7.2.1 transition to 64-bit client to include server transition to AWS?

[Char_Ell]

Quote

64-bit
7.2.1 will be the update that contains the 64-bit client. We have received a lot of good feedback and very helpful reports since we opened testing back in December. We ask that players continue to help us test the game in 64-bit to ensure a smooth launch, especially if they were running into issues previously.

@JackieKo Hello.  I'm curious if BioWare plans to move SWTOR servers to Amazon Web Services platform (per Keith Kanneg's 2022 December blog post) in conjunction with roll out of 64-bit SWTOR game client with 7.2.1 or if the transition to AWS will happen separately and not as part of the 7.2.1 deployment.  As far as I can tell based on previous info provided the 64-bit client has only been tested with AWS servers.  I wonder if there are potential concerns deploying 64-bit client with current server configuration if current server configuration has not been tested with 64-bit client.

[JediQuaker]

42 minutes ago, Char_Ell said:

@JackieKo Hello.  I'm curious if BioWare plans to move SWTOR servers to Amazon Web Services platform (per Keith Kanneg's 2022 December blog post) in conjunction with roll out of 64-bit SWTOR game client with 7.2.1 or if the transition to AWS will happen separately and not as part of the 7.2.1 deployment.  As far as I can tell based on previous info provided the 64-bit client has only been tested with AWS servers.  I wonder if there are potential concerns deploying 64-bit client with current server configuration if current server configuration has not been tested with 64-bit client.

I think the PTS is currently running on the same 'server farm' as the live servers, so basically the same server configuration. 🤔

[Char_Ell]

2 hours ago, JediQuaker said:

I think the PTS is currently running on the same 'server farm' as the live servers, so basically the same server configuration. 🤔

Not according to Keith's December blog post that I linked in my previous post.  They've been running PTS on AWS since before 64-bit client testing started.

Quote

We’ve updated our forums and game launcher with new tech, are in the midst of bringing the game to 64-bit, and have been successful in testing content on servers hosted in the cloud. This was an initiative that we’ve been working towards for the better part of the year, and we are now in a position to talk about it. The last few rounds of testing on the Public Test Server have been done on AWS! 

 

[TrixxieTriss]

I’m interested to hear from anyone using the PTS, especially from Australia or those playing on the US servers, to know if you’ve compared your Ping with live servers. 

1. What’s your usual Ping live?

2. What Ping do you see on the PTS?

3. Are you using Steam or traditional login?

4. Where are you located? 

Edited February 15, 2023 by TrixxieTriss

[SteveTheCynic]

5 hours ago, TrixxieTriss said:

I’m interested to hear from anyone using the PTS, especially from Australia, if you’ve compared your Ping with live servers. 

1. What’s your usual Ping live?

2. What Ping do you see on the PTS?

3. Are you using Steam or traditional login?

4. Where are you located? 

I'm in northern France, and my ping to The Leviathan (located in Ireland somewhere) is typically in the mid-20s, versus 80+ to the US-based PTS.  On Steam, although the ping to The Leviathan is pretty much the same for non-Steam.

[Gibonski]

Hello dear community,

I am a noob when it comes to such changes and terminology. Can someone explain it to me please in a manner that my mother would understand? xD

1. In what way is 64-bit better? How will this improve things?

2. Same goes with the amazon web servers, how this all works?

 

If someone can give me an explanation and invest few minutes to write it, I would be immensly thankful.

[SteveTheCynic]

3 hours ago, Gibonski said:

Hello dear community,

I am a noob when it comes to such changes and terminology. Can someone explain it to me please in a manner that my mother would understand? xD

That's a questionable "in a manner that", frankly.  If I said it, you'd have to explain it in a way that a former programmer would understand...

3 hours ago, Gibonski said:

1. In what way is 64-bit better? How will this improve things?

It's a good question, but roughly:

• 64-bit programs can address more memory than 32-bit programs.
• That is why SWTOR currently runs two in-memory copies of itself, because it needs to be able to access more memory than a single 32-bit (in-memory) copy can access.
• Running as two copies can reduce performance of the game because of the extra processing needed to handle the communication between the copies.
• Going to 64-bit will remove that performance problem.

