So, I'm trying to get the ball rolling on an idea of mine, and I want to test how it works from different clients.
That means a server.
So, I set up the hub entry as per http://www.byond.com/developer/articles/publish.
I also added a verified zip (I even manually downloaded it just to make sure) of the game using the thread.
However, when I try to download it via the hub link, byond tells me "Installation of _________ failed".
Now I have no idea how to diagnose this problem as I have nothing to go on. The game runs fine locally, either directly run through dreamseeker or hosted and connected to locally via dream daemon.
Dream Daemon does give me the message "BYOND hub reports port 50515 can be reached by players." on hosting.
Both computers are using version 507.1286
Searching through the forums revealed only problems relating to BYOND software installation.
Any help is appreciated, thanks.
Aug 2 2015, 12:55 pm
|
|
Nadrew
  |
Without knowing the hub entry in question there's no way to really know what the problem is with the zip file you uploaded.
|
I assume you're referring to http://www.byond.com/games/BoneWhite/TK
It looks like you're hosting the file on dropbox, which I believe is now https-only. Currently BYOND only supports downloads over http (but there are plans to add https support in the future). Downloading from the ZIP link will work, because the web browser will handle the download, and any modern web browser supports https. If you're just interested in hosting the game yourself, you don't need to provide a download on the hub. That's just if you want to allow everyone else to host. To host it yourself, you just need to set the world/hub value in your code (and world/hub_password if you set one). If you do want others to be able to download it, you'll need to find a filehost that allows hotlinking files over HTTP. (one of the perks of a BYOND membership is also some file hosting space that can be used for this) | |
"If you're just interested in hosting the game yourself, you don't need to provide a download on the hub. That's just if you want to allow everyone else to host."
I'm obviously missing something here. What steps should the non-hosting computer/client take to join the hosted game then? It's not listed in the game list. Invite through chat window doesn't work. IP connect (from firefox) results in nothing happening except a prompt from firefox asking you which app to open with (BYOND of course). | |
For a player to join your server, it should be as simple as them going to the Three Kingdoms hub entry and clicking the "Play Now" link for your server.
If your server isn't appearing on your hub entry, check that you've set the corresponding hub path in your game's code: world That should match the Hub Path (under the game tab) and Hub Password (under the options tab) that you set when creating the hub entry on the BYOND website. (setting a hub password is recommended, as it prevents other people from listing fake servers under your Three Kingdoms hub, sending fake data to score listings, ect) If that all matches up and your server still isn't appearing, check that Dream Daemon and the BYOND client are allowed through your firewall(s). A firewall is also the most-likely culprit if users cannot connect to your server even though you get the "BYOND hub reports port X can be reached by players" message. | |
Alright, I got it to show as "play now" when it was listed as public and it works that way. Would've just preferred to have it private and just connect via a different method to avoid advertising a game in alpha.
Thankyou for your help, public and working is better than not working at all. | |
Oh, if you don't want it publicly listed, in Dream Daemon, change the visibility to "Private" (friends on your pager will see you as "playing" it) or "Invisible" (not advertised at all, only a direct link can connect).
Dream Daemon also has a Privacy tab, that will allow you to restrict logins to pager friends. To give players a direct link to your game, look right above the Port and Security settings in Dream Daemon, there should be a little label with "byond://xx.xx.xx.xx:xxxx". It's a BYOND world address with the IP and port of your server. Click that and it will copy to your clipboard, and then paste it and send it to your friends. It will become a link, and when they click it, it should open BYOND and connect to your server (assuming they already have BYOND installed). | |
Got it, working as expected now.
So, all in all, I was missing the hub password in the hub and on the server. That was causing all the problems. I didn't realise it was a necessity. Thanks again. | |