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+--- Thread: questions on OFP Mp server (/showthread.php?tid=483)
questions on OFP Mp server - Aspend - 06-27-2002
I am using the flashpoint version 1.46 in MP game and I faced some problems and I request anyone who can help me to solve this problems my questions are as follow :
1. When I, as an administrator, monitoring the server, notice some numbers which I donât understand. Would you please explain to me what if each number is representing?
For example: fps: in: out: mem:
2. What are the numbers which is normal at the start of the game?
3. I have a network with the following specification:
a. 100 mb/s network including 100 mbs switch, hub and Network adapter card.
b. cat5 cabling with 8 core connected
c. dedicated Server with the CPU(P4):2GIGA
d. Rim: 512MB
When I use 50 computers on my network, I get FPS number between 2 to 4. What is the reason? And how could I improve it?
4. What is the relation between FPS and network load and quality?
5. What is the suitable RAM for the server?
6. If the RAM and CPU on client machine is important, too? How much RAM and CPU speed is enough?
7. The FP-Server seemed to be designed for slow network, such as modem or internet. Are there any specific adjustments, if I want to use it on LAN?
8. What packet size is suitable for the best performance on the above LAN?
9. Is there any other FP-Server for LAN?
10. I use Ais on my network. Is there any load difference on the Server for AI soldiers and AI armored units? If Each AI inside the armored unit is calculated separate AI or all AI, S inside one armored unit is assumed one unit for communicating with the server? In another word if one armored unit loaded 3 times more on the server than one soldier?
11. If the amount of ammunition is loading the server more or does not make any difference?
12. Is there any difference on the network of the following versions of Flashpoint�
a. 1-46
b. 1-4-6
c. 1-6
13. What is the maximum number of clients using version 1-6? Please compare it with version 1-46.
14. Where can I get the original Flashpoint version 1-6?
Thank you for your quick and useful answers.
:roll:
Re: questions on OFP Mp server - Lobanak - 06-28-2002
Hi,
hmm.. many questions about the server. I think we all have one problem with that. We don´t have a dedicated server since now. So we don´t have experience with it. I think you should ask this question in the official BIS-OFP-Forum. Look here: http://www.flashpoint1985.com/cgi-bin/ikonboard301/ikonboard.cgi?s=3c35bc596380ffff
There are enough people who own or run a dedicated server. Also the developers there who have done tests.
Sorry that I can´t help, but I don´t have an extra windows box to run one. I wait till the linux port is out (hope soon).
Greets
Lobanak
Re: questions on OFP Mp server - maddogmattson - 06-28-2002
ASPEND,
The following information is not for the specific version but it may prove helpful.
Installation for server.
You need a Microsoft Windows 2000 or Windows XP computer to run an OFP dedicated server. We recommend using at least PIII 800Mhz machine, with 256Mb RAM and a 256kbps upload network bandwidth.
There are two possible ways to install the dedicated server. When you have installed the Operation Flashpoint game, you can use the main executable (OperationFlashpoint.exe) with the command line argument âserver to start a dedicated server. While this is easy, it requires the Operation Flashpoint CD to be present in the drive during server operation. If you want to run a server without the CD, you have to use the standalone dedicated server executable. The latest version of this executable is always available from the official web site http://www.flashpoint1985.com, or as part of the most recent Upgrade also available from http://www.codemasters.com. To install the standalone server, you have to install the corresponding version of the game on any machine (you will need an Operation Flashpoint CD for this), run it at least once (to create a Flashpoint.cfg file) and add the OFP_Server.exe file to the same directory as OperationFlashpoint.exe. You can then copy the Operation Flashpoint directory on to the server.
This document describes dedicated server version 1.75.
What is new
Following changes were made in this document to reflect changes in 1.40 release:
· New #init command.
· Changed default values for MaxMsgSend and MinBandwidth values.
Running the server
You can provide additional command line arguments when running a dedicated server:
-config=<config_file> Select server configuration file (see below).Default: No configuration file; all parameters have default values.
-port=<port_number> Select port at which session should operate.Default: 2234
In the event of a server crash, please help us to fix the problem by sending the Flashpoint.rpt and context.bin files that will be created in Operation Flashpoint directory on each crash. Please send those files to e-mail address support@bistudio.com; we will investigate them and if possible we will fix the bug that led to crash; or we will suggest you a workaround.
You may also consider running the OFP server as a service, and enabling automatic restart in case of crash. In this case, you may want to disable DrWatson crash monitoring utility on your computer, as it often prevents OFP server to shutdown properly (by displaying a message box that requires an operator to confirm application termination).
