Fix: Legitimate Aion Latency Fix

[Hanzou_Masamori]

Ever since the last 1.5.0.5 game update my ping went from a solid 120 to 150 ms to an absolutely horrible 350 to 400 ms steady with spikes upward to 600 to 800 ms in size. The worst thing about the lag was the fact that it seemed to come and go with each patch, while early in the beta the problem could be traced to a routing issue which was fixed with one of their first updates, a later trace route after the 1.5.0.5 update had shown no packet loss but my latency was four times worse and Im using a HighSpeed DSL connection playing from the East Coast!

Luckily during the final moments of Beta I came across a registry tweak which basically modifies the way your computer handles and acknowledges packets. And I wouldnt of believed it unless I had seen it, but it essentially cut my latency from awful 400 ms to a 50 to 90 ms steady ping- better then it was in the last patch. I believe later SP's of Windows Vista include this function by default, but if your not sure it doesnt hurt to check. If your running Windows XP you should DEFINATELY check it out. Theres a modification which even does it for you:

Leatrix Latency Fix : WoWInterface Downloads : WoW Tools & Utilities

Simply download the file and unzip it.

There will be three scripts inside as well as a link back to the Leatrix Latency Fix download page. The three scripts are named as they are below with their functions:

*Leatrix Latency Fix Checker - This script checks your system registry to see if the tweak is applied.

*Optimise TCP for reduced latency and faster gameplay - This script will install the registry tweak, a restart is needed afterwards.

*Restore TCP back to Windows defaults - As it says, this script undoes the changes.

Simply run the Fix Checker, if the tweak isnt present then run the Optimise TCP script, restart then your gtg! I hope this helps everyone as much is it did me. The differance was literally night and day.

This is a screenshot of me constantly pinging the server after testing the update:

[Vulcan]

I'll give it a try. Thanks for your post.

[rapidxone]

i was running about 300+ms ping and at times, it sux to be a melee class (Sin), ill be trying this

[Paulie]

How can they F up latency this bad with each patch? It's mind-boggling.

Anyway, tagging this post for later on.

Thanks for the find.

[Corpus]

Good find hanzo

[Sky_Kisser]

Im such a nub when it comes to this but whats the different between this and using service like Lowerping, Gamepath..etc besise these cost monthly fee?

[airtonix]

Originally Posted by Sky_Kisser

Im such a nub when it comes to this but whats the different between this and using service like Lowerping, Gamepath..etc besise these cost monthly fee?

Nagle's algorithm - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

and the tl;dr version

Before Leatrix Latency Fix is installed:

Server: "Ok computer, I just sent a packet over, got it?"
Your computer: ...
Server: "Come on, answer me! I don't have all day!"
Your computer: ...
Server: "Ok, forget it, I've waited long enough, sending another one over!"
Your computer: "Ok, got both of them, thanks"
Server: "Well, why didn't you acknowledge the first one then?"
Your computer: "Sorry, I'm just trying to make the network more efficient by bundling the acknowledgments together in pairs."
Server: "Nevermind efficiency, this player needs fast acknowledgments! Lives are at stake! Here, have this latency fix, go on, get that down you. Ok, now restart... ready? Now let's try again..."

After Leatrix Latency Fix is installed:

Server: "Ok computer, I just sent a packet over, got it?"
Your computer: "Yep, send the next!"
Server: "Wow, that was fast, ok, here's another, got that?"
Your computer: "Yep, send the next!"
Server: "What an improvement! Much better than giving me the silent treatment so I am forced to wait for acknowledgement timeouts, isn't it?
Your computer: "Yep, it's certainly keeping me on my toes, thanks!"
Server: "Don't thank me, all I did was give you a dose of Leatrix Latency Fix."

And that, basically, is how you're achieving a lower latency with Leatrix Latency Fix.

[Muta]

Originally Posted by airtonix

Nagle's algorithm - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

and the tl;dr version

Response to the tl;dr version: if you are behind a router, do you really have that bad a ping to your router? It's the one getting sent all the packets from the server, not your computer.

Secondly, a repost of my response to the OTHER thread...

These hacks change the way your computer processes received packets.

Here's 2 things to keep in mind, though.

1. If you are behind a router, such as most people on DSL, Cable, and Fiber are, this will not help you, and any change you may think occurs is 100% coincidental.
The packets are being handled at the router and are then being passed down to your computer at a steady rate and size, so reg tweaks and the like can not help you at all.

2. These types of tweaks are made mostly for action games with less players involved, not MMOs.
Long story short, this could actually make your lag worse or make you disconnect from the server. If you don't, then congratulations, but I doubt your ping will be all that improved, if any, considering the way that MMORPGs are created to make efficient use of packets and it is bad to change the size and method they are processed.

All in all, I recommend against this sort of thing.

[Hanzou_Masamori]

Originally Posted by Muta

Response to the tl;dr version: if you are behind a router, do you really have that bad a ping to your router? It's the one getting sent all the packets from the server, not your computer.

Secondly, a repost of my response to the OTHER thread...

These hacks change the way your computer processes received packets.

Here's 2 things to keep in mind, though.

