TESV Acceleration Layer, thread 5 : V

» Sun May 20, 2012 7:45 pm

TESV Acceleration Layer
Proof of Concept by Arisu

DOWNLOAD LINKS:

http://www.skyrimnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=4387

http://skse.silverlock.org/beta/TESVAL-1.3.10.0-2011-12-22-skseplugin.7z

Old Threads:

http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1323303-tesv-acceleration-layer-thread-4/

http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1322545-rel-tesv-acceleration-layer-thread-3/

http://www.gamesas.com/topic/1322063-rel-tesv-acceleration-layer-thread-no-2/

What is it?
A SKSE (SKyrim Script Extender) plugin to increase FPS (frames per second) in CPU-heavy areas of the game.

Users typically report 8-10 FPS increase; some see 2-4, while others have reported an average of 20 FPS incease.

Requirements

Skyrim (version 1.3.10 released 12/21/2011)
http://skse.silverlock.org/ (version 1.4.2 released 12/21/2011)
SSE3

Installation Instructions

Install SKSE (Skyrim Script Extender) latest version from http://skse.silverlock.org/.
SKSE must be installed to the same folder as Skyrim's executable (TESV.exe).
Install this mod, TESV Acceleration Layer, through Nexus Mod Manager, or manually to \Data\SKSE\Plugins. Create the SKSE and Plugins folders if they don't exist.
Launch Skyrim using skse_loader.exe from the SKSE install.

How does it work?
From ianpatt (a SKSE developer):
It replaces many calls to functions that would have been inlined if the compiler optimizer settings were set to something higher than "off" with actual inline code that nicely fits in the five bytes the jump instruction was previously taking up. It also overwrites several functions, replacing them with SSE implementations instead of the very painfully slow original x87 implementations.

How can I tell if it's running?

First, make sure SKSE is running:
Open the console in-game with the ~ key (above the Tab key),
Then type in GetSKSEVersion and press enter.
It should display the SKSE version in the console.
If it doesn't, SKSE is not running, and neither is the TESV Acceleration Layer, so you need to check your SKSE installation.
Also make sure Steam is running before launching the game, and be sure to launch the game via SKSE_loader.exe

SKSE is running? Good. Next step:
Open skse.log (in the root of the Skyrim folder, with TESV.exe, skse_loader.exe, etc)
In the log, you should see something like this:
checking plugin G:STEAM/SteamApps/common/skyrim/Data/SKSE/Plugins/TESVAL.dll
plugin G:STEAM/SteamApps/common/skyrim/Data/SKSE/Plugins/TESVAL.dll (00000001 TESVAL 00000001) loaded correctly
TESVAL.dll is the mod. If you don't see that, then it didn't load correctly.
Make sure your directories (folders) are correct.

How can I tell if my game is actually running faster?
First, be aware that FPS increases only occur in certain places where the game is CPU bound. Go to the top step in Whiterun and look down at the barren tree on the left. Try it with and without the TESV Acceleration Layer plugin installed.

You will need an external program or plugin to check FPS (frames per second). There are several ways to do this. Here are a few options:

http://www.fraps.com/download.php video recording program has an FPS overlay, even when not recording.
The http://www.skyrimnexus.com/downloads/file.php?id=2006 by Elys has an FPS overlay as well as Memory usage info.

Known Issues

This does not work with Windows 8 Beta. Those testing the Windows 8 beta need to report this to Microsoft.

CHANGELOG

[*]03 Updated PluginInfo for SKSE tracking (this is for SKSE to track compatibility of plugins against SKSE release; so if your SKSE is newer than TESVAL can support, or vice versa, it will turn off).

[*]02 Fixed a typo (setz was typed as setnz; this caused certain quests, notably Ralof in Helgen intro to fail).

[*]01 Initial release.

Credits
Arisu: original proof of concept
ianpatt: port of Arisu's work as a SKSE plugin
Silverglade: preliminary fix implemented for version .02
GreatWalrus: Recompiled fix released as version .02
ianpatt, scruggswuggsy the ferret, and behippo: Skyrim Script Extender
pintocat: drafting the description, helping with this post, and with the readme
the Skyrim community: for pulling this together and supporting it
Bethesda Softworks: Skyrim

Permissions
License: Everyone is free to do whatever s/he likes with the binary or the source; it's completely free. This version of TESVAL is only maintained on Nexus and currently on silverlock.org.

THE SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED "AS IS", WITHOUT WARRANTY OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO THE WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NONINFRINGEMENT. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE AUTHORS OR COPYRIGHT HOLDERS BE LIABLE FOR ANY CLAIM, DAMAGES OR OTHER LIABILITY, WHETHER IN AN ACTION OF CONTRACT, TORT OR OTHERWISE, ARISING FROM, OUT OF OR IN CONNECTION WITH THE SOFTWARE OR THE USE OR OTHER DEALINGS IN THE SOFTWARE.

» Mon May 21, 2012 1:51 am

OK, new thread and this old post carried over:

I'm getting a bit faster performance with SkyBoost on an Intel E8400 Dual Core 3 ghz
I would probably use the SKSE one, but I'm still leery because I had trouble with named corpses teleporting on me,
and only one other person has had the problem I mentioned.

» Sun May 20, 2012 3:22 pm

OK, new thread and this old post carried over:

I'm getting a bit faster performance with SkyBoost on an Intel E8400 Dual Core 3 ghz
I would probably use the SKSE one, but I'm still leery because I had trouble with named corpses teleporting on me,
and only one other person has had the problem I mentioned.

There is a bug report about this issue here:

https://unofficialskyrimpatch.16bugs.com/projects/7078/bugs/212509

Please go to that link and provide this information there. I'm pretty sure that this behavior is not related to this mod.

