Optimization and performance: Using Linux Mint 19 as a gaming platform

[coffeymug]

This is an updated version of a guide I wrote originally for 17.1.

viewtopic.php?f=42&t=241837


Installation
The Linux Mint team crafted a very nice website for the purpose of explaining how to install. I am going to recommend using Cinnamon as a desktop environment.

http://linuxmint-installation-guide.rea ... en/latest/


Updates and Drivers

The very first thing that I do is to update the Update Manager and install all level 1 and 2 updates after the new Update Manager has been installed. Then I use the Driver Manager to install the latest Nvidia graphics driver. Restart your machine after that is completed.

If you are using an AMD graphics card you can install the Xorg AMD drivers by selecting the xserver-xorg-video-amdgpu package in the Synaptic Package Manager.


Installing Wine

Install Wine with the following commands in the terminal with each line being executed after the previous portion has completed. Linux Mint 19 uses Xenial just like 18.x. I recommend going with the stable version of Wine.

https://wiki.winehq.org/Ubuntu

To check the version of wine (it should say 3.0.1);
On 32-Bit Systems:

Code: Select all

wine --version

On 64-Bit Systems:

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wine64 --version

Latency Edit

Go to File System > etc > sysctl.conf.
Edit sysctl.conf as root and add the following;

Code: Select all

net.ipv4.tcp_timestamps = 0
net.ipv4.tcp_sack = 1
net.ipv4.tcp_no_metrics_save = 1
net.ipv4.tcp_window_scaling = 1

The above tweak is effectively the Linux equivalent of Leatrix's Latency Fix: http://www.wowinterface.com/downloads/i ... cyFix.html


CompizConfig Graphics Changes

Install the CompizConfig Settings Manager if you don't have it already. Open up the Synaptic Package Manager and search for "compiz". Check the packages compiz and compizconfig-settings-manager. Click apply to install both. Open the CompizConfig Settings Manager. Click on OpenGL > uncheck Sync to VBlank.


Nvidia Graphics Options

Click on Menu in the lower left hand corner. Search for "NVIDIA X Server Settings". Click on OpenGL Settings > uncheck Sync to VBlank.


Optional: Update Kernel

Open the Update Manager > View > Linux Kernels. Click Continue. Find the newest kernel and left click on it. Then click on Install.

If you run into any issues you can revert to an older version of the kernel through the Grub menu.


Icons and Minimizing Applications

Right click on your background desktop wallpaper and choose Desktop Settings. Select No desktop icons from the dropdown menu next to desktop layout.

When you are in a game if you Alt+Tab out to the desktop you can click the show desktop icon in the left hand corner. You can also use Ctrl+Alt+Right Arrow Key to move to the secondary workspace if Alt+Tab does not work. This will help keep other applications from leeching extra cycles from your graphics card. The optimal solution is to close all extraneous processes.


Changing Process Priorities

Click on Menu in the lower left hand corner and search for "system monitor". The system monitor should show a list of processes running on your computer. You can terminate applications that are using up CPU power and RAM. Additionally you can increase the priority of a process by right-clicking on it and selecting Change Priority > High or Very High.

You can turn Cinnamon or Caja or any other background process that needs to run but isn't as much of a priority to the Low or Very Low setting.


Individual Game Settings

Changing your video/graphics settings can make all the difference between choppy and smooth performance.

Chivalry
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/ ... =398407116

Altering the defaultengine.ini file for example made a significant improvement from Chivalry being slow and unresponsive.

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
https://gamebanana.com/scripts/7633

World of Warcraft
http://www.webupd8.org/2014/09/how-to-i ... ft-in.html

[xenopeek]

Compiz doesn't work with Cinnamon. Can you explain that step?

[coffeymug]

Compiz should work. Have you installed the compiz settings manager in synaptic? It gives compiz a gui.

[xenopeek]

Sure, but Cinnamon uses Muffin as window manager and doesn't switch to use Compiz window manager just because you install the Compiz settings manager. You can run that settings manager but anything you change in there affects only Compiz, not Muffin.

[coffeymug]

Oh I read your comment as it doesn't work at all. Well in that case I guess using the Nvidia driver options to change it should be enough right? And as for other desktop environments perhaps it would have some usefulness.

[xenopeek]

Well in that case I guess using the Nvidia driver options to change it should be enough right?

Yes

And as for other desktop environments perhaps it would have some usefulness.

Not unless the user changes their window manager to Compiz. In any case, don't make people install it if they following your recommendation to use Cinnamon as it's pointless on that.

On Linux Mint MATE and Xfce the user can change to Compiz as their window manager through Desktop Settings in their menu. Compiz settings manager come already installed. But the default window managers are (respectively) Marco + Compositing and Xfwm4 + Compositing. Again, changing anything on Compiz settings manager only affects Compiz and that's not the window manager in use by default.

I'd argue not to recommend people to change their window manager to Compiz "just because".