Hi,

I'm running CS:S on a dell laptop with a rubbish built in intel 945 chipset thing for graphics.
The game is predictable pretty unplayable, with a FPS of ~5-10.

Upgrading the hardware isnt really an option since I have no money (I'm in debt actually )

I've tried messing around with autoexec.cfg files and so on, but all the 'stuff' I put in there I just copied and pasted since I dont really understand most of it, and all the sources I've found for the 'stuff' that goes in there are usually for people who want to increase their FPS without decreasing the grapical appearance of the game too much.

This isnt what I want. I dont give a damn about anything other than simply making the game playable. I want the textures as simple as possible (hell, even non exsistant would be good. I'd be happy with just flat colours), I dont care about any of that crap that there is in the background (like that damn watertower in cs_assault that seems to reduce my framerate to like 1fps whenever I look at it.... )

Basically I just want to make it as simple visually as possible. All I want to see floors and walls, my gun, and the enemies


Sooo...

Is this possible?

Thanks in advance,
Ben

Given the hardware you have I think you would probably be better off playing Counter Strike 1.6 (if you must play it).

LOL that's the first time I've encountered such a title on a thread.
Anyways, going back to the problem, try typing in mat_dxlevel 81 (or mat_dxlevel 7 if that makes performance better) and mat_specular 0 just after the game loads to the main menu. Then enter a server and see how it plays. It should play quite smoothly IMO. Report back and let us know how it runs.

This is my autoexec. It has some of my own stuff in their combined with Casey's Config which is widely used on the CAL forums. It turns all graphics down even lower than what you can get in the Graphics Menu itself.

Copy and paste this into a file called autoexec.cfg and save it.
Then put it in here: C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\Your_Name\counter-strike source\cstrike\cfg

Code:

//CrossHair
cl_crosshairscale "1800"
cl_crosshairusealpha 1
cl_crosshairalpha "1000"

//NetGraph
alias graph "graph1"
alias graph1 "net_graph 1; alias graph graph2; echo Net Graph 1"
alias graph2 "net_graph 2; alias graph graph3; echo Net Graph 2"
alias graph3 "net_graph 3; alias graph graph4; echo Net Graph 3"
alias graph4 "net_graph 0; alias graph graph1; echo Net Graph Off"
bind "home" "graph"

//FPS
alias fps "fpson"
alias fpson "cl_showfps 1; alias fps fpsoff"
alias fpsoff "cl_showfps 0; alias fps fpson"
bind "end" "fps"

//_Set Misc settings_
cl_downloadfilter "nosounds"        // Disables annoying pub sound downloads
fps_max "115"             // Caps framerate. Set to max monitor refresh rate + 1.
jpeg_quality "100"            // High quality screenshots

//Network
cl_cmdbackup 2
cl_cmdrate "101"
cl_interp "0.01"
cl_interpolate "1"
cl_lagcomp_errorcheck "0" 
cl_lagcompensation "1"
cl_smooth "1"
cl_updaterate "101"
rate "25000"

//_Set Client vars_
cl_drawmonitors "0"        // Disables the rendering of ingame "monitors" which contain 3d rendered images.
cl_ejectbrass "0"            // Disables brass ejection
cl_forcepreload "1"            // Forces the game to load all texture and model information into memory on map load.
cl_phys_props_enable "0"        // Enables phsyics props.
cl_phys_props_max "0"        // Maximum amount of physics props allowed.
cl_ragdoll_physics_enable "0"    // Disables ragdoll.
cl_restrict_server_commands "0"    // Compatible/needed with serverplugins
cl_show_splashes "0"        // Disables water splashes.

