Chart lag is inconsistent.

[dallasstarsfan]

Dear Sir or Madame,

What steps can we take to ensure that chart lag is minimal?

I am currently running NT 8.0.25.0 64 bit. I use NT for my live account and use your provided data feed.

I do run some custom indicators. When my chart is performing well my lag is 1/10th of a second or less. When running poorly it is about 5/10th of a second.

Each day before I sign on I....

Reboot my router
Delete my cash files from the DB folder
Sync my clock
Run a virus scan

I can't determine why my lag is 5X normal operating at times. I have a few questions....

Could it be a bad chart? If so, why is it 0.1 at times and 0.5 at others?

Is this a know problem when not running 8.0.26?

What suggestions do you have that I can implement to resolve the issue? If the variance was just 2X it would be manageable, but I can't understand a variance of 5X.

Thanks!
DSF

[NinjaTrader_Clayton]

Hello dallasstarsfan,

Thank you for writing in.

I see that you're using an older version of NinjaTrader 8. We are up to version 8.0.26.1 at the time of this post.
To update NinjaTrader, please follow the steps below:

• First, copy your license key from NinjaTrader under Help> License Key then exit NinjaTrader
• Click on the link: https://ninjatrader.com/PlatformDirect
• Enter your license key and press Submit
• Select 'Download'
• Critical: Before running the installer, ensure NinjaTrader is closed.

You should not be deleting the Cache files every day.

• These are there to hold pre-calculated bars to help the NinjaTrader platform load in faster
• The only reason you would delete these is if the charts are not loading in correctly and other steps didn't resolve the behavior.
  • If you are needing to delete these every day, this indicates that something isn't working as expected and you need to do more testing to find the fundamental cause. Deleting the Cache files like this would be like putting a bucket under a leaky pipe instead of fixing the leaky pipe to begin with.

In short, you have to figure out what combination of settings for your Charts and Indicators are no longer causing delays.

• If you know what indicator is causing delays, you can either stop using it.
• Or, reach out to the developer you got it from, ask them why it is causing delays, and then ask for tips and suggestions on how to improve its performance moving forward.

The demands of the workspace can come and go as the volatility of the market and underlying instruments change.

• If you use Tick Based Charts and Indicators, this can exacerbate this even more during times of high volatility
  • Imagine the market is moving at about 10 Ticks per second. Its easy for the platform to keep up with these calculations.
  • Now, imagine the market becomes extremely volatile where it goes to 1,000 Ticks per second coming into the platform. This can cause the platform to fall behind as it tries to handle and get through all of the new calculations and provide visual updates

The behaviors you are describing are in line with some of the behaviors described within the Help Guide link that reiterates the risks of using 3rd party items within the NinjaTrader platform:

• https://ninjatrader.com/support/help...tallingAdd-Ons

If you open a Basic NinjaTrader chart without any other Indicators or Templates applied to it does it experience any delays?


Please perform the following test:

• Go to the Control Center > New > Chart
• Select the ES 09-22
• Make it a 1-minute chart
• Set the 'Days to load' to 5
• Make sure 'Template' in the top-right corner is set to < None >
• Set the Time frame > Trading hours > To "Default 24x7"
• Click OK to make the chart

Now, compare how this chart is performing compared to your other charts with additional indicators on it.

• Is this Test chart ahead or moving more smoothly than the other charts?
  • If yes, how is it different from the old/original chart?
  • remove/modify the Indicators from the other/original chart until it catches up with the Basic NinjaTrader chart
    • Once you remove the item that is slowing it down, you will know what indicator is causing it and you can then reach out to the developer of that indicator for more information on why its causing it and what can be modified to reduce its impact.

To easily compare, you could create a New workspace, restart NinjaTrader and then start building the new workspace up from scratch while using as many of the Performance Tips and Suggestions from the Help Guide Article Below:

• https://ninjatrader.com/support/help...ance_tips2.htm

[dallasstarsfan]

Hi Clayton,

Thanks for the through response. I'll stop deleting the cash daily. I do use tick charts so that could come into play as well.

I've use NT for about 13 years now and the support I receive is stellar! Thanks to everyone at NT for continuing to filed a GREAT product!

[dallasstarsfan]

Good day, I have some additional information and would to resurrect this item.

I found The ninjascript utilization monitor. The highest usage seems to be with "ChartObject" Channel. This surprised me as it is not a third party indicator. The first image I have attached shows about 2-3 hours of monitoring. The channel and the prior day OHLC account for more usage than all the other identified objects combined.

The second image I've attached was taken after I have removed all third party indicators for the 3 charts in my workspace. I ALSO REMOVED ALL CHANNELS FROM MY CHARTS AS WELL AS THE PRIOR DAY OHLC; however, they, along with some of the third party indicators that had been removed, still appear in the second sample of the utilization monitor so I'm confused about that. I even scrolled back through all the charts to ensure no channels we present on prior days.

