VM setup information gathering

[mrmin123]

Hi all, I'm still a bit busy IRL to actively develop and test features (hoping that the last patch didn't break kancolle-auto compatibility!) but I wanted to take this time to gather some VM setup information people have been using.

I know that some VM software have been more problematic for others, while others have worked fine with little or no configuration. If you run kancolle-auto on VM, please share your set up to help future users set up their environments and troubleshoot any problems they might encounter. Thanks!

[waicool20]

I don't use a VM but since I'm already running Linux natively it's possible to run kancolle-auto in the background without interference using Xephyr/xvfb, both programs can create a "virtual desktop" with its own video framebuffer and mouse control, only for computers with X11 window system so linux only, might be possible with the ubuntu subsystem in windows 10.

As for windows, I've been speculating it's possible to run the script without interference using this program: https://technet.microsoft.com/en-us/sysinternals/cc817881.aspx
Havn't tested it yet.

[phantasia15]

I had been using kancolle-auto with VM for a while before switching to a Linux server.
Here is my setup:

• VMWare Workstation 12.1.1 Pro
• Lubuntu 16.04

Nothing special about installing kancolle-auto on linux. I just followed the guide on setup page and it worked.
The only problem I encountered was that kancolle-auto (or perhaps Sikulix) might fail to find the images if the resolution of the VM is different from the real one. However, this was on Sikulix 1.1.0. I'm not sure if the same thing still happens on the version 1.1.1

[frosty5689]

I just setup kancolle-auto on a VM today. Will let you guys know how it goes... So far it seems to be fine.

• VMWare Workstation 12.5.5 Pro
• Lubuntu 16.10 64-bit
• 2GB RAM
• 1 processor 2 cores

For installation, I followed the same steps as defined in the wiki.

[waicool20]

@mrmin123 just sending this as a heads up, I'm working on this https://github.com/waicool20/SikuliCef
Possibly eliminating the need for VMs in the future. I've tested Mouse and Keyboard control and it's completely confined within the program (Havn't committed the implementation yet).

Update: I have implemented mouse and keyboard controls, so it is somewhat useable now!

[nekoma0]

Here's my setup

• Windows 8.1[Host]
• Windows 7 on Virtualbox 5.1.6
• 2 Processor/2 Cpu Core(Execution Cap 75%)
• 3GB Ram
• Audio Disabled
• Network Adapter Type : Paravirtualized Network (Viitio-net)

This is what i've been using, but it does have few problems while it does not breaks the bots function.
Host PC will crash/BSOD if it's running for too long.(suspected Virtualbox issue)
Audio lagging/spiking if it's running for too long.(i end up disable the audio on virtualbox configuration)
Updating Virtualbox to newer version fixes a few thing but introduces new problems.(more frequent BSOD despite audio issue is fixed, so i decided to use old version)
The reason why i emulating windows within windows is due to i want to use 3rd party kancolle client because it has cache functions so it wont have to redownload everything IF BSOD happens.(all cache is lost if BSOD)

@waicool20 thanks, it would be great if i could use yours and eliminating the needs for VM. since it's pretty power hungry just for emulating windows.

[stackhanovets]

Here is my quick report:

All systems in-game software: Chrome, KC3Kai, no proxy/VPN. XFCE4 as WM on Linux systems.

• Windows XP MSDN SP3 (4 cores, 3G RAM): Color mismatch (shouha/chuuha differentiation fail resulting to the repair module loop);
• Windows 10 MSDN (4, 4): No troubles except large resource consumption (host's CPU cooler becomes noisy);
• Windows 8.1 MSDN (4, 4): The largest resource consumption ever tested. And M$ update manager which reboots your system without permissions. Maximum botnet in my opinion;
• Debian 8 (4, 4): Flash player becomes unstable and fragments the image;
• Mint Rebecca (4, 4): KC3Kai crashes resulting to overlay corruption, chaotic swapping and disc consumption. Or maybe it was caused by openjdk memory leakages, or something else. The script and vanilla game worked fine;
• Fedora 25 (4, 4): A bit laggy flash player, like Debian. Solved by installing Adobe Flash Player libraries, Wine (???) and increasing of SleepModifier parameter;
• CentOS 7 (4, 4): The lowest energy consumption and disc usage. All I needed were Chrome, SikuliX and the following steps:

sudo yum -y update
sudo yum -y install python-devel wmctrl xdotool tesseract opencv git

Now it just works. No color mismatch, no power overconsumption, no memory leakages and disc eating.

[R-Jimenez]

Nice, CentOS has always been good to me, so glad to hear it's leading the pack. If I move to a VM off of my server computer I'll be sure to keep that in mind.

[mrmin123]

Thanks for the reports, everyone.

@stackhanovets thanks for the extensive testing. Which VM were you using?

[stackhanovets]

@R-Jimenez,
Well, that's RHEL after all.

@mrmin123,
In all cases it was VMware Workstation 11 or 12 Pro with advanced virtualization options enabled. The host OS was Windows Server 2008 R2. I have migrated on Windows Server 2016 and use the CentOS VM now.

[frosty5689]

Just a note for CentOS 7, you will need to do

yum install -y epel-release first if you want to install tesseract

[stackhanovets]

@frosty5689,
Sure. Here is some additional software I had installed:

sudo yum -y groupinstall "MATE Desktop"
sudo yum -y groupinstall "Xfce"
sudo yum -y install xfce4-whiskermenu-plugin ksysguard wine terminator

GNOME and KDE window managers have a performance issue. To allocate more resources to the Flash plugin I have installed XFCE. I wanted more icons, wallpapers and color schemas, so I have also installed Whisker Menu and MATE. There is a guide to enable XFCE at startup and another one for autologin. Disabling screensaver, monitor lockdown and monitor power management are obvious. KDE System Guard allows me to freeze the main java process when I want to make some changes in game, such as flagship place trade, modernization, common drops scrap etc. Terminator is just a custom console. And I have installed Wine, just in case.

PS
@mrmin123,
I have a couple of new images - the once-implemented PVP quest and the pvp_start_2.png:

How can I enable automation for once-implemented PVP quests?

[frosty5689]

I've been encountering some flickering issue with CentOS and Chrome. Sometimes a part of the kancolle Flash iframe becomes white and blocks kancolle-auto from detecting the correct image. This white block mostly appears and disappears right away. Anyone got a similar issue?

[stackhanovets]

@frosty5689,
I think I understand what you're talking about. I have tested two 64-bit versions of Google Chrome:
Version 58 - no flickering
Version 59 - flickering confirmed

It may be caused by KC3Kai API updates or by engine changes. However, it is hard to say until someone will test it. Try to use Chromium, Opera/Mozilla/IE/whatever browser without WebKit Engine or disable KC3Kai.

[waicool20]

So I was browsing reddit and I think i found the solution (and reason) to the flickering: https://www.reddit.com/r/archlinux/comments/6jp1ge/psa_if_anyone_else_has_been_getting_screen/

Basically go to about://flags in chrome/chromium and enable the option Override software rendering list

[frosty5689]

Looks like that helped stop the flickering. I guess Chrome in CentOS VM is unable to determine if hardware acceleration is available.