//_Set Render vars_
r_3dsky "0"            // Disables the rendering of 3d sky boxes.
r_decal_cullsize "9999"        // Any decals under this size are not rendered.
r_decals "0"            // Disables decals.
r_drawbatchdecals "1"        // Enables the rendering of decals in batch.
r_drawdetailprops "1"        // Enables the rendering of detail props.
r_drawflecks "0"            // Disables the sparks and dirt from bullet impacts.
r_drawmodeldecals "1"        // Models decals (i.e. blood).
r_eyes "0"            // Disables eyes in models.
r_lod "-1"                // Different level of details on models. -1 = Variable at distance. 0 = None. 1 = Minor. 2 = Less minor.
r_modellodscale "1.0"        // The transitioning power of LOD.
r_occlusion "0"            // Enables the Model Occlusion system.
r_propsmaxdist "100"        // Max distance at which props are rendered.
r_renderoverlayfragment "0"
r_rootlod "2"            // Base lod of the model in the memory.
r_shadowmaxrendered "32"        // Max shadows the game will render.
r_shadowrendertotexture "1"        // Rendered the shadow texture causing it to match the player model.
r_shadows "1"            // Enables shadows (Change be disabled for additional performance.)
r_teeth "0"            // Disables teeth in models.
r_waterdrawreflection "0"        // Disables the rendering of water reflections.
r_waterforceexpensive "0"        // Forces cheap water.
gl_clear "0"            // Disables the gl_clear convariable.
props_break_max_pieces "0"    // Disables prop fragmenting

//_Set Materials vars_
mat_bumpmap "0"            // Disables bump mapping.
mat_clipz "0"            // Disables optimized Z-Buffer rendering.
mat_compressedtextures "1"    // Disables texture compression. Users with low amounts of system memory should turn this on.
mat_disable_bloom "1"        // Disables bloom effects.
mat_hdr_enabled "0"        // Disables HDR.
mat_hdr_level "0"            // Double Disables HDR.
mat_mipmaptextures "1"        // Enables the use of mipmapping to make textures look smooth.
mat_picmip "2"            // Changes the resolutions of textures when they're loaded into memory. May improve FPS on graphics cards with low memory sizes.
mat_reducefillrate "1"        // Reduces the fillrate when the game is run in DXLevel 8.
mat_specular "0"            // Disables Specularity on objects.
mat_wateroverlaysize "8"        // Sets the resolution of water distortion. Must be multiple of 8.

//Misc
net_graph 3 // _enables net_graph 3--CAL required!_
net_graphpos 3 // _adjusts netgraph position-set between 1 and 3_
sv_forcepreload 1 // _forces preload to help increase performance_
net_graphheight 135 //_sets height of the net graph on your screen_

//Binds
bind "leftarrow " "buy defuser; buy flashbang; buy flashbang; buy hegrenade; buy smokegrenade"
bind "rightarrow" "buy vesthelm"


//Budget
alias budget "budgeton"
alias budgeton "+showbudget; alias budget budgetoff"
alias budgetoff "-showbudget; alias budget budgeton"
bind "ins" "budget"

//Execute
bind del "exec autoexec.cfg"

//Misc Binds
bind "\" "admin"

//Blood
violence_ablood 1
violence_agibs 1
violence_hblood 1
violence_hgibs 1

Yeah maybe... I'd rather play source though, since I already own it and I used to be pretty good at it. (I used to own a desktop, but then I bought a laptop for uni and gave the desktop to my brother)

Didnt seem to change much I think I may already have tried turning the specular effects off with my autoexec file tinkering, which might be why I didnt notice a change.

Thanks, I just tried this, with a few extra modifications like turning blood and shadows off and it did seem to make a difference. Definitely better than when I tried Casey's Config on its own. Then I tried something on a whim and set the priority of hl2.exe to 'realtime' on the windows task manager, and that seemed to help too.

I'm now getting an avg fps of around 7 and a peak of 20ish when I dont have anything complex in my line of sight (as opposed to 4/5 avg, 10 peak before). I even managed to get 3 (admittedly lucky ) kills while I was testing these settings, but thats only because I was in the nice, easy to render vents on cs_assault

Definitely an improvement, but still not ideal. Ideally I'd like 20+fps. I find I can play ok at 20 fps.


I find it odd that my laptop struggles so much with even the really small maps on CS:S, and has no problem at all with the much larger Halflife 2 maps... I can even run HL2 playably on high model detail and texture quality etc!


So thanks for the replys!
Any more suggestions on how to increase performance a little further?


(also is this a good idea?:

When I right click something in windows task manager, theres a 'set affinitiy' option, and it seems to let me choose which CPU I want to run the program on... If I set all programs to CPU1 and hl2.exe to CPU2, do you think that might help?)

