Q&A: How can I make OOTP run/sim faster?

kq76 · 07-23-2024, 09:01 AM

Q: How can I make OOTP run/sim faster?

A: A lot of things can improve your sim speeds.

I'm going to paste my personal point form checklist below this post, but before that I'm going to address some of the options in more detail.

The best way to improve sim speeds, according to OOTP developer Matt Arnold, is to run fewer/smaller leagues. Just know that you might want at least one minor league (in addition to your primary league) as otherwise you won't have anywhere to rehab your injured players from injury which will increase the likelihood that they'll quickly become injured again. EDIT: Apparently this isn't a problem anymore, but I'm going to leave it here until I confirm it.

Not only does limiting the # and size of the leagues you run help, but so does limiting the number of files the game generates. Go to Game > Game Settings > Global Settings > Auto-Save & Log Settings and limit as much as you don't want or need. Replays and highlights are the worst for this so consider disabling them first.

The Almanac also generates a lot of files, but only at the end of a season. You can find it via the top "Edit Profile" button @ Game > Game Settings > Almanac.

The generation of facegen and baseball card images can really slow down a sim as well. You can limit these @ Game > Game Settings > Facegen or turn it all off via File > Settings > Facegen.

You might also want to limit the number of stats OOTP generates. You can do this, for each league, via the "Select Stats Detail" pulldown @ League > League Settings > Stats & AI > Tracked Statistics Detail.

A lot of people have reported that changing the "Auto-Play Display" pull-down to "Simple Dialog (Faster)" has helped their speeds. You can access this via Settings on the startup screen or via File > Settings > Interface.

Some people have reported speed improvements (and some other problem fixes) by disabling the 3D features. You can do this via File > Settings > 3D.

You might even want to go into your Manager Options and uncheck all the checkboxes under "Exit Auto-Play". I find the "Personal Messages" one to be by far the worst at interrupting a sim so maybe you should just try unchecking that one first. The injury ones are usually important so I wouldn't disable them unless you're just testing.

Personally, I don't do a lot of the above suggestions as I don't have a problem with sim speed anymore since I currently play out all my games instead of simming. But if I wanted to test something out by simming long periods of time, I'd definitely do most, if not all, of the above. What follows below, however, I always do and most of it is outside of OOTP.

The number of helper threads, which are essentially the number of lanes in your computer's highway, can significantly impact sim speeds. It might be worth checking to make sure that the setting is set to "Recommended". You can check it at File > Settings > Expert > Number of Helper Threads.

If your computer ever feels sluggish while running OOTP, you should definitely add folder exclusions to your Antivirus and Search programs, or any other program that might be looking at your files. Here's how to do that with some popular programs.

Another thing that can help all your computer programs run better is to limit the number of startup programs and services you run. I strongly recommend you disable as many startup programs as possible that you don't absolutely need to startup every time you start your computer.

Web browsers are notorious memory hogs so if you don't absolutely need to, don't keep so many tabs open. Look into whether your web browser saves memory by deactivating tabs you haven't used in a while, like Chrome does.

If any program seems to be using more memory than you think it should (by looking at its resource usage in Task Manager or Resource Monitor), consider replacing it with an alternative program or try to just use it less. I use a File Explorer alternative called FreeCommander that I like a lot, but it has become rather sluggish of late so I've tried using File Explorer and TeraCopy more for simple tasks.

The last thing I'd worry about, however, is upgrading your computer's specs. Not that it couldn't help, just that you probably won't need to after you try everything else. OOTP's recommended system requirements are pretty low after all. You can find OOTP's system requirements on each version's steam page. If you do want to upgrade your computer, you should look at getting an SSD (if you don't already have one), and/or upgrade your RAM, and/or maybe even your CPU/GPU. You probably use a program that's more resource intensive than OOTP, however. So don't just consider OOTP's requirements, consider those of every program you use or want to use. For example, the three most important factors to me when buying a new computer are durability (laptop), a display that is as bright as possible (look at the nit count), and a backlit keyboard (I often work at night), none of which have to do with the guts like *PU, RAM, or the drives.

kq76 · 07-23-2024, 09:02 AM

My (newly updated) point form Ways to Sim OOTP Faster checklist (the things I usually do are marked with a K and the things Matt Arnold does are marked with an M):

- [K, M] minimize the number and size of the leagues in your world
less so, but even including affiliated minor leagues

- [K, M] disable trace mode (the devs may ask for the trace file if you have a problem)
file > settings > troubleshooting > trace mode > "don't..."

