendor string: NVIDIA Corporation
client glx vendor string: NVIDIA Corporation
OpenGL vendor string: NVIDIA Corporation
OpenGL version string: 2.1.2 NVIDIA 173.14.12

glxinfo | grep rendering
direct rendering: Yes

cat /proc/driver/nvidia/registry
EnableVia4x: 0
EnableALiAGP: 0
NvAGP: 3
ReqAGPRate: 15
EnableAGPSBA: 1
EnableAGPFW: 1
Mobile: 4294967295
ResmanDebugLevel: 4294967295
RmLogonRC: 1
ModifyDeviceFiles: 1
DeviceFileUID: 0
DeviceFileGID: 33
DeviceFileMode: 432
RemapLimit: 0
UpdateMemoryTypes: 4294967295
UseVBios: 1
RMEdgeIntrCheck: 1
UsePageAttributeTable: 4294967295

The enable side band aliasing things above (set to 1, was originally zero) was something else I read in a forum as a suggestion to get more FPS; same FPS as before when I enabled those and rebooted.

cat /proc/driver/nvidia/agp/card
Fast Writes: Supported
SBA: Supported
AGP Rates: 8x 4x
Registers: 0xff000e1b:0x00000000

cat /proc/driver/nvidia/agp/host-bridge
Host Bridge: PCI device 10de:00e1
Fast Writes: Supported
SBA: Supported
AGP Rates: 8x 4x
Registers: 0x1f00421b:0x00000001




I'm not sure what I'm missing. I tryed removing all interface addons, config files etc then starting from scratch, same frame rate.

Open Gl and such seem to be working in linux, but from trying to run the game in that as well as not (or putting SET gxApi "D3D"), it seems to not be doing anything for the frame rate. Its just as bad with, without, or with D3D set instead.

-----------

64 bit openSuSe 11, from DVD then updated from opensuse

wine was automatically 32 bit support version or something, DL'd from the i586 area, as suggested.

Amd 64 3200 + single core
Gigabyte k8ns something motherboard (8x AGP)
Western digital 80 gig (windows) and 40 gig(linux) caviar/whatever hard drives EIDE
Geforce 7800 256 meg GS AGP 8x graphics card (BFG? I think? Latest nvidia drivers in vista/lilnux)
2 gig of good, error free, corsair whatever kind of DVR ram or whatever this thing could run (Passes memtest 86 flying colors.)

Audigy LS pci sound card (disabled sound in wow under linux too, same FPS)

Odd thing:

In vista my sound is currently choppy/stuttery in wow (the same one I copied over, as a full directory into linux.) but in linux the sound is perfect... LOL irony. In vista the sound is also perfect in my WOTLK beta version of wow. Messing around I still can't get it to not stutter in the regular current build of wow (where it started doing that in patch 2.3)

glxgears
11977 frames in 5.0 seconds = 2395.080 FPS
2977 frames in 5.0 seconds = 594.967 FPS
5476 frames in 5.0 seconds = 1095.148 FPS
5575 frames in 5.0 seconds = 1114.824 FPS
5579 frames in 5.0 seconds = 1115.744 FPS
5573 frames in 5.0 seconds = 1114.570 FPS
5576 frames in 5.0 seconds = 1115.134 FPS


among the websites I looked at:

http://appdb.winehq.org/objectManager.php?sClass=version&iId=11329

etc and so on.

OpenGL typically is lowered frame rates actually...And Linux has to try and emulate DirectX.

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Q u o t e:
OpenGL typically is lowered frame rates actually...And Linux has to try and emulate DirectX.

---

Exactly.


So open gl should not be getting 8 fps in linux wow, while direct3d is also getting 8 FPS in linux wow.


I mean, I'm not expecting a miracle but If I'm getting 21 -90 fps in top heavy vista you'd think I'd be getting around 15-35 or something under linux with opengl.

So something must be wrong.

---

Q u o t e:



Exactly.


So open gl should not be getting 8 fps in linux wow, while direct3d is also getting 8 FPS in linux wow.

---

Try getting 178.13 Nvidia Drivers, They have OpenGL 3.0

---

Q u o t e:


Try gettings 178.13 Nvidia Drivers, They have OpenGL 3.0

---

hmmmm not sure if I can? Directly connecting to nvidia for the update I get

OpenGL version string: 2.1.2 NVIDIA 173.14.12


ah yeah:

Linux x64 (AMD64/EM64T) Display Driver

Version: 173.14.12
Operating System: Linux x64 (AMD64/EM64T)
Release Date: July 30, 2008

Latest

You may want to try this:
http://www.wowwiki.com/Linux/Wine#Registry_Tweak_for_FPS_Boost
and
http://www.wowwiki.com/Linux/Wine#Config.wtf

Helped me a ton. I get great fps in linux with that tweak. Granted some gfx options get turned off.

Yes, those were the first things I read before installing linux and copying over wow.

Did all that stuff, which is when I'm getting the 3 - 12 FPS.

---------------------

I just checked in vista 32 bit:

In the same area where I'm getting 7 FPS (Shat) in linux,

23-35 fps in vista.

The settings are very similar too, such as things being turned down and such (shaders, full screen glow, death effect, etc.)

Wait did I read that right, you are running 64-bit linux?

If so then that is probably your problem.

If wine is compiled as 64bit then it has to emulate 32-bit as well as emulate Win32 api.
If wine is compiled as 32bit then linux has to emulate 32-bit wine and wine has to emulate Win32 api.

