darkpeace

Damn, there you go. We have the same problem with call logging software at work (Quantum by Software Support Solutions) using "\" as a control character (think ANSI ESC codes and you are half way there) You can image working on IT and being unable to use "\" in a log without a 25% chance of the software just crashing (it does no checking on text input obviously due to lack of knowledge by the programmers) Never would have though it would affect GameSpy in such a manner (learn something new everyday......sometimes) As for the quanta lengh issue, after Windows 2K Beta 1 they removed a whole section from the "Foreground Application Acceleration" section of the system options, it used to have Quanta lengh, Variable / Fixed, Short, Med, Long, etc As Flashpoint server uses the quanta values (its forced to) when running the server physics engine on the server it gets 'capped' at 32fps (in laymans terms this is why its 32fps) The fix, try a different Operating System, or find a very rare tool that can change the quanta lengths, and other settings (Microsoft don't want people to be able to pick'n'choose to this extent) The reason I recommended SuSe before (although Linux has other issues, and many people dislike SuSe for whatever reason) is because SuSe Linux holds the record for fastest server physics engine framerate, at 55fps. Bear in mind that it was not during a CTI game obviously. Although I wouldn't mind a server system that only hits 80% on CPU0 during a CTI game, and runs at 50fps constant.... Then again who wouldn't mind such a beast ?

The following weblink may be of some use (worth reading) http://www.alltheweb.com/search?....ng=pref Does changing any values improve OFPR_Server.exe performance (esp on Win 2003 servers) ? Any feedback / advice on values to try ? UDPATE: Search for the text 'Frob' on the below URL: http://www.sysinternals.com/ntw2k/utilities.shtml =============== Regards, Tabris.DarkPeace GarageLAN, ACT Australia ===============

Well there you go, and I was thinking it was still 1.96 RC as all the files are identical. Oh well, either way I have seen 1.97 VBS1 (ADFA VESL) servers online so there must be some improvements to still be made in the core.

NOTE: ALL PRICES QUOTES ARE IN AUSTRALIAN DOLLARS UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED I think these 'leechers' (defined above) have no idea what it costs to host a server, let alone actually build one that could run MFCTI 1.16 at 50fps constant. Solution is authentication and donations, as it costs a bucket load of gold just to build a fast server (AU$1400), then it costs alot to rent a spot in a server farm, then it costs even more for data transfer (and 100mbps links do not come cheap) Luckily iPrimus where able, *as far as I know*, to have a server donated to them (I suspect they now 'own' the server) but traffic and hosting are free (and yes this is the most cost effective way, just build a server every 12-18 months and donate it) And even then you are still looking at around $2000 a year, unless you know someone working at a server-farm, and can get a decent price. To put it into perspective a Counter-Stike server costs around $120/mo to rent, it runs on 1 server, that also runs about 4 - 9 other Counter-Strike servers, as CPU load on the server is low, server fps is over 120, and memory and bandwidth usage are also low. A Flashpoint / MFCTI 1.16 server: -Maxes CPU0 of any box known (as it ain't threaded) -Hammers the memory and FSB of said server -Thus no other game can be hosted on same box as they compete for memory bandwidth on dual / quad cpu servers -Uses a ****load more bandwidth than a Counter-Strike server -Have had quotes in excess of AU$250/mo just for hosting one I mean are these whining, complaining, leechers, helping to foot a $250/mo bill ? - No Then they can piss off, and host their own server, AND/OR build a wireless WAN community and host their own wireless servers. 12yo kids can simply not afford to play much more than a plain 32 player team deathmatch, and I doubt they can even afford a server for that, due to ongoing costs. We work hard, we earn the cash, we put all the effort in, and we take the complaints, we also provide advise on building a WAN cheaply so the high pingers all get < 15ms pings. Still they complain about their connection, and ruin it for everyone (as said above, 1 fool with bad connection means that everyone gets 'dodgy' data regarding that player) However (as said above) if that high pinger is footing the bill, the tables are turned. Get the hint ? Maybe you should donate some serious cash to the server you ping the fastest too. The kind gesture will get you far indeed. What do admins need to keep going ? - MONEY - Thats its really, unless you want to donate a 3.8 Ghz Overclocked server, or a high end Athlon 64FX

