Recommended cache size?

[Trin1]

I know with web browsers it is better to keep the cache size smaller so you get less crap files stored on your computer, is it similar with SL viewers?

Or should it be bigger is better with them?

Just asking because it seems to take forever to defrag if I don't clear my SL cache prior to doing it.

[Peggy Paperdoll]

I've found that the default cache size of 500 megabytes is about right for my needs.  There are two way to think of the cache.  First being that once the textures and objects are cached on your hard drive they are retrieved quicker than having to download the textures and objects from the servers........and that is a fact.  So by that way to thinking a larger cache would make things rezz faster.  That's not quite the way it works though.........a larger cache takes your computer longer to search.  Part of the reason is the number of files contained when it's full but the other part is what you have noticed with defragging.......the cache files are helter selter and very heavily fragmented.  So instead of taking just a little longer for the textures and objects to retrieved due to the number of files (computers are pretty damned fast so it's barely noticible and definitely faster than re-downloading from the servers) the files being fragmented turns that little bit longer to substanially longer.  And all that fragmentation that occurs in the cache opens up the posibility to more than usual corruption of files.  Clearing the larger cache more often will help in that area.......but then, why have a large cache in the first place?

 

I recommend the default size for you cache..........this is one thing I think the developers got right.  Even if it was just some arbitrary size of 500 megs. 

[LoveAngeL Lyre]

Hello Trin1. Never i changed the default size (512MB). It is good periodically to delete your cache especially if use more than one avatars and switch to more than one viewers.

[Trin1]

Thanks for the answers, I usually only use one viewer (Singularity) and use the official one if I get something "stuck" on me (RLV or otherwise).

I do have about 5 different avis I use but only change them every couple of days.

Usually I only clear the cache twice a week or brfore defraging, but it wouldn't hurt to clear it more often I assume.

My connection speed is 15 Mbps down and 1 Mbps up, so I shouldn't have much problems.

[Nalates Urriah]

I'll disagree...

Cache size depends on the viewer you are using. You may have to check with the developer. If the viewer uses pure SnowGlobe or older code it uses the older style cache and one needs a smaller cache because your computer is having to use the system's file services to find files. Individual TPV's may have updated their code to use the newer system.

However, setting a small size as a limit means the viewer must start deleting files sooner. The time to find and delete a file to make room for a newly downloading file is more time consuming than just checking to see if the file exists and downloading it. So, the cache limit needs to be larger than your natural use cache would be. 

You'll find you have an average cache size as files will age out of the cache. With Exodus and Singularity and Phoenix the caches are in the range of 200 to 600 mb. For those viewers a 1gb cache size is probably best. You want to avoid having to delete files during any login secession. Old files that have aged out will delete at startup... or so I'm told.

Also, if you seldom visit the same region twice... Clearing the cache can give you better performance.

Newer Viewers

The new V3's have an indexed cache. Rather than read the disk they use an index built by the viewer to find the files. This is a much faster process. You can allow the size of the cache to grow. The result is that if you return to an area and let things rez then turn 180, much of the stuff behind you is rezzed too.

For newer viewers I would set the cache at the max 10gb. My largest cache is 2.2gb. My bandwidth use in the V3's is much lower. I've tried smaller caches with V3 and I don't see a FPS performance difference.

Clearing Cache

Every time we turn around someone is suggesting we clear the cache. In 2010 and early 2011 that was pretty good general advise. It is no longer true. Only clear you cache as a last resort and only if you are sure the problem is related to cache corruption.

[Rhys Goode]

My advice is to look at what  your computer is doing.  My old laptop was 32 bit, ~3.6 gb RAM, but the base system used enough of the RAM  that some browsers needed to do a lot of hard drive read/writes.   If you are using windows, then task manager >oerformance>Resouce Monitor is your friend.  Try different configs, see if you avoid read/writes to disk.

I found that with FS beta mesh, or LL 3.2, I do a lot of read/srite to hard drive if I have voice enabled.  Leading to a big dropin FPS.   And with the default 512 MB cache, a lot of read/write lag with FS beta mesh, got much better FPS wiht cache set t0 256 MB.  But I just upgraded my laptop, have 16 GB of ram, and have been running the cache size up, seeing small gains if fps as I do.