- [K, M] minimize generation and saving of files
game > game settings > global settings > auto-save & log settings >
set replays and highlights, especially, to none

- [K, M ] disable some facegen, especially away and alt uniforms, or all
game > game settings > facegen
or
file > settings > facegen > disable facegen

- [K, M] disable creation of baseball cards
game > game settings > facegen > uncheck "enable baseball cards"

- [K] disable antivirus program or at least add exclusions to OOTP's folders

- [K] disable search indexing or at least add exclusions to OOTP's folders

- [K] disable as many startup programs and services as possible

- [K] try not to run too many other programs or tabs at the same time

- [ ] run in windowed mode
file > settings > interface > display mode

- [ ] change "auto-play display" to simple dialog
file > settings > interface > auto-play display

- [ ] disable 3D
file > settings > 3D & facegen > 3d features / opengl support

- [K] set "helper threads" to "recommended"
file > settings > expert > number of helper threads

- [ ] decrease scouting report updates
game > game setting > global settings > scouting settings

- [K, M] decrease auto-save & log settings
game > game settings > global settings > auto-save & log settings >
auto-save "once a year", rest to none for max speed
[url]https://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp19&page=game_options\[/url\]

- [ ] disable preseason predictions
game > game settings > global settings > report settings

- [K] delete retired players that never reached the majors
game > game settings > players & team > stats settings

- [ ] don't turn on almanac settings
game > game settings > almanac > archive html reports annually
[url]https://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp19&page=almanac\[/url\]

- [K] boxes and logs will be overwritten every season, so if you want to keep them, enable the almanac (check everything for your primary league)
game > game settings > almanac > edit profile

- [ ] (backup! and) purge deleted records
game > game settings > database > database tools > purge deleted records from db
[url]http://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp18&page=purge_tool\[/url\]

- [K] uncheck exit auto-play checkboxes (especially "personal messages")
manager > manager options > exit auto-play

- [ ] disable trading (even just disabling it for some leagues will help)
league > league settings > rules > trading rules > uncheck "enable trading"

- [ ] disable drafting (even just disabling it for some leagues will help)
league > league settings > rules > uncheck "enable amateur draft"

- [ ] disable financials (even just disabling it for some leagues will help)
league > league settings > financials > financial & free agent settings > uncheck "enable financial system"

- [K] disable super 2
league > league settings > financials > financial & free agent settings

- [ ] disable spring training
league > league settings > options > spring training options

- [K] lower stats detail to high, normal, or even low (for each league)
league > league settings > stats & ai > select stats detail
[url]https://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp18&page=options#tracked_statisti cs_detail\[/url\]

- [ ] defrag your hard drive
but if it's a SSD, then don't worry about it

- [ ] update video card drivers
running a system update in general might help even

- [ ] run a virus scan
while OOTP is not running, just to make sure your computer is not infected

- [K] restart your PC
lots of people say you don't need to restart your computer anymore, but I still think it helps mine from time to time

kq76 · 07-23-2024, 09:03 AM

Reed · 07-23-2024, 10:05 AM

Thanks for the helpful suggestions.

uruguru · 07-25-2024, 11:35 AM

One of the most important things you can do to improve OOTP performance (on Windows) is to alter the folder properties of your saved_games directory to turn off file indexing.

OOTP generates a lot of files and Windows wants to constantly update the file indexing for them to improve search speed on the files... which is unnecessary.

CONN CHRIS · 07-25-2024, 08:37 PM

Very helpful - thanks!

kq76 · 07-04-2025, 10:54 AM

Post #2 is now updated with what Matt does. Disabling trace mode and disabling the draft have also been added.

Just remember, I don't list any of these as what you should definitely do, they're only listed as options that you could do if you really want to. I myself only do some of them all the time, and when I'm running long tests I do more, but even then I don't do all of them.