1. If you are behind a router, such as most people on DSL, Cable, and Fiber are, this will not help you, and any change you may think occurs is 100% coincidental.
The packets are being handled at the router and are then being passed down to your computer at a steady rate and size, so reg tweaks and the like can not help you at all.

2. These types of tweaks are made mostly for action games with less players involved, not MMOs.
Long story short, this could actually make your lag worse or make you disconnect from the server. If you don't, then congratulations, but I doubt your ping will be all that improved, if any, considering the way that MMORPGs are created to make efficient use of packets and it is bad to change the size and method they are processed.

All in all, I recommend against this sort of thing.

This was the ONLY thing that caused an immediate improvement in my Latency during the beta, the proof is in the fact that it actually works. Its a very simple registry tweak, that can make a tremendous differance, if it wasnt worth mentioning I wouldve never made the post. But trying to steer people away from even trying it is rediculous. If your running XP, and you have a very reliable high speed internet connection, and your not suffering from a routing issue there is NO reason not to try it out. The Restore script included will cleanly revert any changes done if it doesnt make a differance for you; you have nothing to lose. And by the way it DOES work from behind a router.

But like I said, folks out there with the issue should try it themselves then be the judge of whether or not its an improvement for them. For me it was blatently obvious, and certainly not "100% coincidental" in its effectiveness. Unlike you, my intention was just to be helpful. Your assumptions are simply not 100% accurate, and in this case quite off the mark...

[Rezel]

Hi,

To shed some more light on Nagle's algorithm, here is a old quote from SpeedGuide.net :: The Broadband Guide. All credit goes to them. I hope it helps. PS: I do not recommend registry tweaks unless you know what you are doing.

Gaming Tweak - Disable Nagle's algorithm

The tweak below allows for tweaking or disabling Nagle's alogrithm. Disabling "nagling" allows for very small packets to be transferred immediately without delay. Note that is only recommended for some games, and it may have negative impact on file transfers/throughput. The default state (Nagling enabled) improves performance by allowing several small packets to be combined together into a single, larger packet for more efficient transmission. While this improves overall performance and reduces TCP/IP overhead, it may briefly delay transmission of smaller packets. Keep in mind that disabling Nagle's algorithm may have some negative effect on file transfers, and can only help reduce delay in some games. To implement this tweak, in the registry editor (Start>Run>regedit) find:

This setting configures the maximum number of outstanding ACKs in Windows XP/2003/Vista/2008:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{NIC-id}

There will be multiple NIC interfaces listed there, for example: {1660430C-B14A-4AC2-8F83-B653E83E8297}. Find the correct one with your IP address listed. Under this {NIC-id} key, create a new DWORD value:

TcpAckFrequency=1 (DWORD value, 1=disable, 2=default, 2-n=send ACKs if outstanding ACKs before timed interval. Setting not present by default).

For gaming performance, recommended is 1 (disable). For pure throughput and data streaming, you can experiment with values over 2. If you try larger values, just make sure TcpAckFrequency*MTU is less than RWIN, since the sender may stop sending data if RWIN fills without an acknowledgement.

Also, find the following key (if present):
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSMQ\Paramet ers

Add a new DWORD value:
TCPNoDelay=1 (DWORD value, 0 to enable Nagle's algorithm, 1 to disable, not present by default)

To configure the ACK interval timeout (only has effect if nagling is enabled), find the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{NIC-id}
TcpDelAckTicks=0 (DWORD value, default=2, 0=disable nagling, 1-6=100-600 ms). Note you can also set this to 1 to reduce the nagle effect from the default of 200ms without disabling it.

For Windows NT SP4, the TcpDelAckTicks path is:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\{NIC-id}\Parameters\Tcpip
TcpDelAckTicks=0 (Default=2, 0=disables nagling, 1-6=100-600 ms)

Notes:
Reportedly, the above gaming tweak (disabling nagle's algorithm) can reduce WoW (World of Warcraft) latency by almost half!
XP/2003 needs hotfix or SP2 for it to work (MS KB 815230)
Vista needs hotfix or SP1 for it to work (MS KB 935458)


Most important ones you need to know about are

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{NIC-id}
There will be multiple NIC interfaces listed there, for example: {1660430C-B14A-4AC2-8F83-B653E83E8297}. Find the correct one with your IP address listed. Under this {NIC-id} key, create a new DWORD value:
TcpAckFrequency=1

and

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSMQ\Paramet ers
Add a new DWORD value:
TCPNoDelay=1

[Muta]

Originally Posted by Rezel

Hi,

To shed some more light on Nagle's algorithm, here is a old quote from SpeedGuide.net :: The Broadband Guide. All credit goes to them. I hope it helps. PS: I do not recommend registry tweaks unless you know what you are doing.

