Loading times

Started by ZarZuf, April 08, 2019, 08:39:32 PM

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ZarZuf

Hi, I need a bit of help with rimworld loading times when mods are concerned.

At the moment I have a loading time of 25 minutes.
Startup Impact tells me that more than half of this time is taken by "resolve references" but I have no idea what it actually means.

Can someone explain to me what the game actually does while "resolving references" so i can track down the sources of it and (hopefully) load the game a little faster?

Canute

Hi,
sorry i can't explain it.
But to shorten your loading times, you should be sure you don't have error's at the log file/window after Rimworld start up.
Special when i looked at the logfiles from people with problems i notice rimworld start 2-3 times .

Another tools to reduce loading times, special when a mod tries to patch many other mods like CE, is
https://github.com/razuhl/RIMMSLoadUp


shakeyourbunny

Try using StartupImpact ( https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1684944322 or https://steamcommunity.com/linkfilter/?url=https://github.com/AUTOMATIC1111/StartupImpact ).

Put it at the top of the mod list and restart RimWorld. After loading, there will be a new button "Startup Impact" at the bottom right in the main menu. The popup show the mods which eat up most of the time.

Perhaps you also can give after that my RWMS (RimWorldModSorter; https://ludeon.com/forums/index.php?topic=48518.0 ) a shot. It will sort your mods according some educated guesses (and if mod authors provide their recommended sort order, their sort preferences) and will likely speed up loading a bit.





Owlchemist

#3
Yes, load order can help with optimizing load times. This guide has served me well: https://www.reddit.com/r/RimWorld/comments/a2ttf6/help_with_mod_load_order_please/eb19liq/

"Resolve references" is basically just where the game checks every reference mentioned in a definition against your ever-growing library of definitions from all the mods your using. It will exponentially compound and get worse and worse when you use mods that add a lot of content to the game (tangible items and recipes for instance).

To give an example of this, take Apparello 2 for instance. Now I got 80-something mods installed, but apparello probably is the most definition-heavy mod I got. Startup Impact claims it loads in 2.44 seconds, but no no. Using a stopwatch, I compared... 3 minutes 28 seconds to load with Apparello 2, and 2 minutes 50 seconds without it. So, moral is, scrutinize any mod that adds a lot of definitions to the game.

Also check your disabled mods if you got any. I have found that those are still poked at by the game when you start up to some capacity, and removing some of them shaved a few seconds off my load times.

ZarZuf

Thank you all for your help. :)
And a special thanks to Owlchemist for the explanation and the guide
Now I understand better what is actually happening during loading time.
I'll move a few mods around to see if it gets better.