Fix for all the General Protection Faults

[legacy-Chi Alwon]

This has fixed my General Protection Fault issues. I was not able to play for more than 3 minutes before I got them before. Since I have made the changed I have played many hours with only one GPF in the last two days. This is acceptable to me.
This fix is for people with 1024 MB of RAM or more. It should work for everyone.

Click Start > Run > Type MSCONFIG > Click OK

Choose Boot.ini > Click Advanced

Click the box next to /MAXMEM=

The amount of RAM you have will appear. Change this to 512.

Click OK > Click Apply > Reboot

You should be good to go.

Once you establish that Unreal is stable you may want to try upping the amount you use. I am currently at 1000 even leaving 24 MB just in case.

If you have less than 512 try doing 20 less than what your RAM amount it.

I hope this helps.

[legacy-mikathedogy]

has any one tryd this i would but i dont lika ta mess with my comp
:D

[legacy-|D|-iCe]

-= Actually the MSCONFIG command only (if im not mistaken) works in OS's Win95 -> Win98. Win2k and WinXP does not have that command.. also if your refering to system memory, you might want to boost that in your systems BIOS.... AGP System RAM... rule of thumb.. 1/2 of your systems total memory... I have 1GIG so mine is set to 512mb. Hope this helps... =-

[legacy-Chi Alwon]

This is for a Windows Xp system. I do not know if it exists in other Windows versions.

If you are scared to try it, all you have to do is head back there and uncheck the box. It will return to how it was before the change.

I urge you to try it

[legacy-|D|-iCe]

-= Ahhhh rgr that .... but its not showing up on my Win2k box so not sure if Win2k came with it or not... but thanks.... =-

[Folk]

This is bad advice. What you are doing is indicating the maximum amount of memory that Windows can use.

The reason it cured your GPF's is because you have bad memory. I'm guessing you have either two 512 sticks or a single 1 Gig stick. In any event, you are effectively by-passing your bad memory. Replace the bad memory to fix your problem, but don't recommend it to others.

Microsoft has a decent memory tester here: http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp

[legacy-Postalgeist]

MSconfig is in XP. You just type it in the dialog box under the RUN command on the start menu. Lets you control what loads and start-up and what not.

[legacy-M|FX]

Ok i ran that mem test and i have no issue's what else could be the issue then.

[legacy-uglyduck_uk]

Originally posted by Postalgeist
MSconfig is in XP. You just type it in the dialog box under the RUN command on the start menu. Lets you control what loads and start-up and what not.

Correct. I always use it to do a Clean Boot before playing any game:-

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?kbid=331796

[legacy-Chi Alwon]

My memory is fine. The issue is with how Unreal deals with memory. Could be a memory leak who knows. What I do know is I can play Unreal now and have done so for several days. Hopefully the patch will fix this.

Anyway the good news is that you can reverse it quickly by unchecking the box

[Folk]

Originally posted by Chi Alwon
My memory is fine. The issue is with how Unreal deals with memory.

OK, let's put it this way.... there are several thousand people out there that are *not* having GPF's. You did have GPF's, but telling XP to only use 512MB of your memory fixed your problem. Now, you want to tell us how fine your memory is again, or do you want to continue to think the problem is with 2K4 while thousands of others have no problem?

[legacy-froudeg]

It really does sound like part of ya memory is faulty / incompatible with your motherboard.

To test if your memory is indeed 'fine' - i advise running memtest86 for a few hours at least. Followed by an hour or so of prime 95.

You can download a bootable memtest86 image here:

http://www.memtest86.com/memtest86-3.1a.iso.zip

Just unzip and burn using the image burn option of nero (or whatever burning program u have)

Prime95 can be found via google - use the torture test options on there.

Restricting the amount of memory windows XP is using to fix your problem is akin to chopping your foot off if you got a pain in your ankle - it may remove the symptoms, but it's a crippling way to go about it.

[PointlesS]

most of my gpfs...random crashes...whatever was either do to a) overclocking or b) bad ram...running memtest86 I got over 400,000 errors...so I rmaed it...did it again...same thing...even at stock...I later figured out that my 1gig of pc-3500 kingston hyper x memory has major problems with my shuttle an35n ultra board...kinda sucks...also if I put in my old pc-2100 ram in...I never crashed at all...but then again I had to underclock (2500+ to 1900+) since I could only have a fsb of 133mhz instead of 166....

