Here are the steps involved in setting up your own Reckless Racing Server. One of the biggest disadvantages of playing Reckless Racing online is the lag. The multiplayer servers are based in Sweden and you're in the US, Australia, Japan, etc. You can set up a public server and host players in your local area. Here are the simple steps and some tips: First, download the server from Polarbit: http://www.polarbit.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/Polarbit_MP_server.zip Extract the files to a directory on your system (Server only runs on Windows based systems). You can read the Server Guide.doc file that is in the zip file to understand the setup and configuration. Edit the config.txt file with your preferred settings. Here are some tips with regards to the settings: Listener IP: Leave the IP address in the quotation marks. If you have multiple IPs, you need to enter your IP here, or just leave it as auto if you only have one active NIC. (Try not to use a wireless connection if possible, the server seems to have better performance with a system wired directly to the router/switch) Port: The default port is set very high at 19934. A lot of home routers will not recognize this port. I set mine in the 5000 range. Server Name: Name your server according to: 1. Country 2. Region of Country. eg. "USA - West Coast" Max Number of Users: The default is set to either 128 or 256. I lower mine to 54. The key to hosting a server is speed, if you host too many users, you'll likely begin to get some lag, so what's the point then? You may want to adjust this, but the server will have to be restarted to adjust. Note about Bandwidth: The general rule of thumb I've seen is that every 32 players consume a little over 1 Mb per second. That's equivalent to: 128 KB/ sec or about 1 MB every 8 seconds Firewall Holes: You need to create a firewall hole or virtual server on the port that you set up for reckless racing. So say you used port 5001, you'd need to open that port up on any and all firewalls between you and your public IP. DO NOT set up your system on a DMZ and and or disable your firewall. If you don't feel comfortable setting up your firewall with port forwarding or virtual servers, don't host a server. Locking the Server: You can lock the server which makes it so that new users cannot connect, but existing users can continue their games and continue playing against other players in game rooms, or in the lobby. Please lock the server a good 10-15 minutes prior to shutting down your server to give people a chance to drop off and finish their games. If your server is full and you want to hop in for a zero latency game over local WiFi, lock the server until somebody drops off, then unlock it and connect again.
how do you set firewall and stuff Edit: Nevermind...just how do you activate it... I made all the changes to the file...and don't know what to do now...
Connecting to the Lobby Launch it and it should say your IP doesn't match. Ignore the error, and you should see it say you are connected to the lobby. If it says not connected, you don't have the port you are using open through the firewall. Remember that you have to open the port in Windows firewall, and on the router you are using (Linksys, D-Link, Netgear, Etc.) to connect to the Internet.
Ports You need a port for users to connect to on your system. The port # is set up in the config file for your Reckless Racing Server. Firewalls by default do not allow a connection through that is initiated from the outside. Since users are asking to be let in through whatever port you specify, if there isn't a hole allowed through your firewall, it will reject them and you will have no users. Of course, you have to be careful to just open the port for your Reckless Racing Server or you could expose yourself to all sorts of nasties.
I changed the config file... what do I now.... I don't know what to do with the firewall...but I don't care about changing it. do I have to do anything with the other stuff on the polarbit folder thing.... Sorry for bugging you about this so much
PolarBit Server Just launch the Polarbit_MP_Server_0_4_5.exe file and it'll attempt to register with the "Lobby" over the port you specified. It'll likely give you an error related to your internal and external IPs not matching, but that can be ignored. It'll either connect and you should see people joining almost immediately in the server console, or you'll get an error saying it can't connect. If it can't connect, then you probably need to troubleshoot your firewall settings a bit more.
Finally!!! I get it now!! Thanks for the help!!! Edit: I launched it...but my firewall is blocking it. How do I access my firewall stuff? Sorry about the hype just now
My firewall is off (it always has been) and it still has the message about "Firewall won't let it through..." What do I do now?!
Firewalls Even though you may have the software firewall on your system turned off, depending on your configuration, you probably have a hardware firewall between you and the Internet. If you're at home you should have a router/firewall/switch such as a D-Link, Linksys, NetGear, or some other brand (especially since your software firewall is turned off). You need to configure this device with port forwarding so that an external user can initiate communication from the Internet to your system through the port # you configured (or the default port of 19934 if you didn't change this in the config file). If you're at a University or somewhere else where they control the firewall, you either would have to configure the server on a port that they allow through, or you are out of luck. Hope this helps. Doofrat
