Hard Light Productions Forums

Hosted Projects - Standalone => The Babylon Project => Topic started by: xenthorious on February 19, 2006, 09:05:35 pm

Title: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 19, 2006, 09:05:35 pm: I've created a few TBP Multi Player maps that are EXTREMELY different from the norm and would prove to be a very large contribution to the TBP core. However, I'm unable to do any testing because the default FS2_SCP provided with TBP Package 3.1 does not seem to support multiplayer mode (crashes).

:confused: <<<I've read that there IS a fix to this.>>> :confused:
Could someone walk me through this? I got some really good multi player maps that I want to release and I don't
even know if they'll work yet.

;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;) ;)
Thanks in advance... Thanks in advance... Thanks in advance... Thanks in advance... Thanks in advance...
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Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: Trivial Psychic on February 20, 2006, 12:10:46 am: Have you tried a more recent build? I assume 3.6.7 would be better.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: karajorma on February 20, 2006, 05:30:26 am: Are you playing via FS2NetD or IP games? Cause the first one is much more stable. If you're playing an IP game have you got the IP address of all the PCs entered into the IP section? It is not good enough to simply put the IP address of the client on the host machine. Everything will appear work but more often than not one computer or the other will crash as soon as the mission launches.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 20, 2006, 11:42:05 am: Quote from: Trivial Psychic on February 20, 2006, 12:10:46 am
Have you tried a more recent build? I assume 3.6.7 would be better.

Not yet, would you have a URL to the most prefered version?
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 20, 2006, 11:46:47 am: Quote from: karajorma on February 20, 2006, 05:30:26 am
Are you playing via FS2NetD or IP games? Cause the first one is much more stable. If you're playing an IP game have you got the IP address of all the PCs entered into the IP section? It is not good enough to simply put the IP address of the client on the host machine. Everything will appear work but more often than not one computer or the other will crash as soon as the mission launches.

I've turned on IPX support and tried that (crash).
I've tried hosting using my system's IP address (crash).
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: karajorma on February 20, 2006, 11:46:54 am: 3.6.7 can be found here (http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,35266.0.html).

What sort of new stuff have you done? I'm very interested cause I don't know many people working on FS2_Open multi at all let alone on new things.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 20, 2006, 12:08:38 pm: Quote from: karajorma on February 20, 2006, 11:46:54 am
3.6.7 can be found here (http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,35266.0.html).

What sort of new stuff have you done? I'm very interested cause I don't know many people working on FS2_Open multi at all let alone on new things.

Well, there are two different types I have ATM, but only one is completed with the exception of requiring verification of functionality.

The first type is CTF (Capture the Flag):
Mission 1 includes:
•   Unable to lock player targets unless they obtained an enemy flag.
•   Music changes on flag capture.
•   Score board.
•   Winners get Jump Engines, Losers Get Nova’ed.
•   Bases provide support.
•   Asteroids to hide in.

Mission 2 includes:
•   Unable to lock player targets unless they obtained an enemy flag.
•   Music changes on flag capture.
•   Score board.
•   Winners get Jump Engines, Losers Get Nova’ed.
•   Bases provide support.
•   Asteroids to hide in.
•   Violent Nebula.
•   Navigational Boies to help prevent swaying off the course.

The second type is a Conquest:
Mission 1 includes:
•   3 bases starting off as neutral.
•   Ownership of base 1 provides team with targeting immunity.
•   Ownership of base 2 provides repair and re-supply.
•   Ownership of base 3 provides AI support from fighters and G.O.D.’s.
•   Winning conditions
:yes:   First team to take all 3 bases triggers a 5 minute nova. Failure to retake a base will result in losing team being dusted.
:yes:   First team to stack 100 player kills.
•   Each base has a unique music theme; most recent base taken triggers the theme.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: karajorma on February 20, 2006, 12:59:51 pm: Sounds very cool. I've done a King of the Hill type mission which Im more than happy to port to TBP sooner or later but I've not done as much with it as you have. There are some nice ideas in there. I definitely like the idea of changing the tune when something happens :)
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 20, 2006, 11:12:26 pm: Quote from: karajorma on February 20, 2006, 12:59:51 pm
Sounds very cool. I've done a King of the Hill type mission which Im more than happy to port to TBP sooner or later but I've not done as much with it as you have. There are some nice ideas in there. I definitely like the idea of changing the tune when something happens :)

The game was designed to challange one's SKILL not one's ship/weapons/missiles. When you start playing FS2 my way, it becomes more like a D2 game without the tunnels. At this point, if something that can effect game win/loss happens, the change in music (though seems more like a GUI thing) is actually a indicator of a changed event.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 20, 2006, 11:47:41 pm: Quote from: karajorma on February 20, 2006, 11:46:54 am
3.6.7 can be found here (http://www.hard-light.net/forums/index.php/topic,35266.0.html).

What sort of new stuff have you done? I'm very interested cause I don't know many people working on FS2_Open multi at all let alone on new things.

