- v50 information can now be added to pages in the main namespace. v0.47 information can still be found in the DF2014 namespace. See here for more details on the new versioning policy.
- Use this page to report any issues related to the migration.
v0.31:System requirements
| This article is about an older version of DF. |
If you're looking for information on improving the performance of Dwarf Fortress on your computer, see Template:L. For installation instructions, see Template:L.
OS
- Windows requires XP SP3 or newer.
- Linux runs natively or using Wine.
- Mac needs Intel chip.
Note: The 40d article has detailed info on Non-Windows OS' that is probably mostly still valid.
RAM
DF is not particularly RAM-hungry. Expect the process to allocate between 300 and 700 MB with medium regions. With 512MB you may be a bit on the short side, but 1 GB is absolutely sufficient. World Generation can eat up far more than that, but Generation will only be slower if less RAM is available. Otherwise the influence of RAM on game speed is limited, as DF is not loading and offloading big chunks of data much.
There are no detailed requirements per se. However, because simply saying the more RAM you have and the faster your CPU is the better is not all that helpful, here are some stats that users have experienced while playing this game on a variety of different environments. (Please note that ‘fast game-play’ and ‘slow game-play’ are subjective terms and not intended to relay anything specific or exact. What may be fast to one person might be slow to another). It's also essential that you mention the state of your fortress - how many dwarves there are, animals, terrain, speedups, and so forth.
What is SDL and Legacy version difference?
SDL is a cross-platform application framework. The SDL version of DF uses that framework and so runs on mac and linux, along with including Baughn's new opengl code, which should be faster, allows png files for tilesets, zooming with the mousewheel, etc. The SDL version is quite new, so isn't proven yet. It's also being actively worked on, getting features like "separate files for graphics and font", and true-type font support.
Legacy is Toady's old code, only kept in case the SDL version doesn't work for someone. There is no legacy version for mac or linux.
Experiential reports
Report format
Please read the report template page before contributing any reports
Reports
Configuration type: AMD based, full desktop PC
- Game info
- Game version: 31.08 - graphics
- World size: Medium region (default, nonmodified)
- Embark size: 5x5
- Age of fort: 6 years
- Number of dwarves: 140
- Average fps: 6-14
- Default/nondefault raws: nondefault, dwarven speed modified, some smelting recipes modified.
- Tileset in use: Phoebus prebuilt version
- Amount of stone dug: 8693 at the moment of measure
- Amount of water and state: A brook, dammed and diverted into big cisterns for trap use, mostly static and pressurised.
- Approximate amount of z-levels: Beyond 200 below the ground level, around 5 upwards from ground.
- RAM usage of game: Around 1.25 GB when playing
- Draw mode in init.txt: VBO
- PC info
- CPU: AMD 7750x2 BE @ 2.7GHz
- MBO: Gigabyte GA-MA78G-DS3h
- RAM: 4GB DDR2 800
- GPU: XFX GTX260
- OS: Windows 7 x64 Ultimate
- Game info
- Game version: 31.12
- World size: Smaller Region
- Embark size: 4x4
- Number of dwarves: 7
- Average fps: 90-100
- Default/nondefault raws: Giant Eagles can be everywhere. No aquifers, and one cavern layer.
- Tileset in use: Ironhand.
- Amount of stone dug: ~150
- Amount of water and state: A dozen murky pools.
- Approximate amount of z-levels: 40-50.
- RAM usage of game: Unknown.
- Draw mode in init.txt: 2D.
- PC info
- CPU: 1.6 GHz Intel Centrino.
- MBO: Unknown.
- RAM: 512 MB.
- GPU: Unknown.
- OS: Windows XP.
Configuration type: Intel Based, Fairly clean copy of Windows, Defragged weekly and virus scanned daily at night.
- Game info
- Game version: .31.18 Graphics
- World size: Medium
- Embark size: 3x3
- Age of fort: 3 years
- Number of dwarves: 100
- Average fps: ~95
- Default/nondefault raws: Default raws
- Tileset in use: Phoebus
- Amount of stone dug: ~600 blocks
- Amount of water and state: ~200 blocks, with river
- Approximate amount of z-levels: 7 in use around 150-200 in all
- RAM usage of game: 330 Mb.
- Draw mode in init.txt: 2d
- PC info
- CPU: Core 2 Quad 2.6 Ghz
- MBO: Asus P5N-D
- RAM: 6 Gigs DDR2 (x2 1 Gig, x2 2 Gig)
- GPU: EVGA Geforce Gtx 465 1 Gig
- OS: Windows 7 Ultimate x64
Archived reports
Older, incomplete reports can be found here.