Tickstory

Hello,
I want to test 10yrs of tick data for almost all pairs. So I know when testing optimization it will take 10-12 days for each pair. Now I can't keep my main machine turn on for 6-7 months for this test this ea's ,so I want to purchase a cheap laptop for doing testing. Can please someone suggest me what configuration I can go for running 2 mt4 for testing tick data .

Hi Hir0406,

Generally speaking, the higher specification of machine you have, the faster your test processing will be. This includes ensuring you have sufficient CPU and memory - I would imagine a minimum spec being a dual-core CPU with at least 8GB of memory. Rather than purchasing an additional PC, you may want to consider renting a VM which can have these sorts of specs and run 24/7 as part of a monthly fee you pay.

Before you embark on a large testing exercise, you may want to consider using some "pre-screening" techniques on your EA such as:

- Testing with Open Prices mode (usually more applicable for longer term strategies).
- Filtering duplicate ticks from the exported data (assuming your EA is not sensitive to these changes) and;
- Breaking down your back-test into smaller periods such as the last 1-2 years (after all, if the EA isn't testing well within this period, you may not want to trade it).

Hope this helps.

can you suggest any vps that is cheap because last time I searched for such configuration cost for each month was around 60-70$ and for 10monts it will be 600-700$ so don't you think 400-500$ laptop will be a better option as we do not need 24/7 internet?

Hi Hi0406,

Unfortunately we don't have any VPS providers we specifically recommend. $60-70 per month sounds quite hefty - you might want to check some of the mainstream providers such as Namecheap. You'll obviously need to do your own cost/benefit analysis based on how long you intend to use the VPS vs buying a notebook outright. If a $400-500 laptop will do the job, it sounds like the best option.

Regards.

Dose more cores helps to do testing fast?
I have i7 4790k which has 4cores at 4.0 ghz with 16gb ram. It shows 700hrs for testing for 10yrs data on one pair. Will a CPU with more cores help reduce the timeing for this test? Or this is the max speed I will get with even 8 or 10 cores CPU?

Hi Hir0406,

With our limited knowledge of the MT4 internals, I'm not sure how much extra mileage you will get from additional cores. Ultimately, the ticks would need to be serialized through your EA, so I imagine you would only get some benefit if your EA was CPU-intensive.

If you want to take a different path, I would suggest that you break down your back-test into smaller periods such as the last 1-2 years. I would think that if your optimization performs well, you could then take those settings and apply them to a longer period.

Hope this helps.