[legacy-Chi Alwon]

Just to let you know I am running at 1000 MB using the same trick an still no crashes.

In regards to the possibility my RAM is faulty I have run two different tests for over 24 hours and not a single error was reported. In addition no other game has this issue and I have and do play just about all of them. So yeah I dont think its my RAM.

BTW I posted this to help others

[legacy-uglyduck_uk]

Originally posted by Chi Alwon
Just to let you know I am running at 1000 MB using the same trick an still no crashes.

In regards to the possibility my RAM is faulty I have run two different tests for over 24 hours and not a single error was reported. In addition no other game has this issue and I have and do play just about all of them. So yeah I dont think its my RAM.

BTW I posted this to help others

Glad it appears to have worked for you.

As you say - it is easily reversed so people having GPFs can at least try it out ... who knows maybe it will help someone.

Dont bother arguing :). Heck its not as if you are advocating reformatting or anything like that - just a simple adjustment that people cursed with GPFs can try. It might not work for anybody else but, then again, it just might :)

[legacy-uglyduck_uk]

Having said that ... I think it is the title of the thread that made people blink and react! It *is* a little strong isnt it? :)

Another thread here:-

http://www.ataricommunity.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=369383

[legacy-Rent-A-Hero]

Originally posted by Chi Alwon
This has fixed my General Protection Fault issues. I was not able to play for more than 3 minutes before I got them before. Since I have made the changed I have played many hours with only one GPF in the last two days. This is acceptable to me.
This fix is for people with 1024 MB of RAM or more. It should work for everyone.

Click Start > Run > Type MSCONFIG > Click OK

Choose Boot.ini > Click Advanced

Click the box next to /MAXMEM=

The amount of RAM you have will appear. Change this to 512.

Click OK > Click Apply > Reboot

You should be good to go.

Once you establish that Unreal is stable you may want to try upping the amount you use. I am currently at 1000 even leaving 24 MB just in case.

If you have less than 512 try doing 20 less than what your RAM amount it.

I hope this helps.

I tried this. It works. Try using it if you are having problems.

Thanks man. Your MY hero. :up:

[legacy-uglyduck_uk]

Originally posted by Rent-A-Hero
I tried this. It works. Try using it if you are having problems.

Thanks man. Your MY hero. :up:

Good man - that will cheer the thread starter up a little :)

[legacy-Duckman58]

And before anyone tells me about memory, I have 2 512mb sticks micron pc2700 in my system, both sticks 0 errors on mem86 after 4 hours(each) and 0 with both sticks installed at 12 hours.

System
2800 Barton
1024 mb PC2700
9800 pro 128mb
Gigabyte GA-7vax
XP pro
4.4 catalyst drivers
4.51 hyperion 4in1 drivers

By the way, anyone that is updating their catalyst drivers needs to use this guide

http://www.tweaktown.com/document.php?dType=guide&dId=569&dPage=1

I picked up 12% across the board in frame rates from 4.3 drivers to 4.4 drivers, and the drivers have not been tweaked for UT 2004 yet.:D :D :D

I have been tweeking and messing all game, thought I had it fixed, then in the final match of Single player(skaarg mothership) I would crash when it loaded the map for the opposing teams assault. I did this fix and set mem recoginition at 999mb, and have played 6 hrs of assault, onslaught and 3 games of the mothership with no crashes!! I wonder, how many people this fix worked for are running Via chip based boards?

[legacy-uglyduck_uk]

Nice to hear Duckman :)

Unfortunately the thread starter hasnt posted anywhere since he last posted in this thread :(

I hope he has not let people put him off - after all his advice helped 2 of you....

[legacy-Eyemaster]

For everyone testing their ram I also recommend this program:

http://hcidesign.com/memtest/

It runs in Windows and it found errors in a stick of memory I had that Memtest86 did not find.

[legacy-r473n]

Originally posted by Folk
OK, let's put it this way.... there are several thousand people out there that are *not* having GPF's. You did have GPF's, but telling XP to only use 512MB of your memory fixed your problem. Now, you want to tell us how fine your memory is again, or do you want to continue to think the problem is with 2K4 while thousands of others have no problem?

