Multiplay and routers

[Terry 0]

I'm having serious problems with a Linksys router with six computers trying to play Operation Flashpoint in an IP game. I'm only trying to use one of the six systems here to play a remote game and can't join a session. I can see the active session, but when I try to join it will wait for a while and then say 'session lost'.

If I try GameSpy, it gives me a warning that my internal IP adress is not the same as the external IP address.

We've tried everything we can find on the net and from Linksys to take down the firewall, fix the DMZ host, etc., and are giving up on the Linksys router.

If anyone here plays on multiple systems and uses a router that works well, I'd very much appreciate some information on a brand name and settings.

Thanks,

Terry Miller

Http://www.im3d.com

[sgtvor 0]

Had the same problem actually....its' funny though, I could play a coop game for 2 + hours with both of my machines connected.  Though as soon as I tried a CTF, I'd get a session lost on both machines.  I beleive it's something to do with the DirectPlay system they used for the MP code.  Of course, having multiple IP's would help too....

Vor.

[GT-Maddtim 0]

Terry, I play using a router and have no problems. What it sounds like is happening is you can connect out but, when the packets come back in, they aren't being properly forwarded from your external IP to your internal IP and are thus lost. What you may want to try is to check the NAPT (Network Address Port Translation) settings on your router. I wound up configuring mine to directly map the IP of the machine I play on to the external address. The other thing you can try is to route the specific port ranges required by OFP to the internal address of the machine your playing from. Doing that will leave some of the "firewall" features of NAPT in place but takes alot more on the configuration end, especially if you cange internal addresses at all.

[Terry 0]

Thanks Tim and Vor,

Tim, could you tell me what brand router you have? We're shopping a new one now and the only thing we've ran across that mentions game play is a Netgear brand. I'd like to hear a name from someone who actually uses it with game play before I buy so that I'll know it's something we're doing wrong when it doesn't (and it won't at first) work.

Thanks again guys,

Terry

[nailbighter 0]

Dude! I juse thought of something...

Are you using DHCP on your linksys router?

I have a BEFS114W or something like that..

And I have no problems connect 2 computers at a time to a dedicated server...

We haven't tried setting a server up..

I also have no problem with gamespy

make sure you have the latest firmware...

make sure you have set your MTU 1500

and then call Support that's what they are for..

you paid for the router right??

[nailbighter 0]

Oh, woops....

Turn DHCP off..

create your own damn ips..

[suchey 0]

Ive used the linksys successfully...its been a while, and you may have already tried this, but make sure that the machine your playing on is set up as the DMZ. I cant remember exactly what I had to do to get it to work, but we had 2 machines running ofp CTF over the linksys.

[GT-Maddtim 0]

Terry,

I'm running a Synaptics (2100 I think?) single port router that I then have plugged into a switch.  doesn't matter if I have my external port set to DHCP or static address assignment.  Internal addresses are handled by the router via DHCP.  To try and clarify what I did a little:  Most routers proclaim to have a "built in firewall" which is actually NAT (Network Address Translation) not mapping the external IP to the Internal IP.  As a result, external traffic gets stopped when it tries to goto your machine because it doesn't know where to go.  Now most routers will allow you to configure a version of NAT called NAPT, which allows you to specify a "default" internal IP address that all inbound packets are sent to.  Where I REALLY see this making a difference is on voice communication programs and the like.  But even if you don't directly map the external IP to the internal one, there should be a generic setting to enable NAPT so that at least requests that your machine makes will find their way back to your machine.  You won't be able to host if you don't map the internal IP, but you should then at least be able to connect to a server.