Gaming Tweak - Disable Nagle's algorithm

The tweak below allows for tweaking or disabling Nagle's alogrithm. Disabling "nagling" allows for very small packets to be transferred immediately without delay. Note that is only recommended for some games, and it may have negative impact on file transfers/throughput. The default state (Nagling enabled) improves performance by allowing several small packets to be combined together into a single, larger packet for more efficient transmission. While this improves overall performance and reduces TCP/IP overhead, it may briefly delay transmission of smaller packets. Keep in mind that disabling Nagle's algorithm may have some negative effect on file transfers, and can only help reduce delay in some games. To implement this tweak, in the registry editor (Start>Run>regedit) find:

This setting configures the maximum number of outstanding ACKs in Windows XP/2003/Vista/2008:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{NIC-id}

There will be multiple NIC interfaces listed there, for example: {1660430C-B14A-4AC2-8F83-B653E83E8297}. Find the correct one with your IP address listed. Under this {NIC-id} key, create a new DWORD value:

TcpAckFrequency=1 (DWORD value, 1=disable, 2=default, 2-n=send ACKs if outstanding ACKs before timed interval. Setting not present by default).

For gaming performance, recommended is 1 (disable). For pure throughput and data streaming, you can experiment with values over 2. If you try larger values, just make sure TcpAckFrequency*MTU is less than RWIN, since the sender may stop sending data if RWIN fills without an acknowledgement.

Also, find the following key (if present):
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSMQ\Paramet ers

Add a new DWORD value:
TCPNoDelay=1 (DWORD value, 0 to enable Nagle's algorithm, 1 to disable, not present by default)

To configure the ACK interval timeout (only has effect if nagling is enabled), find the following key:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{NIC-id}
TcpDelAckTicks=0 (DWORD value, default=2, 0=disable nagling, 1-6=100-600 ms). Note you can also set this to 1 to reduce the nagle effect from the default of 200ms without disabling it.

For Windows NT SP4, the TcpDelAckTicks path is:
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\{NIC-id}\Parameters\Tcpip
TcpDelAckTicks=0 (Default=2, 0=disables nagling, 1-6=100-600 ms)

Notes:
Reportedly, the above gaming tweak (disabling nagle's algorithm) can reduce WoW (World of Warcraft) latency by almost half!
XP/2003 needs hotfix or SP2 for it to work (MS KB 815230)
Vista needs hotfix or SP1 for it to work (MS KB 935458)


Most important ones you need to know about are

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Servic es\Tcpip\Parameters\Interfaces\{NIC-id}
There will be multiple NIC interfaces listed there, for example: {1660430C-B14A-4AC2-8F83-B653E83E8297}. Find the correct one with your IP address listed. Under this {NIC-id} key, create a new DWORD value:
TcpAckFrequency=1

and

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\MSMQ\Paramet ers
Add a new DWORD value:
TCPNoDelay=1

And it all still doesn't do anything if you're behind a router.

[Mithryn]

Muta, are you sure you understand how tcp/ip communication works?

Yes, the extra step the packet has to take through the router is going to add some latency, but the client computer still must handle the responses. Disabling the Nagle algorithm allows the client computer to respond faster, thus less time between packet acks. The router just reads the packet header and forwards it to the pc with the request, so the registry hack CAN have an effect. A friend of mine has disabled this as well, and noticed an improvement of ~200ms on his Aion latency. If I were running Vista, you can be sure I'd be doing this as well as it seems to hold merit amongst people i trust.

Another thing to do to improve latency is to make sure your computer has priority over traffic generated to the ports that Aion uses. Forward them to the box playing Aion, and that should also alleviate some latency.

[Athilik]

Muta I highly doubt you understand how tcp/ip communication works. Your router does just that: route traffic. Your computer is the one that plays the game, not the routers. Thus your computer is the one handling, receiving and sending packets. The router just ends up being another 'hop' in a trace route to give an example. This is most noticeable for people who play wirelessly as a trace route can show up to 10 additional milliseconds on the hop from your computer to the router.

Mithryn is correct, I experienced pings over 300ms. After testing my ping, I logged out and made the changes. After restarting my computer (since it is a registry edit), I logged back in and was able to spend the remaining week in open beta with pings under 100ms. I run on up to 10Mb/s download speed cable connection (lol marketing) and have never experienced pings to the east coast over 150ms until I played Aion.

[Cristiano]

This same technique reduced my lag in WoW, Lotro, and WAR. I'm behind a firewalled router but I have the required ports forwarded and the lag is greatly reduced.

[Hanzou_Masamori]

Originally Posted by Mithryn

Muta, are you sure you understand how tcp/ip communication works?

Yes, the extra step the packet has to take through the router is going to add some latency, but the client computer still must handle the responses. Disabling the Nagle algorithm allows the client computer to respond faster, thus less time between packet acks. The router just reads the packet header and forwards it to the pc with the request, so the registry hack CAN have an effect. A friend of mine has disabled this as well, and noticed an improvement of ~200ms on his Aion latency. If I were running Vista, you can be sure I'd be doing this as well as it seems to hold merit amongst people i trust.

Another thing to do to improve latency is to make sure your computer has priority over traffic generated to the ports that Aion uses. Forward them to the box playing Aion, and that should also alleviate some latency.

Exactly. Thank you. Its a fairly effective tweak for online gaming and in the specific case of Aion many people have already reported this registry edit to make quite a big differance for them. And as Rezel's post indicated you will need XP SP2+ or Vista SP1+ installed to take advantage of it.