Folk, the problems that people are reporting are not just memory related. Granted thousands are enjoying the game, but thousands aren't. It appears to me that the game has flaws that need to be patched. Memory is one aspect even the type of memory could have an impact, cpu core voltage is another, dodgy PSU's are another (in some cases), sometimes its sound card related, sometimes its video related, and sometimes it just isn't any of these things.

I think what might be interesting is if the developers published the spec list of the systems they tested the game on. How about it devs? That might help determine what exactly the target spec was for the game.

[Folk]

Originally posted by r473n
Folk, the problems that people are reporting are not just memory related. Granted thousands are enjoying the game, but thousands aren't. It appears to me that the game has flaws that need to be patched. Memory is one aspect even the type of memory could have an impact, cpu core voltage is another, dodgy PSU's are another (in some cases), sometimes its sound card related, sometimes its video related, and sometimes it just isn't any of these things.

I think what might be interesting is if the developers published the spec list of the systems they tested the game on. How about it devs? That might help determine what exactly the target spec was for the game.

I don't disagree with you r473n. These days, game developers ship betas disguised as finished products and we get the privilege of paying to test them. Hopefully the first patch will fix lots of problems. I also agree that there are many pieces to the puzzle when trying to track down errors. Just hours ago I suggested to another poster that his problem might be his power supply.

But let's look at this indivdual case. The OP has GPF's and fixes his problem by limiting the amount of memory his OS can use. Now this is the point where most people would suspect there is a problem with their memory.


Originally posted by Chi Alwon My memory is fine. The issue is with how Unreal deals with memory. Could be a memory leak who knows. ... Hopefully the patch will fix this.

I'm sorry, but if I'm:

- Experiencing GPF's
- Read where others fix GPF's by replacing faulty memory
- Realize that maybe one in a thousand is having problems with GPF's
- Fix my own problem by dicking around with memory settings

then I simply wouldn't have the balls to blame Epic for that... would you?

I realize I was being a bit of a dick in my reply, but it's that kind of attitude that really pisses me off.

"I fixed my problem by removing the six month accumulation of **** from my keyboard. I'm posting the solution here to help the other millions I'm sure are having the same problem. Damn you Epic, when are you going to issue a patch to fix this?" :p

[legacy-Duckman58]

I have been tweaking and changing settings, etc, since I installed the game. I have had absolutely no problems with any game since I replaced the mx440 that came with the system with a 9700 (which I replaced in this system with a 9800pro when it died). I have run mem86 on both individual sticks (512mb micron pc2700) for 4 hrs each and a 12 hr mem86 test on the system with both sticks installed with zero errors. Still had occasional crashes, gpfs when playing, and the computer would not finish the Skarg Mothership in single player. I backed my window memory control to recognizing 999mb instead of 1024mb and the problem went away. It may be something in the mb recognizing over 1 gig of ram, or it could be that there is a memory leak in the code that is fixed by leaving a small buffer. I don't know. I am also checking my memory with the other memory test listed in the thread, currently with my browser, IE, MSword open I am at 806% coverage with no errors. Not all of us have faulty memory either.

[legacy-r473n]

Originally posted by Folk
I don't disagree with you r473n. These days, game developers ship betas disguised as finished products and we get the privilege of paying to test them. Hopefully the first patch will fix lots of problems. I also agree that there are many pieces to the puzzle when trying to track down errors. Just hours ago I suggested to another poster that his problem might be his power supply.

But let's look at this indivdual case. The OP has GPF's and fixes his problem by limiting the amount of memory his OS can use. Now this is the point where most people would suspect there is a problem with their memory.



I'm sorry, but if I'm:

- Experiencing GPF's
- Read where others fix GPF's by replacing faulty memory
- Realize that maybe one in a thousand is having problems with GPF's
- Fix my own problem by dicking around with memory settings

then I simply wouldn't have the balls to blame Epic for that... would you?

I realize I was being a bit of a dick in my reply, but it's that kind of attitude that really pisses me off.

"I fixed my problem by removing the six month accumulation of **** from my keyboard. I'm posting the solution here to help the other millions I'm sure are having the same problem. Damn you Epic, when are you going to issue a patch to fix this?" :p

LOL, Too true Folk. I am one of those in hope of a patch, I ran memtest86 for 10 hrs straight yesterday with no errors. I ran the memtest from HCI for 1000 passes, with no errors. I guess I'll have to see if a patch can cure all ills for me. I must admit I am not experiencing the same degree of problems that some people are, I get the odd GPF here and there.

