Test Ares! Blittercrashes and recon errors

Speeder · Commander **Joined**: 03 Sep 2004 **Location**: Czechia

Thought I'd direct your attention to this post I made on our forums recently.

Basically, recent Ares revisions don't seem as stable as one would like them to be and we're having blittercrashes and recon errors in Yuri's Revenge with only Ares enabled. That's why we're trying to check which version started the whole mess, especially with blitters (first case was reported in July 2012). So far we've confirmed a blitter in 0.2p2 plus recon in latest 0.3 test branch and we're testing some version from Feb 2012..

Further feedback regarding blitters and recons would be welcome. As it is, Ares is not stable enough.

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CCHyper · Defense Minister **Joined**: 07 Apr 2005

Tracing what causes the blitter errors is a nightmare and not worth it, in my experience. Unless AlexB wants to share some info! Very Happy

Renegade

Speeder wrote:

[...] As it is, Ares is not stable enough.

If only someone had noticed that beforehand and advised against releasing it...

Anyway, do you have a quick and safe way to establish the presence of the issue? As in, can you drop in an Ares version, start a game, and tell if the problem exists in the first game?

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Graion Dilach · Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2013 5:41 pm Post subject:

There isn't, sadly.

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Speeder · Commander **Joined**: 03 Sep 2004 **Location**: Czechia

No, it's as random as ever. Sometimes there isn't anything happening for two games in a row but for example, the last time we played with 0.2p2, Graion got a blitter in the first game.

It's really weird, because in latest MO beta with latest 0.3 branch, Graion got about 2 blitters and Cesare got the most, 6. Compared to this, noone else got a blitter and we've had 43 games so far.

I've got my first blittercrash few days ago in a YR+Ares 0.2p2 game, some say they haven't ever had one.

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FistOfFire · Light Infantry **Joined**: 01 Dec 2010

I got some free time to test. I have a stationary and a laptop so online testing wont be a problem.
There is one problem, I have no mod to test with.

Speeder · Commander **Joined**: 03 Sep 2004 **Location**: Czechia

It's not a mod test. It's Ares + vanilla Yuri's Revenge.

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Renegade · Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2013 6:45 pm Post subject:

Well, can you craft a map that executes the functions in question a lot more than average, to increase the chance of the issue appearing?

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RP · Posted: Thu Feb 07, 2013 9:02 pm Post subject:

I'd like to help with a 'stress-test map', but I need to know more about what should be tested.

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/ppm/'s stupidity

FistOfFire · Light Infantry **Joined**: 01 Dec 2010

Speeder wrote:

It's not a mod test. It's Ares + vanilla Yuri's Revenge.

What? Is it that broken?

It would help if the coders told us what original logics they have modified/changed.

mevitar · Missile Trooper **Joined**: 31 Dec 2010

If it was so easy as that, the problem would be fixed already. #Tongue

In the end, it might be not even an Ares issue, but a hardware or software issue that is prevalent only because Ares changed some stuff (which would explain why only some people are having problems, at least when it comes to blitter crashes).

But then, it might not be that either...

That's why more people are needed to test.

Renegade · Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2013 11:06 pm Post subject:

mevitar wrote:

[...]

That's why more people are needed to test.

Careful, people get bitchy when you say that about Ares. Wink

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Mig Eater · Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 5:59 am Post subject:

I'm testing D-day + Ares on a daily basis & haven't had any problems. I think I've only had one "blittercrash" several years ago. No recon errors in any of the LAN games I've played either.

Maybe D-day's lack of special weapons like prism, tesla, chrono, emp, etc, etc. makes it less prone to these problems...

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Renegade · Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 1:05 pm Post subject:

Hmm...I wonder if a map that scriptically spawns and removes masses of different types of special weapons units would help...

As in, the map spawns two opposing forces with Prism Towers and Prism Tanks amongst each other, lets them fight for three minutes, then removes them all and spawns Tesla units instead. Then the same with Chrono-stuff, EMP, etc.

If the amassment of units increases the chance of the crash, that's one indicator, if the crash always happens during a certain wave of units, that's another.

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Graion Dilach · Posted: Sat Feb 09, 2013 1:17 pm Post subject:

The main issue with this... is that this is neither.

Once I had a blittercrash in the second minute during a Refinery placement. Yet another time I had tons of stuff and was just randomly scrolled over the map.

First I thought this is related to what was on my screen at that time but the more times I run into this the more it seems that it unrelated to that.

It just seems to be more random than reasonable.

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"If you didn't get angry and mad and frustrated, that means you don't care about the end result, and are doing something wrong." - Greg Kroah-Hartman
=======================
Past C&C projects: Attacque Supérior (2010-2019); Valiant Shades (2019-2021)
=======================
WeiDU mods: Random Graion Tweaks | Graion's Soundsets
Maintainance: Extra Expanded Enhanced Encounters! | BGEESpawn
Contributions: EE Fixpack | Enhanced Edition Trilogy | DSotSC (Trilogy) | UB_IWD | SotSC & a lot more...

4StarGeneral · General **Joined**: 14 Sep 2006 **Location**: Limbo

Just blame Westwood and be done with it I say. This happens in Vanilla YR as well (at least for me) so I take it as normal...

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Crimsonum · Seth **Joined**: 14 Jul 2005 **Location**: Fineland

Well you can't really be "done with it" if the crashes happen so frequently it's not fun.

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Mig Eater · Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 9:01 am Post subject:

I played 4 LAN games a few days ago & got 4 recons, most within 5min :/

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AlexB · Commander **Joined**: 31 May 2010 **Location**: Germany

The original crashes here weren't because of Ares. I traced it back in February or March to a missing file. Apparently, this caused all the havoc, like blitter crashes and recons.

@Mig: Which Ares version? Which game speed? Checked any recent changes to the INIs which might have caused it?

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Mig Eater · Posted: Thu May 02, 2013 4:44 pm Post subject:

I tested 12.347.1255 & I think 13.118.1050, unless you've updated the v0.3 testing branch in the last few weeks

Game speed was on 5 on all games, The recons mainly happened when a paradrop SW was fired but it wasn't guaranteed. I do some proper testing & get back to you.

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AlexB · Commander **Joined**: 31 May 2010 **Location**: Germany

Thanks! 12.347.1255 is the dc03 branch updated after 0.2p2 was released, and 13.118.1050 is the build from four days ago. For testing only the v03 branch should be used. It also contains all the changes from dc03, which is quite outdated.

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Mig Eater · Posted: Fri May 03, 2013 1:04 pm Post subject:

Tracked the recon to the use of Invisible=yes on mines, which I guess makes sense as one player can seen them & the other(s) can't. So false alarm on Ares recon errors, just my bad coding XP

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AlexB · Commander **Joined**: 31 May 2010 **Location**: Germany

Glad you found it, and also glad it wasn't me Very Happy

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ApolloTD · Commander **Joined**: 19 Nov 2003

Ah yes, this was well known by me, if Invisible=yes or invisibleingame are used on something that will take part in combat, it makes recon.