Now, that is for dual/multi core cpus

Better leave both on. It can initialize and move by themselves.

If you are running the application or games too fast, you might be able to switch from two or four affinity to one affinity.

This happens on Gran Thief Auto San Andreas... < This require only one affinity.

Hl2.exe has no effect on it. I have been playing CS:S on my new AMD Athlon 64 +3800 X2 since last month, it is running fine on both affinity.

If you're worried about low FPS on cs_assault, don't be. That map has heavier shaders and geometry than most other maps like de_dust, which is sure to tax your system. How does de_dust play?

de_dust is maybe slighty better, but not really significantly so.

Thats the thing though.. Halflife 2 works fine on fairly decent graphics settings. I've been playing it on 1400x900 resolution, high model detail, high texture quality, medium-ish to low settings on everything else, and it works fine. I only get a slight fps drop when theres loads of enemies on the screen, and even then its nothing like it is in CSS, it drops to maybe 20ish at the lowest.
I did have to download a windows update though to get Hl2 working, which maybe why they say that on their site... Before I downloaded the update it didnt work at all.

Add -dxlevel 70 to the end to the end of the shortcut. That will force the game to run in DX7 mode and provide better performance.

Play some texture maps...They are great for people with bad computers...They are just orange and gray...

Have you tried defragmenting the game files? Use the Steam Defragmenter to do so. It sounds like the problem.

I'm sure you rcould run fy_ maps fine with that PC.

I just did it on 1440x900 resolution, and I get surprisingly good results...

Starts off at ~50fps, drops to 40, stays around 40-50 ish then goes up to 80 at the end!

Ok I added it. It doesnt appear to solve the problem on its own, but every little helps.

It was only 2% fragmented, and was still 2% afterwards... seems like this isnt the issue in this case, but thanks though.

Your right! these maps work great! I'm getting like 40-60 fps on these!
Even if my goal of getting assault to work fails, the fact that I can play these is a great discovery! Thanks!

-------

Thanks for all the replies, you guys rock:grinthumb

You should come by and visit my clan server sometime.

A free software alternative to buying a better card with better pixel shader support is here (click!). This will probably help with most newer games, and it's a free software change that may eliminate a pricey hardware change. Hope that helps.

mat_picmip 4 try it

I have a computer that sounds like yours (thread maker), I have intel 945 chipset, 512 ram etc. Its not super high but not to low.

Go to steam, counter strike (right click), properties, launch options then`copy and paste the following. You are dx 5 if it does not work find -dxlevel 50 and change it to -dxlevel 40, maybe even -dxlevel 30.

+mat_trilinear 0 +snd_async_prefetch_priority 1 -dxlevel 50 +r_rootlod 2 +mat_picmip 5 +matreducefiltrate 1 +r_waterforceexpensive0 +r_waterforcerereflecttities 0 +r_shadowenddertotexture 0 +mat_colorcorrection 0 +mat_hdr_level 1

If you are 512 ram put -heapsize 262144 into the stuff above this sentence.

Put this as your autoexec (after who made it)

\/ Made mostly by Caseys config, modifide by tj007s13, I added some more\/

//CrossHair
cl_crosshairscale "1800"
cl_crosshairusealpha 1
cl_crosshairalpha "1000"

//NetGraph
alias graph "graph1"
alias graph1 "net_graph 1; alias graph graph2; echo Net Graph 1"
alias graph2 "net_graph 2; alias graph graph3; echo Net Graph 2"
alias graph3 "net_graph 3; alias graph graph4; echo Net Graph 3"
alias graph4 "net_graph 0; alias graph graph1; echo Net Graph Off"
bind "home" "graph"

//FPS
alias fps "fpson"
alias fpson "cl_showfps 1; alias fps fpsoff"
alias fpsoff "cl_showfps 0; alias fps fpson"
bind "end" "fps"

//_Set Misc settings_
cl_downloadfilter "nosounds" // Disables annoying pub sound downloads
fps_max "115" // Caps framerate. Set to max monitor refresh rate + 1.
jpeg_quality "100" // High quality screenshots