But also:

• One of the two copies is already near to using the maximum memory addressable by a 32-bit program, so if the studio wants to make it do more stuff or load more data, they have a problem.
• Going to 64-bit will remove that problem as well.

3 hours ago, Gibonski said:

2. Same goes with the amazon web servers, how this all works?

AWS is "Amazon Web Services" (not servers), and it's a system of "virtualised" servers that enable all sorts of useful stuff.  BioWare will be able to start up new server instances (the "instances" you see in-game) quickly as demand rises, without having to have a large datacentre full of physical computers that mostly stand idle at certain times of day.

In the end, it's mostly about BioWare having flexibility to deploy instances whenever they want/need them, together with interesting possibilities like the Australians (and other folks in the region) having AWS instances that are near them at the times of day they play, when the North American ones are mostly down (because the Americans are in bed).  For a typical east-coast American playing on the existing US servers at normal US times of day, it won't make *much* difference, and the same can be said for Europeans playing in normal European times of day on the European servers.  Well, except that it might be possible to have the AWS instances that run The Leviathan be on Amazon's servers in France...

[Gibonski]

15 minutes ago, SteveTheCynic said:

That's a questionable "in a manner that", frankly.  If I said it, you'd have to explain it in a way that a former programmer would understand...

It's a good question, but roughly:

• 64-bit programs can address more memory than 32-bit programs.
• That is why SWTOR currently runs two in-memory copies of itself, because it needs to be able to access more memory than a single 32-bit (in-memory) copy can access.
• Running as two copies can reduce performance of the game because of the extra processing needed to handle the communication between the copies.
• Going to 64-bit will remove that performance problem.

But also:

• One of the two copies is already near to using the maximum memory addressable by a 32-bit program, so if the studio wants to make it do more stuff or load more data, they have a problem.
• Going to 64-bit will remove that problem as well.

AWS is "Amazon Web Services" (not servers), and it's a system of "virtualised" servers that enable all sorts of useful stuff.  BioWare will be able to start up new server instances (the "instances" you see in-game) quickly as demand rises, without having to have a large datacentre full of physical computers that mostly stand idle at certain times of day.

In the end, it's mostly about BioWare having flexibility to deploy instances whenever they want/need them, together with interesting possibilities like the Australians (and other folks in the region) having AWS instances that are near them at the times of day they play, when the North American ones are mostly down (because the Americans are in bed).  For a typical east-coast American playing on the existing US servers at normal US times of day, it won't make *much* difference, and the same can be said for Europeans playing in normal European times of day on the European servers.  Well, except that it might be possible to have the AWS instances that run The Leviathan be on Amazon's servers in France...

Thanks for that my friend, so to sum it up, our computers will be able to run swtor more efficiently without so much of a weight on memory, but how will that affect performance in game overall? Will we load planets faster, can have more people on screen without lag?

 

And as for the web services I got everything on that matter, thanks for that as well.

[parchedgoose]

So, this is something we have to accept or can we opt out? 

[Char_Ell]

Just now, parchedgoose said:

So, this is something we have to accept or can we opt out? 

The only way to decline is to stop playing the game.  BioWare has announced that the new 64-bit SWTOR game client will replace the current 32-bit game client with the 7.2.1 update.  Once 7.2.1 goes live (date has yet to be announced) then all SWTOR players will be required to update to the new version of the game with the 64-bit client.  Same goes for the server transition at whatever point in time that happens.

[SteveTheCynic]

6 hours ago, Gibonski said:

Thanks for that my friend, so to sum it up, our computers will be able to run swtor more efficiently without so much of a weight on memory,

Not as such.  In fact, it will allow BioWare to do things that might be *more* of a weight on memory because the restrictions inherent in 32-bit programs will be removed.

6 hours ago, Gibonski said:

but how will that affect performance in game overall? Will we load planets faster, can have more people on screen without lag?

Possibly, but I'm not going to give an unqualified "yes, of course" because I don't know what details of the internal structure cause slow loading or the high lag with many players on screen.

6 hours ago, Gibonski said:

And as for the web services I got everything on that matter, thanks for that as well.

No problem.