It doesn't say anywhere in the change history that it was fixed ? And it is still happening on a pure 1.96 server (all clients and sever are 1.96) only if 1 player as Driver/Pilot has a bad ping, it 'carries over' to the over players in that vehicle. I even explained how to recreate the error on a LAN. Try it, it was never fixed I know many issues with 1.85 joining 1.91 servers, but down here in Australia everyones server runs the latest Beta (that we can get our hands on) within 2 weeks of it coming out. Heck since the 1.92 to 1.94 netcode no 1.91 or below player could join, although heaps would try. I pitty the fool who doesn't update his software beyond 1.85. They even 'fixed' the terrain lighting in later betas, then made 1.96 an offical release candidate. Surely if it is a release candidate they are still taking bug submissions ?

Poll, does your server idle at 32 or 50fps ? Can't really make a Poll, so just post eg: If you are in lobby as admin or voted admin, and CPU load on server is 0-5% does '#MONITOR 1' report ? A) 32fps - 33fps B) 48fps - 50fps C) More than 50fps D) God No !!! - Less than 28fps in loby (for Xeons/Opterons use the CPU assigned that server if multiple CPUs are hosting multiple servers, as it ain't using 2 Opteron CPUs to get 50fps contantly as far as I can see) Personally for me it was 50fps, then without and addons being put to server it is suddenly 32fps I mean WTF ? Best I've seen was 55-56fps on a SuSe Linux Server that was idle (doesn't matter what CPU it had, it was not at 100% load in the loby) And to re-iterate, OFPR_Server.exe runs on around 6 threads, but if you use HyperTheading set affinity to CPU0 as the threads compete with each other, they do not co-operate and increase speed. Not doing so actually causes an effect similar to lag (it is not comms related, put appears to be at first glance) Ditto for Dual Opterons / Xeons, 1 server per CPU, not 1 server hosted over 4 CPUs with cache coherency causing more performance problems than benefits Cheers to anyone that posts useful info (eg: how to lock at 50fps maximum in loby, or offset in hex of the 50fps limiter in OFPR_Server.exe, etc) Would be nice to have Dual Operton or Athlon 64FX 2.6Ghz Winchester core server, with an unlocked FPS limiter, and idle the beast at 255fps, but prob only get 45fps-60fps in MFCTI

To isolate what part(s) of a system OFPR_Server.exe hammers when running MFCTI. (does it hammer plain MIPS, FPU/SEE or is memory performance of the utmost importance ?) The following link contains all the SANDRA 2004 SP1 CPU Benchmarks: Drystone (MIPS/ALU) & Whetstone (FPU/SSE) & Whetstone SSE2 http://www.users.on.net/~darkpe....RKS.xls I will post again with the memory benchmarks, but everyone knows the Athlon 64 + Dual DDR (various 3rd party chipsets), is a fair margin ahead of the Pentium 4 + Dual DDR (i875p, i865pe & select P4 SiS chipsets) The downside is, even though the Athlon 64 performs better in MFCTI (as far as I know, but the P4EE+2MB L3 cache *might* beat it out) the cost is too high for many. Thus mainboards using the decent SiS chipsets listed at; http://www.sis.com/products/index.htm#chipset ; are very good value combined with a Pentium 4. Of course any server should be tested with; http://memtest86.com ; and overclocked to perfection (without affecting stability, just make sure all components are solid) before being handed over to a server-farm, as the support (and hardware testing ability) of most of them leave much to be desired. Regards, Tabris.DarkPeace eg: Not the fastest around but a Pentium 4 overcloced with a 1000 FSB (+25%) with Dual DDR 500 (PC4000) (+25%) performs very well with its 8gb/sec peak of memory bandwidth using a i875p chipset based mainboard. This way the RAM runs in sync with the Northbridge, and reduces latency. A 1200 FSB (+50%) is very nice, but would require either Dual DDR 600 (PC4800) which needs a special RAM Booster unit (as seen at www.tomshardware.com) to attain such high memory speeds -OR- would require Dual DDR2 -OR- a RamBus chipset such as the SiS R659, to feed the 9.6gb/sec FSB (1200mhz) of the 50% overclocked CPU. I am currently unsure if Athlon 64 chipsets (and the currrent AMD-64 die) can handle such an overclock.