I downloaded new engine. No change on crashing. However, I am able to quary for FS2NetD when selecting PXO, but no successfull connection was ever made. I registered to http://freespaceserver.cjb.net/fs2netd/. I downloaded FS2Net Games Viewer from SCP web site and logged in (so no servers up). I don't know what to do beyound this point.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: Slasher on February 22, 2006, 11:03:23 am: Maybe this could get some more multiplayer games going. In the past we've had next to zero luck starting any up.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 22, 2006, 03:51:27 pm: I tried doing a direct IP connect and it's showing no servers (no way to connect between each other. I CAN NOT TEST my maps. I don't know if FS2NetD is going to be back up any time soon. Out of interest of my maps and the interest in getting FS2 into a multi player arena, I need some way to do some testing that's EFFICIENT. Does anyone have access to the server files needed to start up a private server? Even if I have to make a intranet to test this stuff, I'm willing to do it. I don't intend to stop what I'm doing, and I desire to use multiple mods to create these maps.

BTW, IPX mode in FS2 crashes when used. I know that IPX is not really the gold mind in a programmer's throughts, but if SCP is not going to use it, could they please remove it as an option?
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: karajorma on February 22, 2006, 05:19:33 pm: I've got no idea why you're not finding the other PC when playing an IP game. Who are you playing with? Have you made sure both PCs have each others IP addresses?
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 22, 2006, 09:36:08 pm: Yes, all located within the same subnet in a LAN. 192.168.0.100 does not detect 192.168.0.101 and vise versa. Yet I can ping and trace route each other's systems without any problems in under 1ms per request.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: taylor on February 22, 2006, 09:44:10 pm: Firewall?
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 22, 2006, 10:07:12 pm: Quote from: taylor on February 22, 2006, 09:44:10 pm
Firewall?

Don't see how that can be if we are behind it. Got this from the debugger:
Code: [Select]
ML 02/22 23:11:45~ Network (FS2OpenPXO): send_server_query(192.168.0.101) ML 02/22 23:11:45~ Network (FS2OpenPXO): send_server_query(192.168.0.100) ML 02/22 23:11:45~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:11:45~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:11:45~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:11:45~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:11:50~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:11:50~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:11:55~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:11:55~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:12:00~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:12:00~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:12:05~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:12:05~ Socket error on socket_get_data() ML 02/22 23:12:11~ Socket error on socket_get_data()
I decided to take this a step further. I ran ethereal on the same machine that's running as the host for FS2_SCP and found that "NO PACKETS" are being sent from this program. The recieving end may be working but no broadcasts are being made. The debugger does seem to be showing some information:
Code: [Select]
ML 02/22 23:32:08~ Sending GAME_UPDATE ML 02/22 23:32:10~ Sending NETPLAYER_UPDATE ML 02/22 23:32:11~ Sending GAME_UPDATE Frame 0 too long!!: frametime = 0.405 (0.405) ML 02/22 23:32:13~ Sending NETPLAYER_UPDATEFor example, every time the above is shown on the debugger, you would expect ethereal to capture the packets. This is however, not the case.

The MS firewall is current off.

Now I did run a test to see if ethereal detected packets from FS2_SCP when attempting to connect to FS2NetD. This is what I got:
FS2 DEBUGGER:
Code: [Select]
ML 02/22 23:32:08~ Sending GAME_UPDATE ML 02/22 23:32:10~ Sending NETPLAYER_UPDATE ML 02/22 23:32:11~ Sending GAME_UPDATE Frame 0 too long!!: frametime = 0.405 (0.405) ML 02/22 23:32:13~ Sending NETPLAYER_UPDATE
Ethereal
Quote
2 36.875640 192.168.0.100 65.85.207.108 TCP 3700 > 12000 [SYN] Seq=0 Ack=0 Win=65535 Len=0 MSS=1460
3 39.872457 192.168.0.100 65.85.207.108 TCP 3700 > 12000 [SYN] Seq=0 Ack=0 Win=65535 Len=0 MSS=1460
4 45.907717 192.168.0.100 65.85.207.108 TCP 3700 > 12000 [SYN] Seq=0 Ack=0 Win=65535 Len=0 MSS=1460
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: taylor on February 22, 2006, 10:38:52 pm: Turn off PXO in the options screen and see if that makes a difference.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 22, 2006, 10:45:33 pm: Quote from: taylor on February 22, 2006, 10:38:52 pm
Turn off PXO in the options screen and see if that makes a difference.

No broadcast with PXO turned off. Broadcast is only heard when requesting to connect to PXO (FS2NetD). BTW, I edit'ed the above post and provided ethereal input.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: taylor on February 23, 2006, 12:54:47 am: Broadcast packets aren't sent to FS2NetD. They are only for LAN play. FS2NetD has a special heart-beat packet which advertises the game server but it's not really a broadcast packet. The traditional broadcast packet is restricted to your subnet for game advertising.