As it stands, my workspace seems to think I am using indicators and drawing tools that are not being used so I am wondering if that could contribute to some of the lag issues? Is there a way we can "scrub" the system so it reflects what is actually being used?

Lastly...I am monitoring lag through a third party indicator. Does NT already have this function built in? If so, please let me know where it resides.

Thanks!

DSF

[NinjaTrader_Clayton]

Hello dallasstarsfan,

Thank you for the follow-up message.

Did you make sure there were no other windows hiding/not visible? I still 4 different default NinjaTrader indicators in the list.

It is best to use the NinjaScript Utilization Monitor in 3 -10 minute intervals.

• The NinjaScript Utilization Monitor shows a cumulative or running total since the window was opened.
• So, it gives you an idea of how things have performed since it was opened
• If you let it run for 2 hours, its hard to know if the delays all happened at once, or if it happened at a steady rate over the two hours.
  • It would be hard to know if there was one action or thing that you did that caused things to jump up to a higher number

A NinjaScript Strategy/Add-on doesn't have to be on a chart for it to be active, running, and doing things.

• There are some NinjaScripts that start doing things the moment NinjaTrader is opened.
• We could test this by seeing if you have the same behaviors on a new workspace created from scratch with no 3rd party add-ons applied to any of the charts or windows.

When you see default NinjaTrader items appear at the top of the NinjaScript Utilization monitor, it is often because another 3rd party NinjaScript is calling upon that Item for its calculations or plotting.

• If you remove the NinjaScript or Indicator that was calling the NinjaTrader item, it should stop updating.

If you have removed everything from your charts but it still shows things calculating in the background, this means that one of the NinjaScript items could have called upon something that was left behind in the background.

• Try removing entire chart windows now and see if the values stop moving after removing a specific chart.
• If you remove all of the chart windows and the values are still showing, this could mean that something has become corrupted with the workspace and you would want to create a New one and build back up from there.
  • If the underlying workspace file is corrupted, removing all of the windows from the workspace and then building back up again would not remove the underlying corruption
  • If this is what happened, you could create a new workspace adding things 1-by-1 and being aware of the platform performance and what is showing in the NinjaScript Utilization monitor and what causes what to appear in the list.

Please use the following steps to compare how the NinjaTrader platform functions in Safe Mode and create a "Test" workspace. Then use the Test workspace to see if the platform behaves the same way in Normal mode. Finally, compare the results to the old/original workspace.

Safe Mode will prevent NinjaTrader from:

• Loading workspaces.
• Connecting on start-up.
• Loading custom assemblies.
• Getting instrument updates from the server.

To enable safe mode, please use the following steps:

• Exit NinjaTrader.
• Hold the Ctrl (Control) key and double click the NinjaTrader icon.
• Keep the Ctrl (Control) key held down until you see the Control Center.
• You can verify you are in safe mode by going to Help -> About.

Once you have opened the platform in safe mode:

• Reconnect to your Data Provider
• Go to Control Center > Workspaces > New > Give this Workspace a unique name like "Test" and click OK
• Open a new chart with no custom bar types/indicators/templates and test for issues.
  • Set up a small workspace using default NinjaTrader items only to test for delay

If there are no issues with this new workspace, go to Control Center > Workspaces > hover over the workspace you just made and click Save.

• Once saved, hover over all other open Workspaces and click Close until only the Test Workspace you just made is open

Now, click X out of the platform and select "No" to "Do you want to save changes"


Now reopen the platform like normal. It should open to the workspace you just created.

• Is everything still working as expected? Are you experiencing any delays
• If yes, try opening the old/original workspace, do the delays return?
  • If yes, this means something within the original workspace is causing delays
    • From here, you will want to make a new workspace or go back to the "Test" workspace and build back up from there.

Finally, the NinjaTrader platform doesn't have any other way to measure lag other than the NinjaScript Utilization Monitor.

[dallasstarsfan]

Hi Clayton, I started from the safe mode option and found one, or more, of the old workspaces was the likely culprit. I rebuilt my workspace off the clean test workspace as you suggested.

Of all the companies I choose to do business with NT has the best support. It's critical to have a good product and even better support in this arena. NT is a benchmark for service excellence. I hope your management team continues to prioritize both product and service in the future.

Thanks again for your assistance!

DSF

[dallasstarsfan]

I consider this issue resolved, but wanted to post an update for anyone else having a similar issue. Even after rebuilding my workspace from scratch my lag was still in the 0.5 range. I downloaded a time sync program that updates every 30 seconds and it resolved the issue. With all the same indicators I ran in previous tests my lag is now under 0.1 and often 0.0-something. You can determine if you should add a program to your computer, but this resolved my issue.

DSF