07-23-2024, 09:01 AM	#1
kq76 Global Moderator Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 11,658	Q&A: How can I make OOTP run/sim faster? Q: How can I make OOTP run/sim faster? A: A lot of things can improve your sim speeds. I'm going to paste my personal point form checklist below this post, but before that I'm going to address some of the options in more detail. The best way to improve sim speeds, according to OOTP developer Matt Arnold, is to run fewer/smaller leagues. Just know that you might want at least one minor league (in addition to your primary league) as otherwise you won't have anywhere to rehab your injured players from injury which will increase the likelihood that they'll quickly become injured again. EDIT: Apparently this isn't a problem anymore, but I'm going to leave it here until I confirm it. Not only does limiting the # and size of the leagues you run help, but so does limiting the number of files the game generates. Go to Game > Game Settings > Global Settings > Auto-Save & Log Settings and limit as much as you don't want or need. Replays and highlights are the worst for this so consider disabling them first. The Almanac also generates a lot of files, but only at the end of a season. You can find it via the top "Edit Profile" button @ Game > Game Settings > Almanac. The generation of facegen and baseball card images can really slow down a sim as well. You can limit these @ Game > Game Settings > Facegen or turn it all off via File > Settings > Facegen. You might also want to limit the number of stats OOTP generates. You can do this, for each league, via the "Select Stats Detail" pulldown @ League > League Settings > Stats & AI > Tracked Statistics Detail. A lot of people have reported that changing the "Auto-Play Display" pull-down to "Simple Dialog (Faster)" has helped their speeds. You can access this via Settings on the startup screen or via File > Settings > Interface. Some people have reported speed improvements (and some other problem fixes) by disabling the 3D features. You can do this via File > Settings > 3D. You might even want to go into your Manager Options and uncheck all the checkboxes under "Exit Auto-Play". I find the "Personal Messages" one to be by far the worst at interrupting a sim so maybe you should just try unchecking that one first. The injury ones are usually important so I wouldn't disable them unless you're just testing. Personally, I don't do a lot of the above suggestions as I don't have a problem with sim speed anymore since I currently play out all my games instead of simming. But if I wanted to test something out by simming long periods of time, I'd definitely do most, if not all, of the above. What follows below, however, I always do and most of it is outside of OOTP. The number of helper threads, which are essentially the number of lanes in your computer's highway, can significantly impact sim speeds. It might be worth checking to make sure that the setting is set to "Recommended". You can check it at File > Settings > Expert > Number of Helper Threads. If your computer ever feels sluggish while running OOTP, you should definitely add folder exclusions to your Antivirus and Search programs, or any other program that might be looking at your files. Here's how to do that with some popular programs. Another thing that can help all your computer programs run better is to limit the number of startup programs and services you run. I strongly recommend you disable as many startup programs as possible that you don't absolutely need to startup every time you start your computer. Web browsers are notorious memory hogs so if you don't absolutely need to, don't keep so many tabs open. Look into whether your web browser saves memory by deactivating tabs you haven't used in a while, like Chrome does. If any program seems to be using more memory than you think it should (by looking at its resource usage in Task Manager or Resource Monitor), consider replacing it with an alternative program or try to just use it less. I use a File Explorer alternative called FreeCommander that I like a lot, but it has become rather sluggish of late so I've tried using File Explorer and TeraCopy more for simple tasks. The last thing I'd worry about, however, is upgrading your computer's specs. Not that it couldn't help, just that you probably won't need to after you try everything else. OOTP's recommended system requirements are pretty low after all. You can find OOTP's system requirements on each version's steam page. If you do want to upgrade your computer, you should look at getting an SSD (if you don't already have one), and/or upgrade your RAM, and/or maybe even your CPU/GPU. You probably use a program that's more resource intensive than OOTP, however. So don't just consider OOTP's requirements, consider those of every program you use or want to use. For example, the three most important factors to me when buying a new computer are durability (laptop), a display that is as bright as possible (look at the nit count), and a backlit keyboard (I often work at night), none of which have to do with the guts like PU, RAM, or the drives. __________________ My OOTP Wishlist \| My FAQ List OOTP Wiki \| Your Recommended Team Nicknames, By City (A Crowdsourced Project) Last edited by kq76; 07-04-2025 at 11:08 AM.*

07-23-2024, 09:03 AM	#3
kq76 Global Moderator Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 11,658	This topic has been discussed many times over the years. Although I've tried to make the above as comprehensive as possible, below are some links to those previous discussions in order of their posted dates: 20020422: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...ead.php?t=5500 20060309: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=113297 20070320: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=142098 20080723: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=170688 20120406: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=219125 20150403: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=253388 20160130: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...32&postcount=3 20160130: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...00&postcount=4 20170321: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...58&postcount=4 20210321: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j20LmV8YOI 20210712: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...21&postcount=2 20220419: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=335983 20220422: https://forums.ootpdevelopments.com/...d.php?t=336574 __________________ My OOTP Wishlist \| My FAQ List OOTP Wiki \| Your Recommended Team Nicknames, By City (A Crowdsourced Project) Last edited by kq76; 07-23-2024 at 09:08 AM.

07-23-2024, 10:05 AM	#4
Reed Hall Of Famer Join Date: Oct 2013 Posts: 2,339	Thanks for the helpful suggestions. __________________ I am not responsible for anything I post!!! Use at your own risk!