Server configuration
When running a dedicated server, you will usually want to create a Server.cfg file. In this file you can adjust many server parameters, and you can provide a mission list for automatic mission selection. An example can be found in Appendix B. The following entries are recognized in the configuration file:
password = <session_password>; Password required to connect to server.Default: No password required.
passwordAdmin = <admin_password>; Password required to administrate the server.Default: No password required.
motd[]={ \"<1st MOTD line>\", \"<2nd MOTD line>\", â¦. \"<Last MOTD line>\"}; Message of the day (MOTD). This message may consist of several lines. Each player is shown this text when connected to the server.Default: No MOTD.
motdInterval=<interval_in_sec>; Interval in which subsequent lines of MOTD appear. Default: 5 seconds.
voteThreshold=<threshold>; More than voteThreshold playes must agree when voting for some action. Default: 0.5 (more than half required).
reportingIP=\"<id_address\">; IP address of the master server to which this server is reporting its state. Use \"\" to disable reporting. Default: \"master.gamespy.com\".
voteMissionPlayers=<number>; How many players must connect to the server for mission selection voting to start automatically.Default: 1
class Missions{ class Mission01 { template = <mission_name>; cadetMode = <cadet_mode>; param1 = <value>; param2 = <value>; }; class Mission02 { ⦠see above ⦠}; â¦. class Mission<N> { ⦠see above ⦠};}; Mission listFirst mission nameCadet mode (1) or Veteran (0)Values of mission-specific parameters. You will find more information about their meaning in the description.ext of the corresponding mission.When the end of the list is reached, the first mission is used again.
Note: The configuration file uses C++ like syntax. Each entry must be terminated with semicolon. You can also use C++ comments (starting with a double slash: //).
Performance tuning
There are also some parameters that can be used to fine-tune network performance. You can add following entries to Flashpoint.cfg (the main Flashpoint configuration file):
MaxMsgSend=<limit>; Maximum number of messages that can be sent in one simulation cycle. Increasing this value can decrease lag on high upload bandwidth servers. Default: 128
MaxSizeGuaranteed=<limit>; Maximum size of guaranteed packet in bytes (without headers). Small messages are packed to larger frames.Guaranteed messages are used for non-repetitive events like shooting.Default: 512
MaxSizeNonguaranteed =<limit>; Maximum size of non-guaranteed packet in bytes (without headers). Non-guaranteed messages are used for repetitive updates like soldier or vehicle position.Increasing this value may improve bandwidth requirement, but it may increase lag.Default: 256
MinBandwidth =<bottom_limit>; Bandwidth the server is guaranteed to have (in bps). This value helps server to estimate bandwidth available. Increasing it to too optimistic values can increase lag and CPU load, as too many messages will be sent but discarded.Default: 131072
MaxBandwidth=<top_limit> Bandwidth the server is guaranteed to never have. This value helps server to estimate bandwidth available.
The greatest level of optimization can be achieved by setting the MaxMsgSend and MinBandwidth parameters. For a server with 1024kbps we recommend the following values:
MaxMsgSend = 256;
MinBandwidth = 768000;
You can use the admin command #monitor to monitor server resource usage. The server never runs at more than 50 fps. When running slower, it always uses all available CPU processing power to maintain the smoothest possible gameplay. When running at less than 15 fps, you can consider the server overloaded â the mission currently played is probably too complex for given server. If you see the server is not using bandwidth that it could use, you can try increasing values MaxMsgSend and MinBandwidth.
Banning
To ban a user you have to know their unique online ID (called Player ID). This can be checked in the players overview screen (\´P\´ key) during the game, or with the #userlist command. To ban a user you have to add their Player ID to file ban.txt residing in the main OFP directory. If there is no such file there, create a new one. The format of ban.txt is a plain ASCII text list of decimal Player IDs delimited with space, tabulator or end-of-line characters.
Appendix A: List of administrator commands
The following commands have special meaning when issued on global chat channel:
#login <password> Login as server administrator
#logout Logout, but stay connected as a normal user
#init Reload server config file loaded by âconfig option.
#kick <player_name> Kick given player
#kick <player_number> Kick player with given number
#restart Restart mission
#reassign Go back to side selection screen
#mission <mission_name> Select mission with known name
#missions Select mission
#shutdown Shutdown server
#userlist Display list of all users
#monitor <interval_in_sec> Start server monitoring. Server CPU load and bandwidth usage is displayed in the global chat channel.The default interval is 10 seconds. To stop monitoring type monitor 0.
Appendix B: Example of server.cfg file.
passwordAdmin = \"xyzxyz\"; // password to protect admin access
motd[]=
{
\"Welcome to OFP server.\",
\"Hosted by Flashpoint Webworlds.\",
}; // Welcome message
motdInterval=1;
voteThreshold=0.33; // when one third agrees, this is enough to confirm a vote
reportingIP=\"\"; // private server - no reporting
voteMissionPlayers=3; // start voting when 3 players connect
-INFORMATION COURTESY BIS