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Hey everyone! I've recently purchased ArmA2 CO. The main reason for this was to play the DayZ mod. However, I have major issues regarding GPU / CPU utilization and framerates. Everything seems pretty normal when I'm outside on fields, forests, etc. By "normal" I mean 80-90% GPU usage, and 70-90 FPS, which is perfect. However, when entering cities, the GPU usage drops to 40-50%, causing average 20-30 FPS, which makes the game totally unplayable. My config is: CPU: AMD FX-8150 @ 4600 Mhz GPU: AMD Radeon HD7870 Tahiti LE @ CoreClock: 1100Mhz MemClock:1550Mhz Mem: 2x2GB @ 1600Mhz PSU: Corsair TX-850 HDD: Samsung 1TB Sata II I have read many topics and tutorials about using correct settings to boost in-game FPS. Changed settings in Arma2OA.cfg: GPU_MaxFramesAhead=0; also tried setting it to 1. GPU_DetectedFramesAhead=0; also tried setting it to 1. vsync=0; AToC=6; PPAA=1; PPAA_Level=2; serverLongitude=48; serverLatitude=4; Tried playing around all the settings. No matter what settings I use, wondering around cities just kills my FPS rate. The only thing making a difference was setting sceneComplexity to a lower level. I have turned off CPU parking, hoping it would make a difference. Well, it didn't. Tried changing the CPU options in BIOS (setting 1 core per Compute Unit). Didn't help. Tried downgrading ArmA to 103718 and 103419. FPS still drops. I'm just running out of options, and it's such a pity to not be able to play such a great mod just because of silly performance issues. This problem is the same at my brother's PC. I had the idea that maybe the HDD bottlenecks the performance. The other PC has a 60GB OCZ Agility III SSD as cache. He has the very same issues even with the faster R/W rates of his PC. Other PC's config: CPU: Intel I7 2600K @ 4500 HT on GPU: AMD Radeon HD7950 Top V2 @ CoreClock:1200Mhz MemClock:1600Mhz Mem: 2x4GB G-skill @2133Mhz PSU: Corsair AX-850 HDD: WD Black 1TB Sata III + 60GB OCZ Agility III SSD cache Once again, CPU and GPU usages almost never reach 99%. (If GPU usage is 99%, the performance is usually good) He is using the same config, and same startup configs (which I've experimented a lot with). Startup parameters: -nosplash -skipIntro -noPause -CpuCount=8 -maxmem=4096 -maxvram=2048 -world=chernarus (startup parameters are changed according to the PC config, of course) I'm running out of ideas, so any help is really much appreciated. Thanks!

Sounds like a good idea, but the only problem with it is that usually removing the cache drive leads to total data loss. To avoid such an inconvenience I would have to do a total data backup and operating system reinstall. :\ All this hassle just to try a method that is not sure to be working :(

The second PC is accelerated be an SSD by using it as cache. ArmA is intalled on the primary HDD, but without Steam as this is a retail copy.

No need to be rude here, I'm just a newbie seeking for help. Also, a more in-depth explanation would be great. Guess that is only up to the developers :)

I'm aware that this is not by far the first post about this issue.I've decided to open a new topic becase I've tried everything that was mentioned in other topics. To answer your questions Zgraphz: Bought the game on Amazon, it's a downloadable retail. It is installed on driver E:/ I have a Windows 8 Pro fully updated (including system, drivers, firmwares, BIOS). Microsoft .NET Framework 4.5 is already a part of this operating system. I like kittens, and I also like to bake cakes from rainbows and happiness. About the HDD, I thought that an SSD accelerated HDD would be enough for the game. I'll monitor and take a look at the HDD usage while playing. I'm using DayzCommander to join servers and apply the startup parameters. Lid, if there's an explanation for the problem, a link to the topic is appriciated! :) Also, thanks for the quick response, guys!