//Network
cl_cmdbackup 2
cl_cmdrate "101"
cl_interp "0.01"
cl_interpolate "1"
cl_lagcomp_errorcheck "0"
cl_lagcompensation "0"
cl_smooth "1"
cl_updaterate "101"
rate "25000"

//_Set Client vars_
cl_drawmonitors "0" // Disables the rendering of ingame "monitors" which contain 3d rendered images.
cl_ejectbrass "0" // Disables brass ejection
cl_forcepreload "1" // Forces the game to load all texture and model information into memory on map load.
cl_phys_props_enable "0" // Enables phsyics props.
cl_phys_props_max "0" // Maximum amount of physics props allowed.
cl_ragdoll_physics_enable "0" // Disables ragdoll.
cl_restrict_server_commands "0" // Compatible/needed with serverplugins
cl_show_splashes "0" // Disables water splashes.

//_Set Render vars_
r_3dsky "0" // Disables the rendering of 3d sky boxes.
r_decal_cullsize "999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999999" // Any decals under this size are not rendered.
r_decals "0" // Disables decals.
r_drawbatchdecals "1" // Enables the rendering of decals in batch.
r_drawdetailprops "1" // Enables the rendering of detail props.
r_drawflecks "0" // Disables the sparks and dirt from bullet impacts.
r_drawmodeldecals "0" // Models decals (i.e. blood).
r_eyes "0" // Disables eyes in models.
r_lod "-1" // Different level of details on models. -1 = Variable at distance. 0 = None. 1 = Minor. 2 = Less minor.
r_modellodscale "1.0" // The transitioning power of LOD.
r_occlusion "0" // Enables the Model Occlusion system.
r_propsmaxdist "100" // Max distance at which props are rendered.
r_renderoverlayfragment "0"
r_rootlod "2" // Base lod of the model in the memory.
r_shadowmaxrendered "0" // Max shadows the game will render.
r_shadowrendertotexture "0" // Rendered the shadow texture causing it to match the player model.
r_shadows "1" // Enables shadows (Change be disabled for additional performance.)
r_teeth "0" // Disables teeth in models.
r_waterdrawreflection "0" // Disables the rendering of water reflections.
r_waterforceexpensive "0" // Forces cheap water.
gl_clear "0" // Disables the gl_clear convariable.
props_break_max_pieces "0" // Disables prop fragmenting

//_Set Materials vars_
mat_bumpmap "0" // Disables bump mapping.
mat_clipz "0" // Disables optimized Z-Buffer rendering.
mat_compressedtextures "1" // Disables texture compression. Users with low amounts of system memory should turn this on.
mat_disable_bloom "1" // Disables bloom effects.
mat_hdr_enabled "0" // Disables HDR.
mat_hdr_level "0" // Double Disables HDR.
mat_mipmaptextures "1" // Enables the use of mipmapping to make textures look smooth.
mat_picmip "2" // Changes the resolutions of textures when they're loaded into memory. May improve FPS on graphics cards with low memory sizes.
mat_reducefillrate "1" // Reduces the fillrate when the game is run in DXLevel 8.
mat_specular "0" // Disables Specularity on objects.
mat_wateroverlaysize "800" // Sets the resolution of water distortion. Must be multiple of 8.

//Misc
net_graph 3 // _enables net_graph 3--CAL required!_
net_graphpos 3 // _adjusts netgraph position-set between 1 and 3_
sv_forcepreload 1 // _forces preload to help increase performance_
net_graphheight 135 //_sets height of the net graph on your screen_

//Binds
bind "leftarrow " "buy defuser; buy flashbang; buy flashbang; buy hegrenade; buy smokegrenade"
bind "rightarrow" "buy vesthelm"


//Budget
alias budget "budgeton"
alias budgeton "+showbudget; alias budget budgetoff"
alias budgetoff "-showbudget; alias budget budgeton"
bind "ins" "budget"

//Execute
bind del "exec autoexec.cfg"

//Misc Binds
bind "\" "admin"

//Blood
violence_ablood 0
violence_agibs 0
violence_hblood 0
violence_hgibs 0
cl_lowviolence 1

radartype 0
cl_radaraplha 0

r_rainalpha 0.4

scr_centertime 0

mat_dxlevel 40

r_dopixelvisibility 0

My System Information