Launching Internet server w/ Doom Explorer: end of my wits

[mrmatteastwood]

Hey guys!

First off, I just joined the forum and I'm happy to be here. Hope I can contribute a little in the future as well. For now, I have a string of questions though and I hope you can help me!!

I'm trying to launch a Zandronum server so I can play with my friends abroad. Testing it with my desktop and laptop PCs in my house. I am running into a plethora of issues.

• When I make a server on my desktop PC, it won't show up in the server list on either of my PCs. When I make a server on my laptop PC, it shows up in the server list on my desktop PC, but not the laptop. How do I make it so that the server gets found online by everybody?
• When I try to join a server that has a "connect" password on the same machine where I've created it, DOOM opens into the console, where I'm told "wrong password". It never prompts me for one, though!! Where do I put in the password to enter my own server?
• When clicking "Join Server", Zandronum asks me where my IWADs are. When I tell it, it asks me again. Endless loop. I have to manually put the path into the .ini to proceed. Is this a known issue?

Notes:
LAN servers work. But obviously, that doesn't help me when my friends aren't here.
Port 10666 is open in my router (the automatic forwarding option in Doom Seeker set it up properly).

I'm really at the end of my wits. All I want is to set up a server and play with friends. I've spent hours trying different configurations and options. I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Any ideas?

Thanks!
Matthias.

[Zalewa]

Hi.

First of all, there's a FAQ for hosting servers that explains a bit about the trouble with routers and seeing your server on LAN. See here: https://wiki.zandronum.com/Game_Servers_Troubleshooting
Get accustomed with "Custom Server" option in your server browser and add the other computer's address as a custom server.

When it comes to passwords, if you join your server through the server browser, it should prompt you for the password. If you wish to specify this password in the game, use the `cl_password` console command and then the `reconnect` command.

As for IWADs, you have several options:

1. Do as you did with the .ini file.
2. Launch the game through the server browser only, instruct the server browser where the IWADs reside.
3. Copy the IWADs into Zandronum's directory.

[mrmatteastwood]

Hey Zalewa! Thanks so much for your answers, they are really helpful and I did not know about that troubleshooting page from the wiki. I will probably have some time to look into this further today!

Quick follow-up question regarding custom servers though: how do I find out which IP address to give to my friends to add to their "Custom Servers" list? I see one at the bottom of the server window, is that the correct one? It looks a bit like a LAN IP address, but I'm really not very experienced with this, so it might not be.

One other thing I noticed: if I set a name for a server in Doomseeker or Doom Explorer and then launch, the server won't have that name. It'll have a name I've previously set. I need to change its name again in the server's own options menu. It's just minor of course, but it struck me as curious. Is that a known issue?

[mrmatteastwood]

Hey again! I solved the issue. I had the same port ranges forwarded for both my PCs, which seems to have caused a conflict. I opened 10666 UDP and TCP for one PC and 10667 UDP and TCP for the other, and since then, servers have been working from both machines.

I couldn't have figured this out without your links above and you pointing me in the right directions, so kudos to you!

[Empyre]

The IP on the bottom of the server window is what you put in your own Custom Servers list so you can see your own server. You can go here to see your global IP for your friends: https://www.whatismyip.com/

[mrmatteastwood]

Thanks! So it's as I thought. :-)