Yeah, but it helps anyone else, just 'browsing' the forums Maybe they are still subscribied to the post, prob not though...

I only meant use VPN as a temporary workaround. Forcing players to authenticate, with a username & password (per server) as well as a legit player-id (per copy of the game) would cut down cheating alot (but do this at the 'connecting to server' level, not force everyone to use VPN, it was just a comparison & a temp fix thats all. Also, where is the program that blocks faked ids ? -How does it know the id is fake, and not real ? -I am aware of some super long player IDs that are prob fakes Cheers, Tabris.DarkPeace

Horn being client side only ? Bug or Feature, or just on some vehciles Post any experiences below:

Certain nVidia drivers having no fog New version that detects this ? I am sure we all know the rest, and how it affects Multiplayer (eg: people cheating using certain nVidia drivers, on certain hardware to get no fog, and 'claim' they selected it based on benchmark score......pffffttt......how lame do they think admins are ?) Might also be some people unware they are even cheating ? Comments, New version that detects it on the horizon ?

Yeah all I need now is: -OFPR_Server.exe version -OS Version / type -Direct X installed on server -CPU / bandwidth, the basics from the end of flashpoint.cfg -Any other important detail But nice to know it idles at 50fps as it should I have seen some SuSe Linux server idle at 55fps before (and sustain it too) Just want the best of the best as a server, give it time, one day it will happen (just software holding me back, not hardware)

Oh yeah, remind myself (when I re-read these forums in 3 months) to block the known dodgy video drivers by adding CRC32 to the ban list, with an error indicating: "Possible Cheat Detected:" "The fog with the video driver you are using is not rendered correctly and thus a form of cheating, whether you know this or not, it is. It has been over 7 months since the video driver you are using was released, and many more stable versions that are compatible with all games are available. Please install latest video driver from http://www.nvidia.com, to continue playing on this sever. The reason this driver benchmarks higher, is because it does not render distance fog, and as such gives players a longer 'sharp' viewdistance in games, which is a form of cheating, anyway a 5% boost is not worth being banned from gaming, and makes games using fog look much better Regards, The AntiCheat commnuity" What do you think ?

NKVD (or anyone else) What files are changed to let them cheat, I'll add them to a CRC32 authentication when / if I ever get around to it. Eg: If someone updates their Direct X, I don't care if they can't play for a week or so until they update the 'CRC32 Server Authentication', when the 'new Direct X version' aware update is released (assuming I code one up) they will be able to play again. Not like Microsoft is releasing Direct X updates frequently. But at least 'my idea' of blocking cheaters actually works.

