Note: You will need the console to be enabled. To do this go to Options > Keyboard > Advanced > and check Enable Developer Console. Then access the console using the ~ key which is above tab and left of 1. On some keyboards it may be beside return/enter
In HL2 based games it is important to have your settings optimised not only for your hardware and internet connection but also so they are well matched with the settings allowed with the server you are playing on.
In game the 3 main commands that need to be looked at are:
rate which is the maximum amount of Bytes Per Second you will request from the server.
cl_cmdrate which is the maximum amount of updates per second you will send to the server
cl_updaterate which is the maximum amount of updates per second you will receive or request from the server
Unfortunately the defaults that Valve specify absolutely suck. These are determined in the Settings > Internet section of your steam application but they appear to have been last looked at in about 1997 and are totally inadequate. We will doing some manual adjustment to get them how they should be.
On GTFO servers there are a series of maximum and minimum settings allowed which are specified in the server configuration. For your information these are as follows:
sv_maxrate 30000. This means the maximum rate you can receive is 30000 even if you set it higher
sv_mincmdrate 35. This means the minimum cmdrate you can have is 35. If your setting is lower than this you will be forced to 35 regardless.
sv_maxcmdrate 66. This is the maximum cmdrate setting allowed and it matches the server tickrate which is 66
sv_minupdaterate 35. This means the minimum updaterate you can have is 35. If your setting is lower than this you will be forced to 35 regardless.
sv_maxupdaterate 66. This is the maximum updaterate setting allowed and it matches the server tickrate which is 66.
What settings should I use?
This depends a lot on your connection speed and whether you live in the UK or far away from it and to an extent how good your PC is. Having the settings correctly optimised will hopefully increase your hit registry, decrease any lag spikes or jumpy movements you notice.
For users with a decent broadband connection and up to date PC i'd recommend:
rate should be anywhere from 16000-30000
cl_cmdrate should be anywhere from 50-66
cl_updaterate should be anywhere from 50-66
If you live outside the UK or have a slower connection or older computer you may need to lower these slightly but it is just a case of trying different settings until you see 0 loss and low choke in net_graph 3 which will be explained further down this post.
How to use these settings
Simply open the console ingame using the ~ key and type in your desired settings. For example:
rate 20000 and hit enter
cl_cmdrate 60 and hit enter
cl_updaterate 60 and hit enter
If your config.cfg file in your steamapps\account\day of defeat source\cfg folder is READ ONLY then these settings might not stick next time you open the game. You can place them directly into the config.cfg file to avoid this issue.
Open the file and Search (CTFL + F) for cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate and change the settings. If one or both of those cannot be found add them manually at the bottom of the file. Notice that "brackets" should be used in this file...so cl_cmdrate "60" instead of cl_cmdrate 60
How can I tell what my choke/loss is?
Using net_graph 3 in console you can see exactly what it is happening in relation to the above information.
You will get an output on your screen just like this one, which is my net_graph output:
The information is easy enough to follow. The bits we're interested in are Choke, Loss, Ping and the 2 numbers on the right hand side, in this instance 60.5/s and 59.4/s
Loss refers to lost packets due to Network problems, either with your computers connection to your ISP, your ISP, or the ISP that is hosting the Server or anywhere in between. It is good to have this number at 0 although occasional blips where it goes to 1 or 2 for a few seconds shouldn't be too much to worry about.
Choke is quite simply the server wanting to send you data but cannot. Again you'll want this number to be as low as possible because if the server tries to send you information about where the enemy is located on the screen and you dont receive it then how are you going to shoot anything? Having the right rate, cl_cmdrate and cl_updaterate settings should help keep this number low.
Ping simply refers to the time, in milliseconds, taken for you to send information to the server and receive it back again. This should be as low as possible, preferably under 100ms, and usually will be if you have a broadband connection and live anywhere in europe.
In the above example the 60.5/s refers to the average number of data updates you are receiving from the server. This is controlled by cl_updaterate. This number can never exceed 66 on GTFO servers because of our server settings and tickrate. Obviously, a higher number is best here. If your cl_updaterate is set high but this number is low it could indicate as issue with the server itself.
The 59.4/s refers to the average number of data updates you are sending to the server for the benefit of other players. This is controlled by cl_cmdrate. Again this can't exceed 66 and a higher number is better.
More info and useful tips
http://whisper.ausgamers.com/wiki/index.php/Tickrate
i wish but 18000 50 50... if someone is needing to use lower rates, they shudnt be using dods...
Hope you can help me here.