» Mon May 21, 2012 4:34 am

There is a bug report about this issue here:

https://unofficialskyrimpatch.16bugs.com/projects/7078/bugs/212509

Please go to that link and provide this information there. I'm pretty sure that this behavior is not related to this mod.

That's a bug report about Skjor from the Companions quest.....?
I didn't have a problem with that quest, (this mod hadn't even been released at the time)
I only had a problem when killing two named NPC's on a play session with this modded activated,
just as Knightpt reported too.

» Mon May 21, 2012 1:03 am

kid5017
To avoid some conflicts with other stuff that changes memory I did the check for all values at addresses what I'm changing and it's ~ 300k of adresses

What exactly are the implications of a change like this implemented in SkyBoost r2 but not in TESVAL. Does this checking above make SkyBoost somehow superior to TESVAL? Is there a performance penalty involved? There isn't a changelog for SkyBoost r2, so what other beneficial changes are there?

» Sun May 20, 2012 3:08 pm

Does Skyboost require SKSE? It does not say in the installation instructions provided within the DL.

» Sun May 20, 2012 4:55 pm

no

» Sun May 20, 2012 8:49 pm

I would like to reiterate my post from the old thread and ask that there be a unified effort here. Right now, it is rather disjointed and fragmented. And to be honest, I see reason for Alexander to give his version a different name. It turns into a competion at that point. An open source effort doesn't work by someone taking existing code, making a relatbiely minor bug fix and releaslng it under his own banner. Not saying Alexander is doing anything wrong. But I would like to see two great minds working together, rather than seperately.

» Sun May 20, 2012 6:47 pm

The major difference between the two is support for Win8. I don't think it's a competition, skyboost is also installed/executed differently and the language is C++.

There will be inevitable confusion, probably skyboost should have dedicated thread.

» Mon May 21, 2012 3:45 am

Regardless, it is built off the same code. They really should work *together*.

» Sun May 20, 2012 5:58 pm

An open source effort doesn't work by someone taking existing code, making a relatbiely minor bug fix and releaslng it under his own banner.

Actually...

» Sun May 20, 2012 7:52 pm

What exactly are the implications of a change like this implemented in SkyBoost r2 but not in TESVAL. Does this checking above make SkyBoost somehow superior to TESVAL? Is there a performance penalty involved? There isn't a changelog for SkyBoost r2, so what other beneficial changes are there?

It is different because it is written in c++. I don't think you can refer to either version as superior to the other. As I said before I am not going to force Alexander to start his own thread, but I do believe that there would be less confusion if he did. I believe that should be his next step but I am not going to force the issue at this point in time.

» Sun May 20, 2012 7:27 pm

Actually... :tongue:

Ok. Maybe I should have worded as "shouldn't but often does in real life...." :cool:

» Sun May 20, 2012 6:22 pm

Regardless, it is built off the same code. They really should work *together*.

What *should* happen is that someone at gamesas sees this, and sets the optimisation flags for the PC build.

» Sun May 20, 2012 6:20 pm

where do I put the src folder for skyboost ? what is the src folder ?

» Mon May 21, 2012 6:06 am

src folder is completely irrelevant unless you want to modify the build. And then, you'll know what to do with the src folder.

» Sun May 20, 2012 2:54 pm

where do I put the src folder for skyboost ? what is the src folder ?

src is short for source code, for those interest in compiling the own, seeing how it works, etc.

» Sun May 20, 2012 4:44 pm

src is the source code, it's not needed by the program, its just there to let you see how the plugin works, or to customize it.

» Sun May 20, 2012 9:45 pm

If Alexander wants to maintain his "Not For Distribution" status of Skyboost, I don't think it should be linked in the OP.

If he has changed his mind, the OP needs some additional info, and yet since it's essentially a fork with different requirements and compatibilities (windows 8 and reported skyui issues), I don't know how one readme can really cover two different sets of needs simultaneously...

People keep asking about Skyboost's issues which makes people think it's a TESVAL issue, or wondering about requirements of SkyBoost, which isn't in the readme because Alexander said NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION.

» Sun May 20, 2012 1:29 pm

There are no SkyUi issues. That was fixed in r2.

» Sun May 20, 2012 11:32 pm

If Alexander wants to maintain his "Not For Distribution" status of Skyboost, I don't think it should be linked in the OP.

If he has changed his mind, the OP needs some additional info, and yet since it's essentially a fork with different requirements and compatibilities (windows 8 and reported skyui issues), I don't know how one readme can really cover two different sets of needs simultaneously...

People keep asking about Skyboost's issues which makes people think it's a TESVAL issue, or wondering about requirements of SkyBoost, which isn't in the readme because Alexander said NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION.

One readme cannot deal with two separate mods. I'm still waiting to see how this continues to develop before making any major changes to the OP. But I will add that note in the meantime.

» Sun May 20, 2012 4:24 pm

There are no SkyUi issues. That was fixed in r2.

There's still two different requirements sets and compatibility lists, and the fact that he said Not For distribution...

» Mon May 21, 2012 1:41 am

I have added a read me to the file on Nexus. I hope I didn't miss anything. If you want to provide feedback, please pm me either here or on Nexus.

» Sun May 20, 2012 11:46 pm

There are no SkyUi issues. That was fixed in r2.

It was actually fixed in r1. There was a release before r1 with the issue, then r1.

» Sun May 20, 2012 3:02 pm

it was getting confusing back when everybody posted their own fix for the initial version with the bug in it. now it's even worse with "which one needs skse and which one doesn't", "which one runs on win8", "which one has trouble with skyui"...

i think the best thing to do at this point is to get skyboost it's own thread. just because it's (vaguely) based on this doesn't justify all this confusion.