Double Post, so not extra stat: PS: I am not kidding about the VPNs either. Make your server double as a VPN server, host a webpage, make sure locals know about it, etc Sure beats having cheaters and strangers if you host on a private 'WAN' as such, as every single player is known by the admin, with their own username & password. To work around the invisible server issue, just host a 0 player server outside of the VPN, with just the web address of how to register as a player of that server. (Sure its more work for admins, it is only optional, and does add some lag, but it stops ALL CHEATERS, and any assholes get banned by ID, and also have no way to authenticate to the server) This may sound really complex, but in fact it is only a 90 minute job, and well worth it, even with the additional lag / overheads of a VPN. It can (to a degree) also ensure the player is not uploading or downloading anything (to cheat or otherwise) thus affecting their ping, and everyone elses 'perception' of that player, since once they join the VPN, unless they know how to edit their routing tables, they will lose internet access, and gain VPN only access. Its also good, as 'My Network Places' shows the shares on the server when they authenticate, and you can bandwidth control their usage (or host an FTP as normal, so they can use the Internet while downloading addons) Also to the above, we also need a Server Addon manager tool, that helps players remove old addons, setup (multiple) addon folders per server, etc, etc I am sure these 2 last posts will spawn HEAPS of FANTASTIC ideas

I am working on a CRC utility (with many uses) and eventually (give me a few months in C++) I may be able to setup an authenication that is far better than most games have these days. (Well better than Steam, but then again, what could be worse) Would be like joining a game hosted on a Virtual Private Network (VPN) just without stopping all other internet access to the user (it would work completely differently to this, just to the user the visual differences would be minimal) Eg: Username + Password + Player ID + CRC32 check of common files that server permits + Check for ANY extra files, and not CRC32 them, just deny access until they are removed, or moved to an addon folder. These days people make 1 (or more) Addon folder per server they play on (to avoid conflicts with Addons) and free resources on their systems for smoother gameplay. So I DO NOT see the "Check for ANY extra files, and not CRC32 them, just deny access until they are removed, or moved to an addon folder." part of authenication breaking anything. If you know of any other cheats, post em here, I keep my ears open, but what we really need is: 1) A cheating death for flashpoint (sure they can cheat undetected today, what about tomorrow, well tomorrow a lifetime ban is waiting) 2) A international register of all Player ID's and where they where last based by Country 3) The ability to record MP games, just like in goold old DOOM (I currently use a loopback video capture card at 720x576x25 fps and record to a raid array, JUST IN CASE, also good for OFPR Music Videos) (PS: Recorded game files are smaller than people think, and the admin could toggle it on/off silently to save even more space, the warning will deter most people, anyway who says recorded game files will be huge has no idea of the coding involved) 4) The sort of authentication above (or better) as outlined by myself (don't CRC32 everything, just the server required files, and if any extras are found, just drop the played until they sort their server addon collection. 5) A server addon collection manager, like OFPwatch 6) OFPwatch (get it now it rules), the next best thing to "join in progress" IMHO

Reason I ask is that the VBS1 ADFA Servers are running a 1.97 server core.....at least 2 of them are I know. Also if the X-Box version was not to have 'this lag vehicle bug' that has been ever present.... and is meant to be compatible with Flashpoint 1.96RC servers.... then why not just fix the bug in both versions and work on OFP2. It would not need much chaning, given the source I could pull it off (I think) within a month, if that (less with a team) I mean I paid for Gold, Resistance, GOTY, and I don't expect more support, but they did make some cash out of me :P, I woudln't mind seeing it go into 4 hours of coding. Anyways, I have a feeling that X-Box will not be hostable (who has the 4mbps upload they would need ?), then again if a bunch of 12yo get it for their X-Box, alot of server admins will want to ban or block all X-Box players straight out, and we'll find (or code) a way, IF they can even connect in the first place due to possible differences in netcode.

WTF ? Considering I posted this 2 days ago, was expecting at least 1 reply Oh well, I know 2 servers in Australia (Can't say which 2 though) that idle at 32fps, and everyone claims it is ment to idle at 50fps. Figured someone out there may have made a simple reghack, after finding out what causes it.

