Game desync errors

[Donny John]

I am getting glitches in certain MMO games caused by desync between my system timer and the servers system.

I have used WinTimerTester and it indicates I have an average 0.0020 disparity.

(What it does is it runs two different clocks in your CPU at the same time and compares them to make sure they are both running at the same speed. It compares the Windows GetTickCount function to the QueryPerformanceCounter function and within approximately 60 to 100 seconds, these two timers should be running at a perfect 1.0000 : 1 ratio.)

I have tried editing the boot.ini file and adding /usepmtimer, that did not work. Adding /UsePlatformClock does not work either.

I am not sure if the disparity stems from one core being unstable or is caused by disparity between core speeds/efficiency, or is motherboard related... or all of the above.

I am running XP Pro SP3.

CPUID shows my CPU speed varies slightly, constantly changing in the order of .01 to 1.2 Mhz. I have tried flashing the BIOS, running at default settings, running at overclock, boosting the core voltage etc. Nothing gets my core speed 100% stable.

System specs in my sig are correct.

I realize this is a bit of a egghead problem, but if anyone has any helpful comments or advice I am all ears.

Please don't bother leaving comments like 'your board sucks, replace it' I'm looking for a workaround until I can replace the MB and CPU.

[Terbinator]

Tried messing with HPET?

[Donny John]

Sorry, what is HPET?

edit: Okay I googled that.

[Donny John]

Still stuck with this problem. I don't have any BIOS options for HPET.

[kalniel]

Clockspeed might only be measured with discrete increments. If you are between these increments then it will look like it's fluctuating more than it actually is.

Slight fluctuation in frequencies is actually a good thing, as it will broaden the range of EMI and thus reduce its intensity. These fluctuations should not have any effect on timing as there should be timing circuitry that compensates for it.

Desyncs in MMOs will be nothing to do with this - instead it's likely packet synchronisation issues, which will cause far more variation than CPU frequency. Checkout pingtest.net and concentrate on ways to give more stable packets - what are your internet connection statistics (noise ratio etc.)?