Good luck to everyone else

[Folk]

Originally posted by Duckman58
It may be something in the mb recognizing over 1 gig of ram

I think that would be a good guess. It's even possible that both you and the OP have the same motherboard, but with no one listing any hardware specs, it's impossible to know.

I have 512MB of memory in my rig. I have played UT, UT2003 and UT2 and they were all fine with that amount of memory. I never peaked above 512 until I installed and ran UT2004. UT2004 is putting stresses on parts of the memory subsystem that have never been stressed before. I know it's tempting to blame your problems on the game, but it's more likely that it's system related, since only a small percentage of users are seeing it.

It's good that the OP found this "fix". It's another piece in the puzzle to solving the problem. But to name the title of the thread "A Fix for all the General Protection Faults" and then proclaim that it's Epic's fault is..... stupid.

[legacy-Duckman58]

System
2800 Barton
1024 mb PC2700
9800 pro 128mb
Gigabyte GA-7vax
XP pro
4.4 catalyst drivers
4.51 hyperion 4in1 drivers

VT400 chipset with an 8237 nb. I was wondering how many people with this problem were running Via chip sets. I never had a problem on this machine running UT2003(except for some artifacting, which is why I replaced the 9700), or Unreal 2. It runs COD and Halo with absolutely no problems in the DX9.0 spec.:D

[Folk]

Originally posted by Duckman58
System
2800 Barton
1024 mb PC2700
9800 pro 128mb
Gigabyte GA-7vax
XP pro
4.4 catalyst drivers
4.51 hyperion 4in1 drivers

VT400 chipset with an 8237 nb. I was wondering how many people with this problem were running Via chip sets. I never had a problem on this machine running UT2003(except for some artifacting, which is why I replaced the 9700), or Unreal 2. It runs COD and Halo with absolutely no problems in the DX9.0 spec.:D

Sorry man, I didn't see your system specs before. Looks like a nice rig. Now it would be interesting to see if the OP has a similar setup.

[legacy-Duckman58]

I was finally able to get onto the gigabyte site(it was under construction for the last couple weeks) and found out that they had an updated bios for my board version F12. I am going to reset the memory back to 1024 later today and see if that fixed it. I will post later if it did.:D

[Folk]

Originally posted by Duckman58
I was finally able to get onto the gigabyte site(it was under construction for the last couple weeks) and found out that they had an updated bios for my board version F12. I am going to reset the memory back to 1024 later today and see if that fixed it. I will post later if it did.:D

Hey, I just though of something. Have you tried raising your DIMM voltage? It's not something you want to get carried away with, but maybe just a slight nudge. Some overclocking forums would probably show you what you can get away with on that board. That trick often works when you're trying to OC the memory bus, but maybe it just needs a nudge to get stable under stressful conditions? Another poster on these forums
http://www.ina-community.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=369885 fixed his problems by raising the core voltage on his CPU. My guess is that his problem was a power supply problem and heck... that could be your problem too. If your memory isn't getting enough voltage from your power supply's rails, then it could fail under stress. Just a thought...

[legacy-LittleSaint]

I just installed UT2K4 on a perfectly running system with 1GB of memory. Played for about 30 minutes...GPF. Now I continue to get GPFs in the game. This is not a problem with my system as every other game/benchmark I have works just fine. Clearly, to me at least, this is a memory bug that needs to be patched. Since it appears not everyone is having a problem, or at least not reporting it here, I assume it is some kind of software/driver/hardware combination that was missed in testing. My principle hardware:

Intel P4 2.4GHz
Intel i845 chipset - ABIT IT7
1GB Corsair XMS memory
Radeon 9700 Pro Cat 4.4 drivers
Audigy 2 w/latest EAX 4 drivers

[legacy-LittleSaint]

Here's the GPF I get. It's the same every time:

General protection fault!

History: UObject::ProcessEvent <- (HudCDeathmatch DM-1on1-Idoma.HudCDeathmatch, Function Engine.HUD.PostRender) <- FPlayerSceneNode::Render <- UGameEngine::Draw <- UWindowsViewport::Repaint <- UWindowsClient::Tick <- ClientTick <- UGameEngine::Tick <- Level Idoma <- UpdateWorld <- MainLoop

[legacy-Duckman58]

When you go in to change this setting back(i want to see if the new bios made a difference) Win xp boot.ini configuration utility does not have any values over 1000mb, I can delete the box and type it in, but it is not in it's scroll down menu, being as the error dissappeared when I set the max to under 1 gig(999mb) and this error has only been reported to fix the situation in machines with over 1 gig of memory, I wonder if this is a windows issue.