That may not be exactly how it goes but with wow being a 32-bit program and you running a 64-bit os it will be a rather big slow down with wine between them than if wow had a native 32-bit linux client.


What kind of system you got, as well? I have a AMD Athlon 64 3000+ with 2gb RAM and a nVidia 6800 with 128mb RAM. I generally get 40fps if both windows and linux. both at 1440x900. Linux is min settings and windows maxed. :/

Ah, the suggestion was to run 32 bit wine (though its 64 bit binaries, or something) on 64 bit linux. In fact I think wine only is 32 bit basically???

Then yeah, wow is 32 bit of course.

As far as I know, this isn't an issue? But I have no idea.

Wine by default compiles as 32-bit and provides 16-bit support.
You can manually compile wine as 64-bit (requires 64-bit linux as well) and will provide support for 32-bit and disable 16-bit support.


Most likely the developers of your 64-bit distro compiled wine as 64-bit. Which will means you will have to manually compile wine as 32-bit. SUSE is out of my league for compiling and the like.

More of a Debian guy myself. Though been using Ubuntu as of late. I mangle their defaults settings pretty bad but is still less work for me to get a system going than pure Debian. :P

The latest version of cedega is providing much higher FPS output when switched into opengl mode. I would suggest updating to 6.1 with the latest engine and testing it out.

Yeah, but in trying to compile programs in linux before I usually ran into trouble. This is why I was just doing the convenient package repository thing that suse 11 took care of for me (as far as updating, etc.)

found out some other stuff.

wine 1.1.5


OH, also found out why I was getting 3 fps while supposedly in opengl AND in direct 3d:

I feel stupid about this, because I did not try it. On the tech board, when a player has a problem in windows wow, he is often told to "run as administrator."

So what I tryed the next time I logged in, was

su

password

then ran wine wow.exe from there

The open GL was definately working. Instead of having only something like 3 FPS, I was up to 17 fps or so outside of shat, 25 outside of IF. But Fps was still bad in shat (as low as 5 or so, near people) and as low as 8 in IF near people.

I've tried everything else, including not running with sound, my fps seems to always be that bad =/

OMG I FIXED IT!@

I did some research, pulling my hair out forever.

Finally I found something I'd not gone over before, about my agp status...

in particular:

cat /proc/driver/nvidia/status

which was saying disabled before....

I had an agp setting in xconf, but it appeared to not be doing anything.

After doing lots of searching, I found a guy with my same mboard (k8 ns something gigabyte whatever) with a similar AGP disabled problem:

Another guy gave him advice:

Boot to the bios screen (del key)

ctrl f1 for advanced (WHICH IS WHY I NEVER SAW THIS SETTING BEFORE!)

my agp apeture was set to 32 meg (Never made a dif in vista/xp, I guess, as far as wow/games.)

this is evidently why I was getting something about "agp apeture too small.." in linux.

1) Changed that to 64 meg.

2) started up linux/got in xwindows

3) crossed fingers got in wow....


89 - 100 FPS in terroker, where as it was 17 fps before that!!@@

25 FPS or so in the same area of shat (around the middle with many players/npcs) was
3! before that...

Playing wow in linux, with sound for the first time since patch 2.3 (while in vista 32 sound in regular wow has been choppy/horrible since that patch, but it works in the wotlk BETA that I have installed... odd. I've done everything in vista to try to get sound right again.. no go.)


PRICELESS!!!!

Different distributions set up security in different ways. I use Gentoo myself...by default a user will not have access to 3D unless I give it to them (by adding that user to the "video" group in /etc/group. Without that, 3D acceleration will disable. Linux is not like Windows where things will just fail to run saying it couldn't find a 3D device. Instead it will run, and will do software OpenGL emulation, and you will get about 3fps on a top of the line machine. I do not know what permission system SuSE uses for this.

You generally want to check glxinfo to see if things are working properly:

akai@saphira ~ $ glxinfo
name of display: :0.0
libGL warning: 3D driver claims to not support visual 0x4b
display: :0 screen: 0
direct rendering: Yes
server glx vendor string: SGI
server glx version string: 1.2

Your issue really sounds like something was not configured properly. If running as root gives you higher fps, then it is a permission issue where your user does not have access to something it should. Note: I am using ATI cards here, so if you are using Nvidia then things will probably be different. Nvidia doesn't use any of the Linux standards for 3D stuff, instead opting to roll their own.

Yeah, I think the root thing was a false positive; I was outside when I ran as root, getting 17 fps (while in shat I had 3.)

It wasn't until I changed my agp apeture to 64 meg, from 32 meg, (as suggested in an obscure forum post I saw, with ctrl f1 to see advanced bios settings at boot in the BIOS) that I suddenly had 8x agp in linux.

Then.. boom. Great FPS. I was no lower than 22 or so in shat, at worse, while being as high as 106 outside in areas like terroker!

So now I not only can't really tell the difference between playing there or in vista 32, but I have sound for the first time since patch 2.3 (where it broke in vista.)

For another thing, which I can't figure out since my "new" 10/100/1000 lynksys netcard shouold be pretty good... I also get about 34 - 85 MS ping while playing in linux, but more like as high as 200 ms while in vista. As far as I know the settings are the same (like Rx/TX or whatever the hell), but I can't really find WHERE to find those settings in linux. I'd like to find them to try to do the same settings in vista.

So since I was previously mostly using vista for Wow... lols! About the only thing I use it for lately is streaming movies to my xbox 360 (consoles like that are more the future of gaming, I think) which is what I normally play games on. Wonder if linux has something that makes my xbox think its media center? That would be great.