Windows 8 Compatibility Mode?

[egarthur]

A lot of folks who stream LOTRO are lately recommending Windows 8 compatibility mode as a workaround for the increasingly-bad problems with character-switching (long delays, frequent timeouts, resulting in disconnection from the server).

The IT veteran in me winces at enabling compatibility with a 10-year-old operating system, but the character-switching issues have become so bad -- especially since the launch of Before the Shadow -- that it's actually a bigger problem for me (with many high-level characters) than lag. And I'm primarily on Evernight, which is generally considered the most-consistently laggy server.

I'd be willing to set Windows 8 compatibility mode, but I do wonder about SSG's position on this workaround. I asked on +Cord of the Rings, but apparently the question got missed. Does SSG have a position on this workaround? Is it supported? Not supported? Disallowed? Recommended? I'm not going to enable it if, for every potential client issue I report, I get the brush-off, because I'm running in an unsupported mode.

If SSG recommends this workaround, is there a guide to how to do it? It's not obvious which of the many executables in the directory need to have the mode enabled.

For those who think I'm being paranoid, understand that a strict reading of the Code of Conduct prohibits running any software tool that's not officially authorized by SSG. Enabling compatibility mode requires running msdt.exe, so...

Another section of the CoC prohibits "modifying" the client, but without knowing exactly what Windows 8 Compatibility Mode actually does, I don't know if it would constitute "modification".

[cdq1958]

While I can not answer for SSG, there are only two executables that I know of that benefit from the compatibility option. The launcher, lotrolauncher.exe, and the client, lotroclient64.exe. I did some digging into this previously. The client used to identify itself to Windows as a Windows 7 program. That might be why the compatibility option seems to work. What kernel changes came with Windows 10 and subsequently Windows 11 I've not researched; but the switch is one done via Windows. I'm guessing that once they rewrite the launcher, this option may no longer be needed.