The Ethereal output is from using FS2NetD (PXO enabled), though I guess you already knew that, but that IP isn't for the current FS2NetD server anyway. All FS2 games go over port 7808, unless the game binary was modified to use a different port, in which case everyone needs to use the same exe in order to see games.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 23, 2006, 02:13:02 am: Before connecting to FS2NetD, an ICMP packet is sent to the server's address to announce that the client is ready to recieve. This is needed because without it, the server does not have my domain name listed as a broadcastee. Ethereal is showing a time out on the returning of that ICMP packet. As you said, the port was 7808, but UDP, not TCP.

When connecting to a LAN, and acting as a client (not host), the same thing is being done. It's as if the host does not exist.

When running as host, no broadcasts are made, not even the ICMP packet. There is no firewalls enabled between the host and the client and both are in the same subnet (restricting the issues that could be caused by NAT out side of this problem). This is a code issue now.

As for the wrong IP... I could sware that I downloaded the latest engine. If there's a way to connect to a WORKING server, I really need to know it. I'm busy solving these problems when I should be solving the ones within the maps I made. I'm really happy that I am able to help the SCP team out by providing all this information but in all honesty, I could care very little about any of it. To me, without the maps I'm making, the work involved in fixing these networking issues have little meaning because there is no sign of player support UNTIL they can appreciate the maps I made.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 23, 2006, 02:24:06 am: Man, I'm dead tired. I'm getting some sleep. Looking foward to resolving this problem though. I'll speek to you all tomorrow. Thanks for the help thus far.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 23, 2006, 05:01:21 pm: So we don't have an update on a possible fix, a different server to connect to, or a new engine (or older one) that should be used?
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: taylor on February 23, 2006, 05:49:56 pm: The new server IP is 67.10.75.93 so just use that in your fs2open_pxo.cfg file and you should be good to go as far as that is concerned. The server IP is never tied to the binary so changing builds wouldn't do anything in that respect.

Ragarding LAN play, I had some Linux related issue when testing last night. A Linux server never showed up to any clients. Other servers (Win32 and OS X) did show up on the Linux side though. That should just be a system issue as I can't find anything actually wrong with the code, and aside from that one machine's host issue all of the test boxes worked perfectly. The normal packets ("Sending GAME_UPDATE", etc.) only go over the wire if there is actually a client out there. If the machine running as host doesn't have a firewall issue, also make sure that the client machine doesn't either. Otherwise Ethereal would just not be getting those packets since the game wouldn't actually be sending them out.
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 24, 2006, 03:27:53 pm: Quote from: taylor on February 23, 2006, 05:49:56 pm
The new server IP is 67.10.75.93 so just use that in your fs2open_pxo.cfg file and you should be good to go as far as that is concerned. The server IP is never tied to the binary so changing builds wouldn't do anything in that respect.

Ragarding LAN play, I had some Linux related issue when testing last night. A Linux server never showed up to any clients. Other servers (Win32 and OS X) did show up on the Linux side though. That should just be a system issue as I can't find anything actually wrong with the code, and aside from that one machine's host issue all of the test boxes worked perfectly. The normal packets ("Sending GAME_UPDATE", etc.) only go over the wire if there is actually a client out there. If the machine running as host doesn't have a firewall issue, also make sure that the client machine doesn't either. Otherwise Ethereal would just not be getting those packets since the game wouldn't actually be sending them out.

Okay... I sucessfully connected to the server with the IP address you gave me. I successfully connected two computers onto it. I hosted a game, and the other computer did not see it. Ports were verified and set correctly on the gateway. The host computer was the computer which had the port fowarding from the gateway.

I did the same thing in reverse using the other system as a host; same issue. This was all late last night.

Now I tried to log into the server and I'm getting failures. *sighs*
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: taylor on February 24, 2006, 03:35:53 pm: The server appears to be down at the moment. Don't know when it will be back up.

But, you don't need FS2NetD access if you are testing on the same LAN. FS2NetD only provides game tracking for clients which aren't on the same subnet as the host. What is the other computer running for OS and what build of FS2_Open?
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 24, 2006, 03:41:55 pm: System 1: 192.168.0.100
Windows XP Pro SP2 (and yes, that annoying security feature is disabled).
FS2_open_367

System 2: 192.168.0.101
Windows XP Pro SP2 (and yes, that annoying security feature is disabled).
FS2_open_367

System 3: 192.168.0.102
Windows XP Home (Firewalls disabled and not used for these tests).

Gateway: 192.168.0.1
Linux Smoothwall w/ superkernal

All systems on subnet 255.255.255.0
Title: Re: Network Support Request...
Post by: xenthorious on February 24, 2006, 04:17:19 pm: Well, I finally fixed part of the problem and got a network gaming running.

I believe as long as I don't touch any of the settings within the software, I'll be able to maintain this.

Now, with a heavy heart, I must say:
OMG OMG MY CTF MISSION ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[/color]
ME AND MY BROTHER WENT NUTS ON IT! IT WAS SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH FUN AND HARD AS HOLY HELL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Now with sanity back in my control, I did manage to find a few bugs. Team 2 can lock on any member on Team 1. This is disallowed unless team 1 obtains the flag (which didn't happen).

I personally can not wait until I get the more serious bugs resolved. This map was just damn awesome and I KNOW people are going to be doing an ass kicking to play it. =P