Old Tick from FXCM themselves
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Tony,
I saw your trace route and wanted to follow up with you regarding the issue you were experiencing.
Feel free to get in contact with me anytime between 8 - 5 PM (East Coast US) if you're still having trouble.
Below is some general information regarding old tick on MT4 from our MT4 technical dept.
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The MT4 terminal gets tick updates from the server and compares that tick update with the clock on the client terminal and with the clock on the client computer. The MT4 terminal will calculate the tick as “old” if there is a discrepancy between the time on your computer and your client terminal; e.g., your MT4 shows the time as 22:23 and your local time should show 2:23. If your computer displays the time as 2:28 instead of 2:23, that could cause the terminal to calculate a tick as “old.” The computer time has to remain correct as often as possible.
As MT4 compares the time tick-updates are received with the time on the terminal and computer clock, it is also a consideration that the network connection plays a part in this. MT4 will determine how long it takes to receive a new tick and compare that to how long it usually takes to receive a new tick. A slower network connection and a computer clock showing a time that is not exactly correct can lead to the platform designating ticks that are “old” while there may be nothing wrong with the price or the price feed itself, the terminal simply thinks it is when compared to the time and average time for tick-update.
Generally, the “old tick” message does not stop trading. The error message indicates only that the platform is calling a tick old, whether it is in fact old or not. Most Expert Advisors will ignore this. Though there are few exceptions to this, some Expert Advisors will not trade given this error message.
If seeing this message, here are few steps that can be taken:
First, check the clock on the computer and make sure that is updated and is correct.
Ensure the network connection is not timing out or is subject to any unusual latency; you can test that with a trace route.
Lastly, it is possible you can see the old tick error message if you have a large gap in your price history on the charts. If you notice that this is the case, you can delete your history files then reconnect. The terminal will replace the history files with fresh data.
Best regards,
Brian Hinman
(888) 503-6739
bhinman@fxcm.com
Website:
FXCM