Problems with Windows 10

[trw6142]

I'm a newbie to TrainSim.com, so forgive my ignorance.

I have looked through the bug reports, but I didn't find any referring to this problem. OR has a rough time on my PC with MSTS and Win 10. It is VERY slow responding to keyboard commands, and using the mouse to activate on-screen controls doesn't work. Are there any known fixes for this?

TRW6142

[mikeebb]

I strongly doubt that Windows 10 is the source of your problems. OR works fine on Windows 10, even with AMD graphics which don't work any more (even with driver hacks) with MSTS. However, it does have significantly higher hardware performance needs than MSTS. From my experience, bracketing the possibilities, all using Windows 10 Anniversary Update (1607):

• Tablet with 1.5 GHz Atom (quad-core), built-in Intel graphics, 2G RAM, running from SD card: OR runs, but unplayable with frame rates of 10 or less and significant control delays. NO GO HERE.
• Laptop with Intel built-in graphics, 2.4 GHz i5 (2 core/4 threads), 4G RAM, running from hard disk: OR runs, and is generally playable, but frame rates are around 15 and there is occasional delay in control inputs. OK FOR OCCASIONAL USE WHEN TRAVELING.
• Desktop with 3 GHz Core2 Extreme (quad-core), nVidia 750ti graphics, 8G RAM, running from low-priced SSD: OR runs well, very playable, frame rates around 75 (locked to refresh) or 80-120 (unlocked, depending on route), little or no control delay. WORKS WELL; MY NORMAL MACHINE FOR USING OR.

The desktop originally had a low-end AMD card (HD5450 iirc). With it, OR of the time had frame rates in the low-mid 20s with many white voids. Replacing that card with the nVidia instantly bumped reported frame rates over 100 and eliminated white voids on the same route.

So look at your hardware. Do you have a decent, preferably 4-real-core CPU? Do you have good (non-Intel) graphics? Do you have enough RAM (at least 4GB in a 64-bit system, preferably 8 or more to minimize paging for background processes)? Trying to run in a hard (no hyperthreading) dual-core system (like an Intel i3) will give poor results (4 or more real cores, as in an i7 and some i5s, works best), as will using the standard Intel graphics, regardless of clock rate. OR is aggressively multi-threaded, at least up to 4, and makes extensive use of advanced graphics features that Intel (perhaps hardware? drivers? both?) for some reason doesn't support.

If all else fails, uninstall OR, reboot, and reinstall. Presumably, you have XNA 3.1 installed - if you used the official installer, it would have been, along with DirectX 9. Go to Settings, System, Apps & Features, scroll to the bottom & open Programs & Features, then click on Turn Windows Features On & Off (admin password required); make sure that .Net 3.5 is turned on (it should be if you used the Open Rails installer), and that under "Legacy Components" DirectPlay is turned on (may not strictly be necessary, but I've seen odd results if it's not).

Once you have OR 1.2 installed and it works, you can update to later testing versions manually (simply copy the new files over the old ones in your Open Rails directory) or through the updater by choosing to receive testing versions in the Open Rails options. I've been using the testing versions, and most of the time the changes are improvements (there have been occasional glitches of course; this is actively-developed software not something commercial that changes only when they can charge you for an new copy).

EDIT: you mentioned MSTS. OR does not require anything from MSTS other than content (shapes, routes, trains) that may be needed for running trains. They're totally separate programs. So problems you may be having with MSTS itself are not relevant to ORTS. Yes, MSTS in Windows 10 can be tricky unless you follow certain installation rules perfectly and have the right hardware (primarily, nVidia graphics). OR doesn't suffer from that.

[Vince]

I have looked through the bug reports, but I didn't find any referring to this problem. OR has a rough time on my PC with MSTS and Win 10. .............snip................................T RW6142

If you'd attach the Open Rails log text file it would help diagnose your problem.
Be sure you have 'Logging" checked on the OR opening panel.