[legacy-LittleSaint]

I tried the 999MB "fix" without any luck. I sent the error and minidump to tech support. Wait and see I guess. Don't like paying $40 for a game I can't play for more than 30 minutes though.

[legacy-Rongaryen]

I fixed it by taking out the the two 256mb's of ram leaving me with a gig. I don't know if it's bad ram or not enough voltage or WinME just cant handle it. Just for testing purposes, if you have over a gig of ram, take out the extra ram sticks and see if it improves. It fixed my computer.

[legacy-LittleSaint]

My problem with that is nothing else but UT2K4 has problems. There's nothing wrong with my memory and I'm not about to remove hundreds of dollars of perfectly good hardware to play a buggy $40 game.

[legacy-Duckman58]

I updated the bios for my board to v F12 for the GA-7vax, and when I went into the overclock utility and clicked to set everything to default, it bumped my default cpu voltage from 1.66 v to 1.772, the weird part of this is that I had already tried bumping my voltage from 1.66-1.77 and I had crashed on the first test on prime95. Yet with the new bios, and with the memory put back to 1024 I ran prime 95 for 2hrs(7 tests passed) for the first time ever on this computer. Also had no problems in the game, where I had had problems in the past that I had fixed with the memory "tweak". The only thing I did notice is my mb temp rose from around 34C to 38C, my cpu from 29C to 33C. I can live with temperatures for a more stable machine!:D

System
2800 Barton
1024 mb PC2700
9800 pro 128mb
Gigabyte GA-7vax
XP pro
4.4 catalyst drivers
4.51 hyperion 4in1 drivers

[legacy-bellum24]

Well I have been playing UT2003 for the last two years happily on 512 mb [2x256] with no probs. Recently added another 256 and presto.... gpf and color bleeding everywhere. I thought it was a faulty stick and sent it back but same probs with replacement. I have fixed the prob in msconfig by limiting mem to 512 and thats ok.
I think it is a progamming fault because I also have some high end memory hungry games such as falcon 4.0 that play very smoothly with all memory up thank you.
I find it a pain in the proverbial to have to tweak memory back and forth and urge the developers to look at the prob.

[legacy-PersianImmortal]

As far as I can tell, GPFs are common to Unreal Engine games. They are not programming faults as such, since over the last few years playing UT, UT2003, UT2004 and America's Army (all based on various builds of the Unreal Engine) I have had at most a handful of GPFs all up.

General Protection Faults occur due to problems allocating/accessing a portion of memory. Hence all GPFs are related to the memory subset, which consists of your Motherboard, your CPU's L2 Cache, your RAM, and your Windows Virtual Memory and Cache settings.

Basically the common causes of GPFs are:

- running applications in the background which conflict with UT2004, especially Virus Scanners, messaging utilities, system tray applications etc.

- Overclocking, as this can stress the memory subset and unless absolutely 100% stable is the most common cause of GPFs

- Aggressive timings on your RAM. Not the Mhz speed, but the actual RAM timings (such as CAS-RAS Delay etc.). This is worsened if you have two or more sticks of RAM which aren't perfectly matched. I use 2x512MB Corsair TwinMX-LL Matched RAM sticks which are perfect for being virtually error free at the most aggressive RAM timings.

- Poor driver installation/setup, especially your motherboard drivers

- Bad virtual memory settings, and/or inappropriate windows file cache settings

- Faulty RAM, or very badly matched RAM sticks. Faulty RAM is rare, but mismatched RAM sticks along with overclocking will often cause GPFs.


You can reduce and remove GPFs totally, it's not a "bug" with UT2004. The major tips and instructions to do so are on this page (http://www.tweakguides.com/UT2004_3.html) of my UT2004 Tweak Guide.

[legacy-LittleSaint]

So I have a perfect running computer. No errors in any other game/benchmark/tester (including UT2K3 and AA). I install UT2K4, and now all of a sudden my system is bad ?!?! I don't think so.