Lag's caused by huge quantity of solar panels.

1st Official Post

    My main power supply in IC2 is a huge solar panel plant (around 900 panels). I live in desert.
    But this quantity of panels caused inapropriate lags during sunrise and sunset in game.
    Every enother time it's ok, and game runs perfect.


    So the question is:
    May I set somewhere in config file for solar panels, set that they will not generate enegry, during sunset and sunrise.
    If this available, I guess I'll use 2000 of them. My PC will do it =).



    P.S.
    My PC is rather powerfull.
    Hashwell i5-4570 (forced to work in turbo mode constatnly) 3.8 Ghz. Without frequensy loss, and energy saving.
    24 Gb of Ram (8Gb assigned to minecraft).



    P.P.S.
    I don't want to use mods like Advanced solar panels as it's not realistic for me.



    So, the final question is:
    Is there any way to avoid PC lags during sunset and sunrise, when using huge solar power plants?

    • Official Post

    Solar panels shouldn't cause more lag during sunset, than they normally do. If the lag is only there during sunset, it's most likely caused by something else than the solar panels.


    There is a mod out there called CompactSolars, that will do nothing else than compress multiple solar panels into a single block, so it should be about as realistic as normal solar panels are.

    As described in IC2 abot solar panel:
    One panel geterates 1 energy per tick during minecraft day.
    But I've noticed that during sunrise and sunset one panel generates less than 1 energy. And total output of plan continiusly increasing / decreasing during sunrise and sunset.
    Thus I though, that energy calculation for every panel output during sunset / sunrise caused that lags.



    Also I've notices, if my energy storages is full than there are no lags.
    Anyway thanks for answering.
    I'll have to find out what the problem.
    By the way, there are village near.... and that's all.
    My agriculture is very far from home (tryed to balance my cpu load while building my minecraft world).



    I'll try to find whats the problem in other fomurs.



    Your are doing great job.
    Minecraft without IC2 is absolutely no Joy for me. :)
    Thank your.

    One more thing.
    For my opinion, that lags is concerned only for ic2 electronic devices.
    I can move, open and close chests - everythink will be OK.
    But during sunrise and sunset there are huge delay in energy calculation.
    Example:
    I have crusher device, puted there 64 stones with the aim to recieve 64 sand.
    My crusher has 12 speed accelerators.


    - First case. During day I'll recive 64 sand in 15 secods. As expected.
    - Second case (sunrise and sunset) 1 recive one sand in 3 second while sunset, than all 64 sands appears at once.
    Also during this lags I cannot smoothly move by using rail cart. Everything else chests villagers, tree cutting e t c is ok.



    So generally, these lags are concerned especcially to IC2 devices.



    I hope that my information will be usefull for your.
    Also I'm system integrator with 10 years expearence. So your may ask me to check something, or may be use any utility.
    I'll be gald to help your.


    Hope It will helps.
    My best regards.


    P.S.
    I'm sorry for my english. It's not my native language, but I'm working in international software support.

    I recetly discussed IC2 migration from 1.7.10. So, I'm still at 1.7.10
    Thus I'm prepearing to migrate using your retrogen feature.
    Also buildcraft is installed (but I'm not using any feature or block from it), bibliocraft, tpeecapitator. And another 3-4 small mods.
    If your will request full list of mods, I'll open folder and type here every mode I use.



    Generally I use block and features in my game from IC2 and bibliocraft (not buildcraft).
    Thats all.

    Quote from Aroma1997

    Try to separate your solar panels into "smaller energy net parts" using a transformer or an energy storage block.
    Please tell me if that helped...

    What do your mean about using a transformer? Please explain.
    I see solution by using teeny energy storage with 32 energy output for using tin wires. But I'm little confused as there are only 39 blocks without enegry loss. I have to develope schema with using this storages... I need to make drowing :huh: ...


    For now I'm using 900 panel connected directly to 40 million storage...
    Your think that solution to devide panels for 32 per energy storage may partly solve my problem? Will it decrease Cpu load? Are your sure?


    Than, I'll need arond 32 clusters of panels. The main problem is to devide them from each other.
    Ok. I'll try to do it after migration to 1.8.9 anyway I'll have to rebuild everything.


    But please confirm that this solution sholud work. There are plenty of work ;) .


    Also want to ask your, may we develop enother clue for this issue?
    And as suggestion for futher version of IC2 would be great to add this to IC config file, for cpu load reduce. I think that would be usefull. I mean option to turn off energy calculation during sunset and sunrise.



    Thanks for a replying.
    I thing that my questions may be added to IC2 wiki :). I think this is common question.


    Your are doing great job. Thanks :thumbup: :thumbup:

    Aroma is partly wrong... If you have 900 Solarpanels no matter what you are doing it still has to process all these solar panels... Even during night they get processed (even if they have nothing to send they still check it)...