I made a post in Multiplayer about the 'Vehicle Lag' bug Dude its a bug, it can be fixed by code for sure, even if its a little dodgy, its still fair(er) Once implemented, high pingers will get to game again Also first impression are very strong, even a subtly high ping, and subtly low datarate, to an admin that has had a shit of a day will change their behaviour towards otherwise mature players. As your post was my 1st impression of you, you can see how the following chain of replies (above) occured. Deep down I know most players and not idiots and want to learn to become better players, etc, just 1 comment that is slightly 'less than friendly' can go along way. ***Hell I got banned from Suicide Soldiers*** because I built a hospital within 800m o their base, that they 'thought' was their hospital, and this took great skill on my part (no to brag, but this ain't a simple feat). I ran into their base, guns blazing, as one does, they killed me. Did it again 30sec, they killed me Did it 1 more time, they killed me, yet again All the death messages show in white with player name. At this time Suicide Soldiers did not know that Repair Trucks made from a Repair Facility can actually build the same hospital tent that the MHQ builds, without endangering the MHQ by driving it 5km away from defences. Bear in mind that there is also no such thing as spawn raping in MFCTI, as the objective is to infiltrate and waste the enemy base to win. The admin said I was 'respawn hacking' or some such shit (I built a hospital to spawn at that was not in their LOS) and 'respawn hacking' is impossible as far as I know, and I got a ban because the admin had not read the MFCTI manual (URL above) Now how is that for having a shit day. I mean WHAT ****ING LAME ASS CHEATS IN OFP ? Go back to Counter-Strike (I left at Beta 6.4 because of cheaters, and now its happening again) ,mmm, VBS1 costs a buckload of gold, and needs a hardlock USB key to play, I might buy it, as for $700 with a hardlock key, you are not going to fuck around and try to get banned from every server are you now, cheating is out of the question unless you can afford $200 every time you get banned ? Heck OFP2 better have a ban register, and the ability for the server to RECORD GAMES, so real cheaters get their key banned, with a $50 unbanning fee (always keep it 5% cheaper than a new copy) and with recorded games (like demo files for DOOM) those who are not cheating but the admin is swearing black and blue they are will not get a blacklisted from 20 servers because 1 clueless admin who never read the documentation available for a map told 19 other admins they where cheating. I mean FFS And thats why I LAN Someone cheats, I'll fucking throw their computer out on the street, and hose the fucker down at 2am (and his PC), if he gets violent I'll call the police and have him bailed up. Anyone asks, the 17 other players will say it was raining breifly at 2am, and the cheater left peacefully with his PC as far as we know.

I am harsh, all the way No just kidding, its just when 90% of people with pings over 175ms and datarate below 96kbps (international or not) are just out to RPG or LAW your MHQ in MFCTI, boom, instant ban, whether they think they know what they are doing or not. Last few MFCTI games I played, all I heard was get choppers, get choppers, and I asked people to leave AI in the larger towns (normally St Phillipé, Lammentin, St Pierré, all equal 1st place, and also in Morton depending on the version played) they just smacktarded around (the new ones) and the income was SFA (sweet **** all) because of it. We still won though ;) The servers are more community assets if anything, and if 90% of palyers don't read the manual at http://mfcti.sourceforge.net then everyone else suffers because of it. Generally its just better to kick the asshole than let a fight ensue, where everyone just packs up for the night and gets angry with the 1 or 2 losers who ruin the game for everyone. As for the places where broadband is not available for less than the cost of ADSl, you can setup a wireless WAN (no ongoing costs, with 5km+ radious per node), only costs about the same as ADSL inital setup free, just no ongoing costs. Why they are all crying like children is beyond me, they need to get up off their asses, and 'make it happen', instead of being leechers (defined above) Sorry if I sounded harsh, but the truth is hasrh, and THEY CAN'T HANDLE THE TRUTH, so they whine, and whine, and whine. And now.....well now...they have their own forum where they all 'play' and 'points' are 'awarded' by acting more immature and posting the longest bitch cry, and no real solutions to their problems are pro-actively discussed (sounds like work - lol) Oh well, got **** to install, cya round, Tabris.DarkPeace GarageLAN, ACT Australia

Run this: http://memtest86.com I think you have dodgy system component somewhere mate

BlackSkull, I recreated your error: It was caused by PIO4 (vs UDMA133,100,66,etc) being used when joining servers. What you need to do is go into DEVICE MANAGER, Check the : IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers : branch Double click Primary IDE Channel and Secondary IDE Channel Under the Advanced tab of each, there may be a setting that reads: Current Transfer Mode: PIO4 And not read: Ultra DMA Mode 5 (or higher) as 1 would expect it to on such a system. What size is your HDD, does it support UDMA100 or UDMA 133 ? To fix it you may need drivers. Email me using the email button on my post Happy to help you get the right driver installed.

