Multiplayer 1.11 bug

[Urko]

Hi again,

Around 7 players, including me, have tried repeteadly to play MP with the latest 1.11 patch (BOXE). We use Jarski's Improved 1936 mod, so our actual checksum is CNNI.

Our problem is that when we choose the scenario inside GR's hosting room, we'll always suffer at least one player unable to load the flags, causing a pop up to the host (the 'failed to compress' one), and the game starts to send all over the scenario to the player as with a corrupt save would. If we try a save game (either sent by host or manually uploaded to the net and stored by the players) instead of an scenario file, we get the same problem, with usually more than one player getting it bugged. Every time a guest gets the bug, his save game or scenario file .eug will get destroyed, reverting to 0 kb.

If we keep trying to reload, the bug will 'expand', never fixing itself (even if we manually send again a clean scenario.eug or a savegame between rehosts), with more players getting it at each reload, even if everything was fine for them a second before.

We tried fresh reinstalls of all the players and repeteadly deleting the config file, and the bug has been the same over 2 different session attempts so it is doubtful network has anything to do.

Also, we use the mod in a mod folder, cheating GR with the settings .txt. However, when players tried to overwrite the main folder to find out if it is related, the issue worked in the same way.

Any idea?

Thanks in advance,

 

[Urko]

Update: Once ALL did overwrite the main folder with the mod, it seemed to launch properly. We'll keep testing to see if this was *real* bug (an ancient one who woke up again) or maybe we discover we get the issue again instead -?-.

 

[PanssariPanda]

Early theory is that the file transfer when using moddir in Multiplayer game is severely bugged.

We shall hopefully perform final tests tomorrow with a big amount of players to eliminate some variables.

Reports will follow.

 

[Urko]

The issue was moddir on MP. We just overwrote with the moddir the main folder and used it as a modified AoD. MP worked right again, as usual,

We have been testing several loads (both a map and save games) this evening with many players, they all worked after our 'reform'. So the bug is moddirs' scenarios and save games get bugged (not always, but upon most loads) destroying the save game or scenario for the guests.

 

[Zsar1]

Mmh. I'll say, this is rather vile.
Something non-obvious might be left loading the vanilla directory instead of the moddir.

Can you reproduce this behaviour with any save file (e.g. one immediately after scenario start)?
If not, I'd like you to attach a save which has exhibited the problem. I assume the mod version is the same as here?

... The most vexing part is that some clients may load whereas some fail for the same save in the same round. There ought to be nothing non-deterministic in this process, so either all clients should fail or none...

 

[Urko]

Hi Zsar, for some reason I forgot to speak on this,

Yes, we could reproduce the behaviour with any save. Fresh ones, one exactly on day 1 or even without running one hour or any other, even saves that had previously worked once with less persons in the room did fail.

Regarding the fact one client did fail while others did not (at first, then bug would get expanded and make all clients get the save or scenario corrupted as well), we think it was related to part of us having a different folder structure in the moddir. It usually was with those clients that had a different structure than the issue began (but not always). Once all but one of us went "normalized" (that is, we used a fresh, completely overwritten by the moddir, install) the game worked properly. The other person (a guest) who did not overwrite the moddir and kept using it as a moddir, seems to place the save games as if every save was an scenario, and it works that way to him.

No sight of the bug during these months with our "normalized + 1 who locates saves to scenario folder" system.

 

[Zsar1]

Okay, last question (for now): Are two players enough to reproduce this?