    So the lag is simply created by a overflow in the energynet...
    And you can not doing anything against it with Vanilla IC2 simply because there is no real option (If you want to keep the solar panels).
    If you are playing with 1.7.10 i suggest you compact solar because you get no real advantage with compacting your solar panels its not really balanced eather but you have 512 Solar Panels in 1 Block (1 Process instead of 512 Processes)
    if that is not a option then remove solar panels and make your base more efficent or swtich to other Powersources so you can decrease them...

    Quote from Speiger

    Aroma is partly wrong... If you have 900 Solarpanels no matter what you are doing it still has to process all these solar panels... Even during night they get processed (even if they have nothing to send they still check it)...


    So the lag is simply created by a overflow in the energynet...
    And you can not doing anything against it with Vanilla IC2 simply because there is no real option (If you want to keep the solar panels).
    If you are playing with 1.7.10 i suggest you compact solar because you get no real advantage with compacting your solar panels its not really balanced eather but you have 512 Solar Panels in 1 Block (1 Process instead of 512 Processes)
    if that is not a option then remove solar panels and make your base more efficent or swtich to other Powersources so you can decrease them...

    The problem is that it only occurs during sunrise and sunset. During night and during day everythink is ok.
    What can your say about later versions. Now I'm gathering resources for migration to 1.8.9. So soon I'll change my version.


    Minecraft is very badly balanced. I see solutinon now, by playing with processes that uses my cpu cores.
    I guess (thanks my cmd> perfmon /res) that ic2 can use just one core. If minecraft could use all my 4 cores than would be able to use 2000 panels (I'm sure of it).



    I'll try to play with processes and than adjust quantity of panels to 1000.
    I know about compact solars. I understand it, I'm system intergrator. But it's very unrealistic =)))
    In mounth I'll migrate to 1.8.9 (thanks to retrogen).



    What about this issue on later ic2 versions. Any suggestion for migration?

    • Official Post

    First of all: Speiger, you're wrong.
    The energy flow in the default 1.7.10 IC2 enet is calculated by a matrix multiplication. Separating the solar panels into different parts of the energy net results in smaller matrices (for example 2 50x50 matrices instead of 1 100x100 matrix. Of course, that is faster to calculate).


    But not to your question, Kasssel:

    Quote from Kasssel

    Your think that solution to devide panels for 32 per energy storage may partly solve my problem? Will it decrease Cpu load? Are your sure?

    Yes, that is exactly, what I meant. That will decrease CPU usage.


    In the 1.9.4 version and above, after the initial chunkloading of the energy tiles is done, it won't make a difference, how many solar panels are connected to each other.
    In the 1.7.10 version and the 1.8.9 version, that trick will however save you cpu power.


    A not to upgrading your world to 1.8.9: All IC2 blocks won't survive the upgrade. We suggest creating a new world in 1.8.9 (or even 1.10)


    One last thing: I just remembered, that immibis once made an array solars mod, that will require as much space as a normal solar panrel setup, but will cause less lag due to the inverter being connected to the enet and not the solar panels themselves.

    Quote from Aroma1997

    First of all: Speiger, you're wrong.
    The energy flow in the default 1.7.10 IC2 enet is calculated by a matrix multiplication. Separating the solar panels into different parts of the energy net results in smaller matrices (for example 2 50x50 matrices instead of 1 100x100 matrix. Of course, that is faster to calculate).


    Agree on that because you decrease the work by half but throwing out that solar panels on night produce no lag is invalid because it still checks every tick if it has energy to send...
    Best solution would decrease generator & cable (1.7.10 mostly cable amount) amount...
    And to point something out: The 1.8.9-1.9-1.10 Energynet you made will die with that kind of situation too (IC2 Classics too) because its still a overflow...

    Can your remember name of that solar array mod please?
    If I'll create world again - I'll have to rebuild all facilities.
    It's more simple for me is to gather resourves first, than update my world.


    I don't want to start from early begginig.
    Your advise with retrogen feature will fit's to me greatly.
    And ic2 devices? I'll rebuild them. No pro. Having more than 500 dimonds and 32000 iron e t c + retrogen.
    This will be my way. I've already started prepearing for this.


    Thanks for advise. I'll rebuild everything by your advise.



    Your gave me very valuable help by your advises. Thanks a lot.



    Guys, your are doing great job =))

    Quote from Aroma1997

    He already said, he doesn't want to use CompactSolars.


    Quote from Kasssel

    I don't want to use mods like Advanced solar panels as it's not realistic for me.


    I know that i have sometimes issues with reading but you seem to have issues too. Because i checkt that before i gave him that link.
    Its its simply only BlockCompressing with a couple extra materials so he does not gain anything extra from that. Besides higher Energy Packets per tick...


    Edit: if you (Kasssel) read this. What Compact solars does is simply its merging all the Vanilla IC2 Solar panels you crafted into 1 Block. a LV Solar Panel produces 8 EU but requires 8 Solar Panels. So if you make a HV Solar Panel you need 512 Solar panels (you get 512EU out of that HV one). Besides the Space difference you gain nothing extra from it. (I know that AdvSolar panels do not need as many resources thats why i think compact solars is a good option)