Thats really weird, on my P4 Northwood (3000/1000fsb) box ever since 1.96 the AI planes appear smoother, and land more intelligently. Perhaps 1.96 uses a high speed timer for AI, and 1.91 and before used a lower speed timer for AI (just a thought)

Personally it would not surprise me if your PC has dodgy RAM, or the RAM was static charged by a junior tech during installation. Happens all the time. Dodgy RAM is far more common than people think, download http://memtest86.com and help stop this crime (Selling faulty goods is a crime) However if your mobo is Via, or SiS based, you likely need the drivers from the websites above (copying large files with incorrect drivers corrupts the target data, it is a known problem with early Via and some SiS southbridge chipsets, which a simple 2mb driver update can resolve) Usually you need to reinstall the OS if you just discovered your PC has this problem. To test for it: Make a 650mb WinRAR archive with protection Burn it to CD-ROM Copy it to your HDD Run the WinRAR - Test Archive If / When it fails it means you need to install the southbrige specific drivers correctly (or at all, if you never did) Note: Alot of wannabie techs are unaware they need anything more than a Windows OS CD, and Video and Sound drivers, and wonder why Windows crashes all the time. Fact is Windows is quite solid, just idiots not installing drivers is what makes it give weird errors all the time. (User fault, not software fault) Linux on the othe hand is 'packaged' with every know chipset specific fix in the kernal and other modules, thus it is more stable with less tweaking involved.

Try the following: Install the latest video drivers from http://www.ati.com or http://www.nvidia.com Install Direct X 9b Run CHKDSK /F from command prompt (or CHKDSK /R to check surface) if running Windows XP Run a standard memory test - http://www.memtest86.com (or an advanced one overnight with the RAMFADE test) Run Windows Update Check AGP Aperture in BIOS: - If you can't see it, press [Ctrl+F1] at main bios menu to enable very advanced options (its a trick us techies know) -Try ALL OF 32mb / 64mb and 128mb (do not give up try all 3) - Note: Using 256mb Aperture can cause issues Tip: Use F10, Y, Enter, to save & reboot common BIOS changes, breaking stuff in the BIOS is harder than people think, just don't tinker with your RAM timings without reading up on it. Install your latest reference chipset drivers: - Making a SANDRA report and showing a technically apt friend who knows the http://www.via.com.tw and http://www.sis.com websites is a a good start - SANDRA can be had for free at http://www.sisoftware.co.uk Try adding the -nomap parameter to your shortcut: - eg: Target: "H:\Games\Operation Flashpoint GOTY\FLASHPOINTRESISTANCE.EXE" -nosplash -nomap Start in: "H:\Games\Operation Flashpoint GOTY" Set your viewdistance to 900m; Set your textures to 256 and 32 for smoke; Does the problem go away ? Copy all the addons from the CD-ROM again (they are on GOTY disc 3, and a few are on disc 1) Failing that reinstall Flashpoint, and use only the correct patches (You only need 1 patch to go from GOTY to 1.96RC) Failing that undo any registry changes or 'System Optimisations' you have made (this is why change documentation is important) Failing that reinstall Windows XP, and make sure you use the correct system drivers (Never reply on outdated 'MS Certified' drivers for a home PC, they are rarely the most stable driver, and usually over 6 months old) Enjoy the stable game, and your more stable and faster computer.