07-25-2024, 08:37 PM	#6
CONN CHRIS Global Moderator Join Date: Oct 2004 Posts: 28,824	Very helpful - thanks! __________________ Check Out My Cards!

07-04-2025, 10:54 AM	#7
kq76 Global Moderator Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 11,658	Post #2 is now updated with what Matt does. Disabling trace mode and disabling the draft have also been added. Just remember, I don't list any of these as what you should definitely do, they're only listed as options that you could do if you really want to. I myself only do some of them all the time, and when I'm running long tests I do more, but even then I don't do all of them. __________________ My OOTP Wishlist \| My FAQ List OOTP Wiki \| Your Recommended Team Nicknames, By City (A Crowdsourced Project)

07-23-2024, 09:02 AM	#2
kq76 Global Moderator Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 11,658	My (newly updated) point form Ways to Sim OOTP Faster checklist (the things I usually do are marked with a K and the things Matt Arnold does are marked with an M): - [K, M] minimize the number and size of the leagues in your world less so, but even including affiliated minor leagues - [K, M] disable trace mode (the devs may ask for the trace file if you have a problem) file > settings > troubleshooting > trace mode > "don't..." - [K, M] minimize generation and saving of files game > game settings > global settings > auto-save & log settings > set replays and highlights, especially, to none - [K, M ] disable some facegen, especially away and alt uniforms, or all game > game settings > facegen or file > settings > facegen > disable facegen - [K, M] disable creation of baseball cards game > game settings > facegen > uncheck "enable baseball cards" - [K] disable antivirus program or at least add exclusions to OOTP's folders - [K] disable search indexing or at least add exclusions to OOTP's folders - [K] disable as many startup programs and services as possible - [K] try not to run too many other programs or tabs at the same time - [ ] run in windowed mode file > settings > interface > display mode - [ ] change "auto-play display" to simple dialog file > settings > interface > auto-play display - [ ] disable 3D file > settings > 3D & facegen > 3d features / opengl support - [K] set "helper threads" to "recommended" file > settings > expert > number of helper threads - [ ] decrease scouting report updates game > game setting > global settings > scouting settings - [K, M] decrease auto-save & log settings game > game settings > global settings > auto-save & log settings > auto-save "once a year", rest to none for max speed [url]https://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp19&page=game_options\[/url\] - [ ] disable preseason predictions game > game settings > global settings > report settings - [K] delete retired players that never reached the majors game > game settings > players & team > stats settings - [ ] don't turn on almanac settings game > game settings > almanac > archive html reports annually [url]https://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp19&page=almanac\[/url\] - [K] boxes and logs will be overwritten every season, so if you want to keep them, enable the almanac (check everything for your primary league) game > game settings > almanac > edit profile - [ ] (backup! and) purge deleted records game > game settings > database > database tools > purge deleted records from db [url]http://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp18&page=purge_tool\[/url\] - [K] uncheck exit auto-play checkboxes (especially "personal messages") manager > manager options > exit auto-play - [ ] disable trading (even just disabling it for some leagues will help) league > league settings > rules > trading rules > uncheck "enable trading" - [ ] disable drafting (even just disabling it for some leagues will help) league > league settings > rules > uncheck "enable amateur draft" - [ ] disable financials (even just disabling it for some leagues will help) league > league settings > financials > financial & free agent settings > uncheck "enable financial system" - [K] disable super 2 league > league settings > financials > financial & free agent settings - [ ] disable spring training league > league settings > options > spring training options - [K] lower stats detail to high, normal, or even low (for each league) league > league settings > stats & ai > select stats detail [url]https://manuals.ootpdevelopments.com/index.php?man=ootp18&page=options#tracked_statisti cs_detail\[/url\] - [ ] defrag your hard drive but if it's a SSD, then don't worry about it - [ ] update video card drivers running a system update in general might help even - [ ] run a virus scan while OOTP is not running, just to make sure your computer is not infected - [K] restart your PC lots of people say you don't need to restart your computer anymore, but I still think it helps mine from time to time __________________ My OOTP Wishlist \| My FAQ List OOTP Wiki \| Your Recommended Team Nicknames, By City (A Crowdsourced Project) Last edited by kq76; 07-04-2025 at 11:02 AM.

07-25-2024, 11:35 AM	#5
uruguru All Star Starter Join Date: May 2022 Posts: 1,223	One of the most important things you can do to improve OOTP performance (on Windows) is to alter the folder properties of your saved_games directory to turn off file indexing. OOTP generates a lot of files and Windows wants to constantly update the file indexing for them to improve search speed on the files... which is unnecessary.