User:LobsterHime/Performance tweaking FAQ

There already is a way to configure the flags with which the JVM running Spiral Knights is launched: Any flags added to a file called "extra.txt" in the Spiral Knights directory will be added.

Now, first, a few warnings:

• This is not a supported way of modifying the game - if something breaks, whether it's the game or anything else that may be affected by a misconfiguration, we will not be able to offer support or take responsibility. You do this entirely at your own risk, if you choose to do so. Specifically, if you try to increase the heap space as described below and your OS/machine does not have sufficient memory, Spiral Knights will fail to launch. In that case, delete extra.txt again.
• This is also a method really only applicable for somewhat tech-savvy users. If you don't feel comfortable doing anything described below, just wait, as we will address the primary issue discussed here in an upcoming patch.
• You should only use an extra.txt that you either created yourself or at least looked at and understand fully. A maliscious person asking you to place an extra.txt in your Spiral Knights directory could do bad things in there.

With all that said, the much discussed increase of heap space is something that in our own testing did help in several cases. If you think you might be affected by this issue, here is how you can attempt to use this method for a fix until we address this ourselves (keep the above warnings in mind, though!):

Navigate to your Spiral Knights directory. This can be in several places, depending on your OS and method of installation. Typical examples are:

Windows Vista/7 Web Client - C:\Users\\AppData\LocalLow\spiral
Windows XP/2000 Web Client - C:\Documents and Settings\\Application Data\LocalLow\spiral
Windows Steam Client - C:\Program Files\Steam\steamapps\common\spiral knights
Windows 64-bit Steam Client - C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\spiral knights
Linux - /home//spiral/
Linux Game Prefs - /home/user/.java/.userPrefs/projectx/prefs.xml
Mac Web Client - ~/Library/Application Support/spiral/
Mac Steam Client - ~/Library/Application Support/Steam/SteamApps/common/spiral knights

These may differ if you chose a different directory at installation.

In this location, create a file called extra.txt (e.g. using Notepad in Windows, or any other text editor of your choice) containing the settings you want to use.

The flag to use if you want to try increasing heap space (for 512MB maximum heap space as an example) is this:

-Xmx512M

So, that extra.txt you create should just contain the above line.

Lastly, for the even more technically inclined: While you can (with the "own risk" restriction in mind) experiment with using other flags, be aware that Spiral Knights actually adjusts garbage collection settings itself at runtime, so any adjustments you do there might not be doing what you expect.