Installing P3D v4 on a new PC – Basic Professional Setup.

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Installing P3D v4 on a new PC – Basic Professional Setup.

Postby Steve Waite » Mon Mar 18, 2019 6:14 pm

Installing P3D v4 on a new PC – Basic Professional Setup.



Overview

We set up the system to accept the simulator installation, install the simulator, set it up for addons, test it in stock form, set up the CPU, set up the GPU, finally install and test each addon in turn, installing only one at a time.


Install

New Windows PC: The first user is a full admin, otherwise the PC could not be administered. Leave as is. Don’t touch UAC slider and don’t change anything on the file structure.

Download and unzip the P3D package, run the setup exe or double click it but do not change anything do not alter privileges or change compatibility.

Installing onto C: If not much room we can move things later to another drive.


Other drive

Let’s look at an install straight onto another drive for the next few paragraphs.

Make sure it is for a real purpose other than to avoid mysterious ‘issues’ such as rights and privileges. We will avoid those add-on program issues properly, and in a professional manner.

Continuing on with the spare drive install: Make a folder such as E:\FS we will install into \FS and not E:\ that is important.

Before installing software into a personal folder: Right click on that folder, properties, security, Edit, Users group, check Modify Allow, OK, OK.

We can install P3D with no worry of any issues with other logins or repaired login details in future.


OS drive

Now back to the C: drive (or OS drive) install: allow P3D to install in the proper folder.

This is a read-only folder, so before installing addons: Right click on that folder, properties, security, Edit, Users group, check Modify Allow, OK, OK.

Now we can install addons without fear of ‘mysterious issues of security and permissions’.


Test the stock simulator

Before installing addons we should test the simulation in stock form.


Set up the CPU

We need to ensure the CPU is optimised. Use HT mode disabled and find the number of cores that load the scenario most quickly, we can use a stopwatch.

If we add a core and it only decreases the scenario loading time by a second or two it’s probably too many cores.

Staying in non HT mode we allocate an AM if we have more than four cores. On six cores allocate 011110 or 111110 (30 or 62) to start with.

On more cores we need not allocate them all. Generally leave the first core, and last core free if we have enough cores.

If we decide 30 is our AM we can go to HT if we have it and allocate an AM=340=00,01,01,01,01,00 (we split the logical pairs with commas). The sim works the same as AM=30=011110 in non-HT.


Set up the GPU

Factory default the GPU settings before setup: In the display settings of P3D we can see how many fps we can get with Unlimited fps slider + VSync = Off, TB=Off.

We check that the fps is greater than the monitor refresh frequency.

We now set VSync = On in P3D and see that the fps is at or around the monitor refresh frequency.

Start up a test scenario and let the sim settle at a gate in our favourite airport, perhaps looking at the tower across the instruments.

Now we look at task manager to see if all the cores (or pairs of LPs) are below 100%. If they are below 100% we can add settings until the critical core reaches around 90%.

If we set VSync=Off again to check, we see the fps rise and the core or LP reach 100%. Set VSync=On.

Setting locked fps requires a more powerful PC than VSync=On modes.

Use the settings in P3D Display section. Only make changes to the GPU profile if the setting is unavailable in P3D.

Settings such as half vsync do not work in P3D as it is a desktop window. Even in full-screen it is not exclusive mode. GPU settings mainly are for setting full-screen exclusive mode games.


Install addons

If we have a massive photo-scenery collection that we have to install onto a spare drive we make a folder example e:\addons and set up the User group permission before installing.

If we want to move stuff out of the OS drive we can move planes as if they are addon planes and link the folder into the configuration files in the same manner as addon aircraft.


Nvidea Cards

In case of CTD's, excessive VRAM use and possibly other problems associated with the simulation - at first, please try the basic profile defaults with the GPU:

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